Press Release
MAY IS MOTORCYCLE AWARENESS MONTH
New Car Game Created by Colorado Organization Helps Raise Awareness of Bikers, Teaches the Next Generation of Drivers to SEE Bikers
DENVER: Rider Justice, an organization founded to champion biker rights and safety in Colorado, has created a new car game for kids – along with a sharable video – to raise awareness of motorcyclists. The video has been timed to launch just in time for Motorcycle Awareness Month.
Called, “Rider UP!” the game challenges car passengers to be the first to spot a motorcyclist and yell its location in relation to the car. “Rider LEFT! Rider RIGHT! Rider BACK! Rider UP!” The player who spots and yells first is the winner. The goal is to have auto passengers help drivers locate nearby bikers, and to also train future drivers to look for and see motorcyclists on the road.
“I grew up playing Punch Buggy or Slug Bug, punching my siblings every time we spotted a VW bug,” says Scott O’Sullivan, founder of Rider Justice. “I’ve always wanted to create a game for kids that raised awareness of motorcyclists and even bicyclists on the road… except without the punching, which can add another level of distraction for the driver.”
Often, after an accident involving a car and a motorcycle, the car driver says, “I didn’t see him!” As described in an article by Auto Wise:
“The problem isn’t about looking. It’s about looking properly. A quick glance simply isn’t good enough. In fact, two quick glances in either direction aren’t really good enough either. A driver could have the keenest eyes in the world but they’d still fail to detect an approaching motorcyclist if they’re not looking with intent. It’s not about the quality of the human eye – it’s about lapses in the brain.
“This phenomenon is called saccadic masking. In short: the brain selectively fails to process certain eye movements, and replaces them with a very recent memory. Why does it do this? Because if we actually saw what our eyes were processing, it would be a blur. Confused? Give this great video from the Alliance of British Drivers a watch, and it will explain everything in a clear and concise way.”
Therefore, the key is for drivers to start looking for motorcyclists with intention every time.
“Our goal is for this game to become as ubiquitous as Slug Bug,” says O’Sullivan. “If we can train the next generation of drivers to look with intention for motorcyclists on the road, we will absolutely save lives.”
To speak with Scott O’Sullivan or any of the bikers featured in the Rider UP! video, call: (877) 562-9425.