Safety Whips Required Effective July 1, 2007

[A Family of 4]

Safety Whips Required at Ocotillo Wells SVRA

On July 1, 2007 Ocotillo Wells State Vehicle Recreation Area enacted a new safety regulation requiring safety whips on all ATV’s .

Superintendent’s Order # 439-07-01, states that all ATV’s operating within Ocotillo Wells SVRA, are required to have a whip with a flag attached to it. The whip shall be securely attached to the vehicle and the whip shall extend at least eight feet from the surface of the ground. When the vehicle is stopped, the whip shall be capable of standing upright while supporting the weight of any additional attached flags.

Each whip shall have at least one safety flag attached to it. This safety flag shall be a solid red or orange color and be attached within ten inches of the top of the whip. The safety flag shall be a minimum size of six (6) inches by twelve (12) inches and may be a pennant, triangle, square, or rectangular shape. Any additional flags may be attached to the whip but must be mounted below the safety flag.

This Superintendent’s Order was enacted for the safety and well being of all visitors to Ocotillo Wells SVRA. The whip and safety flags announce the presence of an ATV before it is actually seen. This additional warning of an approaching ATV gives other visitors time to avoid a collision.

Any questions regarding this new safety regulation may be directed to Chief Ranger Nedra Martinez by phone at 760-767-0156 or by email at nmart@parks.ca.gov.

[LoBuck]

Thanks for posting this Vicki.

I'm wondering how this will be received. It probably won't have much of an impact to most of the users that go to the dunes also. The people that mainly do hard pack may not be so receptive to this.

I'm surprised it took this long for this to come around. Overall I think it's a good idea.

[A Family of 4]

I think it is too Glenn.

I was shocked that this wasn't already in place! We just always have our flags on the ATVs so I never even thought about it, heck, the jeep never goes without it's flag out there either.

[crash]

Just a thought. Is that size requirement consistant with what is regularly commercially available? The dimensions sound a little big compared to what I have on my quad.

[WoodIsGood]

Not to worry, Crash. I just measured flags I have from 3 different manufacturers and they are 9x15, 9x14, and 8x16 - all plenty big enough for the rules (and larger than I thought they were too).

I too like this rule - in fact I'd like to see it expanded to all riding areas to help me see and be seen by the other guy. Hills and creosote bushes can hide a quad pretty well too. I never ride without flags and I got them before I ever had any plans to ride the sand.

[Gottaride]

This concerns me

This safety flag shall be a solid red or orange color and be attached within ten inches of the top of the whip.

Will they allow flags with writing on them? Some riding areas will not allow any flags with writing.

[LoBuck]

This concerns me

This safety flag shall be a solid red or orange color and be attached within ten inches of the top of the whip.

Will they allow flags with writing on them? Some riding areas will not allow any flags with writing.

That will probably be a "letter vs spirit of the law" call on the LEO's part. I would think that the primary concern is that a whip and flag is present and the Solid requirement being secondary.

BUT, I'm not an LEO.

[Sandcock]

I'm confused Are whips required on atv's only Or is the term atv being used as a catch all to include all ohv's and two wheelers If it's for atv's (quads & three wheelers) only......I don't get the insignificance of visability for all other ohv's

[DrakAttack]

Here's a quote taken from the blm.gov site:

Does the mast have to be 8' in length regardless of the height of the whip mount? I.E. if the whip mount on the vehicle is 6' off of the ground are you required to mount a 8' mast for an approx. height to the flag of 14'? In other words, is it the mast length that is important or is it the height of the flag regardless of mast length? Return to list of topics
The basic answer is the flag must be a minimum of 8' off the ground to be legal. Masts must be securely mounted on the vehicle and extend 8 feet from the ground to the mast tip.

What are the requirements for the flag...color,size, etc.?
All vehicles are required to be equipped with a whip and a 6x12 inch red/orange safety flag. Flags may be of pennant, triangle, square, or rectangular shape. Safety flags must be attached within 10 inches of the tip of the whip mast with club or other flags mounted below the safety flag or on another whip.

I've noticed many dirt bikes do not have whips while riding in the dunes. Do dirt bikes require a whip? If so, where and how are they mounted on the bike?
All vehicles are required to have a whip . Several Dunes vendors have come up with different solutions for mounting a whip on a dirt bike.

Is there a law requiring a light on the top of a whip in order to ride at night?
There is no law requiring a light on the top of a whip.