Issue date: 1/29/08 Section: News

Media Credit: Mary Powers Jason Hodge and Chris Scudder teach Brandon Hunton, 12, all terrain vehicle riding skills during a safety program training course Saturday sponsored by the Kentucky Department of Agriculture at the Agricultural Exposition Center. Participants learned the importance of using safety precautions while riding ATVs as well as first aid tips.

Megan Edwards sat in the fourth floor hallway of Minton Hall describing her past few months. She lifted herself from the floor when she finished talking, something she couldn't have done with such ease a few months ago.

Edwards, a Cincinnati freshman, fractured her pelvis and lower back vertebrae in a Nov. 15, 2007 all-terrain vehicle accident.

The Kentucky Department of Agriculture is making efforts to lower accident numbers through ATV training courses.

The department conducted a course on Saturday at Western's Agriculture Exposition Center.

Participants ages 12 to 18 and their parents listened as safety administrator Dale Dobson spoke about the dangers of ATVs and how riders could stay safe.

"It's about making life and death decisions," Dobson said.

ATVs are rider active vehicles designed for off-road use, such as a four-wheeler.

Edwards was riding an ATV with a friend when it flipped over going downhill, said Katie Moore, a freshman from Nashville, Tenn.

It crashed on both girls, but the majority of the weight was on Edwards, Moore said.

That was the first time Edwards had ever been on an ATV.

From 2002-2005, Kentucky was the state with the highest reported ATV fatalities - 143 total. In 2007, 308 ATV crashes were reported to Kentucky State Police, 29 of which were fatalities, said Sherry Bray, KSP media coordinator.

"I know there are a lot more than that," she said.

Those figures only reflect reported accidents.

At the safety course, Dobson showed kids the importance of proper safety gear. They silently stared at a screen showing pictures of ATV casualties.

The kids practiced what they learned outside on ATVs. Orange cones mapped a course for the excited riders. Two judges walked beside participants to be sure they performed the proper safety procedures.

Participants stood in the cold awaiting their turn for a short ATV ride.

Edwards doesn't show that same enthusiasm. She said there isn't a chance she will ever ride an ATV again.

For those that will, Bowling Green graduate student Kim Vickous, a nursing student, gave the kids tests to examine their knowledge and attitudes about ATV safety.

"I'm very interested in injury prevention," she said. "Education is one way to help."

She plans to use the tests to determine if ATV training courses are successful in teaching safety and changing attitudes.

Despite her injuries, Edwards maintained a positive attitude and finished her fall semester online.

She spent about a month in a wheelchair before moving to crutches on New Year's Day, she said.

After physical therapy, she's walking without crutches, even making the long trek up the Hill to her classes. She said her doctors believe she'll be fully recovered in about a month.

"I accepted it and then I just worked toward getting better," she said.

Reach Marianne Hale at news@chherald.com.