This is my report. It is based on my opinion and does not hold any side except that the ban was not necessary. I wrote it to show the other side of the 3-wheeler, the side the CPSC did not look into.
Here goes:
Vince Illingworth
CPSC Ban
3/10/10
Suicide machine or fun machine?
The CPSC’s ban on 3-wheeled vehicles was not necessary to make the consumer any safer. Before this essay is read, consider the following: What kills people in an accident? Is it the vehicle they are driving or is it the sole operator? At what point is the banning of a vehicle necessary?
These questions have gone unanswered for too long. The ATC (all-terrain cycle also known as the 3-wheeler) was born in 1970 as the Honda US90. When the ATC gained popularity was in the 1980's when the 200cc Big Red was introduced into the market. The Big Red was popular with the hunting community, being a go-anywhere machine. As many of the purists who eat, sleep, and breathe 3 wheeler, “It’s not the machine, it’s the idiot that got killed on it is what banned them” (Deveraux).
The ban began in the 1980's. When racing in all vehicle forms were being innovated, the ATC had its three feet in the door of motor sports racing. ATC racing became a nationally recognized sport . The track was set up as a normal dirt track was. There were very little crashes and no known deaths on the track. There were fewer crashes than motorcycle races which have the same track format and more maneuverability on the track.
The ATC itself is not what killed people, it was the lack of experience, education, common sense and knowing when to stop. After reading all mortality reports from 1980 to the date of the CPSC ban, more than 70% or the riders were not wearing a helmet, drunk, high on psychoactive drugs, or riding with a passenger. 100% did not know how to ride properly. This is the reasoning not used to keep the ATC legal. The CPSC had started to see into these incidents. The shocking part was that the CPSC did not focus on the rider’s behalf.
On an ATC, your motions when turning are just as easy, if not easier than on an ATV. An ATC is set up to where if weight is shifted, your turns are more fluid and articulated, as opposed to an ATV where more mass has to be shifted to get the same movement. The physics of an ATV are all different. More force has to be exerted to gain the same amount of articulation. On an ATC, the maneuvering is very easy and there is no net force exerted to move or slide the machine through corners. As far as motions, shifting weight away from the direction of the turn steers the 3-wheeler safely and quickly. The rear end reacts to your position and follows through beautifully and with stable balance. As long as there is mass being transferred, a crash is highly unlikely. If a weight shift is not executed, there will either be a tipping from a center of gravity, or the centripetal force will force the vehicle on a tangent, thus causing a rollover or flip. For straight line riding with very mild turns and hills, the ATC is equally stable as any ATV, and this statistic has been proven by the thousands of riders who ride both types of vehicles (Illingworth).
Here are a few examples of how other off-road vehicles are as, or more unsafe in this case than ATCs, as well as how uneducated drivers have gotten killed.
“TWO 14 YEAR-OLD MALES WERE RACING "MODIFIED (ENGINE ONLY)" ATV’S ON A PUBLIC ROAD. THE DRIVER OF THE 3 WHEEL ATV WAS AHEAD. HE SLOWED DOWN TO TURN AND THE DRIVER OF THE 4 WHEEL ATV COULD NOT AVOID HITTING THE 3 WHEEL ATV IN THE REAR. BOTH DRIVERS WERE EJECTED. THE DRIVER OF THE 4 WHEEL ATV DIED OF MASSIVE HEAD INJURIES. THE DRIVER OF THE 3 WHEEL ATV SUFFERED TWO BROKEN WRISTS AND A BROKEN COLLARBONE.(ATC mortality report) “
The report above is one of the most common deaths. Young riders on 3-wheelers without a helmet. Racing on the road is unsafe unless your vehicle is purposely designed for that medium. The owner’s manual, the law, and all dealerships/companies says to keep these vehicles off paved roads. These machines do not handle well on a paved road. This has been said countless times, yet many ignore the suggestion even though it can save their and other’s lives.
