From a press release issued by Infineon Raceway:

Notable Bay Area Bartenders/Restaurant Owners Ready to Drink and Drive at Infineon Raceway

NEWLY-ELECTED SANTA CLARA COUNTY SUPERIOR COURT JUDGE TO SERVE AS GUEST SPEAKER AT ANNUAL HOLIDAY EVENT

SONOMA, Calif. – The people who typically pour drinks will be on the receiving end on Friday, Dec. 17, during the 8th annual “Holiday Sobriety Challenge” at Infineon Raceway.

Some of the Bay Area’s notable bartenders and restaurant owners will be drinking and driving at Infineon Raceway, all with the full blessing of the California Highway Patrol and other law enforcement agencies. The event, which will take place from 11 a.m. – 2 p.m., will feature a controlled wine and beer tasting experiment that will graphically illustrate how alcohol consumption affects driving performance, even at levels well below the legal limit (.08-percent).

Teresa Guerrero-Daley, a newly-elected Santa Clara County superior court judge, will be a guest speaker at the event, as will Captain Jim Leonard, Oakland CHP, last year’s chairman of Avoid the 21 in Alameda County.

The event has featured different twists over the years, as Bay Area police chiefs, mayors, senior citizens and celebrities have taken the test. This year, bartenders/restaurant owners from notable establishments will take the test, and for good reason. The hope is that these people will leave Infineon Raceway with an added appreciation of how alcohol can severely impair driving ability.

The experiment will raise awareness for the Bay Area Regional Avoid effort for the holiday season, which begins Dec. 17 with DUI checkpoints throughout the nine Bay Area counties, as well as roving DUI enforcement. Later in the day, following the Holiday Sobriety Challenge, law enforcement officers will report to sobriety checkpoints and DUI saturation patrols. Bay Area Regional Avoid is comprised of all 125 law enforcement agencies in the nine Bay Area counties, and the message is clear: If you are planning to consume alcohol, be sure to have a designated driver.

“Sobriety Checkpoints have proven to be an effective tool in reducing alcohol-involved crashes,” said Sunne Wright McPeak, secretary of the Business, Transportation and Housing Agency. “They are a critical part of any comprehensive DUI enforcement program – and that translates into saved lives.”

The following restaurant owners/bartenders are set to participate in the challenge:

* Jim Bril, owner, Fior d’Italia restaurant in San Francisco.

* Michael DiBenedetti, owner, Amante restaurant in San Francisco.

* Paul Spadaro, owner, Steiner’s Tavern in Sonoma.

* Bud Schuerman, owner, Town Square in Sonoma.

* Mark Elzie, bartender, Shanghai Kelly’s/Northstar Cafe in San Francisco.

* Christopher Digmon, bar manager, McCovey’s Restaurant in Walnut Creek.

* Two bartenders, Ernesto’s/Zòcalo in Sacramento.


Statistics within the Bay Area reflect a need for programs such as the Holiday Sobriety Challenge. Alcohol was involved in 165 collision-related fatalities in the nine Bay Area counties in 2003, up from 162 fatalities in 2002. This marks the fifth consecutive year there has been an increase in fatalities. Statewide, alcohol was involved in 1,445 collision-related fatalities, up from 1,416 in 2002. Figures used have been supplied by the California Highway Patrol.

The participants who will take part in the experiment at Infineon Raceway will each be served wine or beer upon arrival. After consuming the alcohol, testers will then be taken through a series of field sobriety tests by law enforcement officers, including a Breathalyzer analysis, before being asked to drive around a pre-determined course at speed. They will be joined in the cars by instructors from the ESPN Jim Russell Racing Drivers School for safety. Nearly 70-percent of those who have taken the Holiday Sobriety Challenge over the last four years have failed.

In addition, other participants in the challenge will include college students, working professionals, retirees and media personnel.