DAVIE pOLICE DEPARTMENT

The Davie Police Department’s Beat the Heat Racing program is a Cops and Kids oriented program, which brings young people together with the Police Officers in their community. In 2002, The Davie Police "Beat the Heat" Racing Team was created by Officer Ron Bradley and members of the Davie Police Department. The team is part of a nationwide "Cops & Kids" program called "Beat the Heat." The program uses racecars and show cars dressed up like police vehicles as a tool to help combat illegal street racing and drinking. Beat the Heat is a 501(c)(3) Non-profit organization and uses zero tax dollars in this educational program. Each year, members of Beat the Heat attended over 700 events, drive over 300,000 miles and visit with over 1.5 million kids nationwide. The car they utilized was originally a 1986 Ford Mustang 4-cylinder that was donated by a local tow company. Other local sponsors provided the necessary parts and services to convert the car into an 8-cylinder 5.0L. Work began on the car in June 2001 and took one year and over 800 hours to complete. A sponsor then donated a full tubular chassis fiberglass bodies Chevrolet Beretta to the program in April 2006. The Mustang was retired and sold and the process of converting the Beretta to a “police” car was started and completed in March 2007.The Davie Police Department utilizes the racecar to attend car shows, races and conduct displays in public, including schools, in order to educate everyone about the dangers of street racing. In addition, local and national businesses work with the Davie Police Department in an effort to increase their exposure and help reach a larger  audience. Goals of Beat The Heart Racing are to help educate the young people of the communities about the real problems of illegal drug and alcohol use, to educate everyone to the horrors of alcohol or drug impaired driving, to promote a better understanding between the police and the communities they serve,  to educate the general public about drag racing and encourage everyone not to race in the street. The theme of the program is "Racing for Education." Three of the four goals state specifically a goal of some kind of education. With this program, Davie Police Department is able to break down some of the barriers that naturally exist between youth and authority figures. Since 2003, members of the Davie Police Department Beat The Heat Racing team volunteered nearly 2500 hours to maintain the program and attend events.  Members drove almost 20,000 miles to attend 110 events, reaching out and educating over 90,000 young adults and children.

For more information please contact Lt. Wayne Boulier at wayne_boulier@davie-fl.gov.