This week, Jacqueline Derbowka shared an experience that changed her life. She, along with ATV experts, expressed safety tips and concerns when it comes to riding an ATV.
It’s the time of the year when Derbowka remembers her father. Four years ago, he was killed in an ATV accident.
"We were going up a hill... and it was just too light in the front end and not being used to the quad, it came backwards on us," she said.
Derbowka was sitting behind her father on the back of the quad.
“He pushed me off and basically…took his life for mine,” she said.
The handle bars crashed down onto her father's chest, puncturing both of his lungs and killing him before he arrived at a hospital.
Derbowka said if she hadn't been wearing a helmet, her outcome would have been very different.
"If I didn't have a helmet on that day, my skull would have been absolutely crushed. I would have probably died to brain injury."
ATV safety instructor Ryan Monette said the importance of wearing proper protection, including a helmet, is one of the first things he teaches.
"It's usually one of the main causes of people having long term injury, or death," Monette said. He advises riders to take a safety course.
Police say people can be fined up to $100 for not wearing a helmet.
"The Yorkton Rural Detachment does charge people under the altering vehicles act for not wearing proper safety equipment,” Sgt. Travis Adams of Yorkton Rural RCMP said.
Experts have also advised ATV owners to ‘know their machine,’ as the past few decades have seen some major changes to the size and power of ATVs.
As for Derbowka, she said she believes the power of the ATV her dad was driving played a large role in their accident four years ago, as they were on an off-road vehicle they weren’t familiar with.
"It was very easy to get out of control, just because it was that much shorter... so know your bike. Know your limits,” she said.
Based on a report by CTV's Stefanie Davis
