Yamaha's Rhino: For Some A Deadly Ride

[RamboLiberal]

Source: CBS News

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The Rhino was a hit, with more than 150,000 sold after its introduction 15 months later in fall, 2003. But the vehicle, which looks like a cross between a golf cart with attitude, and an all-terrain vehicle, or ATV, is at the center of a legal firestorm. At least 59 riders have been killed in Rhino accidents, according to the Consumer Product Safety Commission. More than 440 wrongful death and personal injury lawsuits are pending, and Yamaha has settled others. Many stem from rollovers in which drivers or passengers fell or were flung through the open door space to the ground, then smashed by the 1,100 pound vehicle. Adults and children as young as 3 years old have suffered gruesome injuries, including amputated limbs and crushed legs, arms or heads.

Plaintiffs say the Rhino is dangerously unstable due to its unusually narrow stance, high ground clearance and lack of a rear differential to help in turning. They also claim the Rhino's seat belts tend to unspool during rollovers, resulting in belted occupants being partially ejected.

The Rhino has "significant problems," said Inez Tenenbaum, who in June became chairman of the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission. "The public needs to be aware that, already, 59 people have been killed in these vehicles."

Under pressure from the agency, Yamaha on March 31 announced a "free repair program'' to improve the Rhino's handling and stability-seemingly a recall in everything but name. The company agreed to install spacers on the rear axles of the vehicles to make them a few inches wider, to remove their rear anti-sway bars, and install protective half-doors on Rhinos that don't already have them. Owners who watch a safety video when they bring in their Rhinos will also get a $100 coupon toward purchase of a helmet. Yamaha stressed that the action was not a recall, but a "voluntary repair program." Avoiding the term "recall'' rankled some agency officials and consumers, but in agreeing to make the repairs, Yamaha insisted on calling it something else.

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Yet serious accidents have allegedly occurred under seemingly benign conditions-at low to moderate speeds, on relatively flat ground, and without drivers knowingly doing anything adventurous or sporty. Rollovers have even occurred at dealerships when employees were moving Rhinos around the lot, or taking customers on test drives, court records show. Like Ike Miyachi, the president of Yamaha France suffered a leg injury when his Rhino tipped in 2005.


Read more: http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2009/08/04/cbsnews_investigates/main5213784.shtml?tag=stack

[Blue_Tires]

1. i remember back in the 80s when 3-wheelers were big

i asked my parents for one as a kid and you would have thought i had asked them for a napalm grenade...

[flvegan]

2. Banned in what...1988? 1989?

You'd have been safer with that grenade.

I remember riding one that my buddy had gotten, and I'd been riding dirt bikes since I was 8. Worst machine ever built.

[Blue_Tires]

11. yeah, i thought at the time my mom was being overprotective

but she was right because she saw all the rollover/broken neck stories on the news as kids rode them on the dunes on the Outer Banks...

Mom also knew how careless I was at the time...I never had a dirtbike, but I DID have a BMX that I rode pretty much everywhere -- I was also really into the jackass/X-games style stunts, ramps and jumps before there was even a name for them...Still got plenty of scars on my legs (and one on my face) to this day...

[Nevernose]

4. The kid two doors down was rendered quadrapalegic

It was '83 or so if I recall, I was fairly young, but he was 16 and riding around in the woods near our house. My mom was his English teacher. He died about ten years after that from complications. His was one of the first successful lawsuits against Honda for their three-wheelers. Three million bucks -- a shitty consolation prize.

[Blue_Tires]

8. there was a well-off retired couple a couple streets over

at that time and when their 2 grandkids came to visit, they kept a go-kart, a Honda Fatcat AND a three-wheeler (along with a bunch of other goodies) in the garage for them to play with...I was a little older, but used to hang around for the envy factor -- these two grandkids were eight years old and six years old...I shit you not...

luckily, i don't recall anything ever happening to them..

