Novosad Samantha v.s. Honda Motor Co.
Product 1982 ATC 200E Honda
Responsibility of
Kelly Tress Kurt Tress Mike Tress
Design of Honda 200E
Seat Design Fixed v/s differential rear axle
Kelly was Unreasonable and Unsafe
Neither Kelly nor Samantha had an operator's license required by law for persons under 16
Kelly was Unreasonable and Unsafe
Kelly was driving ATV down a gravel town road
ATV operation along public motor vehicle roads, unless otherwise posted, is illegal
Reason for many citations (see DNR reports)
Operating vehicle down the girls' perceived center of road, instead of customary right side.
"Perceived" because Kelly felt the need to veer sharply to left upon Mike Vidlak's approaching from other direction. Mike claimed girls did not need to veer, but they did anyways.
Kelly was Unreasonable and Unsafe
Kelly and Samantha were operating a one person machine with 2 people on it.
Provided for an uncomfortable driving position.
Driver was too close to the handlebars to properly operate machine. (see pictures) Both sets of feet were squeezed onto the foot pegs, eliminating driver and passenger's ability to shift their weight as needed to properly drive ATV
Kelly was Unreasonable and Unsafe
Kelly and Samantha were riding ATV without any protective equipment.
Kelly asked for helmets for both of them, but there were none available. Proceeded anyways to ride together on ATV Claims that she knows she should always wear a helmet [Kelly Tress, 28:22] Illegal for anyone under the age of 18 to ride ATV without a helmet. [Wisconsin All Terrain Vehicle Laws, p14-15]
Kurt Tress was Unreasonable and Unsafe
Owner of ATC Allowed Kelly and Samantha (minors) to ride ATC Has testified that he himself was not a safe ATC rider, with no training courses, just trial and error
Kurt Tress was Unreasonable and Unsafe
Kurt allowed girls to operate ATV without an operators license
Wisconsin law requires anyone under 16 to have completed an approved ATV safety course. [Wisconsin ATV Laws, p7]
The ATV being registered in Wisconsin, Kurt should have known this, and required it of the girls
Kurt Tress was Unreasonable and Unsafe
Kurt allowed the girls to go riding without the proper protective equipment, even after they asked for helmets
Honda's owner's manual and their advisory sent in the mail warned about increased risk of injury if protective equipment was not worn. Kurt allowed the girls to ride the ATV knowing this information. It is illegal for owner of ATV to allow anyone under 16 years of age to operate an ATV without a helmet.
Kurt Tress was Unreasonable and Unsafe
Kurt allowed girls to ride together on a single operator's machine
Honda literature expressed dangers of riding with a passenger
Kurt knew about dangers of minors riding ATVs
Had possession of Honda Big Red's operator's manual which clearly states that minors should not drive ATVs and that a proper training course is strongly recommended before riding.
Kurt Tress was Unreasonable and Unsafe
Kurt should have known about the dangers and illegality of riding ATVs on public roads.
Owner's manual specifically states that ATV is not meant to be ridden on public roads. ATV was registered in the state of Wisconsin, which means Kurt should have read all rules and regulations regarding riding of ATVs in Wisconsin. Would have therefore known that riding on public roads, unless otherwise posted, is illegal.
Kurt Tress was Unreasonable and Unsafe
Kurt did not give the girl's a proper riding lesson on the 3-wheeled vehicle.
Did not teach the girls how to properly shift machine Simply showed them how to drive around for a short while, all the while in second gear because the girls didn't know how to ride any faster
Michael Tress was Unreasonable and Unsafe
Allowed Kelly and Samantha to act in unsafe manner.
Allowed them to ride without an operator's license Allowed them to ride ATV without helmet Allowed them to ride ATV with 2 people Allowed them to ride ATV on public road
Michael Tress was Unreasonable and Unsafe
Fostered acceptability of unsafe acts at an early age.
