The Michigan State Police teamed up with Continental Brimley Development Center Sunday to hold the Eastern U.P.'s first teen defensive driving program.
The main goal is to drive down the traffic crash rate.
Trooper Cody Mayer, from the St. Ignace Michigan State Police Post, said 39 teenagers signed up for the free event. The program not only focused on defensive driving but also on how to interact with law enforcement if ever pulled over.
"When they first got here, they were a little sluggish, a little shy, but by the end of it, they all were smiling and laughing and having a good time. Interacting with the instructors was way better than at the beginning of the day," Tpr. Mayer said.
17-year-old Aiden Wachter just got his license the day before the event and was excited to test his skills.
"It is really helpful to know, but it can be super fun. Like all these people, they will say they are having fun. And they are laughing. The fact that we even have this program to show us, like, how to do this correctly, it's good. They don't have to, but they did. And I want to say thank you," Wachter said.
Sgt. Donald Stewart, who is with the Lansing Community Service Trooper Unit, noticed the students having more fun than they thought they would have when they first arrived.
"A lot of the students out here made the comment, I didn't realize this wasn't going to be that serious. And when I asked to get a little deeper, and what do they mean by 'serious', they didn't know troopers could have fun. And that was the biggest thing about it. It was fun. And talking with these troopers, it gave them a different understanding and respect for them," Sgt. Stewart said.
Sgt. Ryan Davis, from the MSP Training Facility Precision Driving Unit, was one of the troopers riding along and evaluating the teenage drivers.
"They are learning a lot of things here that would never get in driver's training and that's not a knock on driver's training but we have the resources and the skills and the equipment to be able to facilitate something like this for the training purposes," Sgt. Davis said.
The program was part of a three-year, $122,000 grant by the Office of Highway Safety Traffic Teen Defensive Driving. This was the 10th, and final, event in the state this year.
"This is the way we give back to the communities to do what we are best at and that is that proud tradition of service through excellence, integrity and courtesy," Sgt. Stewart concluded.
Tpr. Mayer is planning on another teen defensive driving program next year.
