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"A Family Tradition for 126 Years" Snowmobile safe and sober | By Kelly Lown Port Perry Star The snowmobiling season will soon be upon us and the On- tario Snowmobile Safety Com- mittee is stressing a Ride Safe, Ride Sober campaign this win- ter season. The committee was estab- lished in 1990 because of the concern over the number of deaths and injuries occurring due to snowmobiling in Ontario. Between 1989 and 1991 a to- tal of 113 people were killed and 1,316 more injured in snowmo- biling accidents. The victims range in age from three to 68. Males accounted for 81 per cent "of all deaths and injuries. Close to 94 per cent of the fatalities were males, with two out of eve- ry three being between the ages of 15 and 34. Female snowmobilers suf- fered fewer injuries, but those killed or injured were in the same age range as the males. Sudbury had the highest number of fatalities between the 1988 and 1990 season with 15. Haliburton with 10, Algoma with nine, and Muskoka and Simcoe with seven each round- ed out thelist. Sixty-five of these fatalities occurred on lakes and rivers. The highest percentage of inju- ries were on streets and high- ways. Snowmobile trails are the safe way to go. Only three of 110 deaths between January 1, 1988 and December 31, 1990 oc- curred on trails. All these were the resultofan operatorerror. The circumstances of the fa- talities reflect the location of the snowmobiler. Thirty-seven per cent of the fatalities were drownings, with the remainder the result of severe injury. Six- teen were in collision with mo- tor vehicle, train or another snowmobile. The remaining 36 were single machine mishaps when a sled collided with a fixed object such as a tree or the oper- ator falling offand being thrown from the machine. The greatest percentage of ac- cidents occurred between the hours of 6 p.m. and 6 a.m. About 80 per cent of fatalities and 52 injuries occurred between these hours. more than 80 per cent of all snowmobiling accidents oc- curin the month of January. Excessive speed and alcohol are the two most prominent con- tributing factors in snowmobile mishaps. Thev were accounta- ble for 55 and 77 per cent respec- tively of 106 fatalities. Other mishap factors involved unli- cenced drivers and drivers who lost control of the vehicle. Peter North, the Ontario Min- ister of Tourism and Recreation and the members of the Ontario Snowmobile Safety Committee launched the "Ride Safe Ride Sober" and "Booze and Snow Don't Go" campaigns in Sudbu- ry on October 22. The campaign's budget has been increased from $50,000 to $125,000 for the upcoming sea- son. The committee is continu- ing its ongoing public education program about trail safety. New components including how to ride safely on ice and at night as well as the legal rules of the trail will be included in the program this year. The spokesman for this year's campaign will be Wendel Clark, captain of the Toronto Maple 'Leafs. ors. intention to turn to the right. and high energy food. in good running order. ing. coming riders. lights are working. right. mation, money for te shelter and wait for morning. drive alone. Tips to follow to ensure safe snowmobiling on lakes, roads and trails The Ontario Snowmobile Safety Council offers rules of the road, lake and trails for snowmobilers. Travelling roads: keep to your side of the road, obey all traffic signs and laws, expect vehicles to be parked on the road, don't stop on corners or the brow of a hill, make yourself and your machine visible by using reflectors and bright col- Travelling lakes: ice conditions can change quickly. Re- duce speed at night due to hidden obstructions such as docks which blend into the surface. It is easy to become disoriented in snow squalls and darkness. If you lose your way, stop until you regain your sense of direction. Leave the machine run- ning so thelights can be seen. When meeting oncoming traffic on the lake follow the rules of safe boating, indicate early your The Basic Trail Survival Kit includes the following: ba- sic tool kit that comes with machine, extra key, first aid kit, sharp pocket knife, saw or axe, 50 feet of rope, map, compass, waterproof matches, flashlight, whistle, sun blocking cream, lightweight aluminized blanket. On long rides or in deep snow include a pair of snowshoes, flares, emergency shelter The Motorized Snow Vehicles Act states every motorized vehicle on a highway from one half hour before sunset to one half hour after sunrise or in poor lighting conditions must be equipped with a white or amber front light and red tail lights The following are tips to bring you home safely. 