5/20/2023 0 Comments Traffic cone costume"I'd rather waste my weekend putting myself through misery." Or do I want to be in a dripping tunnel, tired and miserable, knowing I've got work on Monday?" Guy Bettinson, a 45-year-old programme manager from Cumbria who won the Tunnel in 2020, wonders out loud. "I could be sat on the sofa watching Strictly with the wife and kids. It is more health warning than marketing slogan. The Tunnel website external-link describes it as "a mind-bending test of extreme endurance and sensory deprivation". Oh, and there is a strict time limit of 55 hours. No outside support is permitted, headphones are banned and runners are not allowed to run side by side. But nowhere else can you take part in a race so twisted that you spend more than two days in darkness doing a one-mile shuttle run 200 times, or so punishing that one runner went temporarily blind - then thanked the race organiser for the privilege. Some even involve repeating the same loop for days on end. The Tunnel Ultra is a race like no other. "People need to … make sure that they're looking and watching for what we're doing so that we can all be safe and so that all these kids can get home to their families safely.That doesn't quite cut it for some people, who choose to run a 200-mile ultra-marathon in a disused railway tunnel instead. "We just need to slow down," Durfee said. She also shared the reminder for drivers to wait until children are all the way onto the sidewalk, not just halfway across the street, before driving forward. Parents can also teach their children habits to keep them safer while crossing the street, such as wearing reflective clothing and choosing safe routes to walk, Shaw said.ĭurfee suggested drivers leave five minutes earlier than they think they need to so they can avoid speeding in school zones. "It's absolutely paramount that drivers make a special effort to completely stop and look at intersections and crosswalks and just generally pay attention and be on the lookout for pedestrians," he said. Shaw urged drivers to be more aware of pedestrians. "And she has every reason to be because it is a scary job." "She's seen that happen, me almost getting hit, and so she's a little bit scared," Durfee said. She said her daughter prays daily that her mom won't get hit by a car while on duty. Three of Durfee's children attend Trailside Elementary School. We need to be able to be safe, and the kids need to be safe, and I just know we can do better." "We crossing guards are people, too," Durfee said. Durfee started dressing as a traffic cone to raise awareness for the importance of avoiding distracted driving and speeding in school zones. Whitney Durfee works as a crossing guard outside Trailside Elementary School in Vineyard on Friday. One month later, two children were hospitalized after being hit by a car in the crosswalk by Hawthorne Elementary School, also in Salt Lake City. In December, an 11-year-old girl was struck and killed in the crosswalk by Bonneville Elementary School in Salt Lake City. Twelve of those deaths, or just more than one-fifth, were children ages zero to 9, said UDOT Senior Communications Manager Mitch Shaw. There were 53 pedestrian deaths in the state in 2022, up from 45 in 2021, according to the Utah Department of Transportation. Pedestrian accidents have also increased across Utah. "It's fun just to see everyone's reaction and to (remind) them that it's a school zone and that they really need to start paying attention." "It has helped a lot, just to be out there in that (costume) and to show drivers that I'm there … and that there are kids crossing," she said. After several times almost getting hit by a car while on duty in 2022, she started wearing the cone to work with the hope that it would help distracted drivers pay more attention.ĭistracted driving has been on the rise in Utah County, and drowsy driving incidents have increased across the state.ĭurfee said she has "definitely" seen an improvement in safety around Trailside Elementary since donning the costume. The Vineyard mother of seven bought the costume to wear on Halloween in 2021. It's a tactic that's worked for Whitney Durfee, who frequently wears a cone costume for her job as a crossing guard at Trailside Elementary School in Vineyard. VINEYARD - If you saw a giant traffic cone waving and smiling at you, you'd probably pay more attention to the road.
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