[FreeCajun]

9. flipped a 3-wheeler racing through a crawfish pond once...

it & my uncle (who was driving) both landed on top of me in the freezing winter water. I was probably 10 or so. Ah, the activities that good ol' country values tell you is OK for your kids. ;)

[Nevernose]

13. Having grown up in the country, it's a miracle I'm still alive.

Granted, I think we've become a too fearful society and far too overprotective of our kids, but there has to be a happy medium somewhere, right? Somewhere between a well-designed quad and a three-wheeled death machine? Now if only I could figure out a way to stop my Uncle Jimmy from getting liquored up and taking pot shots at the catfish in his backyard pond I'd be allright...

I had some friends yell at me and threaten to report me to CPS if I continued allowing my daughter to climb the fig tree in my backyard. Crazy. Kids are supposed to climb trees; that's what trees are there for, right?

[Ex Lurker]

17. I flipped a 4 wheeler once trying to load it in the back of a pickup

I should be deader than a hammer. I landed on my back and managed to kick it to one side just enough to miss me.

[elehhhhna]

22. my daughters crashed Grandpa Bill's golf cart in the north woods.

Not hurt, except the DID laugh until the younger one threw up.

Tweeners & wheels are a bad combo imo

[tabasco]

39. No, it's not country values. Just dumbass values.

I rode dirt bikes growing up and I still ride a KLX 450R.

Parents give ATVs to kids because they look like toys.

When they ride into a tree without a helmet and and get killed, they say it was "Jesus taking them home."

[8 track mind]

42. how is the

KLX working out for you? I have a chance to get a KLX 650, that damn thing is quite fast, but it has a Baja Kit on it. Might be able to get it for a screaming deal


Speaking of smashing into a tree without a helmet, i know someone who died EXACTLY that way at the age of 16. And they used the same dumb line "well i guess it was his time"

The old saw about an ounce of prevention rings true once more....

[8 track mind]

10. the three wheeler: dumb dumb DUMB design

lets put a bunch of horsepower on an unstable triangle. what could possibly go wrong....
:sarcasm:

[girl gone mad]

18. From a 1987 article:

"The senior managing director of the Honda Motor Co. began weeping on the witness stand Wednesday when an attorney gave him a list containing 789 names of victims--about half of them children--who have died in accidents involving all-terrain vehicles like those built by his company."

:wow:

[whoneedstickets]

3. Wonder if it has anything to do with how they are used...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8Moh5oHvRek

[8 track mind]

6. seeing shit like that truly pisses me off

I have been riding off road for 25 years now. I hate seeing these fucking idiots with no saftey gear whatsoever, drinking beer, running flat out on these machines.

Just last year i was camping in the Kiabab national forest near the grand canyon and i hopped on my dual sport (street legal dirt bike) to go to the canyon village for parts for my coleman lantern. I took a corner and the front end washed away on me due to the front tire losing it's bite (incorrect air pressure, my fault)and i made contact with the ground at a high rate of speed.

What was the first part of my body to hit the ground? My head.

The impact was hard enough to crack the outer shell of my helmet. It sounded like a gun going off when it hit. It also ripped the sun visor and goggles right off of my head. I then went sliding along the pavement, on my knee, then my shoulder, eventually coming to a stop upside down under a big pine tree. I had some road rash, my knee was tweeked good, but i was able to get up and walk away. not even a head ache.

The doctor that treated my wounds said that if i hadn't been wearing that helmet, it would have been extremely serious. It probably would have fractured my skull and who knows what else.

Wear the saftey gear people. it works.

Be it known that i'm not defending the design of the vehicles. But after seeing this video, safety gear might have helped in some situations.

[ProgressiveProfessor]

23. I do ATGATT on the street or dirt and am alive because of it

If someone doesn't and gets hurt, in the vast majority of case they bear partial responsibility

[8 track mind]

43. ATGATT? not familiar with that one........ n/t

[snooper2]

31. Watch the video of this stupid motherfucker

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b2kVXaGpfPk&feature=related


The comments are priceless :rofl:

[whoneedstickets]

44. A little time on Youtube and you wonder how ANYONE survives in these things..

I bet the guy in the one you posted walks in circles cause his left leg is now shorter than his right. Check out this idiot..


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YXtLYyANu-Q&feature=related

[ProgressiveProfessor]

5. The risks are obvious and well documented.

If you want to ride off road gear up, know your limitations and that of what you are riding.

