Park Auto Group

Thursday, May 27, 2010

Park Auto Group Memorial Day Weekend Sales Event



Park Auto Group Memorial Day Weekend Sales Event


Memorial Day History and Facts

Memorial day is a great way to remember our patriotic heroes who sacrificed their lives to help us breathe the air of freedom. This day is observed with families and friends visiting cemeteries and memorials to pay homage to their loved ones. Want to know more about this historic holiday? Read on to learn about the history of Memorial day and even pick up some fun facts to share with your friends and loved ones.

“Your silent tents of green
We deck with fragrant flowers;
Yours has the suffering been,
The memory shall be ours.”
–Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

Memorial Day History:

* When was Memorial Day first celebrated? Memorial day was first celebrated on May 30, 1868. It was observed by placing flowers on the graves of Union and Confederate soldiers during the first national celebration. Gen. James Garfield made a speech at Arlington National Cemetery, after which around 5,000 participants helped to decorate the graves of the more than 20,000 Union and Confederate soldiers who were buried there.
* Why is Memorial Day celebrated on May 30? Three years after the Civil War ended, on May 5, 1868, the head of the Grand Army of the Republic (GAR) established Decoration Day as a time for the nation to decorate the graves of the war dead with flowers. Maj. Gen. John A. Logan declared that Decoration Day should be observed on May 30. This date was chosen because flowers would be in bloom all over the country.
* Who started the custom of wearing red poppies? In 1915, inspired by the poem “In Flanders Fields,” Moina Michael replied with her own poem.

We cherish too, the Poppy red
That grows on fields where valor led,
It seems to signal to the skies
That blood of heroes never dies.

She then came up with an idea of wearing red poppies on Memorial day in honor of those who died serving the nation during war. She was the first to wear one, and sold poppies to her friends and co-workers with the money going to benefit servicemen in need.

Wednesday, May 26, 2010

Teen Driving Tips

Tip #1: Drive Now. Talk Later.
  • The use of cell phones is the most common distractions for drivers.
  • Dialing a hand-held device (typically a cell phone) increases the risk of a crash or near-crash by almost 3 times, and talking or listening on a hand-held device by 1.3 times.
  • 62 percent of high school drivers say they talk on a cell phone while driving and 24 percent say that talking on a cell phone is safe. More than one in five admits to text messaging while behind the wheel.
  • Sources: NHTSA and VTTI, SADD/Liberty Mutual
Tip #2: Pay Attention.
  • Nearly 80 percent of crashes and 65 percent of near crashes involved some form of driver inattention within three seconds before the crash.
  • A high percentage of the crashes reported by teens involved rear-ending a car that had stopped while the teen driver was looking away from the road.
  • Reaching for a moving object increased the risk of a crash or near-crash by 9 times, looking at an external object by 3.7 times, and reading by 3 times.
  • Sources: NHTSA and VTTI
Tip #3: Get Ready at Home — Not in the Car.
  • Applying makeup increases the risk of a crash or near-crash by almost 3 times.
  • Other risky behaviors including shaving, fixing your hair, and eating while driving.
  • Sources: NHTSA and VTTI
Tip #4: Drowsy? Pull Over.
  • Drowsiness is a significant problem that increases a driver's risk of a crash or near-crash by at least a factor of four. Driving while severely drowsy increases the risk to up to 8.5 times.
  • Statistics show that 100,000 police-reported crashes, 71,000 injuries, and 1,550 deaths occur due to drowsy driving each year in the U.S.
  • Sixty percent of adult drivers — about 168 million people — say they have driven a vehicle while feeling drowsy in the past year.
  • Sources: NHTSA and VTTI, NSF
Tip #5: Limit Teen Passengers.
  • Teen passengers in a vehicle can distract a beginning driver and/or lead to greater risk taking.
  • Fatal crashes involving 16-year-old drivers are much more likely to occur when other teenagers are in the car. The risk of a fatal crash increases in proportion to the number of teenage passengers.
  • Motor vehicle crashes are the leading cause of death for U.S. teens, accounting for 36 percent of all deaths in this age group.
  • Sources: IIHS, CDC
Tip #6: Know the Facts about Age.
  • Today there are more than 18.9 million licensed drivers in the U.S. who are 70 or older. By 2020, it is estimated that there will be more than 30 million.
  • The accompaniments of aging can affect a driver's ability to sense, decide, and act.
  • As the number of older drivers increases, new mindsets and behaviors are necessary to prevent a corresponding increase in traffic accidents and fatalities.
  • Sources: NHTSA 2001, AAMVA

Tuesday, May 25, 2010

Crazy Traffic Laws

Alabama

  • Apparently ‘Bama is an acronym for Blunt All Motorist Adventures, for officials there have inexplicably made it illegal to drive while blindfolded.

Alaska

  • Contrary to public opinion roof racks are not specifically designed for skis, snowboards and cocker spaniels. Or at least not in Alaska, where authorities have found it necessary to declare it illegal to tether a dog to the roof of a car.

