Teen Driver Safety

Parents and Peace of Mind

2011-03-21T07:32:00.000-07:00

What a misnomer, right?

For most parents, the hardest part of having a teenager old enough to drive is allowing them to drive on their own. Are they ready? Or bigger question…Are Mom and Dad ready?

Yes, they have had a year of supervised driving and are showing all the outward signs of a responsible driver, but some parents just can’t hand the keys over. Is there a way to give teens freedom of the open road while allowing parents to have some “backseat driver” control?

Absolutely! Now with GPS technology, parents get the peace of mind they need and teens get the opportunity to hit the road without mom and dad riding shot-gun. One product that many families are utilizing is called DashTrac. DashTrac is a small GPS tracking device that simply plugs into the OBDII port (located under most steering wheels). The web based interface makes it simple to track the vehicle in real time. Aside from simply knowing where vehicle is, DashTrac aids in monitoring safe driving habits by holding teens accountable for their driving actions. And that's not all!

Basic tracking, true speed, speed alerts, geofence alerts (set when the vehicle enters a pre-determined location ), history reports (breadcrumb trails) and even routine maintenance alerts are all at parent's finger tips. DashTrac is one of those products parents just can’t live without!

Are Lead Foot Drivers Killing Your Gas Mileage?

2011-03-16T12:54:00.000-07:00

Anyone with service vehicles in the field every day probably gets that nagging feeling in their gut as soon as vehicles hit pavement. It’s a lot like the feeling you get when your teenager gets behind the wheel. While you may trust your drivers and hopefully have proper insurance (just in case)....

How do you know your drivers are behaving in a safe and responsible manner?

DashTrac can help! DashTrac is a small discreet tracking device that simply plugs into the vehicle's OBDII port. (Under the driver’s side dashboard).Once activated, you’re tracking within minutes. Start with simply tracking your vehicle and expand to maintenance alerts and much more.

Aside from simply knowing where vehicles are at any given time, DashTrac aids in monitoring safe driving habits. Excessive speed causes undue wear & tear, puts all drivers at risk, and literally kills your gas mileage.

Who can afford that at today’s prices?

Fact is; a monitored driver is a safer driver. Lower your exposure to speeding violations and use documented driving behavior as a coaching tool. DashTrac shows:

• True Speeds

• Hard Stops

• Jackrabbit Starts

• Heartbeat (When ignition is off, DashTrac will report daily with a heartbeat from the device to inform users of its operational status and location.)

And that’s not all! DashTrac also provides customized reports, alerts, maintenance updates, history reports (breadcrumb trail). A small, yet powerful tool that identifies drivers who may have a lead foot AND so much more!

Distracted Driving?

2011-02-15T13:23:00.000-08:00

Teens are known to be distracted BY EVERYTHNG. The radio, cell phones, dropping a cigarette, putting on make-up, fixing their hair, texting, cute member of the opposite sex walking down the sidewalk, chickens...

And there's the occasional bee flying in the car window. I remember that one myself. After 40 years of trying to convince him, my dad still doesn't believe I drove into a field because of a bee.

Truth is, nothing can keep teens from being distracted except physically riding in the car next to them - and even then, they'll tell you that YOU are distracting.

The next best step is knowing where they are, and paying attention to their overall driving behavior. You can coach behaviors that are risky and provide positive reinforcement when rules are followed.

DashTrac helps. Check out http://www.wheresmyteen.com/

Precious cargo coming thru...

2011-01-21T12:26:00.000-08:00

As parents we have all wished at one point or another, that we could embed a GPS tracking device into our kids so we can track their every move. Each morning we help get the ready for school and in most cases rush them to the bus stop with a few seconds to spare (if we are lucky). The bus pulls up and off they go...but who is tracking the bus? Actsoft, inc. combines GPS and wireless technology that enables schools to know where buses are at all times.

Transporting out most precious cargo to and from school requires an amazing feat of logistics with plenty of challenges.

However, with Actsoft's technology those resources can be managed with ease:

On board sensors monitor safety compliance

Interfaces with established routing systems

RFID capabilities captures rider attendance

Meets bell times with ease

Sends weather or safety alerts to all buses at once

Monitors "planned vs. actual" routes driven

With Actsoft, buses in the field, employees in the office and parents can gain peace of mind when asking the question "Where exactly is that bus?"

Vacation for Mom and Dad...but what about the kids?

