uh bad news well not like anyone here is really affected by it but here in n.y. right near where i am at a young kid was screwing around on 1 of those kids snowmobiles or whatever and tried to climb some hill and the damn thing rolled over him and now he is dead.but what i am getting at is why did some company make a small snowmobile for kids it is just unavoidable you know it is just a matter of time before some kid gets hurt or even killed so why is it that these companies choose to produce these .........

and another thing was these parentas should supervise kids on these machines not just say hey go play outside while i sit here being a lazy a%% person here

thats all for now ..........

 

i agree. too many parents do not realize the dangers of machines. if it were my kid (dont have any thank god im in highschool) i would only let him drive while i was on it until he was atleast 13-14. and thats with strict rules as well. same thing goes for atvs, i think some people are nuts buying their kids 4 wheelers at age 10. even those "kid atvs" are dangerous as hell. IMO anything that exceeds 10 mph is dangerous. i bet those kid's parents realize how ignorant they were. putting a 16 year old male in the drivers seat of a truck is the limit. actually i think ive gotten into more accidents trying to avoid old people running into me. seriously they just pull in front of you like you werent even there. their insurance should be sky high not mine. and they go so slow! which causes more accidents. sorry got off the subjuct but had to state my conspiracy.

 

now it's not the ski-doo's fault.... it could sit there and run all day, and not hurt anyone..... the fact is that the parrents weren't watching the child, and didn't teach it in the proper use of a ski-doo.

personally i've been riding my own machine since i was 11, a 79 futura 400, fullsized machine, long track, and good enough power to hold the ski's off the ground..... but the only time i was alow to ride it was when i was with my father and grandfather. 1 infront of me, and one behind.. i was always taught not to drive faster then i can handle it, and did so.. so that's 13 years of sleddin, with only one injury.. ( i slipped on the ice b4 i got to the back of my truck to unload the sled.)and most of our trips were over 180 miles, perday, in backwoods trails.. no groomed trails for us..
it's the same with 3 wheelers.... i've been driving a honda 110 for just as long, and only ever rolled it a couple times ( my own fault for doing so.) and it was always a gental roll that i could step away from.... however a friend of mine has a honda 300 4x4 fourtrax that he's rolled over soo many times i can't keep track....

it all comes down to the parents teaching the child the proper respect for the machine... and some adults still haven't learnt that.....

it's sad to see a child die because of this, but please do not blame the companies who build them....

i'm not trying to start a fight, but that;'s my opinion

 

Bull,

Absolutely true!!! Not much use for snowmobiles in this part of the world, so most kids ride ATV's. My youngest son has been riding a Polaris Sportsman 90 for a little over a year under my supervision and has had no injuries. He had one bad day of riding in July when he had two low speed rollovers and flopped the ATV on its side once. In all three instances, it was due to mistakes that he made by not following the instructions given him by me and a much more experienced rider. They all occured in very technical areas of the trails that we were riding and were challenging even to the adults riding much larger 4X4 ATV's, but were all do-able using the right technique. No injuries except to his pride.

The point is that adults must take the time to TEACH their kids how to ride safely. Kids tend to get overconfident very quickly so even after they develop their skills, they must be supervised. Manufacturers should be held accountable for the safety of their product designs, but can't be held accountable for a lack of common sense and adult supervision.

Lastly, even with the proper training and supervision, these sports are inherently dangerous. Training and supervision only remove the risk of avoidable accidents.

Ride safe, wear protective gear, use common sense!


John

 

a lil more detail in to this matter

the kid was a 5 yr old the sled was a polaris something and the polaris company is in no way responsible because they state in the owner fnfo that it is not for use by ppl under age 6 and also the parents are getting charged with i think neglect and maybe involuntary manslaughter

i kinda feel that with the loss of their son the court issues will really hit em hard and i feel kinda bad but in the smae aspect i feel they should take what they have coming

 

These things are not toys..
My son has been driving my snowmobile (polaris xlt capable of 90mph+)
since he was 5. supervision, proper terrain and machine gets turned off if he dosent obey the rules. we have lots of fun and he has logged lots of miles safely. Great way to spend an sunday, Parents on a lake Icefishing and kids running around the lake on a sled, always in sight and no traffic or hills to contend with.

 

wow 5 years old? your taking chances but i guess we all take chances just getting up in the morning. i dont know about everyone else but i wasnt very coordinated and physically able to operate a machine when i was 5 years old. heck i dont even think i was able to read yet. i was probably still on scooters.
i am only 16 years of age and i clearly remember my limitations physically when i was that young. remember that just one little accident can stop a life short.
Please Be Careful With Your Kids ! Prevention Is The Answer.
you say proper training and experience is the key? well i am very experienced on 4 wheelers and i could still hit a tree or drive off a cliff anytime of the day. Mental Error Does Not Always Cause Accidents.
say your little boy is riding on his 4 wheeler that is 5 times his size,he hits a branch in the pasture or whatever that is hidden, due to the fact that the kid is 80 pounds and is hardly any weight to the atv he is not able to stay on the atv or steer it, falling off and breaking his neck. atv's are designed to function in regards to Weight.
i am in not place to tell anybody how to raise their kids but im just stating my opinion, im not calling anybody a bad person so please don't get offended. just for GOD's sake think before you act. how is parental supervision going to help when you are standing there and your kid is on the machine and you have NO way to cut the engine off or steer?
How is that safe? how? the machine is equally has dangerous as the parents themselves. i have had way to many friends get killed because of the irresponsibility of their parents. i have no problem whatsover with parents being on the atv/snowmobile letting the kid drive but is able to override that driver if necessary. 12 years old is one thing, but 5? that is kindergarden level. last time i looked they colored and glued things, not operate dangerous machinery. just please take my words into consideration. i for one did not have much supervison from parents and you do not know how many times i could have killed my self on my jet ski, 4 wheeler or whatever. mainly because i did not have the physical strength, co-ordination, and experience to keep myself and other people alive. please be careful. you wont think it will happen to you but watch out.

 

Pancake, I saw this story on the news too. Unbelievable :-X23 I agree that the parents definetly should have supervised. Really though, I don't think someone that young should even be on a snowmobile. Like rbrendel said, they just aren't physically developed enough. People can blame the Snowmobile makers for targeting kids and that crap, but it comes down to the parents being in charge (which they rarely are anymore). The lack of responsibility of so many in today's society is why the lawyers have a field day, but that's a whole other rant.

 

I have rolled ATV's. I have endo'd Dirt Bikes. I have driven snowmobies off cliffs. I have fallen off a ski lift. I have hit my head riding my snowboard. I have had my front teeth and my sternum broken by baseballs and hockey pucks, respectively.
All before I turned 18.
If you shelter your kids too much, they will be AFRAID of the machines you let them ride, and that fear will lead to lack of confidence, which will lead to tentative action, which causes accidents. Of course that 5 year old kid shouldn't have been riding that snowmobile. But that doesn't mean he shouldn't be pulled behind it on a saucer sled at high speed on residential streets, like I was until I was old enough to drive it!
If you let your kids ride a bicycle, you are taking the very same risk as giving our kids access to asnowmobile or an ATV. If you are going to put that kid on your 6000 dollar ATV, you should be smart enough to teach the kid how to ride it.
BDV