Yesterday, a guy riding in front of me rolled a V-Force in a rocky section of trail. He was wearing a helmet, but nothing else that could be considered specialized safety gear. He rolled it up on its right side, and it caught his leg underneath it. At 500+ pounds, he couldn't lift the big quad off himself, until I pulled up and rolled the beast off him. He stood up like it was no big deal, but we noticed blood pouring from his shoe. He had a gash that was 8" long and real real deep, from his upper ankle on up his calf.

Now, if he had been wearing MX boots instead of just tennis shoes, nothing would have happened at all. And a pair of riding pants would have kept the rock from cutting through to his skin. Even a pair of high top work boots would have made the wound half that length. Anyway, get some gear if you don't have any, and wear it!

 

People still don't wear gear, thats sad. And whats up with riding alone?

 

Very good question. The account from reconranger and your comment make me wonder about the time I have spent alone working fence lines and such. Even with wearing tall boots and heavy work pants it is inharently dangerous to work alone. Farmers and ranchers have done this kind of work for years and seldom is there a problem. Maybe thats why most of us just sort of putt around on our quads and don't get into the racing and jumping like I see folks that are sport riding do.

Perhaps it's time for me to reconsider the type of gear I usually wear. Thanks for the heads up.

 

My motto.....Dress for the crash not the ride!

 

He wasn't alone, but his kid and friend had ridden ahead and left him in the rear. Guess they weren't doing the "you're responsible for the guy behind you" thing. It actually took them about 10 minutes to return and find him.

It's interesting that my gf crashed in that same location just a few minutes before he did. Now, she hasn't crashed in years, but there was something about this spot that just gets some folks. I rode back and forth over it a few times and couldn't see what the problem was.............

 

Another note, a pair of NERF BARS would have kept this guy's foot out from under the quad!

 

Besides a helmet, boots are a most. A buddie of mine had been talking about getting boots for a while and finally just got them. We were riding by perry lake and jumped off a small rock ledge and i did fine, he pulled the front up too much and his left foot came off the peg. He has nerf bars but they aren't behind the pegs. When he comes down, his foot goes back under the axle. He is lying down flat on the tank and can't move. I just hear him moaning. I can't tell what happened. When i get too him his left foot is wedged, pointing almost straight up, leg fully extended. His heel is wedged into the skid plate under the rear and the toe of his boot is smashed up against the tire. It won't move and i'm starting to freak. I rolled the bike to the right and started kicking his anke to dislodge it. NO movement. Another guy finally came over and held the bike up and i put the bike in neutral and rolled the tire until his foot popped out. The guy was white as a sheet and i was sure he had broken several bones and blew his knee out.
NO broken bones, tire burn marks on the calf and soreness. He rode for another 2 hours. If this isn't a great example of the need for boots i don't know what is. I almost puked and still get sick thinking about it. This guy was lucky. Boots are a must!

 

look what happened to my FRIEND, NOT ME, in my pics. he rolled his 250ex on a hill climb. he hasnt rode a quad since. wuss..............