Man dies in off-roading crash at Seven Mile ORV Park

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CurrentlyRockhoundin

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I live right next to this ORV park and I'm surprised this is the first death up there based on what I have seen going on. The artical has a ton of ads so I cut and pasted it.


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A man died Wednesday after his truck rolled at the Seven Mile ORV Park in Nine Mile Falls.



The crash happened about a half-mile into the park, which was muddy and slick due to recent weather conditions, in an open field that was below a steep hill from the park’s entrance.

Spokane County Sheriff’s Deputy Mark Gregory said the man was not wearing a seat belt and was driving with a child passenger, who was wearing a seat belt, when he crashed.

The driver sustained life-threatening injuries and was transported to the hospital. The child was treated for minor injuries and released.

An administrative supervisor at Sacred Heart Medical Center confirmed Wednesday evening that the driver had died.

Gregory said there were no signs that the driver was impaired by drugs or alcohol, and the crash appeared to be an accident.

Other drivers who were around the park when the crash happened said bystanders tried to help, administering CPR to the driver, and had assisted emergency responders in transporting the man.

The driver, along with hundreds of others, was attending the Hangover Run, an annual off-roading event at the ORV Park.
 

Specter

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It’s a stark reminder that overlanding/off-roading/rock climbing is serious business with serious consequences. There is no room for carelessness, bravado or ego.
Praying for his family and all those close to him.
 

Boostpowered

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It should be noted that it is a built mud race truck with a fuel cell, roll cage, tube chassis, likely big block engine etc so instead of seat belts there were probably 5 point harnesses and they probably should have been wearing helmets, firesuits, hanns neck braces and wearing the harnesses. Hopefully the family doesn't sue the park because he wanted to be comfortable and screwed up.
 

The other Sean

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It should be noted that it is a built mud race truck with a fuel cell, roll cage, tube chassis, likely big block engine etc so instead of seat belts there were probably 5 point harnesses and they probably should have been wearing helmets, firesuits, hanns neck braces and wearing the harnesses. Hopefully the family doesn't sue the park because he wanted to be comfortable and screwed up.
Roll cage + not belted in and no helmet = bad news.

Also, that looks like a Willys Pickup. Those door latches are NOT really that secure, so, I can see him getting ejected rather easily.

I really hope this wasn't the child passenger's father.....
 

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Hopefully it doesn't give the nimbys more ammo to shut the ORV park down.
 

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Not sure what a nimby is and I highly doubt anyone tries to close down areas like 7mile. 37,000 folks died last year on highways and no one is trying to shut them down. However, this is tragic for the family and friends of this guy. A very sad truth is that people die every day behind the wheel for being, if only for a moment, dare I say, stupid. It was an event and people can and do stupid things when around others. Showing off? Let’s hope not, let’s hope not being strapped in was only a momentary lapse of intellect. I hope the child is able to manage , let alone survive, the deep scars that a tragic event like this will have upon his life. We’ve all done stupid things behind the wheel, we shouldn’t die for it.
 

MidOH

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Bummer.

One of my State Park beaches was shut down because city kids can't swim. The Rangers only let us have fun there, if we travel there by boat. Not car, bike, or foot. Rangers have odd ways......

I literally had a ranger try to stop me from beach scuba diving there. In Lake Erie. As if he has any control of such. Lolz.

Sucks when people get hurt. But we have a right to activities that play by ''big boy rules''. Shouldn't shut down because of an accident.
 

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Not sure what a nimby is and I highly doubt anyone tries to close down areas like 7mile. 37,000 folks died last year on highways and no one is trying to shut them down. However, this is tragic for the family and friends of this guy. A very sad truth is that people die every day behind the wheel for being, if only for a moment, dare I say, stupid. It was an event and people can and do stupid things when around others. Showing off? Let’s hope not, let’s hope not being strapped in was only a momentary lapse of intellect. I hope the child is able to manage , let alone survive, the deep scars that a tragic event like this will have upon his life. We’ve all done stupid things behind the wheel, we shouldn’t die for it.

True enough. How does the comment go? "There but the Grace of Dog go I".......... I've done so many frivilous stupid things in my 50 years on this planet that turned out to not be anything,. In hindsight any one of a hundred of them could have led to my death ,serious injury, or even injury to another. All it takes in that second of excitement or anxiousness or joy is to neglect what seems like a trivial or random thing we've not neglected a million time prior to change our life or the lives of the people left behind forever.
 
