Plenty of children on Colorado’s farms and ranches grow up riding all-terrain vehicles, says Mike Vandre, who runs a 100-acre ranch in Kremmling in northwestern Colorado.
And as with riding a bike or a horse, children use ATVs under the watchful eye of a parent, Vandre says.
“I have a 6-year-old granddaughter, and she is always with me,” he said. “It would devastate me if I wasn’t watching her.”
Vandre is worried that the death of 4-year-old Sam Cockroft of Kersey will further tarnish the image of ATVs – motorized four-wheelers designed for off-road work and recreation.
Sam had been missing for two days after riding a child-size ATV near the South Platte River.
His body was found Sunday evening.
The boy lived on a dairy farm near Kersey, a rural area where it’s common for young boys and girls to ride ATVs. Vandre has seen plenty of them near his homestead.
“Mom and Dad let them roam,” Vandre said. “But then, they also watch them closely.”
Industry officials also stress that children should be carefully supervised when riding an ATV.
“Parents, please, please be involved in children’s ATV riding,” said Tom Lindsay, spokesman for the All Terrain Vehicle Association.
Still, some public-health groups want the practice of preteens riding ATVs banned altogether, saying the machines are too unwieldy and dangerous for them to handle. The American Academy of Pediatrics called on two U.S. House subcommittees to support restrictions on children riding or operating ATVs.
The academy says children under 16 should not ride ATVs at all.
“Children lack the strength, coordination and judgments needed to operate ATVs and other off-road vehicles,” Mary Dowd, a physician and member of the academy, said in her July testimony. “This creates the perfect recipe for disaster.”
The ATV industry is voluntarily sticking to an expired agreement requiring that age limits and safety information be put on every machine before it is sold.
At Fay Myers Motorcycle World in Arapahoe County, every ATV on the showroom floor – from vehicles the size of midsize cars to mini-machines designated for those ages 6 and above – carried such warnings and age restrictions. And salesmen adhere to those industry-imposed age limits, said Zach Rissler, one of the store’s managers. If parents want to buy a model for a child who isn’t old enough, the store won’t sell it to them, he added.
In 2003, 111 children ages 15 and younger died in ATV crashes nationwide, and 38,600 were injured. Many of the injuries involved the brain and spine, according to the Children’s Safety Network.
Twenty-seven riders of all ages died in Colorado between 2000 and 2003.
The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission noticed the injuries and agreed to look into a rule requiring anyone who buys an ATV to take a safety course.
The commissioners also are considering a petition to ban the sale of full-sized ATVs for use by children under 16.
In Colorado, the only restriction for children under 10 is that they can’t operate an ATV on public roads. Utah and Wyoming have greater restrictions. In those states, kids under 16 must pass a training class before they can drive on a county road.
But others note that ATVs are safe and enjoyable when in the right hands and used properly.
“Our biggest problem is that too many people are not doing it the right way,” said Ralph Moffat, president of Colorado Quad- Runners, an ATV club that has a statewide membership.
Some of the club’s members start their children riding at age 4 or 5 but with greater restrictions, he said. They are heavily padded, and the ATVs have tether switches that turn the machines off when they crash.
But constant monitoring is probably the most reliable safety measure, Moffat said. “Some kids are well-coordinated for their age, and others are not. The big thing is that they have to be watched closely.
“You know how kids are,” he added. “They like to go off on their own.”
That’s what happened to Sam, who went out to ride the small ATV on the family’s property about 7 p.m. Friday. The boy’s mother, Nicole Cockroft, was inside with her three other children.
About 30 minutes later, she began looking for him.
Weld County District Attorney Ken Buck is waiting for the sheriff to decide whether there was criminal negligence in the case.
Farm families in the state have plenty of leeway when it comes to ATV use, said Fred Petersen, Weld County extension agent for Colorado State University.
“It’s an individual family thing,” he said.
But when children are involved, parents always must be vigilant, Lindsay said.
“There is a degree of risk involved (in ATV riding), whether you’re 4 or 40 or 80,” he said. “It’s a matter of managing that risk, and at (an adult) age, we get to choose for ourselves. But young people need guidance.”
Staff writer Monte Whaley can be reached at 720-929-0907 or mwhaley@denverpost.com.