Allowed Kelly to "help" him drive when she was 6 [Kelly Tress, 73:10-12] Operated ATVs when she was "maybe 9 or 10. 11 at the oldest." [Kelly Tress, 13:8]
Conclusions
Kelly was an unreasonable operator
Riding without an operator's license
WI-DNR requires children aged 12-16 to have valid ATV safety certification, permit to ride ATV (WI-ATV laws p-7, 9) This law has been in enforcement since 1986 (Conversation with Karl Brooks, DNR ATV expert)
Riding on public roadway Unlawful according to WI ATV laws (p-7) Riding with passenger (Not recommended by either manufacturer or WI-DNR) Riding without protective equipment Unlawful according to WI-ATV laws p-14, 15 (except if the ATV is been ridden for the purpose of hunting or fishing)
Riding on hard gravel terrain
"...The entire engineering makeup of an all-terrain vehicle is based on the premise of off-road use. Specifically, the ATV tires dictate that the machines be used off the roadway. All-terrain vehicle tires are designed to provide tread slip under some conditions, yet provide grip under others. The of majority problems associated with roadway accidents are a result of losing control due to the physics of tire and roadway incompatibility. The mere change in the road surface can and does cause crashes when not used properly."
Source: ATV Route Guideline and Suggestions (A Community Official's Handbook) http:// www.dnr.state.wi.us/org/caer/cfa/lr/atv/Manual.pdf
Conclusions 2
Kurt allowed unsafe and unreasonable behavior by the girls, and therefore was acting in an unsafe and unreasonable manner himself.
Allowed them to ride without an operator's license
According to the WI-ATV laws (p-16) "you can't allow a person to operate an ATV if he or she...has not obtained the required safety certificate"
Allowed girls to ride without protective equipment Allowed girls to ride together on a one person machine (not recommended as per the manual as well as WI-DNR)
Conclusions 3
Michael Tress allowed girls to operate vehicles in an unsafe and unreasonable manner Michael Tress fostered unsafe attitude at an early age
Shows Kelly that they do not have to act in an appropriate manner in accordance with all laws.
U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (1986, Sep.)
31 percent of the ATVs involved in accidents were carrying passengers. The risk of injury declines significantly with ATV riding experience. Accidents involve interactions among riders, ATVs, and the environment. While the staff believes that many of these accidents are the result of foreseeable misuse by ATV operators.
U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (1986, Sep.)
There were 2,994 comments received in response to the Advance Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (ANPR). There were 2,952 submittals reflecting the views of 4,435 consumers. Almost all of these comments were opposed to the ban or recall of ATVs. Many of the consumer comments expressed the belief that ATVs were being misused by "ignorant" riders who do not know how to ride and do not wear safety equipment.
U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (1987, Sep.)
A nationwide sample of injured persons in 1985 found that the interaction of multiple factors contributed to ATV injury incidents. Driver related factors were involved in 59%, environment-related factors in 50%, and ATV-related factors in 42%.
Design Seat Size
Long Seat a requirement
ATV = Rider Active Vehicle Comparison with other competitors models
ATV (HONDA, 3W)
1980 ATC185
1983 ATC200
1984 ATC250R2
1985 ATC250SX
1986 ATC 250ES
1987 ATC250SX
ATV (KAWASAKI, 3W)
1981 KLT200
1983 KLT200
1985 KLT110
ATV (YAMAHA, 3W)
1984 Tri-Moto200
1985 Tri-Moto
1986 250Triz
ATV (HONDA, 4W)
1986 TRX200SX
1987 TRX200SX
1987 TRX350D
2003 TRX350TM
2004 TRX400FA
2005 TRX650FG
ATV (YAMAHA, 4W)
2003 Kodiak400
2003 Grizzly660
2003 Breeze
2003 BigBear500
2003 BearTracker
2003 BigBear400
Specification Comparison
a MAKER HONDA a a * * a a a a a KAWASAKI a a a a a MODEL ATC185 ATC185S ATC200 ATC200E ATC200ES ATC200M ATC200S ATC200X ATC250ES ATC250R KLT110A3 KLT200-A1 KLT200-A3 KLT250-A1 KLT250-C2 Displacement 180.2 180.2 192 192 192 192 192 199 246 246 103 198 198 246 249 a a ...