The enthralling sport of racing ATVs
Over time riding ATVs has become very popular. An ATV is the name for a three wheeled or four wheeled all terrain vehicle, hence the name ATV. These low to the ground, powerful vehicles are designed to travel over all kinds of surfaces and terrains. People
have used them to ride in deserts, through rough roads, through snow and many other land surfaces. With the development of faster and more rugged models, people decided to take their ATVs and race them in all kinds of terrain. Soon a sport was born and that
sport has spread all over the world.
These machines are very easy to manoeuvre, giving birth to a whole new form of motorsport. An ATV is also sometimes called a quad bike because it is basically like a motorbike but with four wheels instead of two. The first ATVs that were seen anywhere were
large six wheeled contraptions that were used by people to traverse rough terrain. These came into being in the late 60s and early 70s in America. Soon Honda developed their own model ATV, but it was a three wheeled version and it was heavily influenced by
the older vehicles that had been produced in the 60s. It did not have any sort of suspension but relied on large, oversized balloon tires to absorb the shock of bumps and jumps. During the 1980s, the technology moved forward and mechanical suspension was introduced
along with smaller tyres.
Honda was the market leader during the early 80s in regards to three wheeled ATVs and no other manufacturer could challenge its position. Then Suzuki came along with the first 4 wheeled ATV and built up a completely new market segment for itself. Other manufacturers
such as Kawasaki and Yamaha also developed their own versions of the quad bike and the market grew with increased popularity in the machines. Today several different models can be found on the market, and they are still a very popular vehicle for people to
ride.
Over time with the increased development in the bikes, people started to race them. They were easy to drive, simple to manoeuvre and extremely fun, so races started to pop up all over the place. This phenomenon did not escape the manufacturers who started
to develop more powerful, lightweight options with upgraded suspension components. The new bikes, though, were found to be significantly more dangerous than previously expected. Numerous injuries occurred and racing and off road activity seemed to fall out
of favour with a lot of people. But the sport then got labelled as an extreme version of motorcycling, and it found a new group of enthusiasts to take part in it.
Newer models were made with greater safety and the use of helmets was made mandatory for all types of racing. Today there are numerous different types of ATV racing that takes place all over the world. Some of these are motocross, cross country racing, racing
in the desert, hill climbing, ice racing, freestyle riding and even quad bike drag racing. The most popular ones out of these at the moment are motocross which is racing ATVs around a track against other competitors, freestyle riding in which a competitor
does tricks and stunts on a quad bike, and desert racing. Over time this extreme version of motorsports has grown into its own popular segment of racing and will continue to develop over the coming years.
People have tried to ban the sport for being unsafe, while others condemn the practice of riding these vehicles on city roads. Even with all the criticism and issues that maybe created surrounding this sport and around the ATVs themselves, it looks as if
it is here to stay. People have taken the right step in giving ATV enthusiasts their own space where they can go and practice the sport and compete against each other, staying off the public roads. In time, with many more competitions being developed all over
the world, the sport will become the next big thing in motorsports.
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