By Sheena Roszell - Big Country News - Grande Prairie

Injury Prevention Centre urges safe and sober ATV riding

May 18, 2018 | 3:33 PM

EDMONTON – As we head out to enjoy the May long weekend, those planning to ride their all-terrain vehicles are reminded to do so safely and sober.

An average of 14 people die each year in Alberta in ATV incidents and Don Voaklander, Director of the Injury Prevention Centre at the University of Alberta says these fatalities are entirely preventable.

“Our data shows that half the people who died during ATV or quad-related incidents had been drinking.  These are dangerous devices and if you add alcohol to the mix it’s a perfect storm of misadventure.”

According to research from the Injury Prevention Centre, every year about 5,200 Albertans visit emergency rooms and 600 are admitted to hospital following crashes involving ATVs.

Voaklander says another important way to ride safely is to get some training on how to operate these vehicles.

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“A lot of people just go to an ATV dealership, buy one, unload it somewhere, and off they go,”  he said.  “There’s lots of issues with rollovers and ATVs.” 

He says there are certain ways to ride on hills and slopes and it takes a bit of training to know how to handle the ATVs and properly shift your weight around.

In Alberta, it’s the law that everyone must wear a helmet on any public land when operating ATVs.  

 “If you’re not on your own private land or on a First Nations reserve, or a Metis settlement, it’s a requirement to wear a helmet in Alberta.”