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Outdoors columnist explains 'rules of the road' for different utility terrain vehicles

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The Outdoors
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By
Scott Rall, outdoors columnist

I was on a daylong, 75-mile wildlife ride on my Polaris Ranger with a few friends Saturday to observe habitat conditions on public lands located in Nobles County.
One of the riders said her friend didn’t know what a side-by-side was. A side-by-side is the slang term for a 4-wheeled all-terrain vehicle. I don’t know anyone who calls a two-passenger, steering wheel equipped side-by-side an ATV.
They are often referred to as utility terrain vehicles. The kind I ride looks like a 4-wheel-drive golf cart with much higher ground clearance and a much higher horsepower motor than a golf cart might have. It also looks a lot cooler.
There are several classifications of ATVs, and depending on the classification, it determines when and where you can legally ride them. What classification your rig falls in has to do with how much it weighs and how wide the wheelbase is.
Class 1 has a maximum width of 50 inches and a Class 2 has a maximum wheelbase width of 65 inches. Many, but not all, Kabotas manufactured today for farm use are too big to be classified as an ATV, which makes them illegal to ride on a state ATV trail.
Smaller 4-wheelers and side-by-sides can be driven in road ditches after the primary nesting season for wildlife is completed. This date is Aug. 1. Class 2 ATVs, which also include larger side-by-sides, are never allowed to be driven in road ditches.
Minnesota is quite liberal when it comes to ATV use. You can drive both classes on most township and county roads, but you need to stay as close to the right shoulder as possible. This assumes you have a valid driver’s license. Younger drivers need an ATV training certificate. They can be driven on state roads as long as the same rule is applied. No ATVs can be driven on Interstate highways.
As far as riding in town, those rules are regulated city by city. In Worthington you can ride both Class 1 and Class 2 ATVs on city streets as long as the unit has mirrors, turn signals and a permit sold by the city. Each municipality has its own laws, and for that matter, each state.
In Wisconsin you can only travel on designated ATV roads. This caused us some 20-mile detours trying to get back to our hotel in Clam Lake, Wisconsin.
In Nebraska there is no ATV use at all on any public road at any time unless you are a farmer or rancher. No ATV use at all. I found this very tourist unfriendly. We did ride in some national grasslands in Nebraska, but this was 118,000 acres of no electricity or public facilities like a bathroom or ice.
When you get to South Dakota, they allow all ATV classes on all roads in the state other than interstate highways. I have had ATVs blow by me on Minnesota Avenue in Sioux Falls with regularity. They are truly a basic form of transportation in this state.
Consuming alcohol while driving an ATV is not allowed. The same rules about intoxication apply just as if you were driving your car. These vehicles are getting very popular, but the regulations surrounding their use have not changed much over the past 15 years.
You can drive on the road past a state park, but you cannot drive through the state park to enjoy the scenery or wildlife. In many cases they are treated like any other car or truck, and in others they are restricted like a wheeler. My state contact told me the reason state parks are off limits is because they think folks would go off road and damage the landscape.
Many people that own these machines will replace the off-road tires with street tires as much of their use is on city streets or other maintained roadways. Registration of these “half passenger card,” “half off-road” travelers is done by the Minnesota DNR with each renewal lasting three years.
I think it would be time for these units to be allowed to be registered as a regular car-truck and renewed at the department of motor vehicles.
I assume the cost of doing so would skyrocket, but for those who want unlimited ATV travel on any road, not interstates, they would most likely be willing to pay the higher freight.
There are lots of other regulations depending on your age. Things like helmets, seat belts, crossing highways are altogether different if you are under 18 years old.
This is a great way to get out and see nature. Take the opportunity to ride with a friend.  It won’t be long until you have your own side-by-side.
Scott Rall, Worthington, is a habitat conservationist, avid hunting and fishing enthusiast and is president of Nobles County Pheasants Forever. He can be reached at scottarall@gmail.com. or on Twitter @habitat champion.

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