Capital Health Campaign

[aircanam]

Just got this sent to me

Too Young To Drive, Too Young To Ride
Joint campaign urges parents to keep kids off ATVs

Edmonton, Canada – Last year in Alberta five children were killed riding All Terrain Vehicles (ATVs), and hundreds more were injured. ATVs have become a leading cause of serious pediatric injuries in this province prompting Capital Health’s Kidsafe Connection and the Northern Lights Health Region to co-launch the Too Young to Drive, Too Young to Ride campaign to address the escalating situation.

“Parents need to understand that children are not sustaining bumps and bruises when they are involved in an incident with an ATV. When things go wrong with an ATV, they go very wrong,” said Dr. Bill Sevcik, Emergency Department physician at Capital Health’s Stollery Children’s Hospital. “To witness so many perfectly healthy children ending up in the emergency department with life-threatening injuries in the name of fun or recreation is distressing, particularly since these injuries are perfectly preventable.”

This past Victoria Day long weekend, the Stollery Children’s Hospital Emergency Department saw a total of 12 patients with ATV injuries, six of them major traumas and three others classified as serious traumas.

“The numbers are alarming but more than that, these families are enduring unnecessary heartbreak and loss,” said Sevcik.

Thanks to contributions from the Stollery Children’s Hospital Foundation and the Northern Lights Health Region Foundation, a radio, print ad and poster campaign is now underway urging parents to keep their kids off ATVs.

“Kids can wear the safety gear but it doesn’t protect them from the reality that they do not have the strength, skills or judgment to be riding these vehicles,” said Dr. Brian Dufresne, Emergency Department physician, Northern Lights Health Region. “It’s really very simple - if you’re too young to drive, you’re too young to ride.”

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For media inquiries, please contact:
Holly Budd, Capital Health Public Affairs: phone (780) 407-1567; pager (780) 445-5838
Stephanie Hackett, Northern Lights Health Region: phone (780) 788-1758

 

[Mike270412]

I disagree with that article.If your too young to drive your too young to ride an 800.My kids ride small machines with adult supervision and they are doing just fine!

 

[Sweigh]

If they were to look at all those injuries and correspond them to those riding irresponsibly, without any safetly gear, or with major lack of experience, then you would probably find the numbers would be very different. I did see an alarming number of riders without helmets on May Long weekend. Young and old. I even saw a mother driving her THREE kids on a quad down a gravel road.. shorts and t-shirts on them all.. no helmets, goggles etc.... thats just plain stupid.

 

[dooryder]

Thats BS, If you start younge and learn whats right and wrong you most likly wont be susriosly injured. I was reading the vancouver news paper and a couple kids died on a quad, BUT it was cause of irresposible riding, There were 5 people on one quad and one of them was a toddler, Obvisly some one wasnt taught about ATVs

 

[steveo]

It all comes down to supervision........if parents watch kids wont do stupid stuff !!!!!

 

[leonard]

I would like to see how manny of these kids were riding bikes much to large for them and much to fast for a younger kid.

Ive seen 450 Kodiaks being labled as kids bikes.. PEOPLE just because you own a 800 outy does not mean a 450 is a kids bike lol. kids bikes are like at max 250's and back when i was a kid that was even too much for a kid.

people are loosing track of reality imho . putting your kid on a 250 Sport bike because your riding a 800 big bore is not smart.

I honestly think people let kids ride TOO BIG of bikes. back when i was young i rode a 90cc ATC honda and that thing was plenty fast. we never got majorly hurt either and we crashed it plenty but when you crash at 25mph as vs 60mph there is a difference and when the bike weighs 120lbs as aposed to 600lbs there is also a big diff..

i think if your not old enuf to drive you should be limited to a certain size bike.. say nothing over 250cc's

 

[Mike270412]

I would like to see how manny of these kids were riding bikes much to large for them and much to fast for a younger kid.

Ive seen 450 Kodiaks being labled as kids bikes.. PEOPLE just because you own a 800 outy does not mean a 450 is a kids bike lol. kids bikes are like at max 250's and back when i was a kid that was even too much for a kid.

people are loosing track of reality imho . putting your kid on a 250 Sport bike because your riding a 800 big bore is not smart.

I honestly think people let kids ride TOO BIG of bikes. back when i was young i rode a 90cc ATC honda and that thing was plenty fast. we never got majorly hurt either and we crashed it plenty but when you crash at 25mph as vs 60mph there is a difference and when the bike weighs 120lbs as aposed to 600lbs there is also a big diff..

i think if your not old enuf to drive you should be limited to a certain size bike.. say nothing over 250cc's

What he said!

 

[redrum]

I disagree with that article.If your too young to drive your too young to ride an 800.My kids ride small machines with adult supervision and they are doing just fine!

I totally agree with mike...... Parents need to take some responsabilty and take time and teach your kids how to ride responsable. If your a parent and don`t know how to ride responsable, then have a professional teach your child.

 

[SnowBunny25]

My dad taught me how to ride a Sea-Doo when I was around 8 years old. He was always there and I was supervised. I feel it's the same way for ATV's. If you have the proper saftey gear, teacher, and supervision why shouldn't they be able to ride? I would like to where the parents were when these accidents happened?

 

[dragonlady]

I disagree with that article.If your too young to drive your too young to ride an 800.My kids ride small machines with adult supervision and they are doing just fine!

People like you are the exception and thumbs up for you to be teaching them right and wrong from the start, but I think the article is for the rest of the bunch like 90%.And you are with your kids, most of the accidents is due to doubling and no supervision and drinking.

