Kids Just Want to Have Fun on Their Atvs
February 19th, 2010 | 
Author: Kids just want to have fun on their ATVs
ATV riding can be really fun and unfortunately, dangerous too, if precautionary steps are not taken to ensure that you have a safe ride – especially for kids. As adults, we know and are able to sense danger and yes, we even have the ability to avoid them (most of the time!) – but are you confident that your kids are able to do the same? The answer, to be brutally honest is, no, they can’t. They may be able to detect “danger” around them from time to time but when they are having too much fun, their ability to sense “danger” seem to turn off automatically.
The following are some scenes that you may have witnessed before :-
1. Two boys, probably no more than 7 years old, riding and bouncing on an adult ATV around a farmyard. 7-year old boys are definitely not strong or big enough to be riding on an adult ATV – one sure wonders how they were able to manage that machine.
2. Three girls, with the oldest probably about 14 years of age, riding on a quad on a paved road, totally oblivious to the traffic around them. Doesn’t it make you sick to the stomach if they met with an accident?
3. Two boys probably in the ages of 10 or less, hanging on to the ATV utility carrier along the highway – and mind you, going at high speed too!
In some cases, kids who were riding on their ATVs were spotted doing so without their helmets too. Doesn’t it make you wonder what were the parents of the kids thinking when they allowed their children to go out to play unsupervised or when the parents allow their kids to ride on ATVs that were designed for adult riders?
Sure, all kids want to have fun with their ATVs – who wouldn’t? But we would like to remind you that fun could lead to danger, and in some cases, death too, if precautions are not taken. Here are some safety measures to take when your kids wants to go ATV riding :-
a. Never let a kid under 16 years of age ride an adult ATV. There are specially designed youth ATVs for young riders. One of such dealers is Jackel Motorsports. They have great designs for youth ATVs – even a pink one for the girls!
b. Always make sure that the ATV rider is wearing his or her helmet. Do not let them ride on their ATVs if they are not wearing their helmet. Wearing your protective helmet when riding on an ATV could really save your “head” in the event of an accident.
c. ATVs are built for off road riding – so don’t try to be adventurous and ride it on paved roads. It is a huge and costly mistake that you will ever make.
d. Most ATVs are designed for one rider – that means, you do not carry any passengers at all. This is a big no-no for ATV riding.
e. Take lessons on safety riding for ATVs. It doesn’t hurt to learn more about the safety issues of riding an ATV. Sign up your kids (or even yourself!) for a hands-on safety course – you will not regret it.
Our children are precious gifts – sure, they should have fun and all, but bear in mind, their safety and protection should always be priority, even in the name of fun. Once you are able to drill the safety measures into your kids’ minds, you can have a peace of mind knowing that when they next ride on their ATVs and are having fun, they will not neglect to be careful and take all the necessary steps to ensure their own safety.
Here are some great fun ideas on ATV riding :-
a. Riding around the backyard – this is one great way to keep an eye on your kid while he’s riding around the backyard – especially for beginners. Kids simply love being able to ride a machine and feel the wind in their faces.
b. A trail in the woods – let your kids explore the wilderness in the woods with their ATVs and learn to appreciate Mother Nature too. If you think that just riding in the woods isn’t good enough for you and the kids, try camping in the woods – a family camping trip to the woods with ATVs is a fantastic way of family bonding. Not only will your kids be able to enjoy their rides on their ATVs, they also get to explore and enjoy the beauty of nature. It’s fun to be out in the sun during the day and sleep under the stars and moon in the night once a while.
c. Go ATV riding with your kids. Even though it’s fun for them when they are riding on their own, but it is more fun when parents ride together with their children. It gives a sense “belonging” and “bonding” between parents and children. Who knows, you may even be able to pick up a trick or two about ATV riding from your kids!
For more ideas of having ATV fun, check out www.atvoudoors.net or if you want to check out more ATV models for youths, you could also try www.kazumausa.com And remember, have fun riding with safety in mind too!
Ray Martin
http://www.articlesbase.com/motorcycles-articles/kids-just-want-to-have-fun-on-their-atvs-134657.html
Posted in Rvs and Camping
Who is legally responsible?
My Dad owns a small farm in Upstate New York. He grew up in the area in a time when his parents bore legal responsibility for his safety if he was injured regardless of whether the accident happened at home or if he was (as children often do) trespassing on a neighbor’s land. He now owns the land himself, and the area is becoming a bit more populated. My parents now have neighbors down the road who feel that their children should be allowed to hunt and ride their snowmobiles and ATVs wherever they want, and since they only have a postage stamp sized lot themselves, that means their kids ride and hunt unsupervised all over my Dad’s land. We also have horses, which are very attractive to young kids. It’s not uncommon to look out the window and see kids in the pasture with the horses, again completely unsupervised. This of course is annoying since the neighbors have never asked permission to use land that isn’t theirs, but I feel it goes beyond merely annoying and poses a real liability risk. My Dad feels that the neighbors are responsible for their own kids, just like his parents were responsible for him, and so while he finds it irritating, he hasn’t taken any formal steps to document the problem with local authorities, nor has he spoken to the parents directly. He figures that whatever happens is the result of their own negligence. I, however, am worried that with all the legislation regarding child safety and protection, my Dad is putting all his assets at risk by ignoring the situation. I worry that because he knows there are minors trespassing on his property and because he isn’t reporting it to local authorities, he’s just as culpable as the negligent parents if one of the kids is injured or killed on his land. I worry that he could lose everything if that happened. I’ve tried to convince Dad to report it to the local authorities and get it documented in case anything happens, and if need be get a restraining order against the neighbors so he doesn’t bear the responsibility of an accident, but he just brushes it off and doesn’t want to deal with it. I think he’s gambling with my sister’s and my inheritance, and I’m angry about it. Am I blowing things out of proportion or is this a real legal issue?