[8 track mind]

7. see post six n/t

[AzNick]

12. Here is the opinion of a dirt rider

Ok, don't come here to lecture me about how I destroy mother nature when I go ride the trails, please take your environmental concerns somewhere else (golf courses for instance).

These Rhinos have the same issue as the quads: it is not difficult to ride them and it is not difficult to get into trouble with them.

See, dirt bikes make you go through a learning curve and it takes you quite a few hours (around 20) to learn to ride them somewhat properly, and while you do that, you are not going too fast and don't put yourself and others at too much odds (unless you get into a panic rev -been there, done that).

Quads and Rhinos are different in that you absolutely need no skills to stay on top of them while going fast. To that, add the fact that most of their users do not wear protective gear (some quadders do wear serious protective gear -which costs at least $600 a rider- but most don't), except for sandals and a backward baseball hat, take the trails with no idea on how to ride or drive on dirt, and completely ignore the rules of the trail (yup, different sets of rules, all unwritten, but very important, with some hand signals to know), and you have a recipe for disaster.

The manufacturers should put a sticker stating "Not responsible for the user being stupid". Unfortunately it would not suffice, in the Land Of The Disclaimers (aka the US of A).

Note that the dirt riding associations in Arizona (of which I am a member) tried to put out a proposal forcing all OHV users to go through lessons as well as pay a fee of $100 to pay for classes and also ween out the retards, and it was defeated, by the Republicans of course, and I tried to warn them that their own party (see, OHV users are about 80% Republicans, I am a rare Liberal in my association) would defeat it out of sheer stupidity, they did not believe me.

I don't ride anymore, because I could not afford getting hurt, with the stupid health insurance industry.

[Grinchie]

14. You have obviously never inspected a Rhino in person.

I have been riding motorcycles for over 40 years, I have ridden three wheelers, and own a quadrunner.

In 2007, I was shopping for a replacement for my well warn Farm Qaud and had the opportunity to inspect a Rhino.

This machine totally violated the rules of an All Terrain vehicle.

First off all, it was too tall. The center of gravity was about 3.5 feet off the ground. This alone made it extremely dangerous in my view. When I mentioned this to the sales clerk, he could not comprehend what I was saying. I guess center of gravity and roll over risk is not on the modern saleclerks curriculum.

Secondly, it tried to be just like a Mini Hummer, complete with Roll bars, doors, steering wheel. The trouble was that it's too small for all that baggage, and it just made the center of gravity worse. Also, even if it did roll, the likeliehood of you getting an arm crushed outside the cage was pretty much a certainty.

Then the racks.. The racks were a good 1.5 fight higher off the ground than my quad. This would facilittate more work to load a 50 pound bag of cement, not to mention exacerbate the High Center of Gravity.

I told my wife and the clerk that this "Homerized" version of a quad was going to make news in the future after it killed a few people. Well look where it is today.

It may look cool, but back in the day, people knew the risks of rollover hazard and designed accordingly. Very few people examine the functionality of the sol called off road vehicles these days. If they did, they would realize that they don't need a vehicle slathered with chrome and shiny plastic when they are going to be scraping across rocks, hauling tools, pipes or seed, or generally going to places that don't have pavement, and the air is think with dust, dirt, insects and seed.

Nope, the Rhino was a piece of shit made to look cool for idiots that didn't know better.

[AngryAmish]

33. I'm an idiot that does not know any better

I'm a city kid but I get out to the country once in a while. I have wanted one of these things for a long time. After today, not so much.

Why did I want one of these things? Camping in the woods where it is too far to carry my stuff.

[Grinchie]

34. Your statement is pretty descriptive about the market for these things.

I agree with you, as this is how they were marketed.

As a user who demands that all of his tools actually pay for themselves with a useful service, I look at things a bit differently, which is why, after years of using all sorts of off road, dual sport, ATV's etc, along with having the experience on how much skill, maintenance, care and function these things have, I tend to look at the bottom line.

If we all looked at the externalities of the products we buy, I think most people would be put off from an impulse buy on most everything available these days.