Next is an example of a rider who was not educated properly of the functions of his 3-wheeler, and neglected to properly get acquainted with his machine.
“A 39 YEAR OLD MALE DIED OF HEAD INJURIES WHEN HE STRUCK A LARGE TREE WHILE DRIVING A THREE-WHEELED ALL-TERRAIN VEHICLE ON A GRAVEL ROAD ON PRIVATE PROPERTY AT A HIGH RATE OF SPEED. HE HAD PURCHASED THE VEHICLE SEVERAL WEEKS PRIOR TO THE INCIDENT AND WAS NOT VERY FAMILIAR WITH HOW TO SHIFT GEARS OR STOP(ATC mortality report).“
This man was killed by poor education and ignorance of human and mechanical limitations. If he took the extra time to figure out and truly test his motor skills with shifting and stopping, this accident could have been prevented. The CPSC needed to add education programs before they banned 3-wheelers altogether. They have done it for the big 4 motorcycles and ATV’s, but did not give the 3-wheelers a chance. There would still be 3-wheelers if education was introduced into the industry in the 80's when other programs for other vehicles were in effect and working.
My penultimate example, shows a lack of machine know-how that all riders get familiarized with in their manuals. A detailed owner’s manual included with all 3-wheeled vehicles with detailed diagrams on moving parts as well as general operating controls.
“THE VICTIM IS A 37 YEAR OLD MALE WHO WAS INJURED WHILE RIDING HIS ATV ON TRAILS AROUND A LAKE. HE WAS TEACHING HIS SON, WHO WAS A PASSENGER, HOW TO DRIVE THE VEHICLE. THE VICTIM HAD HIS HAND ON THE CHOKE WHEN IT SLIPPED INTO THE FRONT DRIVE SPROCKET, INJURING THE MIDDLE AND RING FINGERS ON HIS LEFT HAND. HE WAS TAKEN TO THE HOSPITAL, ADMITTED, AND HIS MIDDLE FINGER WAS AMPUTATED. HE WAS RELEASED THE FOLLOWING DAY(ATC mortality report). “
This report shows how turning a blind eye to safety can lead to injury. If the operator had read on the manual, the operator would have known not to ride a machine with mechanical problems. Many manuals are treated like the manual for a household appliance, it is not important, until something (or someone in this case) gets damaged.
And as for the last example, here is a death caused by drinking and driving on a public paved roadway.
“ A 20 YEAR OLD MALE OPERATING AN ALL TERRAIN VEHICLE (ATV) UNDER THE INFLUENCE OF ALCOHOL, FAILED TO NEGOTIATE A CURVE IN THE ROADWAY AND STRUCK A TREE. THE DRIVER WHO WAS NOT WEARING A HELMET DIED OF SEVERE HEAD INJURIES(ATC mortality report).
This case showed how ignoring common sense can take a life. This case was not set out to prove the ATC was deadly, but how human error can take a life, regardless of vehicle or terrain.
When the CPSC started to choke down on 3-wheeler riding was when people started to ignore their limitations of themselves as well as the machine. Many people think that all vehicles are banned for a reason, but for 3-wheelers, the unsung hero, this one had no ultimate, end-all reason. First, there was no education programs for riders back in the 1970's and 80's. Without any education, how do buyers who are new to riding, a 3-wheeler at that, to go out and ride? When “ride” is used in this context, “ride” means to operate in the dirt or sand, in all mediums(mud, dust, tack clay). For maneuvers, many riders traverse hills, mild trails and corner at slow to moderate speeds. Many other riders ride over dunes, hills made of very soft dirt or sand. Now, it seems very hard to believe that an uneducated rider with no ATC experience can go out and ride and not crash or fall off a 3-wheeler. Next, if a vehicle is going to be banned, an organization needs to look in as to when, how, and where these incidents happened. In the mortality reports, over 50% of the deaths & injuries were on paved roads. That is one of the first articles in an owner’s manual for any off-road vehicle. If the CPSC took a good look at all the conditions, circumstances, and driver impairments shown in the incident reports, they would not set the ban on selling, manufacturing, and distribution of these vehicles. A panoramic view of all circumstances reported would have kept these vehicles legal.
