Once again, I would like to express my appreciation to the folks who went the last mile in trying to get me set up. I will always be indebted to them for doing so.
I cannot say that I didn't have opportunities.
I did take two shots at deer. One was a clean miss over the shoulders, and the other was a poor shot that I probably should not have taken.
It missed, too, so I guess there was no harm done. Maybe I will get another opportunity before the season goes out.
Visiting Gander Mountain
Whenever I am in Bowling Green visiting my mother, I cannot resist the opportunity to go to Gander Mountain and see what they have in their store that piques my interest.
I looked again at that camping apparatus they have on display, usually in the front of the store, a small trailer that mainly consists of a bedding area that you can enter from the sides or the back.
There are electrical hookups inside for those who decide to park the unit in a bona fide campground, but I'm sure you could purchase any number of lanterns or lights to use if a campground is not available.
The unit comes in two configurations, one that has a platform on the front with a set of ramps that is designed to accommodate an all-terrain vehicle, or you can just buy the trailer by itself.
I don't know how much it costs, because I couldn't afford it anyway. However, it is an interesting concept. The one with the ATV platform in front would be my choice. So far I haven't spent a dime in the store, but I have sure enjoyed going around the store to see what they carry in merchandise.
ATV fatalities
There was an article recently in the Advocate and in the Daily News of Bowling Green alluding to the fact that Kentucky leads the nation in ATV fatalities for 2007.
The article stated that there were several reasons for this high number. These included riding on hardtop, riding with no helmet, consumption of alcohol and riding with more than one person on an ATV not designed to carry two people.
However, I must say that the increase in accidents could also be due to the fact that there are so many more ATVs in operation today than there were in years past.
So while I wouldn't want anybody to get hurt while riding an ATV, it stands to reason that statistically the number of accidents might not be as bad as the study indicates.
A friend told me the other day that he had a friend in Tennessee who was into riding ATVs extensively, and had an accident in which his ATV reared up, dumping him off the back.
The ATV didn't come down on top of him, but when he got up from the ground and was brushing himself off, he ran his hand over his helmet and it felt funny in the back.
When he pulled the helmet off, there was a round hole in the helmet that had obviously gotten damaged when his head hit a round rock. If he had not been wearing the helmet, he would have surely been seriously hurt or killed.
The incident I had where I rolled my unit while not wearing a helmet was enough to convince me that a person operating an ATV should wear a helmet at all times.
It was surely a bad lack of judgment in my case not to wear the helmet. It was too tight and it was uncomfortable, but when I look back and realize what could have happened, the discomfort would have been a small price to pay to be able to come back home that evening.
I hope that one of your resolutions, if you ride an ATV, would be to make sure you have a good helmet, not ride your ATV on hardtop and not ride with more than one person on the ATV at a time, if it is not designed for two.
