PIERRON, J.

Adam Simmons appeals a summary judgment ruling in favor of Richard W. Porter and Sarah M. Porter, d/b/a Porter Farms (Porter Farms) after he was tragically injured in a gasoline fire. Simmons argues the district court improperly applied the assumption of risk doctrine in granting summary judgment to Porter Farms.

The parties agree on the following uncontroverted facts:

Simmons sustained personal injury on February 11, 2004, while performing work in the course and scope of his employment with Porter Farms. Simmons had been hired by Porter Farms to work as a mechanic on farm trucks and machinery. When Simmons applied for the job, he advised Porter Farms he was an auto mechanic with several years of experience. Simmons claimed he had a lifetime of experience as an auto mechanic.

At the time he was injured, Simmons was in the process of removing the fuel tank from a 1978 Ford F-250 pickup truck. The truck had a gas leak in the fuel tank and Simmons was going to remove the fuel tank to determine where it leaked and if the fuel tank could be repaired or would need to be replaced.

Simmons commenced his work on the fuel tank without first draining or removing the fuel from the tank; the level being "less than a half a tank." In his deposition, Simmons explained he left 5 or less gallons of fuel in the tank in order to keep the gas fumes down and in turn keep the ignition possibilities down. Simmons used a 4-ton floor jack to raise the truck so he could work underneath it. Simmons rolled under the vehicle on his back on a floor creeper. He hung a shop light from the frame rail of the truck for illumination.

Simmons found that the fuel tank was secured by a plumbing strap wrapped around the tank and connected to the frame by one bolt on the front side and by bailing wire wrapped around the tank and the frame on the back side. Simmons was aware of how the fuel tank was attached even before he put the jack under the truck to raise it. Although the fuel tank was not secured with factory straps or replacement part straps, Simmons continued to work on the truck anyway. He began removing the fuel tank by using a pneumatic wrench to loosen the bolt securing the plumbing strap to the frame. The fuel tank suddenly shifted, fell, and dropped off of the jack. Simmons was covered in gasoline. As Simmons quickly pushed out from under the truck on the floor creeper, his foot caught on the shop light causing it to fall, break, and ignite the gasoline, setting him on fire.

Simmons was fully aware of the fuel tank configuration on the truck and knew there was a potential risk of fire in removing a fuel tank. Simmons acknowledged that the condition of the fuel tank was open and obvious to him and he understood the risks in removing the tank.

Simmons had removed fuel tanks from other Porter Farm vehicles. However, each of the prior tanks had been properly secured with factory straps or replacement straps. Nearly all of Simmons' time at Porter Farms was spent in the shop working on farm trucks and machinery. There were three mechanics who worked at Porter Farms during the time Simmons worked there. However, Simmons said there was no one at Porter Farms at this time who knew more about fixing cars and trucks than he. Porter Farms did not have a vehicle lift, a fuel siphon pump, or a car jack.

Simmons was severely burned and permanently injured in the fire. Simmons sued Porter Farms, arguing Porter Farms owed him a legal duty of care and skill to provide him with a reasonably safe workplace. He alleged the breach of this duty was the natural, probable, and proximate cause of his injuries.

In managing the case, the district court permitted Porter Farms to file a motion for summary judgment on the issue of Porter Farms' affirmative defense of assumption of risk. In granting summary judgment to Porter Farms, the district court concluded as follows:

On appeal, Simmons first argues the district court erroneously found all of the facts in Porter Farms' motion for summary judgment to be uncontroverted and failed to give proper consideration to the facts stated in his response. He cites no Supreme Court Rules or case law supporting his argument, which consumes a little over one page of his appellate brief.