2011-01-07T07:47:00.000-08:00

So you and your spouse are finally getting that vacation that you deserve. Bags are packed, tickets are printed everything is ready to go. The only thing left to do is get a good night's sleep so you can hit the road early the next morning. Problem...as soon as you close your eyes that overwhelming sense of nervousness comes over you. Will the kids behave while you are gone? Of course you have gone over the house rules 100's of times with your teenager, but how will you really ever know if they abide by their curfew? Because they promise to be good? Unfortunately, that just may not be enough to put your minds at ease. Did they get home on time, or are they out and about driving around until all hours of the night? Yes, you trust them, but wouldn't it be easier to relax if you knew they were safe and sound at home when the clock strikes curfew time? But how can you know for sure? If you could only track them? DashTrac is a gps tracking device for vehicles and can tell you not only what time your teen got home, but also where they have been. Just plug the small device in the car's OBD port (under steering wheel) and let the good times of YOUR vacation roll without the worry of where your teenager is. The user friendly interface makes it simple to log in, check on the kids, and get back to vacation time!

Maybe I'm Creepy

2010-12-21T13:41:00.000-08:00

I think we can all agree that there is a thin line between careful and creepy. GP tracking your teen's car might be considered “creepy” to them – but it’s a cheap way to ensure your own peace of mind.

Truth is, teenagers don’t like additional oversight. The thrill of autonomy that goes along with being solo behind the wheel of a 3000 pound automobile is exhilarating. The world is your oyster. Nobody can “rule” you.

Any parent will agree that teens need more oversight than any other living organism. It’s a medical fact that the frontal lobe of their brain, the part that regulates common sense, doesn't quite function at 100% yet. As parents, we are generally helpless. There are times when the fear of our child being hurt takes our breath away.

Traffic accidents are the leading cause of death in 16-19 year olds.Why wouldn’t a parent want another tool that gives an additional element of safety? It certainly can't hurt.

DashTrac lets parents spend a little more time in the virtual passenger seat without ruining the thrill of independence. GPS tracking lets you know where the car is at all times and what type of driving behavior your child exhibits.

If your kid is Houdini (which many of them are) the nice thing is – AT LEAST YOU KNOW WHERE THE CAR IS.

Monitored Drivers Are Safer Drivers

2010-11-01T09:32:00.000-07:00

Say what you will, but when someone knows they're being watched, they are less likely to do bad things.

San Diego alone reduced the number of car accidents caused by drivers who run red lights by 44 percent in areas with the cameras. At the same time, red light running auto accidents increased by 14 percent when the camera program was suspended.

Do we really think having a GPS tracking device in a teenager's car won't help them to be more responsible drivers? I know for a fact that my child drives more responsibly when he knows he is being watched. We're past the point of me wanting to know where he is at every moment, but we both like to know where his when he's lost!

DashTrac is economical peace of mind.

DashTrac Announces Landmarks and Geofence Violation Alerts

2010-10-08T14:16:00.000-07:00

Imagine if you could get an email alert when your son or daughter entered the school parking lot. And another one when they left? Better than that – if you could also get an alert if the vehicle breaches its “virtual fence” during school hours?

Landmarks and geofences are a wonderful thing. A landmark is point of your choosing. DashTrac gives the ability to draw a circular perimeter around that point. So, say you want to “landmark” your daughter’s boyfriend’s house, you will receive an alert when her vehicle breaches that circle. A geofence is the actual circle. The options are unlimited. The basic choices are easy.

KEEP IN: Set up the geofence to alert you during specific hours if the vehicle leaves the predetermined zone. Geofence the school, spouses’ place of work (yes, sorry to say, people do that!), your company during work hours, etc.

KEEP OUT: Set up the geofence that sets off an alert if Sally visits Johnny’s house on a school night. Got a particular problem with your employees sneaking off to a local hangout during business hours? BUSTED!

Landmarks and geofences – with alerts - are unique to DashTrac. It's all validated with GPS accuracy using a small GPS tracking device that fits easily into a vehicle's OBD port. Find out more by visiting http://www.dashtrac.com/.

Get up to $100 off DashTrac for a limited time only by using the coupon code: TEENS.

Where's my car?

