Interesting Story on CBC

[SLEDBUNNYRACING]

Here is what it may come too when a child rides an ATV ( I think you can safely read Dirt Bike and Snowmobile into this).
Read On -

 

[Summitric]

Yup, Serious Stuff..... Did You Notice That Was All In Newfieland And Newbrunswick?? Nothing Out West At All Recently - Good To Know. Hopefully We Are A Little More Cautious And Safety Oriented??

 

[Sledgirl]

Nothing out west recently? What about the 14 yr old boy killed in a collision with a girl near Drayton Valley, and the 13 yr old near Rocky?

The part about kids without helmets infuriates me, if you can afford the quad you can afford the skid lid, and it better properly fit the child right now.

As for adults doubling kids, a few years ago in our area a child died when the quad rolled over on them while being doubled. People forget to be careful with a child on. The worst is riding with a baby in your arms, one hand steering so you can hold the babe. Get a backpack or harness.

 

[hintonatv]

Helmets Absolutly!!! I see people riding quads without helmets all the time. What is it that makes people think they don't need one because they have four wheels underneath them. Dummies! Yes you!

As for the communists law makers out east, they would be happy to see all our children put into protective bubbles so they don't get hurt.

 

[Mountain Cat 1M]

Doing a search on the forum for Newfoundland, I came across this thread.

I figured I help shed some light on this. Yes, there was a problem over the summer with higher than normal illegal ATV use, riders not wearing helmets, riding on the road, and kids under 16 riding. Many mornings I read the local news and see stories of people getting hurt or killed. When kids are involved, the first to be blamed is the parents and rightly so. But another part of the problem was lack of enforcement of the law. The RCMP up until that time did not concern themselves with illegal ATV use. And enforcement in this small and remote communities is difficult in itself. But when kids started getting killed, and there was a public outcry to do something, stories of people getting hurt/killed became stories of riders/parents getting caught/charged with offenses. Then stories about ATV's became pretty much a thing of the past. So it might be easy to say NF'ers don't have much sense or whatever, but when law enforcement is not quite doing its job and lets people get away with this type of misuse, it can get out of control. I know my parents back home in a community of 5000 would often see ATV's on their street but after the crackdown, they said they haven't seen one since.

Anyways, I hope that helps people understand what this was all about.

Let it snow!

 

[Anthony]

Nothing out west recently? What about the 14 yr old boy killed in a collision with a girl near Drayton Valley, and the 13 yr old near Rocky?

The part about kids without helmets infuriates me, if you can afford the quad you can afford the skid lid, and it better properly fit the child right now.

As for adults doubling kids, a few years ago in our area a child died when the quad rolled over on them while being doubled. People forget to be careful with a child on. The worst is riding with a baby in your arms, one hand steering so you can hold the babe. Get a backpack or harness.

And the 12 year old killed in Northern Alberta... interesting story to say the least!

 

[S.W.A.T.]

man this sort of thing is crazy. I got my first quad at the age of 2 and have never looked back. i remeber a day when it was ok to play hockey in the street. I remember once my cousins and i were playing demolition derby with our bikes and i took quite a spill and subsiquently was nicked by a car. My parents were more pissed that i had ruined a new shirt that my grandma had bought me for my birthday the week before. Is sociaty becoming large sissy's? Is it going to come to a day when we have to bubble wrap our children before sending them outdoors to play? Im not trying to say we shouldn't protect our young, but are we overdoing it a little too much? Accidents do happen, but children do learn by kaing mistakes, just the same as adults do. Im sure there are many of use that learned what hot meant by touching the stove after being told not to. I agree that we shouldnt be sending a kid out on a machine that is obviously too big for them to control and they should be suprivised while riding, but do we have to restrict there fun exsesivly aswell? Use common sense when making these purchases and look at their riding habits. Don't let the MAN decide what our children can and cannot do, isn't that why they have parents. What if Travis Postrana's mom took his bike away cause it had too much power for a 16 year old.

