ATV Operator

Course Overview:

ATV Operator course focuses on assisting all students in becoming a competent, knowledgeable and safe ATV operator. Students will learn about safe operation and maintenance of ATVs in class, and will participate in a hands-on portion of the course in the field. At the end of the course, those who pass a written exam and showcase their ability and readiness to run ATVs unsupervised, will receive the certificate allowing them to be an operator. 

Learning Objectives & Specific Outcomes:

The classroom portion of the course is approximately 4-5 hours in length. Student manuals, handed out in class, will cover the following material:

Section 1 – Regulations (province specific) – Students read in a group discussion covering a variety of topics beginning with provincial and federal regulations.

Section 2 – Pre-Trip Inspections – The Instructor leads the students outside to the equipment and performs an equipment pre-inspection mandatory to operate. Students will review equipment manuals to ensure they are inspecting the equipment as per the manufacturer’s recommendation.

Section 3 – Safety Tips – The Instructor introduces students to the equipment. Warning decals are identified and their meaning is explained.

Section 4 – Operating Techniques – Students will work in groups developing a step by step procedure for running the equipment to accomplish their daily tasks safely and efficiently.

Section 5 – Machine Stability – Working with their instructor, students learn what causes a machine to tip over.

Section 6 – Workspace Awareness – Students and instructor hold a reading group to discuss workplace awareness principles.

Section 7 – Refueling & Shutdown – Instructor explains refueling and equipment shut-down/storage.

Exams:

Students complete a written exam requiring a 80% mark to pass. Afterwards, students apply the theory portion of their training with a hands-on practical portion. In addition, the instructor evaluates the students on their ability to run the equipment competently and safely.

Certificates:

Students will review their scores for both written and practical and sign-off that they have received one of the three classification of operators.

Professional Operator – Operator who has scored 100% on the exam combined with 5+ years of experience, who also demonstrated a higher skill level while running the equipment.

Competent Operator – Operator who has passed the written exam combined with demonstrating their ability to operator the equipment safely, however they would require more seat time to further build on their skill level.

Operator in Training – Operator who has passed the written exam, but demonstrated that they are still learning the controls and require more supervised seat time to help them gain the experience and confidence to run the equipment unsupervised.