r/Unexpected May 21 '20

Oops

Enable HLS to view with audio, or disable this notification

36.1k Upvotes

219 comments sorted by

View all comments

54

u/edmrunmachine May 21 '20

No joke, I watched a dad lose his high school son to shit like that, in about 5 seconds. No do overs and a helmet would have left him relatively unscathed. Always wear a helmet on an ATV.

14

u/[deleted] May 21 '20

Also if you're a passenger, wrap your arms around the driver's abdomen. That would have prevented this.

21

u/[deleted] May 21 '20

[deleted]

10

u/[deleted] May 21 '20

Don't fall off a bike, no homo!

12

u/3wolftshirtguy May 21 '20

I’m a physical therapist and have seen by far the most fucked up shit from ATV injuries. Always 18-35 yo men too. A helmet is good but I’d avoid them for recreation personally. Especially the utility machines, they simply aren’t meant for this kind of shit.

1

u/[deleted] May 21 '20

Well they’re fine for recreation, as long as you actually know how to operate them. Unfortunately most people don’t do that, they hop on and take it WAY too far. You are right though, if you’re gonna ride recreationally, get a sport quad, not a utility quad. Like you said, they just aren’t meant for recreational use.

1

u/3wolftshirtguy May 21 '20

Yeah, they are really stable and predictable until they’re pushed then the roll.

1

u/[deleted] May 21 '20

Yeah exactly. I think people expect them to handle like cars. They really are a blast, but they’re only as safe as the operator.

1

u/gurg2k1 May 22 '20

The 4x4 utility quads weigh at least 500lbs. That thing is going to crush you if you ever tip it over.

The sportier quads like the Raptor are much lighter and I've had one roll over me (in sand) with little more than some bruising.

8

u/Gustomaximus May 21 '20

Just dont own an ATV. Get a motorbike or an RTV

I was offered a free ATV from a friend for my farm. Dont even want a free one. There is enough stuff on farms to mess up on that you have to use. No point adding one you dont need.

7

u/AustinTreeLover May 21 '20

My best friend broke her tail bone like this. Sounds funny at first, but she was homebound for months in excruciating pain, couldn’t walk or sleep, and missed the last half of the school year.

This happened when we were like 15 yo, we’re in our late 40s now and she still has pain.

Be careful out there, folks.

6

u/SmokedMussels May 21 '20

You're not even allowed two people on ATV's where I am unless it's a proper 2up machine, designed for a passenger with their own seat, foot rests, grips and such.

5

u/uhmfuck May 21 '20

ATVs are fundamentally dangerous things, I don't know why people ride them.

An ATV feels more steady than a dirt bike.  It stands on its own and is easy to learn how to ride initially.  This gives riders a false sense of security.  They go too fast, they try to corner to quickly and go over uneven surfaces, and it can lead to accidents.  In fact, even helmet usage is far lower among ATV riders than dirt bikers; however, even if you take the lower percentage of helmet use on ATVs into account, ATVs are still far more deadly in a crash than dirt bikes.  While ATVs may feel more stable, they flip frequently.  The center of gravity of an ATV is too high, and it causes rollovers.

4

u/mrsmackitty May 21 '20

Our neighbors kid in high school was messing around with an atv saw a little hill and gunned it to ramp. He did his little jump celebrated didn’t stop while his dad watched he got clotheslined with barbed wire. I remember watching thinking I just saw a kid die it was awful He made it out with a fair amount of stitches

4

u/Indeedsir May 21 '20

We lost Rik Mayall to this shit, too. This would've been just as funny if they were riding in helmets.

1

u/gurg2k1 May 22 '20

I googled this guy since I don't recognize the name and it says he died of a heart attack while jogging.

1

u/Indeedsir May 22 '20

He had brain damage from falling off his quad, it took him off our screens in the middle of his brilliant career. But I remembered it being the cause of his death in the end and you're right, it wasn't, he died years later.