2010-09-17T07:11:00.000-07:00

Great news recently released by USF. Proteins released by people with rheumatoid arthritis dramatically reduce Alzheimer’s pathology, and when administrated to mice, actually reversed memory impairment. Researchers found that this protein (GM-CSF) stimulates the body’s natural scavenger cells to attack, and even remove, Alzheimer’s deposits in the brain.

Mathematically it also means those of us with aching hips will likely never suffer from the debilitating effects of Alzheimer’s. And now I have no medical excuse for the fact that I can never find my car at the mall. It’s totally genetic. And I don’t take after anyone strange.

My mother once called the police because her car was stolen. While they were filling out the report, the car was “recovered” from behind our bank building, where in fact, she had parked it. Once I found her keys in the freezer. Then there was the time she drove home from the local pool with my little brother on the car roof. He managed to hold on to the luggage rack for 5 miles.

If you have never suffered the humiliation of riding around for two hours (every side of Dillard’s) in the parking lot security cart, clicking the panic button on your key alarm, praying that something happens – you really haven’t lived. Especially if it’s over 100 degrees outside and there’s a pungent Chinese restaurant dumpster on the route. Over and over….

Embrace GPS tracking technology! DashTrac is so accurate. If I lose my car, I can call ANYONE to find it for me online. Sorry, Mall Cop. Our relationship is over.

MORE Proof that teenagers are amazing!

2010-08-19T12:29:00.000-07:00

Imagine having a person you don’t trust in charge of the thing you love most. That’s my definition of parenting a teenager.

The president of our company has a DashTrac on his son’s car. The child KNOWS it’s on his car and he STILL does stupid things! Kids amaze me.

One evening last week he told his parents he had a meeting at work, so he needed to go to the mall (where he works) for this very important, mandatory employee meeting. He assured his parents it would probably last an hour, which meant he was scheduled to be home at about 9:30pm.

This kills me. At 9:30 he calls his sister’s cell. “Tell Mom and Dad my meeting is gonna run late. There’s nothing I can do about it.” OK folks, let me repeat that he KNOWS the DashTrac GPS tracking device is on his car.

Then he commenced to leave the mall, in his car, with the tracking device – and head to the local bar district. All the while his Dad was watching the entire maneuver via home computer.

Nobody is immune. Everyone with a teenager lives with a terrorist version of someone that they love very much.

Rudy On The Move

2010-08-13T12:07:00.000-07:00

I hate to sound like some old drunk at the end of the bar, but when I went to college I didn’t have a car. I didn’t have an American Express card and I didn’t have parents paying tuition. Know what I had? I had a scholarship, snow boots and a clue.

Dammit Rudy ran out of travel budget. Translated that means he spent his card to the limit and now it won’t work. I’m pretty certain he’s out of gas somewhere between Maryland and Alabama, but can’t really bet on it, because I don’t know exactly where he is. Once again, I will rely on the kindness of strangers and the grace of God to get the world’s most clueless human back to college.

At what point do you just install a GPS tracking device on your child’s car and make them live with the consequences? In reality, it’s more for my sanity than his safety.

I will get even. When I get old there's gonna be a Silver Alert out on me every day.

Rudy Strikes Again

2010-08-09T10:05:00.000-07:00

Who drives 600 miles to an unknown destination, breaks into a house that might be his sister’s (based on a photo of someone that looks like her roommate and a Dark Crystal video) and falls asleep on the couch? Dammit Rudy.

“I didn’t really break in. The window was easy to force open.” Not exactly what I wanted to hear. Either my daughter lives in constant danger of some maniac breaking into her house or my son is sleeping on some nice people’s couch. Either situation is cause for concern.

After his nap he made it to a coffee shop around the corner to borrow another Good Samaritan’s phone to call me. I guess it was time to call his sister and confirm her address. Only he didn’t have her phone number. You can’t make this stuff up.

So, if you have a photo of a brunette in your house and are a Dark Crystal fan, I apologize if my child slept on your couch. He’s harmless. And basically clueless. Don’t forget, phoneless.

If he doesn’t get his dominoes in a line, he’s gonna be carless. I can’t take much more.

Are You Kidding Me?

2010-08-04T12:27:00.000-07:00

Dammit Rudy. Now he's in Maryland.

No cell phone (can't find the charger) and armed with a GPS for Dummies. He spontaneously drove from Alabama to visit his big sister before college starts.

Apparently the fact that he didn't have her address or phone number was no deterrent to the sheer joy of taking a trip.