 

[imdoo'n]

the light starts to shine



Stupid parents Stupid kids



CULL THE HERD.

 

[Sledderglen]

It seems that the major accidents involved unsupervised use. I seems like some adults use the ATV as a babysitter. Honey just go ride on the quad for a while or take your friend for a ride and show them how fun it is. When has a friend ever been responsible when showing off on anything what is worse when its on a ATV or Sled? When my kids were ever on the quad I tried to watch them or checked on them often. Many times they were caught fooling around or doing what they were not to do so they were banned from the use. Did it help maybe maybe not but if they wouldn`t drive it right they didnt drive it at all. Use it right or lose it. When I was involved with the ASA at that time and even still today we have lobbied for at least Mandatory Helmet use and every time the Government turned it down because of the people it would negativaly effect. Mainly Trappers and industry use. The ASA and the AOHVA all want training and helmet use mandatory but it takes the Government to make the changes. I feel bad for anyone who has ever had their kid hurt on a motorized unit. These things can hurt but there are other activities out there that hurt kids also such as horses,sports, playgrounds to name a few. It seems because it has a motor on it the public is lead to believe that they are truly deadly machines. The media also will point out any negative stories but rarely have a story on the positive issues. The ASA has a Sled Smart Program which is a mobile training unit that visits schools targeted at the grades 5 to 12 to give them some basic knowledge on safety and rules for safe operation of snowmobiles use. In the past years ATV use has been added by popular demand and now both are promoted to the youth. Now the trouble is that some schools will not participate in the FREE training for the students. You would thing that this would be booked for years in advance to train the students but it is not. Why? With all the media time spent on this in the last few days why didn`t the media get ahold of the AOHVA? This association is the one that should be asked the questions. Time will tell on this story and it may just mean some changes to the use of ATVs and other activities as well. All we can do is hope that the changes will work but we all shold just be more carefull out there and watch our kids and please don`t just let them go crazy. Ride your stuff in a safe way and set a example to your kids because you set the way they ride. Hope this helps.

 

[crazy_wheeler]

Yeah I can't agree with this new campaign. It all comes down to COMPETENT parental supervision, proper training and wearing the PPE's. Just because you want the kids to wear a helmet doesn't mean that the adults don't have to wear one. This will just lead to the attitude of "well if your not wearing it why should I". Kids are like little sponges absorbing everything they see and hear. Next thing you know when the parents back is turned they are trying that wheelie or jump just because they saw dad doing the same thing after a couple beers.
It all comes down to responsibility!

 

[AC4life]

well said!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[ftguy]

We can teach and teach, and supervise but we must also set the example. I am not a young person, but I was with a group that is part of the statistics for the May Long Weekend.

We were quadding west of Whitecourt with a group of 8-10, all of us wearing proper safety gear and carring extra gear and first aid supplies. We had a couple of fairly novice riders with us so instruction was given to them as to where in the group they should ride etc. (youngest in group was 15)

However accidents are just that accidents, someone does not get up in the morning and say I think I am going to have an accident with my (quad, sled, car, bicycle, fall down stairs) etc. In a split second decision a young lady (18)in our group decided to proceed a little ahead of us on the trail after a short break for lunch. ** Smooth trail not to technical and she made judgement call to go a little faster** Bad split second decision she came across a runoff ditch and flipped end over end on a 300cc utility quad. She sustained major facial injuries as although she was wearing a helmet when she landed face first the rocks and debris on the trail were able to get through the open portion of the helmet breaking her nose in several places etc. We had to use medivac to get her to whitecourt for medical care and therefore became one of the statistics.

Sad story but not bad.

She had the correct safety equipment - could have been hurt more severely
She was supervised - someone there to provide proper aid
gps, cellphones, and firstaid kits carried by fellow quadders
because of some education and guidance she will ride again, but I wish the agencies that invest so much money into bashing the sport would invest the same amount of money into providing educational documents, videos, advertising etc. to the public because accidents can and will happen, lets just be as safe as possible in the event of one. It was a good wakeup call for me that even though you go through all the steps, it only takes a split second to put the damper on a great ride. Nobodys "fault" just an accident.

 

[leonard]

forsure .. but as you said she was 18.. im 24 and could just as easy flip my ATV.
but i think the whole point here is . if your kids going to crash and he or she will we all know this.

The should be on a light smaller lower power machine so its going to be not nearly as crippling.

When your 18 you can ride what ever you want imho your an adult its your decision.

when your a kid its your parents decision on what you should do and what you should ride. Giving a 10yr old a 350-450 machine because you feel its a kids bike is crazy imho.

I know alot of people feel the same I would HATE to see young kids miss out on childhoods like i had on machines all because peoples expectations of whats a big and small machine have went off the deep end.

put your kid on a light bike.. give him/her all the safty gear he/she will wear .. govern the bike if you need too but keep the CC's LOW and let him or her learn how to ride. as he or she gets older or more capable increase the governer .. keep the bike light still and things will be all right. and hopefully by the time they are 16 aka eledgable to drive a car or even 14 learners licence. they can handle a larger machine 350-450 ect.


Its too bad that the government has to step in and regulate the situation but its going to be nessasary because there are WAY to manny people that do not have a clue and toss 12yr olds on there old 660 grizzlies that they feel are too weak for there tastes anymore since they got a 800 outy and therefor have deemed them kids bikes im not blowing smoke ive seen young really young kids bombing around on big boar machines
I just hope they dont heavy hand like they typicaly do when making these rules and hope fully they just regulate them to certain cc bikes. like say 125cc under age 12 250cc under age 16. something reasonable.