The court in City of Arkansas City v. Bruton, 284 Kan. 815, 166 P.3d 992 (2007), addressed a similar type of argument. The Bruton court held the Court of Appeals erred when it concluded that the parties violated Supreme Court Rule 141 (2006 Kan. Ct. R. Annot. 203.) and that the sheer number of filings of statements of facts indicated there remained unresolved material facts. 284 Kan. at 837, 166 P.3d 992. In arriving at this conclusion, the Bruton court engaged in the following analysis:

The district court below engaged in the same separation of the wheat from the chaff in adopting its statement of uncontroverted facts. At the beginning of the summary judgment hearing, the district court stated, "I will advise you that I have read everything you submitted and the complete file." Later, in rendering its ruling from the bench, the district court repeated that it had considered the entire file in preparation and stated:

Simmons argues the district court failed to consider the 17 additional facts he claimed were uncontroverted. He contends we should deem all his facts uncontroverted since he is the nonmoving party in the summary judgment proceedings and so is entitled to a reasonable inference of facts viewed in his favor. Simmons does not cite any authority in support of this statement. We agree with the district court that Simmons is encouraging the court to adopt his "yes-but" statement of facts as uncontroverted facts. A party opposing summary judgment must produce "something of evidentiary value." Kastner v. Blue Cross & Blue Shield of Kansas, Inc., 21 Kan.App.2d 16, Syl. ¶ 6, 894 P.2d 909, rev. denied 257 Kan. 1092 (1995). The fact that Simmons has an explanation for the uncontroverted facts does not make them controverted. Simmons' explanations in his "yes-but" statements fall within the realm of conclusory statements and legal arguments that do not change the uncontroverted nature of the facts.

Next, Simmons argues the effect of the assumption of risk doctrine has been fundamentally altered by the adoption of comparative fault in Kansas. Simmons acknowledges that his argument was rejected in Jackson v. City of Kansas City, 235 Kan. 278, Syl. ¶ 6, 680 P.2d 877 (1984), and Tuley v. Kansas City Power & Light Co., 252 Kan. 205, 210, 843 P.2d 248 (1992). Nevertheless, Simmons contends assumption of risk has merged into comparative fault where evidence of a plaintiff's knowledge and appreciation of a potentially dangerous condition in the workplace would still be admissible and the jury would be permitted to consider that evidence along with all other evidence in its determination of comparative fault. Simmons claims Kansas is in the minority because at least 21 states have "joined ranks in holding that retaining the doctrine of assumption of risk as an absolute defense cannot be squared with a system which allocates fault on a comparative basis." We decline Simmons' invitation. It is for the Kansas Supreme Court or legislature to make such a policy statement.

The Kansas Supreme Court recently referenced the assumption of risk doctrine in the context of a golfer who was struck by lightning. See Sall v. T's, Inc., 281 Kan. 1355, 1372, 136 P.3d 471 (2006) ("To the extent the Court of Appeals' majority suggests that a 'play at [your] own risk' warning equates with a golfer assuming the risk of lightning strikes, the common-law assumption of risk doctrine is restricted to cases involving employer-employee relationships."); see also Pullen v. West, 278 Kan. 183, 192, 92 P.3d 584 (2004) (holding defense viable but rejecting on facts because no employer-employee relationship); Tuley, 252 Kan. at 210, 843 P.2d 248 (same); Walters v. St. Francis Hosp. & Med. Center, Inc., 23 Kan.App.2d 595, 601, 932 P.2d 1041, rev. denied 262 Kan. 969 (1997).

