I find it interesating that crazyotto hasn't bothered filling us in with some additional information, such as what time of day he was riding, but this thread should tell us some things:

First is that we do NOT have a right to do any damned thing we want to on our property. If you think I'm wrong, just look at what a homeowner's association can do to someone who doesn't comply with the association's rules. When what we are doing on our property interferes with someone else's right to enjoy their property, (dust, trash, noise) then the law gets involved, and it's very rarely resolved in favor of the ATV owner.

The majority of the public are NOT power sports enthusiasts, folks. They do not understand or appreciate the sport/recreation we enjoy. When you combine the general public's ignorance of the sport with the significant and obvious problems our less considerate brethren create (mainly causing environmental damage and leaving trash) then we have rules enacted by our lawmakers that close riding areas.

Noise ordinances are created to protect all of us from the inconsiderate. Think of the jackass at a public campground who plays his stereo loudly all night. Does his "right to party" mean the rest of the campground has to be kept awake? the answer is no.
Does someones "right" to ride a combustion-engine powered on their property mean the neighbors have to endure the noise, lose sleep, and be non-functional the next day? The answer is no.

The answer to these problems is not going to be found in confrontation or aggression. We are the minority here...and when it comes to using strength to resolve a confrontation, the minority loses. Being polite to your neighbors and trying to resolve the issues before they become problems is the only way. Granted, some neighbors are unapproachable, but trying to work things out is a hell of a lot more cost effective than going to court. Try to see what can be done to resolve potential problems instead of taking the "I'll do whatever the hell I want to do".

Watering down dusty trails next to someones house, riding during reasonable daylight hours, running quieter exhaust systems, doing favors for neighbors (such as mowing parts of the property you share) to offset the noise/dust you create are much easier and cheaper than being ticketed and hauled into court, and creates a much more positive image of the sport.

 

That is very well put, and I agree there is more than just crazyottos riding that is bothering this( guy, he sounds like a real t- hole) but crazy has to know his rights and wrongs as a land owner you just cant do whatever you want. Here in NY we have very limitted places to ride and no matter how nice you are to people they just will not let atvs on thier land. I was in a club that had to disban because the land owner took back the right to ride his property because of a few bad apples that were not even in the club.

 

Yes, very important to the story would be the time of day, he says daylight, well that doesn't narrow it down very much especially this time of year. And what seems like only a short time to test out a jump, could seem like eternity to a neighbor on his last nerve of listening to a quad going around and around. Even when I go out riding a lot of times there are people riding around and around staging areas, it gets so annoying and I'm a rider too. Same as being at the lake, I love riding wave runners but some people just stick to one little area and

 

I would have to say if it is on your own land, i would tell the neighbor to go screw themself. LOL If your land is in the middle of nowhere and you were riding i would fight it. This happen to me once, I just told my neighbor that they had to walk there Harleys to the end of the street then and then start them, cause everytime they rode past my house the windows would look like they were going to fall out. I never heard another word again now we are good neighbors. LOL

 

x2

We live in a neighborhood "in the country". 40 houses in our neghborhood, everyone has at least an acre and a half. We have a 2 stroke 50cc Suzuki quad, a 4 stroke CRF50 bike, a 4 stroke 250 Kawasaki Bayou, and a Mini Z snowmobile. I've made sure to talk to all our neighbors and they all say everything we ride is not any more noisy than my lawn tractor.

That being said, I still make sure we don't ride to early or to late and also take into consideration the nap times of young ones that are within ear shot of our property.

Above and beyond that I just bought a silencer for the Bayou...'cause I think it's a little loud.

Dealing with neighbors can be TOUGH if you're not thoughtful and/or if they are just a P.I.T.A. In the end, it doesn't really matter if the "law" is on your side 'cause they aint there 24/7 365.

Be thoughtful of your neighbors, they pay to live there just like you. If they really don't like the noise, dust, etc. (even if it's "allowed") then go ride somewhere else. Ahhh...I know what's being thought right now...."but that would inconvenience (sp?) ME...and I just CAN'T have that". Well, you're inconvencing your neighbor(s) and you seem to have no problem with that.

