Conestoga Valley Students Ace Safe-Driving Contest ; Teams From Lancaster, Lebanon Counties Compete

Staff Writer

jhainthaler@lnpnews.com

Conestoga Valley High School had the top individual scorer and the top-scoring team in a safe-driving contest for high school juniors and seniors held last week in Salunga.

At a driving range set up Thursday at the Lancaster County Public Safety Training Center, the teenage contestants demonstrated how well they could stop at a stop sign, pull into a parking space, parallel park and drive around cones set up in a serpentine pattern.

State troopers and police from East Hempfield, Manheim, Manor, West Hempfield and West Lampeter townships assisted at the event.

The teens also took an indoor projector test set up by the Pennsylvania Motor Truck Association.

Called a perceptual driving test, it involved getting a 10- second look at a traffic scene, followed by three true-or-false questions such as "The speed limit is 35" or "You are in a no- passing zone."

And they took a 30-question written test of their knowledge of the rules of the road as presented in the Pennsylvania Driver's Manual.

The point of the 21st annual Lancaster/Lebanon Safe Driving Competition for Youth was to address a statistic frightening to many a parent of teens: Motor vehicle crashes are the No. 1 cause of death for children ages 15 to 19.

And the competition is important because it highlights and recognizes "positive peer influences as far as safe driving is concerned," said Barbara Zortman, traffic safety specialist for the Center for Traffic Safety.

All high schools in Lancaster and Lebanon counties were invited to Thursday's competition, Zortman said, but it's getting more difficult to find someone to put together teams.

As recently as 14 years ago, the Lancaster/Lebanon competition drew teams from 13 high schools, far more than the four that participated last week. That's the result of the dwindling number of schools that offer in-school driver's education, Zortman said.

While regrettable, it's understandable, she said, given that it costs about $400 per student to provide driver's education and the state reimburses only $35 per student.

Malia Dickson, a senior at Conestoga Valley, was the top overall scorer, winning a $1,500 scholarship to a postsecondary school. The scholarship was provided by Lancaster-based State Farm Insurance agent Mel Carwile.

She finished first on the driving range and second on the written test.

Matthew DeVirgilis, an Ephrata High School senior, finished third overall, good for a $500 scholarship provided by Lancaster PMTA vice president Danny Good.

He also finished third on the written test and tied for first on the perceptual test with Conestoga Valley senior Matthew Latschar.

The other winner from Lancaster County was Tessa Boppel- Didyoung, a Conestoga Valley senior, who finished third on the driving range.

Three students each from two Lebanon County high schools and two Lancaster County high schools participated.

The top two individual scorers - Dickson of Conestoga Valley and Lebanon High School'sCameron Martin - will compete for a $5,000 scholarship in a state competition scheduled for May 13 in Camp Hill.

The Pennsylvania Safe Driving Competition for Youth, sponsored by the Motor Truck Association, will have about 25 competitors.