Tincanfireman
Airfield Operations
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So, my son decides to go ATVing yesterday with some friends in the National Forest not far from the house. He and his friends are all in their 20's and fairly experienced riders, but my son has been off them for a couple years due to job requirements (meaning; too busy to ride). Anyway, on the way to the forest he makes the best decision of his life and goes to Wal-Mart for a new helmet. $50 later they are out riding and having a wonderful time. Miles of trails and hours pass and they find themselves back near the trucks, tired but OK. Approaching the trucks, they spy a bank of dirt that has been shaped into a curving bowl by riders on an adjacent trail. Deciding "one last jump" is appropriate before calling it a day, the first guy catches air and lands safely. My son then approaches *but missed third gear on the manual shift rig*!. Over the top he goes, but too slowly. On landing, he caught the front wheels in a small ditch at the bottom of the bowl, driving him forward and into the handlebars. He was able to get up, albeit with a swollen, bloody nose and lip, assorted scrapes and a horribly bruised ego. More importantly, the full-face helmet he was wearing was pretty much destroyed, with the chin guard split completely in two from impacting the bars. I cannot imagine what his injuries would have been without the helmet, but I will guess that it would have been more than a swollen face and a blood blister inside his upper lip. Kind of like the old MasterCard commercials:
Gas for the ATV: $10
New brainbucket for the ride: $50
Preventing thousands of dollars in hospital bills and permanent disfiguration: Priceless!!!
Gas for the ATV: $10
New brainbucket for the ride: $50
Preventing thousands of dollars in hospital bills and permanent disfiguration: Priceless!!!