Honda, Yamaha, Kawasaki, as well as Suzuki have truly felt the impact of the ban. The big 4 had to buy back all 3 wheeled vehicles and parts. This lost money, and slowly disintegrated parts availability. And as for the stock that had to be bought back, it had to be destroyed. This change was the proverbial “last nail in the coffin for the 3-wheeler”. As of January of 1988, the 3-wheeler is deceased.
The start of the CPSC choke hold on the 3 wheeler, was very slow, as Jason Giacchino states;
“In 1986 the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) issued the kiss of death for three-wheelers by releasing the results of a two-year investigation into the reasons behind unfavorably high statistics of bodily injury to ATV riders. Surprisingly, their results blamed improper rider behavior and a disregard for manufacturer warnings as the prime culprit (not flaws in the three-wheeler's design as was originally suspected).” (Giacchino, Jason, “Where have all the 3-wheelers gone?”)
This information was to show the CPSC and the general public that it is truly the rider, not the machine that got the vehicle banned. It is the rider’s choice to ride these, and their choice to ride safely or act like a fool and get killed. The CPSC did not have to ban 3-wheelers, just provide some resources to make buyers into responsible and aware riders. An organization should not ban things unless an attempted solution is executed. The Big 4 do not need a solution that costs money for the industries that are paving the way to the future.
The part of the CPSC Consent Decree that the Big 4 had to sign states:
“In 1987, when in the midst of rulemaking and faced with increasing rates of ATV-related deaths and injuries, the Commission filed suit in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia against five major ATV manufacturers. The CPSC asked a federal court to declare ATVs to be “imminently dangerous consumer products.”7 The lawsuit sought to require that manufacturers: 1) end production of three-wheel ATVs; 2) repurchase all three-wheel ATVs from dealer stocks; 3) offer financial incentives to encourage owners of three-wheel ATVs to return them; and 4) provide safety education.” (CPSC Consent Decree, written by officials of the CPSC, names unknown)
The Consent Decree was an amazing document, really, It seems almost unworldly to find and organize all this information and wrap it into a proposal. The only flaw was their failure to see this trend from both sides. Their one side was to put the 3-wheeler on trial for being unsafe. This move was completely fair, it was a part of the reason they banned the vehicle. The part they did not consider was how the riders who ignored the rules and put their lives, as well as other people’s lives in jeopardy. They ignored the fact that many of the operators of the 3-wheelers in the mortality reports were impaired chemically or not wearing proper safety gear often enforced by the federal and state governments. This is the main reason this research paper was written, to inform the reader on the other side of the ban on 3-wheelers.
From an expert rider’s point of view “I am still alive today, writing this. I have owned many 3-wheelers. I have owned big and small, safe and deadly trikes, and none have killed my family, friends, or fellow riders. ATC’s are suicide machines, I will testify to that. The riders who lack common sense and education are the people who make them suicide machines. People who ignore limitations and alertness are the true killers. ATC’s will still be popular, but more people should appreciate them. ATC’s will always be in my blood and in my shop(Illingworth 2).
To sum up my main points, the vehicle does not kill people, people kill people. It does not matter what. For impairment, it is human error by not being responsible. For lack of safety, human error by letting unskilled operators ride and letting underage people ride. As for the loss of maneuverability, human error by not reading the supplied owner’s manual and impairment. The 3-wheeler has been put to blame because it is an easy target, a scapegoat. The sole rider has been the cause for the deaths, and solely them. There is no point of banning a vehicle, there is only a recall point and room for improvement. Banning a vehicle is just the lazy way of fixing a problem for the organization and government’s behalf, not the everyday rider, or weekend racer. The CPSC Ban was not necessary for these vehicles.
Reply With Quote
, that'll fix it"
Originally Posted by glamy
