A Safe and Sober Holiday Season

Drinking and driving makes the holiday season a dangerous time on the roads. Here are the sobering facts—and how you can help protect yourself.
By Stacy Tillilie

Everyone knows that drinking and driving don’t mix, yet every year in the U.S., about 1.5 million people are arrested for driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs—and every 45 minutes, someone dies in an alcohol-related traffic crash, according to Mothers Against Drunk Driving. Statistics also show that approximately 3 in every 10 Americans will be involved in an alcohol-related accident during their lifetime, with the likelihood spiking around the holidays. In fact, Thanksgiving and New Year’s Day are among the most dangerous days to drive.

Short of staying home, you never know when you’ll be sharing the road with a drunken driver. But what you should know is that you can help protect yourself with these precautions.

Steer clear of drunken drivers, and report them to local law enforcement (when safely possible). Signs of impaired driving include driving too slow or fast, making wide turns, signaling inconsistent with driving, driving with headlights off at night and failing to dim high beams, as well as other obvious behaviors like swerving, weaving, drifting and stopping or accelerating abruptly. Note the car’s make, model and color; license plate number; and the direction in which it was traveling.

Always wear your seat belt, and ensure that children are properly secured in the appropriate child safety seats.

If hosting a party, offer nonalcoholic drinks to your guests and prevent them from drinking and driving—even if it means providing a ride home or a place for them to sleep. (See below for nonalcoholic drink recipes.) Keep in mind that, along with being morally responsible, you can be held legally liable if you serve alcohol to someone who becomes involved in an accident. Before attending a party where alcohol will be served, designate a driver who agrees not to imbibe.

And of course, if you drink, don’t drive, and never ride in a car with an intoxicated driver. Tragically, it’s not a matter of “if” alcohol will lead to another fatal crash, but rather “when.”

Make-Your-Own Mocktails
What’s a mocktail? Simply a cocktail without the alcohol. We share a few recipes to help you serve up a safe holiday.

Hard Rock Café’s Double Berry Cooler
Ingredients:
1 ounce Monin wildberry syrup
3 ounces cranberry juice
4 ounces sweet-and-sour mix
ice
(top with)
3 ounces lemon-lime soda
Garnish:
lime wedge
lemon wedge
Directions:
Blend all of the ingredients, shake with ice and pour into a pilsner glass. Garnish with a lime wedge and lemon wedge speared.
Courtesy of the Hard Rock Café, featured on the Alternative Rock nonalcoholic beverage menu. Rainforest Cafe’s Rainforest Ricky
Ingredients:
2 ounces apple juice
2 ounces orange juice
2 ounces pineapple juice
1 ounce strawberry purée
½ ounce grapefruit juice
Ice
Garnish (optional):
pineapple wedge
cherry
Directions:
Mix all of the juices in a blender, and serve over ice in a tall glass. Garnish with a pineapple wedge and cherry speared, if desired.
Courtesy of Landry’s Restaurants’ Rainforest Cafe.

The Hotel Hershey's Frozen Hot Chocolate
Ingredients:
8 ounces half-and-half
2 envelopes Hershey’s Goodnight Kisses hot cocoa mix
2 ounces Hershey’s Chocolate Syrup
2 ounces Hershey’s Hot Fudge Topping
Ice
Garnish:
whipped cream
Hershey’s Kisses
Directions:
Fill a blender halfway with ice, and add all ingredients. Blend until smooth. Pour into a glass, and garnish with whipped cream and a Hershey’s Kiss. Note: For more options, use this recipe but add 2 ounces creamy peanut butter for a Reese’s Peanut Butter Cup frozen hot chocolate, or add 2 chopped York Peppermint Patties for a chocolate-mint frozen hot chocolate.
Courtesy of Karl McCall, beverage manager at The Hotel Hershey.

Hard Rock Café’s Berrilicious
Ingredients:
3 ounces Monin wildberry syrup
4 ounces orange juice
4 ounces strawberry mix
ice
Directions:
Mix all of the ingredients in a blender, and serve in a hurricane glass. Garnish with an orange and speared strawberry.
Courtesy of the Hard Rock Café, featured on the Alternative Rock nonalcoholic beverage menu.

The Hotel Hershey's Sangria-Styled Iced Tea
Ingredients:
2 quarts fresh-brewed ginger peach herbal tea (or your favorite flavor of herbal tea)
6 ounces honey
2 lemons
2 limes
2 oranges
¼ cup fresh raspberries
¼ cup fresh blueberries
Directions:
Cold-brew the tea by filling a 2-quart pitcher with cold water, adding tea bags and placing in the refrigerator for at least 6 hours. (This makes the tea clear. If you brew it with hot water, the tea will be cloudy.) When the tea has brewed, remove the tea bags and add the honey and fruit. Stir and return to the refrigerator for 1 to 2 hours. Serve over ice in glasses, using some of the fruit as garnish. Note: The amount of honey can be adjusted for increasing or decreasing the level of sweetness.
Courtesy of Karl McCall, beverage manager at The Hotel Hershey.

The information in this story was accurate when it was published in the November/December 2009 issue of AAA World.