FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
August 6, 2007

Sandia Forklift Rodeo highlights safety, accuracy

Media interested in attending this event should call Stephanie Holinka at (505) 284-9227.

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. —Sandia hosts the seventh annual Forklift Safety Rodeo, which highlights the skills of more than 85 forklift operators from Sandia, Kirtland Air Force Base, Honeywell, and Los Alamos National Laboratory.

The event scheduled for Aug. 6-9 will take place at the former Coronado Club parking lot area on Kirtland Air Force Base. The event allows participants a 30-minute block of time to run through a forklift obstacle course.

Contestants are graded according to a scoring system that assesses the drivers’ driving time, agility, and as well as penalizing their scores for violating any specific forklift driving rules.

The rodeo will culminate in a grand championship the morning of the final day when 15 top-ranked operators will compete for first place. The final rounds will be from 7:30 – 11 a.m. on Aug. 9, with the awards ceremony and lunch at the conclusion of the event.

 

---

Sandia is a multiprogram laboratory operated by Sandia Corporation, a Lockheed Martin company, for the U.S. Department of Energy’s National Nuclear Security Administration. With main facilities in Albuquerque, N.M., and Livermore, Calif., Sandia has major R&D responsibilities in national security, energy and environmental technologies, and economic competitiveness.

Sandia news media contact: Stephanie Holinka, slholin@sandia.gov, (505) 284-9227