It was video footage from the dash of a side-by-side on a narrow trail through the countryside. I watched as the driver topped a hill and crashed head-on into a UTV from the other direction. The clip stopped as suddenly as it happened, leaving me to wonder if anyone was hurt and about the extent of the damage to the machines.

The scene was all too familiar to me. I was coming down the Left Hand Fork of the Black Smiths Fork in my Kawasaki Teryx4 in the Shoshone Trail System. I came around a blind corner and came face to face with a RZR coming up from below. We both slammed on our brakes and stopped six inches from each other’s bumper.

There are more machines in the backcountry now than there ever have been. Because of that, approaching blind corners and hilltops with caution is more important than ever. Some of my riding buddies avoid weekends in the summer on popular trail systems for that reason.

An example is in the sand dunes at the Little Sahara Recreation Area. There is a reason park rangers require whip flags to be attached to machines while riding in the dunes. The shifting sands will present a new landscape from one day to another and blind ridges are the order of the day. It is important to be seen while riding in the dunes. On Easter weekend, the county stations an ambulance on location because accidents are common with the crowds that show up that weekend.

Photo supplied, Lynn Blamires

On one occasion, two of my sons were riding in the dunes. They would come out of a bowl and catch air before landing on the flat top of the dune. It was a loop they made over and over. My youngest son, David, was on an ATV and his older brother, Chad, was on a motorcycle. David stopped on the landing place on top while Chad was coming up from the bottom. All Chad could see was blue sky coming up out of the bowl. David could see that Chad was going to come down on top of him and gunned his motor to move. When Chad did come down, his front wheel rolled down David’s back, and Chad’s motorcycle came down on the rear wheel, crushing it. No one was hurt, but it was the end of the day for them. I am just glad their mother wasn’t there when it happened.

Skill levels are all over the board when it comes to terrain. Just because your buddy makes it doesn’t mean you can. I was on a ride in Spanish Fork Canyon with a friend who wanted to show me a new trail. We got to a point in the trail where we waited while my buddy climbed this wall with his back wheels kicking dust and rocks to the top. He was leaning way over the handlebars to do it. Without even thinking, I followed, but I wasn’t leaning over the bars enough. The ATV came over on top of me when I hit the wall. My helmet protected my head, although the visor was toast, and my back was protected by a full camel back and a hard case cargo box.

My Polaris Sportsman 850 didn’t fare so well. It cost me $2,400 to put it back together and it was brand new with only 300 miles on it. I made a New Year’s resolution to think before I act, but people who know me might call that a miracle instead of a resolution.

I have been on open dirt roads that have invited me to open the throttle and feel the wind in my face and then throw in a curve that would almost catch me off guard. It happened to my grandson, Mark. We were coming down Sand Rock Ridge above Fillmore when we hit a hairpin turn. Before I could warn Mark, he was on the ground and his ATV was over the edge and in a tree. Again, Grandma was home, and we came out in one piece.

When you go, take plenty of water, keep the rubber side down, read the trail and match it to your skill level. Think safety first.

Photo supplied, Lynn Blamires

Contact Lynn R. Blamires at quadmanone@gmail.com.