Students experienced firsthand the risks of driving drunk Thursday in the LSU Union.
As students walked into the Cotillion Ballroom, they were greeted by the sight of hulking machinery, several television screens and the road crew of the Save a Life tour.
The Save a Life tour, a production of Kramer International, Inc., stopped at LSU as part of its nationwide tour to make students more aware of the dangers of mixing alcohol and driving.
The tour includes a miniature test-drive simulator and a larger, more complex simulator complete with five screens, side and rearview mirrors and the dashboard of a car.
J.P. Sniadecki, a road crew member, said the machines “simulate what happens with your brain synapses when you are drunk.”
Sniadecki said students usually enjoy the tour and find it informative. He said although some students joke about the exhibit, “the jokes stop” when they see the dangers of driving drunk.
Chad Fisher, a civil engineering freshman, began by taking a test drive to get used to the system.
He then climbed into the driver’s seat and attempted to drive through crowded city streets as his reaction times increased by the second.
Other students gathered around the large-screen television to watch Fisher’s car make its way through the virtual city streets. Students also caught glimpses of Fisher’s reactions through the camera stationed above the dashboard.
“It was very realistic,” Fisher said. After swerving all over the road, Fisher had a fatal crash with a bus, ending his session.
Fisher said he thinks “people that do drive drunk will learn a lot from this.”
Greg Harris, a biological sciences freshman, said the exhibit gave a “good representation” of what it is like to drive drunk.
“Driving drunk is pretty hard,” Harris said. “You shouldn’t do it.”
The Save a Life tour stop at LSU was sponsored by the Wellness Department of the LSU Student Health Center.
Kim Munro, a Wellness Education coordinator at the Student Health Center, said the goal of the simulator is to give students a personal perspective on the risks of driving while intoxicated.
“A fatality on the simulator is obviously better than a fatality on the road,” Munro said.
She said she hopes this new twist on a “very old and cliche” message will impact those who continue to drive drunk.
Munro said with Mardi Gras approaching, the timing of the event is particularly appropriate.
“High-risk drinking behaviors are an issue of concern on the majority of college campuses in the nation, and LSU is no exception,” Munro said.
She said she thinks the exhibit will cause students to give the issue more thought and also think ahead.”Make a plan in advance so that no one who is drinking is driving home,” Munro said.