| -- End Ad Box ---> | | | | off-road accidents resulting in injury or fatality. The |
| Spectators gathered around a dirt racetrack in a | | | | Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) |
| rocky, high-mountain desert valley last Saturday for | | | | received reports of 116 fatalities and 152 injuries |
| the all-night off-road race known as California 200. | | | | caused by ROV accidents that occurred between |
| Standing just feet from the track, they cheered as | | | | 2003 and 2009. |
| racers driving off-road vehicles speed through the | | | | For those individuals who survive an ROV accident, |
| desert and hurdled over dirt mounds, becoming | | | | the injuries they sustain are likely to be life altering: |
| airborne for minutes at a time. At dusk, the | | | | amputated limbs, severely torn sections of skin and |
| evening’s festivities took a fatal turn when | | | | tissue, and permanent disfigurement. The high |
| the driver of a modified Ford Ranger landed his jump | | | | number of fatalities and serious injuries resulting from |
| less than 10 feet from the racecourse, killing 8 and | | | | off-roading accidents prompted the CPSC to form a |
| serious injuring 10 bystanders. | | | | Commission to evaluate the design of off-road |
| The event’s promoters, Mojave Desert | | | | vehicles with the aim improving their construction and, |
| Racing of El Monte (MDR), and the Bureau of Land | | | | ultimately, safety. |
| Management (BLM) have been the focus of much | | | | The Commission analyzed and tested multiple ROV |
| public censure in the days following the tragic | | | | models and found that certain features of their |
| off-road race. The BLMthe federal agency | | | | design made them unsafe: lateral stability, handling, |
| responsible for managing the Lucerne Valley land on | | | | and passenger safety. The degree of lateral stability |
| which the race occurredissued a permit to MDR | | | | a vehicle has is dependent on it static stability factor |
| prohibiting off-road racers from coming within less | | | | (SSF). According to the National Highway Traffic |
| than 50 feet of spectators or any gathering of | | | | Safety Administration (NHTSA), there is a strong |
| people. Not only did MDR disregard this requirement, | | | | correlation between a vehicle's SSF and its risk of |
| the BLM failed to enforce it. If spectators had been | | | | rollover. If a vehicle has a high SSF, its risk of rollover |
| forced to stand at least 50 feet from the racetrack, | | | | is reduced. Tests revealed that ROVs have a low |
| this off-road accident could have been prevented. | | | | SSF. |
| Despite widespread criticism from the public, neither | | | | When the ROVs were tested for handling, it was |
| Mojave Desert Racing nor the Bureau of Land | | | | found that they were prone to oversteering, causing |
| Management has admitted to negligence in the | | | | them to be directionally unstable and unpredictable. |
| matter. MDR has only offered its condolences to the | | | | The high frequency of spin outs and rollovers in ROV |
| desert race accident victims and their families. | | | | accidents could be partially attributed to oversteering. |
| The desert-race tragedy underscores the risks of off | | | | In many of the ROV accidents recorded by the |
| roading. Commercially introduced in the 1990s, | | | | CPSC, passengers were ejected from the vehicle. To |
| recreational off-road vehicles (ROVs) are | | | | combat this problem, the Commission recommended |
| characterized by having low pressure tires designed | | | | that manufacturers improve seat belts, lower the |
| for all-terrain use. As the popularity of off roading has | | | | level of the seats in relation to the vehicle, and |
| surged over the years, so has the incidence of | | | | provide shoulder guards for passengers. |