I just saw on Headline News,(actually the small captioning at the bottom of the screen) that a Utah Senator's daughter was killed in an atv accident. Did anyone else see this? I wonder what this will do for pending litigation. Especially the one lawyer who has taken legal action in an attempt to ban atvs. I waited for the caption to replay but didn't see it again.

 

If this is true I would like to give all my sympathy to her family and freinds on they'er loss. However after many, many years of riding and a few atv related injuries, some of wich were pretty rough like a torn-up knee, broken leg, a concussion, and a brused eye. I realize that none of these injuries were caused by the atv but, by my own misjudgement or over comfidence. The atv always takes the blame for the riders mistakes and over comfidence. I have been in the hospital for my injuries and had to defend the atv and explain that it was my own poor judgement that cauesd the injury. Whats sad is that the missinformed people in power will use this, and anything like this, to ban atvs just to gain votes. Just like they are trying to do with guns. Whats next cars, airplanes, or will people start to understand that inanimate objects are not to blame and take responsability for they're own mistakes? Once agin I would like to give my sympathy to her family.
Sorry for the rant, Danno

 

Greetings,

On a similar note, there was a story on one of the Super Bowl pregame shows about how a quarterback, Hoestetler (spelling), retired from football to help his son recover from a paralizing accident on a "four wheeler." They did such a bad job of describing it that I suspect few people realized what they were talking about. I heard a subsequent comment on it the next day and the guy described it as a four wheel motorcycle. In any case, they showed pictures of the boy playing basketball which was a miraculous recovery. But the kid looked to be about 8 in the video so he must have been really young during the accident. One has to wonder what he was doing on a quad that sevearly rolled over on him when he was 6 or so. Again, sorry for the tradgedy, but a little personal responsibility please.

 

riding an atv is a gamble. every rider should be aware of the clear absence of a harness and roll cage. to safely operate an atv, you must know your limits as well as the atv's limits. one requirement that the atv manufacturers fail to mention is common sense. whenever i am riding if i don't feel comfortable with a certain obstacle or maneuver i avoid it altogether.

just a thought,

texascat

 

I was actually on the back of an ATV when it hit a tree and the driver was killed. I agree whole heartedly that ATVs don't kill people, people kill people. (Man, this sounds so much like the gun control battle.) This was long before I ever owned an ATV and it was probably the, maybe, fifth time I had ever ridden on one.

My misfortune has lead me to have a healthy respect for them and never assume that they can't hurt you. However, determined to prove to myself that they are not always deadly, I bought my own. I now have almost 700 incident free miles on my machine.

It is very easy to become complacent and lose the respect that you should always have for these machines, especially on some of the smooth powerful machines being produced these days. It takes brute mental strength to always ride within yourself. Even more so when riding with others who might push you to do something you are not comfortable with.

My heart goes out to the families of the victim... unfortunately she victimized herself and that never makes it any easier. It is always easier to place blame somewhere else...

 

How did that accident happen? Were you injured at all? I've been riding for several years and never have I been injured. Like Texas Cat said, whenever I meet an obstacle I don't feel comfortable with, I ride around it. I have gotten wild and wrecked, and been seperated from the bike several times, but never been hurt. In those instances where I did get in trouble, I didn't try to save the bike. I've seen other people get hurt by trying to save their bike from being damaged only to have it damage them. That's my one real rule... to get away from that weighty machine if we get seperated or are about to.

 

How did it happen?

A couple of beers and too much hot sun, no helmets, downhill gravel road and a tree with barbed wire stapled to it. Simple, really.

Yeah I was hurt. Broken arm, sprained shoulder and lots and lots of facial lacerations. Luckily, I was knocked out cold by the impact with the tree. The memories that I have of it are hazy due to the blood loss and shock. By the Grace of God, a farmer happened along the road in his truck and picked up my bloodied body. I ended up waking up in the hospital with a doctor stitching my face and two Iowa State Troopers standing by the bed side. I was driving when we left the house and the rest of the guys there said so in their statements to the police. We had switched mid-ride and that was what I had to prove. It was ugly. I was in the Military at the time and so was the guy who died. I was charged by both the State of Iowa and the Navy with vehicular manslaughter, drinking and driving, underage drinking and some others that escape me now.

Eventually I was cleared but it took a lot of sleepless nights and bunch of money spent on lawyers to make sure I didn't get screwed. It was a rather forgettable time in my life.

 

Interesting personal experience, GreenRuby.

Most agree helmets help prevent injury; many believe drinking and riding is an unsafe practice; and some think riding double increases accident risk (because of altered ATV handling, braking distance, and maneuverability).

As a survivor of a serious ATV accident, what is your current position and practice, your recommendation to others, in these areas?

Tree Farmer