Life's a two way street.

 

You missed an excellent chance to get paid. And paid some real money. My family owns tree businesses in Danville Va, and they know the laws. Might not be too late, though I know this is an old thread.

Just something to think about.

 

OK, the case was dropped and no fines were paid, we only lost the money we spent on a lawyer as did the complaining party. There was more going on than the quad riding on the property.
Here is a little background.... I'm in the military and was deployed for 4 months. My kid wrecked the four wheeler playing with some friends the first Month I was gone. (nowhere near our property) My wife had an incident with the neighbor and thier dog several times while I was gone. The other Neighbors that cited me didn't like us as we built our house and moved to the end of the street. They liked being the last house on the street I guess. As we live on a dirt road they got mad when we drove our cars up and down the street. I paid to have gravel put down to prevent the dust blowing in thier direction. They befriended the neighbor and said we were riding our 4 wheelers on thier property when the were having thier house built and the damage we caused made them pay more money to have it corrected before thier house was finished.
We had no idea that any of this was going on. When I returned from my deployment and ordered parts and fixed the quad and tested it on my property, they were already planning on sueing us with the help of the other neighbors. Thats when they called the cops to strengthen thier case. These two neighbors were not our friends, they were friends of each other. Thats why the cop wrote 2 tickets, one from each neighbor. I rode the quad around 5:00 in the evening for about 10 minutes tops.
When we went to court and proved our case it came out that the ones sueing us were going off of what thier witnesses said, thier friends. Upon talking to the building contractor there was never any damage that needed to be repaired. They also stated that there was no evidence that someone rode ATV's through thier job site. Turned out to be lies.
Judge then said we each pay our own lawyer fees and to drop the case. We both agreed and now leave each other alone. Judge also said I can still ride my 4 wheeler on my property as long as I am not doing it to be a menace to the neighbors. Can't ride after 10:00 p.m and no earlier than 7:00 a.m.
So far so good and it has been about 2 years since everything was dropped.

 

Put him on a quad and will be even better!

 

Glad it got somewhat resolved but realize you or your neighbors will look at each other the same way again which I'm sure you already realize as this thread is very old. Know that anything you do will be looked at under a microscope by them.

And thanks for your service, I greatly appreciate it.

All of you lost your temper and you had a great chance to nail your neighbor by his threats against your dog, etc by threatening him. Law does not take that stuff lightly and your lack to remain calm certainly cost you that chance to nail his ***. Just asking him to leave your property and his failure to do so could have held in your favor if you had called the law.

You cannot do anything you want on your own property and I'll be curious to see how your track holds up long term. I wish you the best of luck but I'm not holding my breath.

150' is nothing regarding sound issues. I live 20 miles from town and on some days when the wind is right, I can hear the train blowing his horn from 15 miles away "as the crow flies"

What you really need is a group of guys you trust to go in and buy a larger track of property not near any residencial neighborhoods. All these little 5 acre ranchettes that are built out in the "country" are not large enough to not have to deal with neighbors.

As for the lady complaining about moving to the country and wanting "peace and quiet" just have no realization to "country" life. They have this romantic idea of peace and quiet and everything is just wonderful. Yes, you may not have the traffic and the town "noises" but you have other things to deal with now i.e. wild animals, wind, dust, just to name a few. I read stories of developments going up in the middle of farmground and they complain of the dust stirred up by the farmer tilling the soil and of the combine running after dark and blowing dust everywhere. I could go on and on.

I've rambled on long enough but the point of my comments are that we off roaders, and I include everyone from ATV's, motorcycles, UTV's, Jeeps, and so on, have to do more. We have to be more courteous of our neighbors than they do of us. We have to treat the land better than anyone else ever will. We are walking on eggshells and we have to like it. It still drives me nuts seeing so many of my compadres blatantly disregarding any and all laws and our fellow neighbors. Remember that of all that you do, it has to be more because there are too many bad apples spoiling the bunch.

 

this is pretty bad the gov't having all this say... And thats pretty bad you can't even ride your 4 wheeler without some "peace hippie" tryn to sue you.
as i've said before, life is no creampuff...