So at 4am I get Raj from some random convenience store in Maryland calling my cell phone. "Is this Rudy's Mom?" Nope. It's Howard Stern. Of course it's Rudy's Mom. (I have a charger.)

Raj was kind enough to hand the phone over to my child. After driving for ten hours, Rudy realized that he had no idea where he was going.

How much is a GPS for Idiots?

Are You a Driving Role Model For Your Teen?

2010-08-03T06:47:00.000-07:00

Are you teaching your teenager bad driving habits? I complain about my son all of the time, but this morning it hit me. I have contributed to the driving mess he is.

A recent survey sponsored by AAA and Seventeen magazine revealed that 86% of teens admit to driving while distracted. What amazed me were the distractions. Music, food and cell phones. Adults are no less guilty of the same, and I fear we have sent the wrong message to these kids from the very start. We are a generation of muli-taskers, and driving isn't a sacred single-task event.

Think about it. From the time my son was born, I have managed to tend to his needs while driving. Seriously. Is there a mother out there that can't find a binky under the passenger side seat going 60 down the highway with a ba-ba in her other hand for back-up?

I saved my two-year-old daughter's life by using her seat belt as a Heimlich device while cruising down US41 in Sarasota. Lollypops on sticks should be outlawed. They're dangerous.

Anyway, this morning while I was putting on my mascara, simultaneously changing the radio station and drinking my sugar free iced mocha, it occurred to me that I have to start being a better role model.

Do You Wonder?

2010-08-02T11:04:00.000-07:00

My son, Dammit Rudy, got a $560 speeding ticket last week. This was about a week after the $260 ticket for crossing center line (texting) and about a month after the$180 ticket he got exceeding the speed limit. Dammit Rudy is not my favorite child right now.

Apparently there is a difference between "speeding" and "exceeding the speed limit." Who knew?

I don't like this any more than any other parent would. I tried to calm myself down with facts. After doing a little reseach I found proof that teenager's brains indeed do operate differently than adults. UCLA, the National Institute of Mental Health, and the Journal of Neuroscience all agree that until about 24 years of age there is too much grey matter (?) flowing around. It isn't until the last part of this mess called "growing up" that the frontal lobes get their goodies.

The frontal lobs are where judgement, self control, social and sexual behavior and (ready?) IMPULSE CONTROL all reside. The part of his brain that warns RATIONAL ADULTS that speeding is dangerous is connected to his rear end.

So, my child isn't an idiot. He's just clueless.

How DashTrac Works

2010-06-24T12:25:00.001-07:00

Click to Play

Watch a video tutorial on the installation and operation of DashTrac.

Is driving a right or a privilege?

2010-05-20T09:21:00.000-07:00

First, let’s look at this literally. In some states, a 14 year-old can legally take a 4000 pound killing machine out on an open highway with little or no supervision.

It should be no surprise that the correlation between legal driving age, graduated driver licensing laws, and the teenage driving fatality rate in each state is staggering. In some states, all you have to do is pass a simple (5th grade reading level!) test, navigate around some construction cones, and POOF! You have the RIGHT to drive.

Unfortunately you also have the right to die young.

Each loss is a tragedy beyond comparison. In Arkansas alone, between 1996 and 2006, 619 teens were killed in car accidents. I personally knew six of them. Babies whose parents made sure their first two-wheeled bike had training wheels. Babies whose family and friends are permanently heartbroken. All were under 18.

More teenagers died in the US in 2008 than total fatalities suffered in both Iraq and Afghanistan since the war started in 2003. Where is the outrage about that statistic?

It’s time for adults to step up to the plate. Monitoring teen drivers is not only important, it’s critical. It allows them to prove that they are worthy of the privilege to drive and ultimately might keep them alive until their brain catches up with their right foot. (That’s the one on the pedals.)

If training wheels were an acceptable way to keep them safe on two wheels, DashTrac is a sensible and affordable way to keep them safe on four.

Are Teenagers Too Stupid to Drive?

2010-05-19T12:58:00.000-07:00

YouTube Video

Apparently it is not a matter of intelligence when a teen is behind the wheel but the actual development of their brain at such a young age. In this article The Teenage Brain they show visual proof of how a human brain doesn't fully evolve until its early 20's.

What does that say about how our teens drive?

Teenagers lack the fast response decision making process that reside in adults. These are things that cannot be practiced during drivers ed (or else parents will be upset that the teachers putting their kids in danger to prove a point). The only way to become a better driver is from experience on the open road. You can't hover over anyone and teach them what you have gone through. They will never learn.

