<div class="FTQUOTE"><begin quote>Originally posted by: Stoopidbot

I don't understand how someone could just walk away from the sport they love. If you guys wore safety gear the chance of injury is A LOT less. Good luck.</end quote></div>
I don't think safety gear was a factor is his decision to give up riding. The way I read it, it was a combination of the whole ride, ie; battery problems, tire problems, flipping over, wife freaking out, etc.

A lot of changes happened to me this year, nothing like his though. But honestly, if it wasn't for having to plow snow for 4 or 5 months, I probably wouldn't have my ATV.

DBOSWAN, Good luck in whatever you do. BTW, the pics were very good compared to the phone on my camera....LOL!

 

Sorry to hear about the accident. Dittos on the "thankful to be alive" comments.

 

+1 to wearing your gear.

It's funny because as a sport bike rider I always wear every bit of gear no matter how hot it is. (full leathers, gloves, boots, helmet) This has saved me considerable injury already as I had lowsided in some sand doing about 90 Km/hr on one our local roads. I walked away with some heavy bruising that lasted for over a month but absoloutley no road rash at all. If I had gone down wearing jeans, T-shirt and tennis shoes, I would still to this day likely be in pain and would have required extensive skin grafts.

I do tend to get lazy though when on the dirt bikes and quad. In our own 100 acre back yard I don't wear all my gear but I always do on the road or away from the house. Solid boots, gloves and helmet will save you when something unexpected occurs.

 

<div class="FTQUOTE"><begin quote>Originally posted by: Stoopidbot

I don't understand how someone could just walk away from the sport they love. If you guys wore safety gear the chance of injury is A LOT less. Good luck.</end quote></div>

Well I guess those people really don't love it all that much...... they probably like it as something fun to do. Unfortunately it is often those casual fans who are the ones that get hurt the most because they take it so lightly.....

And I've totally given up trying to get Ute riders to wear safety gear......they have nothing but excuses as to why they won't - and often get angry and tell me to stay out of their lives..... they are all convinced they don't need gear.....so now when I see the pics here I just hope none of them ever regret that choice.......

I will ride as long as I can swing my leg over a machine..... in fact I will ride a sport quad for as long as I can pull a clutch....

For me riding is as much a part of my life as anything. I plan my vacations around it even.....Heck one of the main reasons I moved out of NJ because there was no place left to legally ride.....most people would call me nuts but so-be-it........

I've had bad riding days.....a couple horrible ones that could not end soon enough. But for every bad one I've had 100 great ones. No sport is totally safe or always fun...... I've been more hurt playing hockey, football or BMX riding.....nothing worth doing is easy or without risk..... I once saw a guy playing tennis snap his ankle so bad it was facing the wrong direction.....

Ride smart, ride safe, wear full gear, know your machine, know your terrain......the fun will come......

 

<div class="FTQUOTE"><begin quote>Originally posted by: ss97

<div class="FTQUOTE"><begin quote>Originally posted by: Stoopidbot



I don't understand how someone could just walk away from the sport they love. If you guys wore safety gear the chance of injury is A LOT less. Good luck.</end quote></div>



Well I guess those people really don't love it all that much...... they probably like it as something fun to do. Unfortunately it is often those casual fans who are the ones that get hurt the most because they take it so lightly.....



And I've totally given up trying to get Ute riders to wear safety gear......they have nothing but excuses as to why they won't - and often get angry and tell me to stay out of their lives..... they are all convinced they don't need gear.....so now when I see the pics here I just hope none of them ever regret that choice.......



I will ride as long as I can swing my leg over a machine..... in fact I will ride a sport quad for as long as I can pull a clutch....



For me riding is as much a part of my life as anything. I plan my vacations around it even.....Heck one of the main reasons I moved out of NJ because there was no place left to legally ride.....most people would call me nuts but so-be-it........



