Hi,

Someone posted on the forum how he gas-ed his quad too hard while driving up the ramps to load his quad on the truck and the quad drove right into the back window of his quad. Other people shared how driving up truck ramps are scary...why? How? I am turning 17 on May 27th and I get my license then (I have my permit now) and my love of ATVs has driven me to get a pickup or SUV as a first car so I can haul my quads to ATV parks. Anyways, I would like to know what is so scary about loading a quad onto a pickup rather than using a trailer. Loading up on a truck with the ramps seems easier than a whole trailer.

 

I use 8' long 2x6 planks for my ramps, and put a small piece of board on one end of each one to keep it from sliding of the tailgate. I usually hit them with enough momentum so I don't have to get on the gas too much. I don't see anything scary about it myself.....

 

This topic caught my eye because JUST LAST NIGHT as I was loading my 400EX in the back of my Dodge Ram Sport which sits pretty high especially if the ground level increases the rear height(which was the case this time), running it up two boards, my buddy said it was scary to watch me. He said I load like I ride--Fast. I haven't run into the rear of the cab yet though. The first time I was going to do it I WAS scared but once I realized it is just momentum and lining up the tires with the boards, I do it every time. I have had a lot of GUYS say they were scared to load that way or they couldn't believe I would load that way. It sure beats taking a trailer for just me. Looks good in the bed of that truck too. I also have loaded up my quad, hooked up the trailer and picked up friend's who didn't have transportation. I get strange reactions being a female rider anyway but especially when they see me do everything myself. I don't expect to go and have fun and someone else do all the work though. Ok, I am getting off topic LOL! Angelon400ex

 

The scary part is when one ramp falls off the tailgate because you were too impatient to attatch them.
If used safely, I agree. Ramps are much more convenient than having to pull a trailer. A trailer can haul 2 or even 3 quads, though.

 

Angela Turner, I like your style!

 

Mine aren't attached, just propped against the tailgate and have metal ends to help them stay in place. Maybe that is why they are scared to see me load LOL! I did have mine slide off the boards when I was unloading a few rides ago. They had some ice on them and my quad was hanging onto the truck bed by one tire. I managed to jerk it off so it landed on all fours. Whew! Would be a sad way to hurt my quad. Angelon400ex

 

I like your riding location description!!! Sounds intriguing. My furtherest trip to ride so far has been to WV and it took probably 5-6 hours. Not sure because of stops due to a friend's breakdown. Angelon400ex

 

Checked out your pics, looks like you and your friends/family has bunches of fun eating dirt.

 

Thanks for the replies, I appreciate it. I can understand how the ramps not being attached the bed of the pickup is a scary thing to drive up. If the ramps do slide over and slip off the bed, I doubt the quad would get hurt. Plus, I don't know about you guys, but I have to say, I have only flipped over three times on my ATV and every time I knew the quad was going to flip over so I quickly jumped off and landed safely on my feet. I think that if you know your quad(s) really well, you know what it is and isn't capable of and what will cause it to tip over.

One other thing; if driving it up is that scary, has anyone every tried pushing it up? I know when my friend brough his quad over, we loaded it in and out of the back of his father's Chevy Tahoe with a flat board of wood. Since we were dealing with an SUV, my friend and I had to push the quad up to load it into the SUV and we slowly eased it down the board of wood to get it down. Now his quad is a Kawasaki Bayou 220 which isn't so heavy, but I bet it shouldn't take more than two or three guys to push a 500+ pound ATV up the ramps.

 

Dirt is a regular part of my diet now I am dependent on!!!! Yesterday it was in the form of dust, Saturday dust also and the Friday of the previous week it was the muddy version. All of it is good. Polishes your teeth when it grinds between them. Just have to make sure you rinse later! Angelon400ex