Experts weigh in on ATV crash in Coachella
Four people are recovering Monday after neighbors said they crashed an ATV mailboxes at midnight on Saturday.
Now ATV experts are weighing in on the safe ways to use these vehicles to ensure crashes like these don’t happen.
Steven Harris owns Off Road Rentals, he said ATVs aren’t something to mess around with.
“It’s a matter of caution. Keep your speed down and your feet up and watch where you’re going,” Harris said.
While little is known about the specifics of this weekend’s crash, neighbors said they might not have had seat belts on when they crashed.
Harris said the number one red flag, they drove at night.
“You can’t tell the evenness of the ground, you could be surprised by dips and bumps that can unseat you or send you over backwards. It’s a bad idea to drive at night. We don’t allow customers to, we don’t even drive at night,” Harris said.
Before anyone rides here, they watch an instructional video, put on a helmet and review instructions.
Chip Levinson and his son Robbie said they felt extremely safe during the whole experience.
“I felt very safe, especially because in the beginning they adjusted the bike for the speed, depending on your height and weight so you don’t go too fast or too slow,” Robbie Levinson said.
Harris said it’s easy to stay safe on an ATV, if you follow simple rules.
“The law requires a helmet on everyone on an ATV. It’s essential because if you make a mistake, it could be the end of you,” Harris said.
He said anyone under the age of 16 should be supervised by an adult.
And be careful what kind of terrain you drive on.
“They weren’t designed to get you there fast, they weren’t designed for racing, they work well in the sand and in the dirt, they don’t work well anywhere else,” Harris said.
Levinson said as a parent, hearing about this accident is difficult.
“You get this sick feeling in your gut,” Levinson said.
But he hopes everyone recovers and accidents like this one don’t become common.
The Riverside County Sheriff’s Department said one of the girls involved in the crash is still in stable but critical condition.
Sheriff’s deputies are still looking into the crash but said drugs and alcohol do not seem to be a factor.