I've had bad riding days.....a couple horrible ones that could not end soon enough. But for every bad one I've had 100 great ones. No sport is totally safe or always fun...... I've been more hurt playing hockey, football or BMX riding.....nothing worth doing is easy or without risk..... I once saw a guy playing tennis snap his ankle so bad it was facing the wrong direction.....



Ride smart, ride safe, wear full gear, know your machine, know your terrain......the fun will come......</end quote></div>

Well put, Couldn't have said it better.

 

To add to the good advice here I want to chime in with proper training,I seem to be preaching it alot here lately. But it amazes me how many people will go out and buy and ATV and start riding with no training. They have the 'how hard can it be" attitude. That or they are too proud and manly to admit they can still learn something. Riding an ATV in challenging terrain is more difficult than driving your car/truck to the store. How many people just jumped in a motor vehicle and started driving with little or no instruction at all?
A friend of mine is a ATV safety instuctor,he teaches everything from basic to advanced. He also teaches military courses where the students are required to take the training. I love hearing his stories. It never fails that when he asks "who here considers themselves an eperienced ATV rider" about 3/4 of the students usually will raise their hands, not knowing that their lack of knowledge will soon be apparent. Overconfident and undertrained makes for a dangerous combination.
These same "experienced riders" are the ones you can read their minds and see the lightbulb come on when the instructor explains something basic and they realize they do not know as much a they thought they knew.

 

Another good point. I've been riding for 24 years now. When I bought my TRX450 in 07 I even took the safety course. Honda paid me 100 bucks, but I still took it.

 

i tell one of my neighbors all the tjme he needs to at least put a helment on , he is a greast rider but one little slip up & he could get hurt bad or killed, he thinks its funny , but i go to church w a guy that was one of the best motocross ridder round here & bout 20 yrs ago he wrecked playin on some whoops and bout died , & now he is very messed up but only by GODS grace that he is even alive

 

dude your wife is cute!!! so is her friend or visa versa yourlucky! and im glad you didnt get hurt to bad...but giving up riding is going to far.. keep riding and stay safe bro

 

<div class="FTQUOTE"><begin quote>Originally posted by: HIGHOCTANE

To add to the good advice here I want to chime in with proper training,I seem to be preaching it alot here lately. But it amazes me how many people will go out and buy and ATV and start riding with no training. They have the 'how hard can it be" attitude. That or they are too proud and manly to admit they can still learn something. Riding an ATV in challenging terrain is more difficult than driving your car/truck to the store. How many people just jumped in a motor vehicle and started driving with little or no instruction at all?

A friend of mine is a ATV safety instuctor,he teaches everything from basic to advanced. He also teaches military courses where the students are required to take the training. I love hearing his stories. It never fails that when he asks "who here considers themselves an eperienced ATV rider" about 3/4 of the students usually will raise their hands, not knowing that their lack of knowledge will soon be apparent. Overconfident and undertrained makes for a dangerous combination.

These same "experienced riders" are the ones you can read their minds and see the lightbulb come on when the instructor explains something basic and they realize they do not know as much a they thought they knew.</end quote></div>

Yeah very true...... I see this a lot with Utes especially because for some reason people see racks and assume it cannot hurt them.....obviously they could not be more wrong. Especially with the power of these new machines....those big machines get where you point them in a hurry.....far quicker than any rookie can handle.....

I've been riding since about the mid-80s and at one point I didn't ride for a few years because of lack of finances to afford one. But when I did get back into it I took it easy for a long while and made sure not to ride over my head.

Then when I got my wife into riding, I realized how much there was to learn from scratch. There was so much she didn't know that I had learned so long ago that I didn't even know how to relate it without really thinking it through......She has been riding now for about 4 years and still on occasion needs to be coached through something new. She has had a few crashes, one bad one, but all in all she has done well and eventually wants to race. I think she could have already done well this last summer......but she is a very cautious person by nature and won't ride without all of her THOR gear.....

In fact for my wife riding gear is like fashion......and because she is Swedish she has to wear only THOR gear....lol...... whatever I cannot win that argument...she still has to point out that I bought her a Fox chest protector every time she puts it on......