As cold weather rolls into the province, along with a few fall showers that'll be making farmers happy, many people will be enticed to head out on their ATV one last time before winter starts.

As that cold weather begins to harden the ground, right when it may turn slippery from rain, safety should be at the top of any rider's mind.

Manager of media relations for SGI Tyler McMurchy explains some of the safety precautions people should be taking.

"It starts with wearing the appropriate safety gear," said McMurchy, "We always recommend wearing an approved motorcycle helmet and protective eyewear as well. it's the law when you're riding an ATV in public areas, but it's recommended anywhere you ride even if it's not public land."

"When you're talking about riding safely, it's easier to talk about the things you shouldn't do. When you're riding an ATV, don't carry a passenger if the ATV isn't built for it, don't drive at an unsafe speed, or drive-in highway medians that are less than 50 meters in width, you shouldn't drive at night if you don't have working headlights, you shouldn't do anything that might disturb, injure or kill wildlife, and you should never drive animals towards hunters."

One of the biggest causes of concern that McMurchy has is for those who might be impaired while driving, which can carry legal consequences even on private land.

"Of course, the big one is not drinking and riding, or any kind of impairing substance and riding, because that is illegal, a criminal code act, even if you're driving on private land," said McMurchy, "It's also, of course, very dangerous for anybody who's operating the ATV or anybody they may be transporting on that ATV and anyone that may be in the vicinity as well."

McMurchy also said a good option for getting prepared for driving an ATV is to take safety courses, especially for those who are young or haven't ridden in a while.

"It's really important that if you are operating an ATV to stay within your abilities and be as careful as possible, and of course never drink and ride," said McMurchy.