1. Before setting out, check lights to make sure they are work- 2. Be sure lights are adjusted properly so they won't blind on- 3. Make sure reflectors aren't broken and that your brake 4. Slow down when you hear another snowmobile near you. 5. Always yield the right of way. It's better to be alive than 6.Stay on the trail, ungroomed land is filled with booby traps like shrubs, piles of loose brush, trees and fences. 7.Carry spare light bulbs, strobe lights or flares in case your electrical system fails and you want to mark your location. 8.Carry an emergency kit including personal medical infor- fephone call, matches, knife, compass, flashlight, paper and pencil, food and shelter. ' 9. If involved in an emergency, avoid travelling on foot in strange places at night. Stay warm, conserve energy, find 10. Never drive in unfamiliar territory at night, and never 11. If possible, wear reflective clothing. Durharn LOOSE RUGS Stearn || pROADLOOM Cleaning (JpHOLSTERY \ J 45 YEARS OF PERSONAL SERVICE UXBRIDGE 3 M Scotchguard RIDGE MEMOR Quality & Satisfaction assured by our own Written Guarantee 852-3472 SERVICE sbi tpi indy 108 BROCK ST. WEST 1rANSPORTATION BY REQUEST IAL COMPANY MEMORIALS OF DISTINCTION GRANITE MARBLE BRONZE CEMETERY LETTERING & RENOVATIONS CUSTOM DESIGNING & LETTERING HOME APPOINTMENTS AND Junior B ringette Whitby-Brooklin visited our arena on Sunday and delivered a resounding defeat to our girls. Port Perry opened the scoring on a goal by Kim Gardner, as- sisted by Lindsey Patton and Sarah Coyne. Whitby-Brooklin responded with the next seven goals. Port opened the second peri- od with a goal from Kim Gard- ner, assisted by Sarah Coyne. Whitby-Brooklin responded again with seven goals. The fi- nal outcome Whitby-Brooklin 14, Port Perry 2. Each team member per- formed well at their individual offensive or defensive tasks at different times during the 30 minutes of play but could not putit together as a team. Next game is 10 a.m. Satur- day, Nov. 7, against Markham at the Milliken Arena. Nr al This group of figure skaters took part in the Halloween Skate-a-thon at Scugog Arena on October 29. Pictured are from left: Leanne Barfoot, Kara Olsen, Sarah Ballagh and Marisa DiLisl. In front is Michael Brain. KELLY LOWN/PORT PERRY STAR Margaret Bruce and Paul Jewell were dressed in their Hal- loween best for the Port Perry Figure Skating Club's Skate-a- thon on October 29. Techstar loses 9-3 The Techstar Bantam Bs hosted a team from Whitby this week and came up on the losing end of a 9-3 game. Our team worked hard and out shot their guests in the first period, but Whitby plays fast aggressive hockey and were able to chalk up four unan- awered goals before the whistle blew to end the period. [n the second period our team seemed to get hungry for some goals and Matt Hobbs scored our first one when linemates Jon Jamieson and Todd Parry worked hard to get Hobbs into that scoring position. Within a minute Kent Taylor had picked the top corner of the Whitby net to change the score to 4-2. As- sists went to Greg Thompson and Matt Hobbs. Greg Thomp- son then did some fancy maneu- vering behind the Whitby net to poke in our third and final goal of the game. Our scoring spree lasted for three minutes, and even though Gord Bentley blasted a lot of shots from the blue line, he wasn't able to beat the Whit- by goaltender. The "play of the game" to- night, was when Matt Phillips of Port lost his stick and upon retrieving it he kept control of the puck while holding the blade in his hand. Jamie Trick was between the pipes for the Techstars and had some difficulties, but as coach Christie said after the ame, "we have to work on our defen- sive play to stop those shots."