Fear This, Inc., a nonprofit organization, has announced that Caroline Wade, Miss Teen Georgia, has become a spokesperson for the company’s driving program.
Fear This, Inc. is directed at helping inexperienced teen drivers gain a better understanding of accident avoidance skills.
Based on the Emergency Vehicle Operations Course (EVOC), which is internationally known for police training for all levels of law enforcement, the Teen Vehicle Operations Course (TVOC) uses Peace Officers Standard and Training Council Certified EVOC instructors.
By learning first-hand from police academy instructors, licensed teens learn how to react in an accident situation. The course also teaches teens how to safely respond in other emergency situations, something Miss Teen Georgia will be participating in herself.
Two days after Wade had been crowned she was en route to an interview. Due to a flat tire, she lost control of her car at 70 mph. With her father, who was in the car ahead of her, watching in his rearview mirror, Wade spun out of control, striking the guardrail, bouncing back into the highway and back into the guardrail again before coming to a stop. Fortunately, neither she nor any other motorists were injured.
“This is exactly the type of situation that can happen to anyone,” Dan Wade, a Lieutenant with the Atlanta Police Department and Caroline’s father, says. “I have been with city of Atlanta Police Department for 28 years and have done course study in traffic accident investigations on teens involved in accidents, so I know how devastating this can be to parents. Georgia ranks No. 5 in the nation involving teens in traffic fatalities. We are very fortunate that nothing serious happened to Caroline, but it’s the perfect example of a young driver not having the experience to handle a situation that requires quick thinking.”
“I was very, very lucky,” Wade says of her accident. “I could have just as easily been killed. If I can help kids learn how to be safer and more prepared drivers, I will feel a huge sense of accomplishment.”
There are five exercises to the TVOC program; Threshold Braking addresses the difference between anti-locking and conventional brakes; Expansive Maneuvers is a course that takes menacing drivers, weather conditions and distractions into consideration, and two cone courses educate the drivers on the logistic of the vehicle itself and the relationship between the driver and the vehicle. To date, the brainchild of Woodrow Gaines has trained more than 2,300 teens.
Schools and youth groups facilitate the workshops, and the programs have caught the attention of various municipal courts in the Atlanta area. In some instances first time offender teens are ordered to take the course. It is also the only advanced training course for teens endorsed by John Oxendine, State of Georgia Insurance Commissioner.
Teens who complete the course are given a Contract 4 Life—a pledge between the teen and his or her very existence that commits them to a dedication of safety, not only to themselves but also to others who share the roads.
Wade will attend numerous events throughout the year on behalf of Fear This, Inc. She will also participate at this year's Atlanta Police Department Cops and Rodders Drivers Safety Fair and car Show, held at the Atlanta Expo Center March 20. The fair focuses on safe driving for teens. The car show, with award plaques and trophies for class winners, features retired and active emergency vehicles, classics, street and rat rods, trucks and motorcycles.
All proceeds go to Georgia Special Olympics. For more information on Cops and Rodders call (404) 209-5260.
Visit www.fearthis4life.org for more information.