Listen, the "inheritance" is not a monetary one. It is one of sentimental value. The land has been in my family since it was built 200 years ago, and I don’t expect to see a dime of wealth from it. I just don’t want to see it handed over to the neighbors because my Dad doesn’t want to deal with the situation.
what provisions for posting the land "NO TRESPASSING" in his jurisdiction?
They may have to go up every 50 feet on his fence line
and yes, report every incursion to local sheriff to document someone was there
We are living in a very different age then we grew up in
CYA applies here, too
all the best and
Happy New Year
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I was thinking hard about your question, and sympathizing, until you said this:
"I think he’s gambling with my sister’s and my inheritance, and I’m angry about it. "
But you just sound money hungry, not really concerned.
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You are crazy and are really only concerned about money that is not yours but your father’s. You should encourage your father to sell everything he owns and blow the money in brothels. That would make him happy and don’t you want your father to be happy?
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Your dad has never faced a Judge like judge Judy obviously. He probably counting on rights and Judges don’t look at that just the law. People really don’t hold rights anymore at least not their own.
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The way the laws are now it is a liability, he should be worried.
I understand your dad, I’m sure he wants to get along with your neighbors and doesn’t want to look like the mean guy.
But there is a real concern here.
I would start by putting up signs, and telling your neighbors about your concern of them being on your property for any reason.
Even the adults you maybe liable for, so make them all aware that you do not want them on your property.
If they slip on horse dung they can try and sue you, and there are a lot of lawyers willing to help them do it.
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Yes, it is a real legal issue. Unfortunately, landowers are responsible for the safety of tresspassors as well as the safety of those invited onto the property. You could even be held liable if a burglar entered the property and was injured! Now, it sounds like you are already aware of this, but there are special rules regarding child tresspassors. If there is anything on the property that is considered an "attractive nuisance" you can be in big trouble if a child is injured. Now it also sounds like there is some negligent supervision involved on the other end. But that would be for the court to decide. Consult an attorney on the specifics for New York. But also try to convey to your dad that this is a real liability risk. Here are a few links below for you to print out and show to your dad.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Attractive_nuisance_doctrine
http://www.quarterh.com/legal18.htm
http://definitions.uslegal.com/a/attractive-nuisance/
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The second link above has info about making the nuisance less attractive, regarding horses specifically. I’d also do signs, put up fences and write a formal letter (certified mail) to give to the neighbors regarding their children’s acitons as well as their own. Do all you can to put them on notice and to also make the property "safe." I’d even go as far as putting up some type of barrrier to block the ATVs. And the children on ATVs brings up a whole different legal issue as well, which I won’t get into here. It just has the potential to become a big mess, which you already realize. I’m not sure how to resolve this issue, but those are just a few ideas. You should consult an attorney in you state though for sure to find out exactly what you can do to resolve this.
"My Dad feels that the neighbors are responsible for their own kids"
Sorry, but your dad is wrong. People are responsible for how they act in comparison to how they are expected to act. That means that the parents are expected to exercise more care than the rest of society w/respect to those kids, but your dad is not off the hook in being expected to exercise reasonable degree of care himself.
"He figures that whatever happens is the result of their own negligence."
Sorry again, but negligence isn’t something that’s passed down like an heirloom or the deed to a house. If those kids are injured due to some feature of your father’s land, there will be an issue as to whether your father 1) knew about that feature and its danger and 2) whether he could have done something about it. Your question obviates the issue of whether your father knew that these kids were there. In short, the law does not make trespass or parenthood a bar against civil (or even criminal) liability.
"I worry that because he knows there are minors trespassing on his property and because he isn’t reporting it to local authorities, he’s just as culpable as the negligent parents if one of the kids is injured or killed on his land."
Exactly. Why haven’t you reported it to the authorities? Have you tried fencing the territory? Posting signs? Trespass does not bar a claim for negligence, but if your father posted signs against trespass with the idea that people would respect those signs, he might be that much less susceptible to civil liability for actions resulting from that trespass (until the kids demonstratd that they didn’t care and did it anyway). Try mailing a lot of letters to the authorities and the parents – be polite. You’re not trying to get out of a lawsuit – you’re trying to warn people about safety issues. If they ignore those issues when you had reason to think that they wouldn’t, you’ve minimized the likelihood of liability.
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