Common Ground Alliance Sponsoring Victor Espinoza
National Safe Digging Month was in April, but the Common Ground Alliance (CGA) is not done spreading the safe digging message for 2015.
CGA, the organization dedicated to protecting underground utility lines and the safety of people who dig near them, announced that more than 30 of its member organizations have partnered to sponsor jockey Victor Espinoza, who will ride the early favorite at the 141st running of the Kentucky Derby at Churchill Downs in Louisville, Kentucky on May 2.
CGA members partnered to sponsor Espinoza for all three Triple Crown races in 2014, including wins at the Kentucky Derby and the Preakness Stakes, and are sponsoring him for 600 other races throughout 2015, including the Longines Kentucky Oaks at Churchill Downs on May 1. Last year’s sponsorship led to widespread media coverage and record-breaking traffic on Call811.com.
“Victor has been a great partner to CGA by diligently promoting 811 to both the English and Spanish-speaking communities,” said Bob Kipp, Common Ground Alliance president. “As the defending champion, he has a unique platform to share the important 811 message. A buried utility is damaged every six minutes because someone decided to dig without calling 811, and we hope Victor’s continued involvement with the ‘Call 811’ campaign can help improve that figure.”
Espinoza will wear the “Call 811” message – which promotes the national call before you dig phone number – on his saddle and his boots at Churchill Downs. The 811 service helps homeowners and professionals who plan to dig notify multiple utility companies with one phone call.
Everyone who calls 811 a few days before digging is connected to a local one call notification center that will take the caller’s information and communicate it to local utility companies. Professional utility locating technicians will then visit the dig site to mark the approximate location of underground utility lines with spray paint or flags. Once a site has been accurately marked, it is safe to begin digging around the marked areas.
Digging without knowing the approximate location of underground utilities increases the likelihood of an unintentional damage, which can cause serious injuries, service disruptions and repair costs. According to CGA data, nearly half of American homeowners who plan to dig this year will not call 811 beforehand, putting themselves and their communities at risk.
The CGA member organizations that contributed funds to sponsor Espinoza are:
Alabama 811, Atmos Energy, Avista
BGE (Baltimore Gas and Electric)
ConEd
DigAlert (Underground Service Alert of Southern California), Dig Safe System, Dig Safely New York, Duke Energy
Enterprise Products
Georgia 811
Iowa Pipeline Association
Kentucky 811, Kinder Morgan
Magellan Midstream Partners, Miss Utility of Maryland/D.C., Montana 811 National Grid, Nebraska Pipeline Association, New York 811, North Carolina 811
One Call Concepts, Oklahoma 811, Ohio Utilities Protection Service,
Pennsylvania 811, Premier Utility Services
Rhino Marking and Protection Systems
Shell, SoCalGas (Southern California Gas Co), Sunoco Logistics, Sunshine 811
Texas811
USA North 811
Virginia 811
“CGA greatly appreciates the contributions of each member organization for making this sponsorship of Victor Espinoza possible,” said Bob Kipp, Common Ground Alliance president. “The Kentucky Derby is the longest standing tradition in all of American sports, and given that it occurs during the peak spring digging season, it’s the perfect venue for promoting the importance of calling 811 to homeowners and professionals.”
Pre-race Kentucky Derby coverage begins at noon May 2 EST on NBC Sports Network, with NBC picking up the coverage at 4 p.m. and continuing through the post-race ceremony. Coverage of the Kentucky Oaks race will air on NBC Sports Network on May 1.
