Celebrate Super Bowl safely

Football fans are gearing up for Super Bowl Sunday. Whether partygoers are Seahawks or Patriots fans, or perhaps just watching for the commercials and the Katy Perry halftime show, AAA Oklahoma is urging fans to prepare for the big game by designating a sober driver or arranging for alternate transportation. Fans don’t let fans drive drunk.

According to data from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, in 2012 there were 10,322 people killed in alcohol-impaired-driving crashes in the United States — 31 percent of all crash fatalities in the nation.

A driver is considered alcohol-impaired with a blood alcohol concentration (BAC) of .08 or higher, the legal limit in all states.

On Sunday, don’t become a tragic Super Bowl stat. And local police departments statewide are ramping up checkpoints and patrols to decrease the potential for drunken driving accidents.

“The Super Bowl is perhaps the biggest and most entertaining national sporting events,” said Chuck Mai, spokesman for AAA Oklahoma. “But drinking and driving is not a game – it’s a deadly and criminal combination. So make the right play. Before the party starts, plan how your guests will get home safely. If you’re attending a party away from home, be a safe and sober driver.”

The Super Bowl is a time for celebration but it is not a time to disregard safety. AAA offers the following tips for party goers and party planners.

Be a responsible partygoer:

• If you plan to drive, don’t drink.
• If you plan to drink, select a designated driver and give them your car keys. If you don’t have a designated driver, ask a sober friend for a ride home; call a cab, or stay where you are and sleep it off until you are sober.
• Buckle up—it’s your best defense against other impaired drivers.

Be a responsible host :

• Offer food and non-alcoholic beverages.
• Make sure all of your guests designate their sober drivers in advance, or help arrange ride-sharing with other sober drivers.

• Stop serving alcohol at the end of the third quarter of the game and begin serving coffee and dessert
• Take the keys away from anyone who is thinking of driving while impaired.
• Be first a friend, then a host.