Rider Insurance & Abate of Ohio Promote Safe Motorcycle Riding

Hilliard, OH – Rider Insurance and ABATE of Ohio have teamed up to promote safe motorcycle riding throughout Ohio with their Impaired Riding Program. The purpose of the program is to educate motorcyclists on a peer-to-peer level at various events throughout the state about the effects of impaired riding due to alcohol-related activities. The ABATE of Ohio booth will have portable breathalyzers that can be used to test individuals, B.A.C. (Blood Alcohol Concentration) cards that show the safe zone if alcohol is consumed, fatal vision goggles that can be tried on to imagine what it is like to function while intoxicated, and support materials.

According to the Ohio Department of Public Safety’s statistics for 2008, 77 of the 212 motorcycle fatalities involved an impaired rider. Statewide, law enforcement is cracking down on impaired riding in an effort to reduce the number of alcohol-related fatalities. As two organizations that care about the motorcycling community, Rider Insurance and ABATE of Ohio decided to help reduce this number on a peer-to-peer level.

ABATE of Ohio launched the program the first Saturday of Ohio Bike Week in Sandusky, OH. During that first day, 53 B.A.C. cards were handed out and over 70 people put on the goggles and experienced the effects of alcohol on both their vision and coordination. Many of those people thanked ABATE for the program and stated that they thought it was a great idea. The program is scheduled to be at ABATE of Ohio, Region 5’s Wooley Eagle Dirt Drags in Hillsboro, Ohio August 15th. For a list of other upcoming ABATE events, please go to www.abate.com.

Rider Insurance, through the June Bleiwise Memorial Foundation, is a very proud sponsor of the program. Rider’s founder, Harry Bleiwise, set up the Foundation in 1995 to provide funds for various motorcycle charity events and programs for great causes. Rider is an insurance company for riders, by riders and supports the motorcycle community and their charities through donations and sponsorships of numerous events and programs throughout the years.
For more information on Rider Insurance, call 800-595-6393 or visit www.rider.com.
For more information on ABATE of OH, call 1-800-25BIKER or visit www.abate.com.