Barrie, Ontario - 2000-01-10
Bombardier Recreational Products unveiled today, as part of the International Snowmobile Safety Week (January 16 - 22) in Ontario, a comprehensive national Snowmobile Safety Strategy aimed at promoting safe and responsible family snowmobiling. The primary messages are zero tolerance for drinking and riding, and staying on the marked trails.
Conscious of its leadership role within the snowmobile industry, Bombardier Recreational Products pledged to reinforce and build upon its longstanding partnership with the Ontario Federation of Snowmobile Clubs (OFSC) to promote safety. This successful cooperation, which includes the SledSmart Safety Campaign, the SledSmart Education Team and the Snowmobile Trail Officer Patrol (S.T.O.P.), has created a positive safety momentum among Ontario riders over the past several years.
"Our priority message this winter is zero tolerance on drinking and riding." stated Benoît Lafortune, Vice-President, Sales and Communications. He added, "As a responsible company which manufactures dependable, reliable and safe vehicles, we are committed to zero tolerance - snowmobiling is fun for the entire family without booze."
The Bombardier Snowmobile Safety Strategy also promotes organized snowmobile trails as the safest place to ride, as demonstrated by recent statistics (Ontario Provincial Police). Last winter, of all snowmobile fatalities across Canada, 17% occurred on trails operated by provincial snowmobile associations. The responsible snowmobiling message is clear: Stay on Marked OFSC Trails.
Bombardier Recreational Products will work closely with the OFSC this winter to renew the successful safety partnerships which also include being a founding member of both the leading edge Ontario Snowmobile Safety Committee and the Safe Riders! snowmobile safety initiative developed by the International Snowmobile Manufacturers Association.
"We have been a proactive safety partner in Ontario for many years. Bombardier is proud to support trend-setting programs such as SledSmart and S.T.O.P., each of which originated here and are now being emulated throughout the international snowmobiling community because of their success for improving snowmobile safety." concluded Lafortune.
Bombardier is launching its Snowmobile Safety Strategy in a series of similar media conferences across Canada: Barrie, Ontario (January 10); Québec, Québec (January 12); Winnipeg, Manitoba (January 14).
Bombardier Recreational Products designs, develops, builds, distributes and markets Ski-Doo® and Lynx® snowmobiles, snowgrooming equipment and multi-purpose tracked vehicles, Sea-Doo® watercraft and sport boats, Bombardier all-terrain vehicles and Bombardier NVTM neighborhood vehicles. Snowmobiles, ATV, watercraft and some sport boats are powered by Rotax® engines that are designed and built by Bombardier-Rotax GmbH which also builds motors for motorcycles and scooters.
Bombardier Inc. is a Canadian corporation active in the fields of aerospace, rail transportation equipment, recreational products and financial services. It operates plants in 12 countries in North America, Europe and Asia, and more than 90% of its revenues are generated outside Canada. Bombardier's revenues for its fiscal year ended January 31, 1999 totalled $11.5 billion.
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