Starting Thursday, before kids rev up their quads, ATVs or dirt bikes in Oregon, they’ll have to pass a test.

The online training program will offer tips on how to ride in sand and forests, as well as general safety tips, trail etiquette and rider ethics, said John Lane, an ATV safety and education program coordinator with the Oregon Parks and Recreation Department.

The new requirements will be phased in over the next five years for older age groups.

Starting in 2009, children age 15 and younger will have to pass the test and carry an ATV Safety Education Card to show that they completed the training. The regulations starting Thursday also state that children must be accompanied by a supervising adult, who must carry a safety card as well.

To allow time to educate the public, Forest Service officials said they would not enforce the new rules immediately.

Children also will have to wear a helmet, which must be fastened, Lane said.

And children will be required to ride machines appropriate for their size, so there aren’t little kids riding on big ATVs.

The state is also working on programs, scheduled to be in place by 2012, to train those 15 and younger on the machines themselves, or require the children to demonstrate that they can ride properly, Lane said.

For adults, there are staggered deadlines. In 2010, riders younger than 30 will have to complete the training, then riders younger than 40 the year after, and so on until all riders in Oregon are certified by Jan. 1, 2014.

The training is required for riders of ATVs, quads and dirt bikes on state or federal land.

The training and the ATV Safety Education Card are free, but there will be a $8 fee for a replacement card.

The new regulations are a response to concerns from ATV groups, Lane said. Representatives of those groups saw too many kids getting hurt and injured, often in preventable accidents.

“We were for these rule changes, right from the beginning,” said Ron Larimer, with the Central Oregon Motorcycle and ATV Club. “The accident rate has been too high.”

Even for ATV riders who have been driving for years or decades, a little more training isn’t a bad thing, he said. “Any safety that they can pick up is not going to hurt you,” Larimer said. “We’re just trying to instill a little more safety in people’s minds.”

The training covers things like what to do when you come over a dune face and it has shifted unexpectedly, Lane said, or how to approach and go over obstacles like roots and boulders. It also covers etiquette like what to do when there are other ATV or motorcycle riders coming from an opposite direction, how to ride with horses and hikers in the area and how to maneuver in staging areas.

“One way to ensure the future for the sport is to make sure that there aren’t unnecessary deaths and injuries,” Larimer said.

Children need the hands-on training to make sure they understand how the equipment operates, and handles, said Vicki Ramming, the Central Oregon combined off-highway vehicle operations program manager with the U.S. Forest Service. And hopefully the programs help raise awareness about protecting natural resources.

“It makes people more aware of resource issues and safety requirements for kids,” she said.

On the Web

For more information about the new safety requirements, or to take the ATV safety education course, go to www.rideatvoregon.org.