Hundreds of Las Vegas valley teens practice life-saving driving skills at free classes

LAS VEGAS (FOX5) — Hundreds of valley teens are hitting the track to practice life-saving driving skills.

The nonprofit Driver’s Edge is hosting free classes for young drivers at the Las Vegas Motor Speedway, with more than 800 teens and parents taking part.

The program aims to give teens the experience they need to stay safe during what’s known as the 100 deadliest days of summer. Every year, the U.S. sees a jump in teen driving deaths between Memorial Day and Labor Day.

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“What we try to reinforce to all of them is to have a ‘what if’ mentality when they’re behind the wheel,” said Jeff Payne, founder and CEO of Driver’s Edge. “Because it doesn’t matter how good of a driver you are, it simply matters how bad of a driver everyone else is. So you need to be asking yourself every moment behind the wheel, ‘What if this happens? What if this happens?’”

According to AAA, more than 30% of deaths in crashes involving teen drivers happen during the 100 deadliest days of summer.

Evangeline Aretos, a teen driver taking part in the event, said the classes are helping her to feel more confident behind the wheel.

“I think that coming out here to get a better understanding of defensive skills and stepping back out on the road with better understanding of driving is really important,” Aretos said.

This weekend’s event runs from Friday through Sunday.