Pediatric anthropometrics are inconsistent with current guidelines for assessing rider fit on all-terrain vehicles

Andrew C. Bernard, David R. Mullineaux, James T. Auxier, Jennifer L. Forman, Robert Shapiro, David Pienkowski

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

22 Scopus citations

Abstract

Background/purpose: This study sought to establish objective anthropometric measures of fit or misfit for young riders on adult and youth-sized all-terrain vehicles and use these metrics to test the unproved historical reasoning that age alone is a sufficient measure of rider-ATV fit. Methods: Male children (6-11 years, n = 8; and 12-15 years, n = 11) were selected by convenience sampling. Rider-ATV fit was quantified by five measures adapted from published recommendations: (1) standing-seat clearance, (2) hand size, (3) foot vs. foot-brake position, (4) elbow angle, and (5) handlebar-to-knee distance. Results: Youths aged 12-15 years fit the adult-sized ATV better than the ATV Safety Institute recommended age-appropriate youth model (63% of subjects fit all 5 measures on adult-sized ATV vs. 20% on youth-sized ATV). Youths aged 6-11 years fit poorly on ATVs of both sizes (0% fit all 5 parameters on the adult-sized ATV vs 12% on the youth-sized ATV). Conclusions: The ATV Safety Institute recommends rider-ATV fit according to age and engine displacement, but no objective data linking age or anthropometrics with ATV engine or frame size has been previously published. Age alone is a poor predictor of rider-ATV fit; the five metrics used offer an improvement compared to current recommendations.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)1220-1225
Number of pages6
JournalAccident Analysis and Prevention
Volume42
Issue number4
DOIs
StatePublished - Jul 2010

Keywords

  • All-terrain vehicle
  • Anthropometry
  • Child
  • Fit

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Public Health, Environmental and Occupational Health
  • Safety, Risk, Reliability and Quality
  • Law
  • Human Factors and Ergonomics

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