I find the most honorable tools and equipment in flea markets, urban recycling centers, or on the curbside these days.

People don't have a clue that tools and equipment designed in the 30's and 40's were actually designed to last, used good steel or Cast Iron, and in many cases, would be irreplaceable. Sure they were heavy, but they were balance, didn't have sharp edges from molds that have been used so many times that the flashing oozes out in sharp edges, but is no longer cleaned up due to increased "Productivity"

Today, whip out a cad model, have the computer NC machine mock it up, slap some cheap plastic on it so it looks like a Nike shoe, and voila, you have a product.

[AzNick]

41. I have seen a few

In my opinion, they are not made for trail riding, more for scenery riding on service roads and around your property if you have a large backyard.

They are glorified golf carts.

The Japanese don't really comprehend what trail riding is about. There is barely any trails left in Japan, the only dirt riding they do is motocross.

If you can't take a vehicle on a veteran motocross track, then it is not fit for trail riding, period.

Nobody in their own mind would ride a rhino on a motocross track, even on an 80cc track, if it was large enough.

Showroom owners are to blame, because they probably told their customers that they could ride them on trails, which they always do, never mention that not all trails are good to ride on or even open to motorized vehicle at all, and do not care about warning them of the dangers of riding a Rhino.

I would love a Rhino myself, because I have 2 acre lot and have to feed my horses and carrying hay and bags of feed by hand or even wheelbarrow is a pain.

Showrooms sold them as OHV vehicles, and they should not have.

[Grinchie]

15. Just so nobody get's confused, here's a picture of this Turd.

>

Sitting in this thing subjects you to a pinchy, hostile environment. The thing is heavly, laden with all sorts of unnecessary doodads, cup holders, seat beats, bucket seats, and the rear deck is about 40 inches off the ground.

You look at it wrong and it's about to roll over.

Thats my review of this overpriced piece of crap.

[saigon68]

16. I have several of these

.

It is a Yamaha "Grizzly" It has no roll cage. Its a "working tool". You will KILL yourself on this if you are driving drunk or try to show off.

I'm sure in a lot of the cases of the "Rhino" cited, the drivers were one or both.

Your photo above is a glorified golf cart. I think its safer than what we own, however, it doesn't look to me that it has working utility. It also looks like it really isn't an off road vehicle. And I agree it looks like a high center of gravity. I don't know any one who has one of these.

We use trailers when we pull loads.

It trailers a deer real fine until I strap it to my truck to register it.

[Pavulon]

19. Yep, I am a honda fan

but you are right. Shown the proper respect they are great for going places where you cant get a truck (or dont want it sunk in mud). At least 4 people a year here die on these either drunk or driving across roads at speed to be hit by cars. Stupidity is generally root cause in these accidents.

[Grinchie]

36. They are easier on the land than a truck

My previous farm was fairly steep in some places. If I took the truck out into the orchard if would have destroyed the soil. Quads can go just about anywhere when driven with skill and respect.

I used to drive into Raspbery patches on mine and harvest the best Blackberries that would have been inaccessible by foot.

[Grinchie]

35. I'm in total agreement with you

Your Grizzly is the typical working Quad, and I have no problems with them.

I have hauled so much wood with my Quad and Trailer that my back hurts just thinking about it.

I'd rather have one of these for real work though. The seats come off, as do the rails so it can double as a flatbed platform. In WWII, it had a swivel steering column that allowed you to steer it while walking behind it, standing, or sitting in a removable chair. 4 wheel drive, and I think a 1/2 ton capability on flat ground. A friend of mine had one of these years ago.. It was really a work of art.

I just found these pictures while looking for the MULE, but apparently, these guys are making them as perhap USMC spec. I may actually look into these.
>

[saigon68]

47. That's a neat looking vehicle.

But if the military is buying it, I'll bet it costs a fortune.

It looks like it could carry a lot of firewood. A 1/2 ton on level ground, interesting.

[Grinchie]

49. It's a reproduction of what they built 70 years ago for World War 2

The originals had a 2 cylinder engine mounted underneath, and could haul 1 ton of payload. It's just a 4X8 platform with wheels. You use to be able to by them at Army Surplus yards for about 50 bucks.

