Contributed Photos.

Joined together by their love of riding ATVs, six juniors enjoy the local sand dunes, including horsefall beach and boxcar.

They call themselves the DuneGoons and according to MHS junior Beau Hunter, they definitely live up to the name.

The term is commonly used to describe those who ride all-terrain vehicles in the dunes. The group includes juniors Isaiah Bollin, Cody Easton, Jake Leach, Dakota Pittullo, Roger Smit and Ely Stringer, who are drawn together by their love of riding dirt bikes and four wheelers in the dunes. According to Bollin, the hobby of riding is not new to any of the DuneGoons, as most in the group have been riding for years.

“Everyone in my family rides and every summer on the Fourth of July we go out as a family to Box Car and watch the fireworks,” Bollin said.

The DuneGoons group was formed early last summer by Easton when each of the members started getting their driver’s license.

“Once everyone in the group had a rig to drive and a bike we started riding together as much as we could,” Easton said.

The groups of friends ride together as much as they can out of Box Car or Horsefall depending on their schedules and involvement in other activities or jobs.

“Everyone in the group rides as often as they can, but Isaiah and Ely ride almost every day, whether it’s in the dunes or by their houses,” Easton said.

Within the group, the predominant ATV at use is the dirt bike or “Dirt Pickle,” according to Pittullo. The group rides both dirt bikes and four wheelers ranging in size of engine from 250cc up to 450cc, like Leach’s four wheeler.

The overall goal, according to Hunter, is to ride for fun and enjoy how lucky he and his friends are to live next to the dunes.

“I try to take advantage of every nice day we have here on the coast,” Hunter said. “I can’t imagine living in a city where there is nowhere to ride with all my friends like I can at the dunes.”

As summer approaches, the group will pick up the amount of time they ride together with the break from school and better weather. Overall the group gets together and rides generally four to five hours a day, three or four times a month, Easton said. The group plans rides and meetings, usually at Taco Bell, through cell phone use and social media to ensure a quick response and the convenience of all members.

“I’m pretty stoked for summer because there will be more time to ride with my friends and there is no better feeling than riding with your buddies out in the dunes on a nice day,” Stringer said.