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Billiebob

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Not sure what a nimby is
not in my back yard

a pretty powerful group once organized to shut down things like red neck high octane carbon loaded rv parks
a fatality where they can prove negligence by someone is all they need
I have no doubt users sign a waiver with conditions like seat belt use

RV parks cater to a fringe group, there will not likely be much public support to keep it open
it is unlikely the people who decide to open or close the park will be supportive if they are elected officials
nothing we do is politically correct today
 
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not in my back yard

Well then, OK. No one anywhere wants anything in their own back yard so I'm not sure how relevant nimbys are in this conversation. Don't worry, I get it, I'm just being a bit of a devils advocate. But it is nice to think outside our little boxes once in a while.. Here in Pa, they have cornfield projects (middle income housing projects) popping up all over the tri-county area. A group of them organized and tried to get the local farmer to close down, they didn't like the smell. They lost their case. A group of very vocal RW'rs up in Central Pa. protested, marched and sued to keep the AOAA area from being developed into an off-road park. They lost.. My point? Nimbys very rarely win.

nothing we do is politically correct today

I've never had any problems with being politically correct. I reject the term and after 66 years on the planet, interacting with fellow humans, I find it much easier to be thoughtful and polite than it was to be a dick. Hey, you wanna bring socio/politics into the conversation? I don't think this is the forum for those topics and I think people on this site ought to stick with what this sight is supposed to be all about. If the moderators allow off the cuff socio/politico comments to be made, then look out, cause this guys gonna call them out.
 

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This was really unfortunate. Did this happen during the Hangover Run? This post made a bunch of localized FB groups. The dude that passed seemed like he was a stand up guy, and not a testosterone fueled idiot. (ie this didn't seem to be one o' those Darwinian situations). I feel for his family & friends.
 

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This was really unfortunate. Did this happen during the Hangover Run? This post made a bunch of localized FB groups. The dude that passed seemed like he was a stand up guy, and not a testosterone fueled idiot. (ie this didn't seem to be one o' those Darwinian situations). I feel for his family & friends.
You dont just forget to use a seatbelt or harness thats a decision he made and had to suffer the consequences for. If that dont catch a darwin award then what would.
 

The other Sean

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This was really unfortunate. Did this happen during the Hangover Run? This post made a bunch of localized FB groups. The dude that passed seemed like he was a stand up guy, and not a testosterone fueled idiot. (ie this didn't seem to be one o' those Darwinian situations). I feel for his family & friends.
Once again, if the truck has a cage, he wasn't belted in without a helmet, it's REAL easy for him to hit his head on one of the bars. Even at low speed.
 
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Munga Brown

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You dont just forget to use a seatbelt or harness thats a decision he made and had to suffer the consequences for. If that dont catch a darwin award then what would.
We all do things throughout our lives that are stupid, yet we all don't pay the ultimate price... To me, the Darwin Award catchers should be the idiots that repeatedly exercise a lack of common sense.
Once again, if the truck has a cage, he wasn't belted in without a helmet, it's REAL easy for him to hit his head on one of the bars. Even at low speed.
I agree.

Edited to remove an erroneous link
 
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... Nathan Ward was the dude that died...
Unless its a typo thats not the same guy. This accident happened New Years day, that go fund me says December 25th was when his accident was.
Anyway the guy who died at the ORV park apparently died of a broken neck. Most likely because he wasnt belted in.
 
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Munga Brown

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Unless its a typo thats not the same guy. This accident happened New Years day, that go fund me says December 25th was when his accident was.
Anyway the guy who died at the ORV park apparently died of a broken neck. Most likely because he wasnt belted in.
Correct. Linked the wrong dead dude.
 

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So,
Open field, single vehicle.....Was he doing doughnuts?....Glad the child is ok...
I have seen SO MANY serious accidents in OHV areas because a dude wanted to, spontaneously go for a rip around camp.
Seen guys roll their stock trucks, not even lifted, doing doughnuts in the sand cause they didn't "know" when to let off.
Sad that a life was lost.
 

CurrentlyRockhoundin

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So,
Open field, single vehicle.....Was he doing doughnuts?....Glad the child is ok...
So I know that area some what and where he was at there's pretty big pot holes and whoops. Speed was a factor I assume.

As much as you wish your rig was a $500000 Baja Trophy Truck, it's not and driving whoops fast can send you flying.
 
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