Simmons also asks us to resist the tug of stare decisis and decide that the time is ripe for a change in Kansas law involving assumption of risk. See Rhoten v. Dickson, 290 Kan. 92, 112, 223 P.3d 786 (2010) (The doctrine of stare decisis holds that once a point of law has been established by a court, that point of law will generally be followed by the same court and all courts of lower rank in subsequent cases where the same legal issue is raised.). We are bound by decisions of the Kansas Supreme Court. See Buchanan v. Overley, 39 Kan.App.2d 171, 175-76, 178 P.3d 53, rev. denied 286 Kan. 1176 (2008) (The Court of Appeals is duty bound to follow Kansas Supreme Court precedent, absent some indication the court is departing from its previous position.). The arguments made by Simmons are no different than those raised in Tuley, namely, the rationale for retaining the doctrine is no longer persuasive in that it has outlived its utility and it defeats the purpose of comparative fault legislation, K.S.A. 60-258a. 252 Kan. at 210, 843 P.2d 248. We apply a similar rationale to that applied by the Tuley court. It cannot be ignored that the Kansas Legislature has had nearly 20 years since the Tuley decision to abrogate statutory assumption of risk and has not done so. We are unwilling to abolish the doctrine as the legislature has given no indication it desires to do so. The court in Jackson stated: "Within its very restricted periphery of application, the common law defense of assumption of risk has not been altered by the adoption of comparative fault, K.S.A. 60-258a, and continues to constitute an absolute bar to recovery." 235 Kan. 278, Syl. ¶ 6, 680 P.2d 877; see also George v. Beggs, 1 Kan.App.2d 356, 564 P.2d 593, rev. denied 225 Kan. 844 (1997) ("The doctrine of assumption of risk remains viable in Kansas though its application is limited to cases such as this where a master-servant relationship is involved.").

Simmons argues the district court erred in granting summary judgment based on the assumption of risk doctrine, assuming the doctrine still survives.

Our standard for examining cases decided on summary judgment is well established and will not be restated in full. Summary judgment is appropriate when there are no genuine issues of material fact. The evidence is viewed in the light most favorable to the nonmoving party, but the nonmoving party must come forward with evidence to establish a dispute as to a material fact. Where reasonable minds could differ as to the conclusions drawn from the evidence, summary judgment must be denied. Bracken v. Dixon Industries, Inc., 272 Kan. 1272, 1274-75, 38 P.3d 679 (2002).

We apply a specific standard of review for negligence actions:

The theory Simmons espouses on appeal revolves around two levels of assumption of risk—primary assumption of risk and secondary assumption of risk (Primary assumption of risk is not a defense, but a legal theory which relieves the defendant of a duty which the defendant might otherwise owe to the plaintiff with respect to particular risks—a question of law. Secondary assumption of risk occurs when the defendant owes a duty of care to the plaintiff, but the plaintiff knowingly proceeds to encounter a known risk imposed by the defendant's breach of duty—a jury question.). See 57B Am.Jur.2d, Negligence §§ 763, 764, 793.

Both parties claim these two levels of assumption of risk have not been mentioned in Kansas jurisprudence. Our research shows otherwise. Contrary to Simmons' arguments on appeal, the Kansas Supreme Court has recognized the two levels of assumption of risk; however, it was in the context of injuries to firefighters, i.e. the Fireman's Rule, and the doctrine was never applied. In Calvert v. Garvey Elevators, Inc., 236 Kan. 570, 573-75, 694 P.2d 433 (1985), the court held the assumption of risk doctrine could not be the supporting authority for the Fireman's Rule because it was limited to a master-servant relationship:

"In Kansas, the common-law assumption of risk doctrine is restricted to cases involving employer-employee relationships." Tuley, 252 Kan. at 210, 843 P.2d 248. Simmons' employment with Porter Farms falls within this prerequisite of the assumption of risk doctrine.

There is a healthy supply of assumption of risk cases in Kansas. One of the cases providing a detailed examination of the history and application of the assumption of risk doctrine is Smith v. Massey-Ferguson, Inc., 256 Kan. 90, 883 P.2d 1120 (1994). Simmons relies heavily on Smith in support of his argument that assumption of risk should not apply in the present case just as it did not apply in Smith, Smith was injured when his hands got caught in the header part of a combine as he prepared for a day's custom cutting of wheat. The safety shield for the header had been removed. Smith testified how he greased and inspected the combine, but had no explanation for how his hand got caught in the header. Smith reported to his boss and received instructions from him about what tasks were to be performed, what equipment was to be used, and where the cutting would start. One of the issues in Smith was whether the case should be decided as a matter of law, not by the jury, and whether Smith assumed the risk of his employment as a matter of law or it was an issue for the jury.

