Rhinos, Rollovers and Death
A 14-year-old from Mississippi was killed Saturday in Laurel Hill, Florida while racing at a motocross park in an all-terrain-vehicle, or ATV. The accident happened at the West Florida Motocross Park in Walton County. Witnesses say that the ATV flew into the air after the driver topped a hill, throwing him over the handlebars and onto the ground. At that point, the ATVcrashed on top of him with such force that it split his helmet in half. He was pronounced dead at the hospital.
As Christmas approaches, many parents might think getting an ATV for the kids is a good idea. Think again. Recently a five-year-old was killed in South Carolina, a 15-year-old girl in North Carolina, and a three-year-old boy in central Wisconsin. A 15-year-old from Georgia was killed when he lost control of an ATV and crashed in rural Chattooga County. While ATVs were developed as a fun sporting three-wheel vehicle for hunters and outdoor enthusiasts, the next generation - the four-wheel version – includes the Yamaha Rhino side-by-side or SXS.
It has two bucket seats, an open cage with roll bar and no doors. The Rhino is a particularly dangerous type of ATV. Described as a “golf cart on steroids,” and a width of 54 inches and a high center of gravity, it is particularly prone to tip, even on flat surfaces or turning at slow speeds.
It’s fair to say this is an example of the tail wagging the dog. The Rhino SXS is new to the market and government regulations have not caught up with design. Classified as a recreational off-highway vehicle, or ROV, it is in a largely unregulated category of vehicle, not low speed, and not cars, and not exactly ATVs because it can go up to 40 mph.
CBS News tells the story of a young mother who went for a ride in the Yamaha Rhino in November 2005. Her husband sat next to her and their 2-year-old was in the back. Traveling down a rocky road in Arizona, the woman tried to turn left and flipped the Rhino causing it to roll onto the driver’s side. The woman hit her head on the roll cage and died instantly. Her husband suffered three skull fractures, while their boy was okay.