These reproductions are about ten grand. Sort of displays the power of inflation, doesn't it?

I once had the opportunity to see one in person. I have always wanted one ever since, but I cant afford it now.

I will probably build one myself, since a lot of people are into these items, but there is no way I could duplicate the quality and durability of the originals.

[saigon68]

50. I do recall seeing a few Marines in "I" Corps

With something like this. They were using it to carry crated mortar rounds if my memory serves me right.

They must have had a name for them

FOUND IT

the USMC M274 Mule



Check this shit out. A 106 MM Recoilless Rifle

http://www.mechanicalmulesofamerica.com/Page1-Mechanical-Mules-Of-America-MILITARY-MULES.htm

[Grinchie]

51. I have worked on many WW2 vehicles.

And they were built in such a way as to be easy to drive, and easier to repair. I still admire the simplicity and solidarity of purpose used in the design philosophy of the World War 2 era machines.

You needed just a few tools, as they used standard wrench sizes everywhere. They even used left handed threads on the wheels so you godd finger tighten the lug lugs and get out of harms way without the wheels falling off. Todays vehicles require a huge variety tools to get anything meaningful done. I hate it. They are so unnnecessarily complex, it's almost like they purposefully go out of their way to make repairs as difficult as possible on newer models.

Once in a while, I like to pay $2.00 and go to the local pick and pull and see how many nhundreds of different ways the auto manufactures of today reinvent the wheel over and over and over again. Nothing more fun that disassembling wrecked cars before you have to do it on your own working car. It makes it so much easier to know what to expect.

[Fumesucker]

52. It's interesting the difference between German/Japanese and US troops ..

When it came to mechanical skills.

If a German or Japanese truck or whatever broke down they almost always had to bring in a specialized mechanic because the average Axis troop had never worked on a motorized vehicle.

US units on the other hand usually had some farm boy that grew up wrenching on tractors/combines/what-have-yous and could do the jury-rig repair to get the vehicle moving again.

A real difference in culture that was also noted by Yamamoto when he was stationed as Naval attache' in Washington and came upon a few Americans building a road with a bulldozer and steam shovel that would have taken hundreds of Japanese with picks and shovels to do the same job. That's why Yamamoto said that he feared Japan would awaken a sleeping giant with the Pearl Harbor attack, he had been here and he knew and feared the size and industrial might of America to his very core.

[8 track mind]

20. that is an extremely

narrow wheel base. Kind of reminds me of those mail service jeeps they auctioned off in the early 80's. Accident waiting to happen.

[uncle ray]

25. the narrow track width defines the vehicle.

they were designed to be the largest vehicle you can legally use on "quad" trails. quads are the small 4 wheeled ATVs. so these were invented as a multi passenger vehicle made to be the widest possible to legally run the trails, resulting in a poor compromise. back in the day some of these narrow two track trails were made by narrow early military surplus jeeps that were the predecessor of the mail jeep, hence the similarity.

[Grinchie]

37. As a member of a Family that collected Military vehicles

There is very little similarity between the GPW GPA or Ford Jeeps of World War 2 compared to the current ATV trails today.

They may have been narrow, but not as narrow as a quad.

For a good laugh, just take a look at the latest Indiana Jones movie. It it they have a chase sequence using the Russian copy of the World War 2 Seagoing Jeep, or SEEP (Ford GPA Amphibian)

It is basically a standard WW2 Jeep frame, with a watertight hull. Those are actual vehicles performing the stunts in that movie, and you can see the stability of the WW2 jeep.

I have driven many jeeps in my lifetime, including a Mighty Mite, all aluminum version from the Korean war, and they were designed to be as safe as they could be while being resilient, small and lightweight.

[Robb]

21. Saw a lot of these last summer out in Ouray

(big Colorado 4WD/dirt bike area)

Anyhow, for the first year I can remember, I saw more quads than Jeeps. This in the self-proclaimed "Jeep Capitol of the World" (and it's tough to decide whether it's Ouray or Moab that really should get that title).