The Smith court relied on Tuley, 252 Kan. 205, Syl. ¶¶ 1-7, 843 P.2d 248, for discussion of the general principles of the assumption of risk doctrine:

Recognizing that the facts of Tuley, i.e., property damage instead of personal injury, were not exactly on all fours, the Smith court relied on Fishburn v. International Harvester Co., 157 Kan. 43, 138 P.2d 471 (1943), for authority that an employer had a duty to maintain a safe work environment. The Fishburn court stated:

The Fishburn court further stated:

After its lengthy discussion of assumption of risk in Kansas, the Smith court held the assumption of risk doctrine did not permit summary judgment in favor of Massey-Ferguson. The Smith court stated:

In the present case, the district court's decision can be broken down into three basic findings in support of granting summary judgment based on assumption of risk. Each one of these findings is supported by Kansas caselaw.

"The plaintiff in this case had knowledge relating to the use of or dealing with automobile mechanics or vehicle repair equal to or superior of that of the defendants. The court finds the plaintiff was in charge of this particular project and nobody else told him how to do his job."

The experience of the injured employee has been utilized to bar a claim under the assumption of risk doctrine. In Wilson v. Deer, 197 Kan. 171, 415 P.2d 289 (1966), Wilson sought to recover for the loss of two fingers when his hand got caught in a grain auger. The auger was not equipped with any safety device. The Wilson court relied heavily on Wilson's knowledge of the auger and his prior use of the auger. 197 Kan. at 172, 415 P.2d 289. The district court granted summary judgment to the Deers as they were absolved of negligence because Wilson "assumed the risk of his employment, including the specific hazard of getting his fingers caught in the auger," and our Supreme court affirmed. 197 Kan. at 172, 415 P.2d 289 ("[H]e knew all there was to know about the auger and knew as much about the risk involved as did defendants.").

In Uhlrig v. Shortt, 194 Kan. 68, 397 P.2d 321 (1964), the district court entered judgment in favor of Shortt, the owner of the silo in which Uhlrig, a farm laborer employed by Shortt, was injured. The Supreme Court affirmed. Uhlrig, an experienced farm hand, was inside the silo moving the end of the pipe around so that the ensilage which was being blown through it into the silo was evenly distributed. When the distributor pipe clogged, the ensilage came showering down from the bottomless gooseneck above and Uhlrig was unable to see. As he made his way to the door, he was hit on the head by the distributor pipe and fell, seriously injuring his right eye.

Uhlrig testified that the distributor pipe's clogging was to be expected and could not be helped. The machine was in good working condition at the time of the accident. There was no evidence that Shortt had knowledge of any possible hazards that were not fully known to Uhlrig. In these circumstances, the court concluded that there was no evidence of negligence on the part of Shortt and that Uhlrig "assumed the risk of any hazard which existed in connection with his employment." 194 Kan. at 73, 397 P.2d 321. The court expressly rejected Uhlrig's contention that there were questions of fact which needed to be determined by the jury and reiterated the rule that assumption of the risk of employment ordinarily is a matter of law rather than a jury question. 194 Kan. at 74, 397 P.2d 321.

"The court finds the plaintiff did recognize that there is a risk of fire with gasoline and made a decision to proceed ahead with the project as he was asked to do as part of his employment. The court finds the plaintiff did not ask for any additional equipment but chose to proceed with the equipment that he had in his possession."

The caselaw is consistent that the injured party must recognize or should have recognized the risk he or she assumed and that the injured party assumes the usual risks of their employment. In Anderson v. Cooper, 192 Kan. 723, 391 P.2d 86 (1964), the district court entered judgment in favor of Cooper, the employer, and against Anderson, a farm laborer, and the Supreme Court affirmed. The decision was based on Anderson having assumed the risk of injury from his own negligence. Anderson's leg was amputated after he unfastened the hood of an ensilage cutter and was thrown into contact with the rotating cutting blades. The Anderson court concluded that "[a] master cannot be held liable where the employee elects to take a reckless and unnecessary risk. [Anderson] would not have been injured had he observed instructions not to remove the hood from the cutting blades until he had determined that they were not revolving." 192 Kan. at 729, 391 P.2d 86.

