70,000 Rad Rider Bicycle Helmets happens to be the amount of free helmets Inland Empire Health Plan has distributed to Inland Empire children over the past 4 years. And 12.2 miles happens to be the distance between the two county seats-the Riverside County Administrative Center and the San Bernardino County Government Center.

To commemorate their achievement, IEHP's Chief Executive Officer Richard Bruno recently presented two commemorative Rad Rider Bicycle Helmets to San Bernardino County Supervisor Jerry Eaves and Riverside County Supervisor Bob Buster. Eaves is past Chairman and Buster is current Vice-Chairman of IEHP's Board of Directors.

"Of course all these helmets were never laid end-to-end on the ground," noted Bruno. "I am very proud to say that an IEHP Team Member personally fitted and placed every single helmet, one at a time, on the heads of all 70,000 children at schools, health fairs, and major community events."

"Our helmets only protect the outside of the children's heads," continued Bruno. "To protect the inside of their heads, IEHP's Bicycle Safety Program created a bicycle safety superhero-Rad Rider, distributed over 100,000 Rad Rider bicycle safety comic books, and designed what the Bicycle Helmet Safety Institute calls 'the best graphic helmet site on the Web'."

Speaking for San Bernardino County, Supervisor Eaves commended IEHP for their commitment to bicycle safety. "When I visualize 12.2 miles of kids all wearing their new Rad Rider Bike Helmets, I marvel at the dedication and hard work the people at IEHP have shown to protect Inland Empire children from serious head injuries," said Eaves.

Representing Riverside County, Supervisor Buster expressed gratitude for IEHPs safety achievement. "I'm certain all the parents and grandparents of those 70,000 children are grateful that IEHP cares about their safety," said Buster. "I'm especially impressed that most of those helmets were distributed by IEHP team members who volunteered their own time on weekends to do this for the children."

"We're not stopping at 70,000 helmets," Bruno assured. "This is just a milestone along the way. The Inland Empire is a big place. There are thousands of kids who need helmets when they ride their bikes, skateboards, scooters and roller blades.

"IEHP Team Members will continue our Rad Rider Bicycle Safety Program to protect as many children as we can from serious head injuries. And we will continue to do it one child at a time," pledged Bruno.

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Rad Rider Photo