And I saw a lot of these Rhino and knock-offs. Very popular with the same sorts of folks who trailer their Jeep to the dirt roads (since it's geared too low for the highway). You're out of the sun and rain, and you can bring a big honkin' picnic. And grandma.

Mountain Rescue/ambulance went up into the backcountry about ten times that year for injury/accidents. 8 quads, 1 dirt biker, 1 Jeep (and you shoulda seen the hole the Jeep was in!). Proper safety equipment would've helped everyone but the Jeeper.

Sure the Rhinos are top-heavy. Ever seen a lifted Jeep? And a dirt bike will fall right over if you aren't sitting on it. And I knew a rancher killed himself loading his quad into a truck for the 1,000th time.

If you're careful you're mostly fine. Sometimes you're not. If the Rhino's crappy, it's no crappier than a lot of what's out on the trails.

And, people are idiots. I passed a woman two years ago on a 10,000-foot 4WD pass going the other way on a quad with a baby in a basket on her front handlebars. No helmets to be seen either.

It seems rather unprogressive of me to blame the victims here, but I've seen too much out on the trails not to. :shrug:

[ProgressiveProfessor]

24. Are they "victims" or just stupid?

[8 track mind]

26. ah yes Ouray!

I love the Imogene Pass! what a hoot!


My favorite has to be the the red neck on the 4 wheeler with the beer cooler attached to the front rack. When he climbed a steep hill the cooler came open and he was pelted with numerous cans of bud light and ice. I laughed my ass off at him

[uncle ray]

27. the problem is certainly the stoopid.

there are several groups of people who participate in off road recreation.

the rhinos are largely operated by the drunk redneck daredevil type who just want to run around drunk tearing shit up. the majority of quad riders fit into the same category. if they don't like an existing trail, they'll make a new one. the areas here used heavily by these groups quickly get destroyed, they have dozens of illegal criss crossing trails where there used to be one, there is garbage everywhere.

dirt bike guys are largely "old school" they mostly respect the land, they'll ride fast but not reckless, and of any of the off road vehicles probably cause the least environmental impact in that they require a very narrow trail, at lest when ridden responsibly.

the jeep guys usually don't care for speed, they're looking for the scenery and finding the most technical obstacles for rock crawling. this group is perhaps the most aware of their impact on the land and adjust their behavior accordingly. the most hardcore jeep trails are usually spotless as far as trash, in stark contrast to the trails used by the other users. they pick up other peoples garbage and are anal about staying on the existing trail and using it with respect. no bashing into trees, if you see a mud hole in the trail you slowly go through it not around it(which needlessly widens the trail).

the rhino is a poor compromise that happens to fit very well with the stupidest of users. it's too big for single track trails as well as most two track quad trails, yet not capable enough for the jeep trails that require larger tires, better suspension articulation, as well as good stability. all that's left for them is to get drunk and drive around in circles and attempt to jump their rhino.

i don't know what the answer is, as a member of the off road community, i certainly don't want to rush to ban them, but there needs to be better education and even licensing to use the rhinos/UTVs.

[8 track mind]

29. yep....

The drunk rednecks are certainly bear some responsibility for this. all of the near misses, nasty accident that i have seen out on the trail are caused by by some helmet-less beer swilling dumb ass looking to show off.

[Grinchie]

38. People can be thoughtless, for sure.

I remember attempting to descend the Fordyce Creek jeep trail near Emigrant Gap in the Sierras one summer. Afer an hour, I had made it about 1 mile down this hellish road on my Honda XR 650L. A heavy, tall, and innapproriate machine for going over 24 inch diameter boulders, ledges and drops. Fortunately for me, some jeepers were coming up, and I decided to abort the descent and tag along with them to ensure I could get back out.

Going in was easy compared to the difficult getting out. It would have been impossible without their help. I nearly destroyed that piece of equipment on that run.

I wish I had pictures of that place, but it's burned into my memory until I die, and the sheer exhaustion I felt after I got to good road.

[Robb]

40. I know that feeling

Until I sold it for baby stuff money this summer, I used to ride a KTM 640 Adventure into absurd places, and wonder why the hell I didn't have a smaller bike.