In Blackmore v. Auer, 187 Kan. 434, 357 P.2d 765 (1960), Blackmore was tossing hay bales on a flatbed wagon being pulled by a truck, his hook slipped out of a bale, the truck hit a bump, and Blackmore fell backward to the ground, breaking his neck. The district court determined that Auer was free of any negligence and that Blackmore was not contributorily negligent. The district court concluded that Blackmore assumed the usual risks of his employment, sustained Auer's demurrer, and the Blackmore court affirmed. 187 Kan. at 447, 357 P.2d 765.

In George v. Beggs, 1 Kan.App.2d 356, 564 P.2d 593, George was employed as a general farm laborer on Beggs' farm. George was injured when he was catching a calf to vaccinate and the rest of the herd became spooked and stampeded over him. Beggs had ordered George to catch the calf. The George court affirmed the trial court's entry of a directed verdict in favor of Beggs based on assumption of risk. The court relied on George's knowledge of cattle and that he had vaccinated calves before. The court entered a directed verdict even though George "had never gone into a pen to catch such a large calf, and he had no idea of the danger in what he was doing." 1 Kan.App.2d at 359, 564 P.2d 593.

"In addition to its previous findings, the court finds that there was no defective equipment or tools used or provided by the defendants in this case. There may not have been the ideal equipment or proper equipment but the equipment provided to the plaintiff to perform the repair was not defective."

This last finding utilized by the district court revolves around the employer's duty to provide a safe workplace. Under Kansas law, an employer has a duty to provide a safe workplace and equipment. See, e.g., Smith v. Massey-Ferguson, Inc., 256 Kan. at 111, 883 P.2d 1120. In Mechtley v. Price, 217 Kan. 344, 349, 536 P.2d 1385 (1975), appellants claimed the assumption of risk defense was not available to appellees because they had promised to remedy the defect after being advised of the defect by appellant. The Mechtley court found this notice was never given. Appellant relied on the following rule:

In Railway Co. v. Quinlan, 77 Kan. 126, 137, 93 P. 632 (1908), the court stated:

In Hernandez v. Bachand, 199 Kan. 82, 427 P.2d 473 (1967), the plaintiff was aware of an unprotected shaft and unguarded rollers on a feed grinder and knew the dangers they posed, but continued to operate the grinder in that condition for over a year. The court found that Hernandez assumed the risk as matter of law:

Conclusion

We find the district court did not err in granting summary judgment to Porter Farms. The court in Lively v. Railway Co., 115 Kan. 784, 789, 225 P. 103 (1924), acknowledged the painful reality of the assumption of risk doctrine, but insisted on the necessity of permitting the legislature to alter the situation if it so chooses:

The principles of the assumption of risk doctrine set forth in Lively long ago are still present in our Pattern Instructions today. PIK Civ. 4th 107.54 provides: "If a risk though unusual is obvious, such as that which an ordinary prudent person could appreciate and understand, a workman who persists in the employment assumes that risk. A workmen's recourse when called upon to perform a task too strenuous or too dangerous for (his) (her) capacity is to quit (his) (her) employment."

Each assumption of risk case has a critical fact for or against the granting of summary judgment. This case is noteworthy because we believe Simmons' superior knowledge of the work environment and his failure to take reasonable precautions prohibit his recovery. Simmons was well-acquainted with and highly experienced in performing the ordinary task of removing a fuel tank. As a result, he understood the risk of fire inherent in the task. Simmons also had superior knowledge that while the equipment provided to him was not defective, the use of safer equipment may have reduced the risk of fire. Yet Simmons performed the task without conveying his superior knowledge to Porter Farms or requesting different tools from them.

We believe the evidence of record establishes as a matter of law that Simmons assumed as an incident of his employment with Porter Farms the very risk and perils which led to his injuries. It does not appear from the record that Simmons initiated a discussion or even complained of any dangerous conditions. We are sympathetic to the tragedy that befell Simmons, but our judgment must be based on the legal principles set forth in this opinion. Simmons' recovery is precluded by his own assumption of risk. We find the language in George to be particularly telling:

Affirmed.