Parents are terrified when they let their kids drive alone for that exact reason. They never know where their kids are what they are doing and how they are driving.

Teens are more distracted than ever! They text constantly and they rarely pay attention to the road because there are "way cooler" things going on, especially when their friends are in the car.

How can a parent feel comfortable with their teen on the road?

1.) Never let them out of your site. Keep your child locked up in the house. Drive them to all their social events and monitor their every move. This will definitely keep them safe, but they might not ever like you again. That may be a huge risk.

2.) Give them cab/bus fare. If they want to go anywhere there is always public transportation. Trust me. I lived in NH and I had to take the public bus to and from school for 2 years before I got my license. I don't even wish that upon my enemies.

3.) Have their friends drive them everywhere. This idea doesn't sound half bad, except there is still a teenager driving and who knows how distracting your child may be.

So how do I keep my teen safe?

4.) GPS tracking. It's 2010 and we live in the world of technology. Your child wants to text, well now you can track. There are several tracking systems on the market today but only a few can monitor everything a parent wants to see. DashTrac offers a tracking system which is web-based. As a parent, you can monitor their speed, location, jack rabbit starts and stops. Imagine it's like you're in the car without actually being in the car. Also, you can take care of the car they drive with maintenance alerts letting you know when their car needs a tune up.

Do girls speed more than boys?

2010-05-11T14:44:00.000-07:00

Everyone knows that teenage girls are more careful than boys when it comes to driving, right?

Wrong. A recent survey revealed that girls are now driving more aggressively. According to Allstate Insurance Co., 48% of female teenage drivers revealed that they are likely to drive 10 mph over the speed limit. On the other hand, only 36% of teenage boys admitted to speeding.

Apparently another myth just got busted. Women and men are finally converging on an equal playing field when it comes to driving stupid.

Situational evidence historically supported that boys are more accident prone than girls because of their propensity for speeding and other “boy-like” vehicular behavior. Now, apparently girls have developed the “need for speed.” Even more disturbing to parents should be that BOTH sexes (82%) admitted to using cell phones while driving.

• 16% of girls describe their driving as aggressive, up from 9% in ‘05

• 84% of girls are likely to play with the music, versus only 69% of boys

• 77% of teens admit they have felt unsafe with another teen’s driving.

Not particularly impressive statistics, considering car accidents are the #1 cause of death in teens. Truth is; it doesn’t matter whether you were brought home in a pink or blue blanket. Dead is dead. Parents are devastated and many lives are destroyed.

Put the phone down, live with the song that’s on, and slow down.

Why DashTrac Works

2010-01-21T14:35:00.000-08:00

Johnny drives stupid

From the time your child was born, chances are they existed within a fairly supervised
environment. Right up until the time they got their wheels. And so began their voyage
into the outside world - beyond your direct supervision – equipped with the largest,
fastest, most dangerous “toy” imaginable. The automobile.

Truth is, kids need guidance and direction throughout their teen years more than
ever. Simply getting a driver's license doesn't mean they will know and do everything
required to keep themselves safe. On the contrary.

Automobile accidents are the leading cause of death among teenagers . When society combines freedom from supervision with a ton or more of metal, adds speed and a feeling of immunity -
the result is often a recipe for disaster.

Thousands of our children have died at the wheel because of one simple factor:

Their behavior was anonymous

Kids could drive any way they wanted as long as their parents or law enforcement weren't around. The chief way to keep our kids safe and reduce teen driving fatalities is by giving parents the tools to know the driving behavior of their teen. Period. 55 percent of teens said they exceed the speed limit by more than 10 mph.

Fast starts, hard braking, speeding…

DashTrac is a way for you to know how your teen is driving. Inexpensive and easy-to-install, DashTrac is a highly effective driver monitoring tool that discreetly fits under the dashboard,
snugly into the vehicle’s OBD port. It’s about half the size of a business card.

Once powered up, DashTrac allows parents to know immediately when their teen driver is performing in a risky and irresponsible manner, right from their laptop - with GPS accuracy.

With DashTracyour kid’s driving behavior is no longer anonymous. You get the peace of mind of knowing exactly where they are and how they are behaving. Now you can take any corrective action required to ensure they drive safely

After all. You really do need a little rest.