...Gets you in shape picking up a big bike a few hundred times in an afternoon, though, eh? :D

[Grinchie]

46. Sure does.. I sold mine as well, I may replace it with something about 150 Lbs. lighter next time.

Or, I may just walk and save my money.

Picking up a heavy bike 50 times is enough for me, especially when wearing full leathers and cycle boots. I'm getting too old for that abuse.

A friend of mine brought over his KTM 400 a few years back. It was light as a feather, and felt like the optimal dual sport.

My biggest fear was soloing in to the forest, down a narrow gold mining ditch cut into a 60 degree slope and encountering a falling tree.. I used to carry an axe just in case, because it would have been near impossible to turn the bike around without losing it down the hill without ropes to tie it off.

Ahh yes, the good old days.

[timo]

28. almost

I was really trying hard to decide between one of these a polaris ranger a kawasaki
mule or a john deere gator for the farm/nursery and the kids.
I ended up buying a used gator 6x4 diesel, top speed 20 mph and a stance so wide it will be very difficult to flip, slow,low, and heavy!!
I am rigging out a spray tank and a micro mist sprayer to use in the tree farm, trying to reduce the amount of herbicide,and man power to keep the weeds from taking over.

[8 track mind]

30. smart decision and welcome to DU! n/t

[Lagomorph]

45. Mostly, what I see are...

people flying around, getting their thrills. They push the envelope and SURPRISE!, it's not a very big envelope.

[sofa king]

32. I wonder if they're any more dangerous than motorcycles.

There have been 59 fatalities out of 150,000 vehicles sold over the past six years. Someone would have to be much better at juggling statistics than I am to prove my guess, but consider this article:

http://andthecowgoesmoo.wordpress.com/2008/10/26/us-military-trying-to-reduce-fatalities-by-offering-motorcycle-training/

Curiously enough, there were 58 motorcycle fatalities among sailors and Marines in just 12 months from 2007-2008. Fifty of those were on sport bikes (as opposed to cruisers). My guess is that there are fewer motorcycle-owners in the Navy and Marines than there are Rhino owners nationwide, though the numbers are probably on the same order of magnitude.

I know that every time I get on my little clown-bike and putter off into the wild at 30 mph, I entertain the thought that this might be my last ride. They really are out to get you, if only they could see you, but that's only if I manage not to do myself in by dropping my attention for three or four crucial seconds at the right time.

But it's a choice, one I freely made and certainly do not regret. It would ruin my life to have someone tell me I couldn't do it anymore because it annoys people, or it is unsafe.

[sendero]

48. My same thought....

.... when I was a kid there were no quads but there were dirt bikes. I rode them and I loved it. But I've always been a cautious person, I'm not going to let my testosterone overrule my brain.

I've had my share of scrapes, but the worse injury I ever got was a banged and scraped elbow. I rode ravines and all kinds of terrain, I just knew when to quit.

I think some of the vehicles (the Rhino should have never been made) are inherently dodgy, but most of the problem as I see it is the culture. The Jackass I-can-do-anything-and-I'll-be-OK mindset that is adopted by kids who don't really understand what they are getting in to.

It only takes a split second error to mess yourself up big time, just like in a car. People treat these things like they are toys, they are not.

[Fumesucker]

53. Depends a lot on the motorcycle.. And the rider..

I was riding sport bikes when we called them cafe racers and had to build them ourselves. You couldn't just go out and buy a high performance street bike with nothing more than a credit card, you had to have some experience and some knowledge.

Today any squidly can go out and get a bike that will go 170 plus mph right off the showroom floor.. Modern sport bikes take a great deal of skill to handle and entirely too many people get them as their first bike instead of starting off with something smaller and less powerful, this is particularly true of military personnel I think. My son in law had a Suzuki GSXR 600 that would go over 150 and used to ride up Palomar mountain when he was stationed at Pendleton about nine years ago, that is one curvy assed switchbacking fool of a road and it would be ridiculously easy to just ride right off a damn cliff or into a rock face. SIL could outride the guys on the literbikes for two reasons, he started riding on a 250 Ninja so he was skilled already and his 600 was lighter and handled better than the big bikes..