Arkansas

  • Think twice while in Arkansas if you harbor an unflagging passion for cold cut sandwiches and honking your car horn. Arkansas authorities have deemed it illegal to blare a car horn where ice cold beverages or sandwiches are served after 9 p.m.

California

  • No matter how luxuriously comfortable that divided highway may look, it is illegal in Eureka, California, to use a road as a bed.


  • In order to save money on having to crop dust their streets, officials in Chico, California, have made it illegal to plant rutabagas in roadways.


  • Officials in Glendale, California, no doubt, caved in to insurance lobbyists when they inexplicably decided to make it illegal to jump from a car at 65 mph.


  • Don’t expect to find any salt-rimmed curbs in Hermosa Beach, California. Officials there have made it illegal to spill your Margarita on any street.

Connecticut

  • No need to get your Lexus Sport Luxury Sedan painted blaze orange. Hunting from cars in Connecticut is illegal, even during deer season.

Georgia

  • Going on an intuitive hunch that teeter-totters and cars don’t mix, officials in Dublin, Georgia, have made it illegal to drive through playgrounds.

Illinois

  • Beware if you own a bicycle in Galesburg, Illinois. The police there have no tolerance for “fancy riding.”

Iowa

  • Throw it and they (police) will come. In Mount Vernon, Iowa, it is illegal to throw your Red Ryder onto the highway.

Kansas

  • In Derby, Kansas, it is considered a misdemeanor to screech your tires while driving. This abominable act can cost you 30 days in jail.

  • In Topeka, Kansas, it is unlawful to transport dead poultry along Kansas Avenue. Lesson: look elsewhere for a KFC.

Kentucky

  • Make sure your canine does not harbor a weird fetish for tailgate lights or trailer hitches while in Fort Thomas, Kentucky. You’ll be fined if your pet molests a vehicle.

Maine

  • Be careful about Jonesing for a Bavarian Cream while in South Berwick, Maine. You’ll be ticketed if you park in front of Dunkin Donuts.

Maryland

  • Keep in mind while traveling through Rockville, Maryland, that the streets there are rated G. If you possess a PG-17 vocabulary, take the bypass. Swearing from a vehicle in Rockville is considered a misdemeanor.

Minnesota

  • In Minnetonka, Minnesota if you drive a truck that leaves mud, dirt or sticky substances on any road you will be considered a public nuisance that is harming the peace, safety and general welfare of the town.

Missouri

  • If you are a horn-honking hooligan you better be carrying your vehicle’s bill of sale if you have the nerve to toot your horn while in University City, Missouri. Officials there have wisely made it illegal to honk the horn of someone else’s car.

Nevada

  • To prevent any literal interpretation of Reno’s No Standing signs, authorities there have made it illegal to place a bench or chair in the middle of the road.

New Jersey

  • Don’t be feeling all fuzzy-warm about New Jersey residents if you’re driving through the state with a “Honk if You Love Skippy the Kangaroo” bumper sticker soldered to your vehicle’s trunk. New Jersey residents are required by law to honk before passing.

  • Arbor Day requires careful planning in Blairstown, New Jersey, for local officials there have made it illegal to plant trees in the middle of the street.

New York

  • Be sure to enter your vehicle feeling sartorially content while in Sag Harbor, New York. Officials there have made it illegal to disrobe while in your car.

North Carolina

  • Officials in Dunn, North Carolina, apparently harbor no faith in the intuitive powers of common sense:


  • First, they have made it illegal to play in traffic. So if you’re a parent make sure your kids play Candyland on the floor of a living room rather than on the asphalt of a passing lane.
  • Second, it is illegal to drive through a cemetery if you’re not there to dig a grave or bury someone. So if you intend to visit the grave of a loved one bring really powerful binoculars.
  • And third, even if you are considerate enough to yell “On your left,” officials still deem it illegal to drive on sidewalks.

Ohio

  • In Canton, Ohio, people wearing roller skates cannot share the streets with cars. And yes, this applies even during the “couples only” skate.

Oregon

  • In Oregon you need to be not only alert for state troopers with speed guns, but also with stop watches. For you can be ticketed if you leave your car door open longer than is deemed necessary.

  • You will be slapped with a Class A traffic violation if you use your car on an Oregon highway to prove your physical endurance.


  • If you opt for driving on a sidewalk while in Oregon, be sure to not attract the wrath of the law by not yielding to pedestrians.

Rhode Island

  • In Scituate, Rhode Island, it is illegal to drive with beer in your vehicle even if it is unopened. So, in other words, if you’re a beer delivery driver you’re screwed.

South Carolina

  • There’s a good reason why automakers don’t manufacture models named the Dodge Dumpster or the Lexus Litterbin. For in Hilton Head, South Carolina, it is illegal to store trash in your vehicle due to rat problems.

West Virginia

  • Virginia may be for lovers, but West Virginia is for meat lovers. Officials in the Mountain State have deemed it perfectly legal for anyone to scavenge road kill.