Last week I was lucky enough to go to a great event hosted by Bridgestone to see just what a difference their Driveguard Tyres could make in an emergency.

I was blown away.

The main point of Driveguard Tyres is that they are Run Flats, so if  you get a puncture you can carry on driving. With Driveguard Tyres you can actually drive for 50 miles at a maximum 50 mph. 

Now for me 50 miles on a standard day means I’m getting home and then to the garage the next day for replacements. 50 miles would allow me to still get L to nursery. It would mean I could still get to work without having to take any time off unpaid. 50 miles at 50 mph to me means that my life can carry on as normal.

On a non standard day 50 miles means the world to me. I travel quite a bit. Often I have L with me. Going to the Bridgestone event is a point in case, I merrily travelled the width of the country, Norwich to Droitwich to meet the team. Had I got a flat on the A14 or the M5, or any point on my route 50 miles would have easily got me to the next garage. Being able to travel at 50 mph would have also meant I was still safe and not being too much of an irritation to other drivers.

I actually learnt quite a lot at the Driveguard event. In showing us the difference in the side walls of a normal tyre and the run flat Driveguard I was actually shocked to see just how thin a tyre wall is. In my head I was picturing something really thick and sturdy. The reality is a lot different. I shall be so much more careful when parking to not curb it!

We were also given the chance to test out the tyres. Driving round a mini track they had laid out with fully inflated tyres and a flattened tyre. I can hand on my heart say I couldn’t tell the difference. This is why the Driveguard Tyres can only be fitted to cars with a Tyre Pressure Monitoring System (this is fitted as standard to all cars made from 2014) you literally wouldn’t be able to tell without the system to notify you and let’s be honest none of us check out tyres every single journey. Apparently I buck the trend by checking mine around once a month and to be honest that only happens because I travel a bit and husb is a worrier.

The tyres are A Rated for wet control, very important here in the UK! Especially when that can make 6 meters difference in stopping times. That is the difference between being in a crash and not, 6 meters is more than the length of a car. Price wise when you compare them to a similar spec Bridgestone that doesn’t run flat you are talking less than £10.

What really struck me though was that everyone was just focused on safety and family. It wasn’t all about Bridgestone. It was about checking tyres and making sure they are the right pressure and have enough tread. We all left with gauges so we could check ourselves. Showing us the difference between premium and cheap tyres. Whether you then went ahead and bought Bridgestones or not wasn’t as much of a concern as people just thinking about their tyres and picking the absolute safest ones they could. As we were reminded a lot, the tyres are actually the only part of your car to touch the road, they are what controls us, keeps us safe and moving smoothly.

We all put a lot of effort into picking the safest, best rated child car seats we can. We check the safety ratings and amount of airbags, braking systems, anti skid, hill start assist and every other safety feature on our cars. But tyres seem to be an afterthought and Bridgestone want to change that.

They are involved in so many great safety schemes. Giving out yellow vests to schools and finding ways to educate people about the safety they are all so passionate about. So I suppose what I’m trying to say is next time you look to replace your tyres, just think a bit about how much your family’s safety is worth and then investing in a good set of tyres.

Disclosure I was invited to the Driveguard event so I could see for myself how well they work. All opinions are my own.