 

[Summiteer]

man this sort of thing is crazy. I got my first quad at the age of 2 and have never looked back. i remeber a day when it was ok to play hockey in the street. I remember once my cousins and i were playing demolition derby with our bikes and i took quite a spill and subsiquently was nicked by a car. My parents were more pissed that i had ruined a new shirt that my grandma had bought me for my birthday the week before. Is sociaty becoming large sissy's? Is it going to come to a day when we have to bubble wrap our children before sending them outdoors to play? Im not trying to say we shouldn't protect our young, but are we overdoing it a little too much? Accidents do happen, but children do learn by kaing mistakes, just the same as adults do. Im sure there are many of use that learned what hot meant by touching the stove after being told not to. I agree that we shouldnt be sending a kid out on a machine that is obviously too big for them to control and they should be suprivised while riding, but do we have to restrict there fun exsesivly aswell? Use common sense when making these purchases and look at their riding habits. Don't let the MAN decide what our children can and cannot do, isn't that why they have parents. What if Travis Postrana's mom took his bike away cause it had too much power for a 16 year old.

The lesson are kind of lost on the dead ones though......

 

[S.W.A.T.]

You can't throw a comment out like that. Maybe we shouldn't let children use swing sets, or play sports. Im saying that supervision is key, as well as like many of others have stated about helmets. these activities can still be done with the right equipment.

 

[fargineyesore]

You can't throw a comment out like that. Maybe we shouldn't let children use swing sets, or play sports. Im saying that supervision is key, as well as like many of others have stated about helmets. these activities can still be done with the right equipment.

I agree to some extent with S.W.A.T. You know, in our society, children are left with parents that do a lot worse than let their kids ride quads. I personally think that a law banning kids from riding quads until they are fourteen is excessive. There are twelve and thirteen year old kids that are as large as me or larger and better riders. The key is proper supervision. If a parent is blatantly neglectful and the child is in serious danger as a result, that is a different matter. I have a nine year old boy with a small Chinese knock off 110 cc quad. I'm not going to stop him from riding it, as long as I am supervising him at the time. I know how dangerous a quad can be, as far as I'm concerned, it's more dangerous than a dirt bike because of the extra weight and that when a quad goes over, if it lands on you, there can be serious trouble. That doesn't mean however, that you shouldn't ride it. You must do so properly. Banning everyone from doing it because some do it wrong? May as well ban driving vehicles for all of us because some people are lousy drivers. I do NOT WANT the nanny-state government telling me how to raise my kids. I believe that I am better suited to raise him than some bureaucrat or politician, and the fact is I care about my kid more than they ever will. Just because some people don't use their brains shouldn't mean we are all penalized. If we parents properly supervise our kids, make sure they are wearing their helmut (and the chest protector is a good idea too) I can't see it being a huge problem yet here, but if we as parents don't defend our rights to raise our children, the government would like nothing better than to take our rights away!!

 

[snotterite]

Some of these opinions are more centered around the issue of legislation rather than the issue itself. Am I to understand people are against the laws of car seat legislation too. I agree good parents should be able to decide whats good for their children......but un fortunatly there is no law in place for who should have and not have children.....hense laws.
Until the government and the Legal system start to prosecute negligent parents for wrong doings to their children, we require the obvious to be law.

 

[Tunderin' RT]

Does it not seem to us that those children who are supported in any motorsports, for recreation or otherwise, simply perform better overall? I'm referring to the Families that are really involved in what their childern are doing. Purchasing the proper safety wear, coaching on the importance of safety, constant supervision, and training or even safety courses on the equipment that they use. Proper maintenance and upkeep of equipment and gear. Everything necessary to ensure that the parents/families are doing the right things to protect them while still allowing them to enjoy the sports.

 

[snotterite]

Does it not seem to us that those children who are supported in any motorsports, for recreation or otherwise, simply perform better overall? I'm referring to the Families that are really involved in what their childern are doing. Purchasing the proper safety wear, coaching on the importance of safety, constant supervision, and training or even safety courses on the equipment that they use. Proper maintenance and upkeep of equipment and gear. Everything necessary to ensure that the parents/families are doing the right things to protect them while still allowing them to enjoy the sports.

