When I step out into my backyard in suburban Moore County on an otherwise peaceful day, I hear lawn mowers, diesel work trucks, chainsaws, Weed Eaters and a horde of other industrial tunes.
If ATV riders (I’d say “we,” but I’m between ATVs at the moment) ride on authorized property during normal waking hours, what’s the harm?
Notice to the uninformed: Do not buy an ATV if you do not have access to a suitable riding area! If someone died fleeing the police in a car, they would not consider legislating action against auto drivers, or banning cars on certain roads — right?
With the number of ATVs in the state (500,000?), deaths and injuries are not unexpected, and are usually due to irresponsible behavior on someone’s part. Trying to tie ATVs with drug running or pot farming is pretty low! There is no correlation between owning or riding an ATV and drug smuggling/drug farming. Opinion on lawmaking and local practice should not be tainted with guessed information.
Young kids don’t need to be on fast-racing ATVs. That’s a given. Helmets should be standard riding gear, also acknowledged. But more aggressive action is pitting the population against itself.
Jason Scribner
Southern Pines
