On December 10 and 11, the Stroudsburg High School hosted a driving under the influence/distracted driving simulator.
Three volunteers from the Lehigh Valley Health Network Hospital came to run a technologically advanced driving simulation. Four desktop computers were connected to a steering wheel and pedals that mocked the inside of a vehicle.
The wheel included levers such as turn signals and buttons to look left and right. There was a brake pedal located near the left foot and a gas pedal located on the right. Installed on the desktop, three modules were available for the driving simulation. Students could practice the simulation or drive distracted or impaired. Once they selected distracted driving, they played the game and had to pass without getting distracted.
Alongside the computer simulator was a station that mimicked walking under the influence of alcohol or cannabidiol (CBD). Students walked on a piece of tape with drunk goggles to mirror the “walk-and-turn” portion of the field sobriety test that police make you do when you get pulled over. Drunk goggles simulate the visual impairments of alcohol and drug intoxication.
According to alcoprevention.com, your vision becomes blurred and sometimes doubled. Your peripheral vision reduces, and your reaction time slows. Balancing gets difficult due to the lack of coordination and confusion that alcohol or CBD causes. The purpose of this exercise is to fail. Simple tasks become extremely difficult, so it demonstrates the dangers of impaired driving and substance abuse.
The Varsity Sports Club had members come for the event to help out the LVHN volunteers. The students met the presenters in the high school’s main lobby, helped carry equipment to the gym lobby, set up the simulators, broke them down, and cleaned up.