Your so right how many times when they are interviewing a sports star in any field, that star almost always reflects on the participation of his or her parents as the key to their success. In most situations those parents did far more than any government legislated as mandatory.

 

[fargineyesore]

Some of these opinions are more centered around the issue of legislation rather than the issue itself. Am I to understand people are against the laws of car seat legislation too. I agree good parents should be able to decide whats good for their children......but un fortunatly there is no law in place for who should have and not have children.....hense laws.
Until the government and the Legal system start to prosecute negligent parents for wrong doings to their children, we require the obvious to be law.

I disagree. The "issue" in the story is one of Government's ability to seize children from parents that the Government feels are not protecting their children according to the Government. The safety issue, while mentioned, is not the main point of the story. The issue of a car seat is not the same as not allowing anyone under the age of 14 to ride a quad, it's apples and oranges, as seat belts in cars do not adequately restrain small children. A 13 year old can ride a quad safely. What happens if some overzealous Government social worker who has a hate on for quads, sleds, dirt bikes decides to abritrarily take someone's children even if the child is riding the machine responsibly under their parents' supervision? Who decides what is safe and not? Some Government employee that doesn't know the first thing about these machines? Don't tell me that won't happen either, because if you believe that, you have too much faith in Government.

 

[Tunderin' RT]

The government has always had that ability if it feels that a child is in danger. If parents are organized and responsible of our childrens activities, you would probably see less government intervention.

 

[glengine]

The part that i dont get is the fact that you can buy one of these 80cc quads, if a kid under 14 isnt supposed to be riding a quad then why are these small ones in canada.. that doesn't make sense to me.. As far as i'm concerned there is no difference between not wearing your seatbelt and not wearing a helmet, just like for a kid them not being in a car seat is just as bad as not wearing protective gear and being supervised.. as far as i'm concerned kid at most any age should be able to ride a quad as long as they are wearing the appropriate gear and riding a quad that is the right size for them.. I'm suprised that there hasn't been more news coverage about the atv deal in the west.. just look at the number of people that have died on/in atv accidents this summer alone in AB.. lots of the time it is due to people not wearing proper safety gear.. What i'd like to see is a BIG educational campaign done about the issue rather than laws put in to limit things.. Just my two cents...

 

[Tunderin' RT]

I agree. It's too easy for government to place a ban rather than make people who want to be involved in these activities be responsible. That would involve some sort of policing, and that costs money.

 

[rubirose]

In a few months the story will change when a child is killed or severely injured while out sledding. Not allowing children under certain ages to not ride ATV's is not the answer, education is. When a child size atv is sold a safety brochure and one on laws should be handed out to buyer, maybe showing one with statistics won't hurt either. My 12 year old son has been riding quads, supervised at all times, for 5 years now and never has been hurt, minor mishaps yes, but no injuries. He has over 7000kms under his belt. For the last 2 years on a 350. I think a lot of parents buy these machines to use as babysitters, a lot of accidents happen when the kids ride machines alone away from parents. I see a lot of adults who should sell their machines to, they have no clue what they are doing on the trails. We were out this weekend and I asked my son what he likes best, he said the quadding.( family bonding). Banning kids is not the answer, banning these parents from giving birth is.

 

[Bog Bike]

Legislation and bans don't fix the issue, if parents don't care how their kids ride, or whether or not they wear helmets, then they probably won't care about a new law that will have very little enforcement. Kind of like the gun control, a criminal probably doesn't care if his gun is not registered. It all comes down to being responsible

My 2 cents

 

[Popsicle]

from a 13 year old's perspective, There is nothing wrong with a parent doubling a child, BUT they should bew wearing helment's, proper gear ext, i have been riding since i was 10 months old in a baby backpack harness thing till i was old enough to ride my own quad and my dad would never even think about riding without us wearing helemets, When doubling you just have to pick better line's and think safe.