Do your kids ride?

[Meatloaf]

I've got 4 kids. Two boys, two girls. Only the girls are old enough to ride but have no interest. One of the boys rides dirt bikes, both boys have their own sleds now, but only ride when I'm riding with them. Street bikes are another matter.

As a father, I confess to being torn. I get a lump in my throat thinking about touring with my son but I also have a knot in my stomach thinking about the little lunatic on a street bike. Double standard yep, but parental protective instincts are powerful stuff.

79XS11F has planted the seed of leaving a bike to my kid when I'm gone. That's an appealing thought.

Who's kids here ride and what's it like riding with them? Does the knot in your stomach go away?

[dpotter58]

My oldest son (20) got his learners last year and we took our first ride on my 49th birthday. It was very cool. We rode together while he was learning and we still do. It's great going to luch and things like that. On fathers day this year, we went to a gun show on the bikes and then a buffet.
Yep, it's great but then on the other hand, like at night when I know he should be home but hasn't made it yet, it's scary...

[Crazcnuk]

My dad, nor any of his brothers, rode motorcycles. In fact no other adult male on either side of my family has a motorcycle, that I know of, yet my parents bought me my first street bike for my 16th Birthday.

Hmmm, either they had great faith in my maturity, or they wanted to get rid of me....

[trukleon]

riding

You'll fiure it out Crazyy,, My daughters LOVE to ride.!! Drive OH yea, I have a 350 yamaha 4-wheeler they don't want there little 110's anymore!!!!!!I ride them more then they do I told them hopefully they remember and ther're Mom remembers the 79/78motor belongs to M,, and the 80 belongs to B,, they can learn on the 750 and the nekid 1100??? Just Mine!!!!! My brother in law who puts on his Harley

[trukleon]

knot

never ever !!!!!!!!!!

[prometheus578]

"Nope..."

They can get their first bike when they're 40, like I did.

[rover]

Since my son is only 20 months old, I may never have to face that decision. I will leave an F and SF, let the wife decide what to do with them.

[COOL TOM]

own bike

3 out of my 13 kids ride their own bikes, one girl is a traitor she rides a harley, the two boys ride XS/XJs. All the other kids like to ride as passengers. So do all of 30 grandkids and 7 great grandkids.

[fredintoon]

My daughters didn't give a toss about bikes but they borrowed the car as soon as they got their licences. It's amazing how far a teenager can drive a car on E. I've gone out in the morning to find the car was so out of gas it wouldn't even start.
My second marriage was a package deal that included 5 & 7 year old boys. When the elder was 11 I bought a little trail bike for them. My wife panicked. I told her, you married me bikes & all. Our boys are going to insist on riding so there's two choices, We buy them little trail bikes that they ride under my supervision and that I can keep maintained or you forbid them to ride and they will sneak off and buy derelict widowmaker bikes they'll hide in a friend's shed and we won't know about until we get the call from the hospital. So I hauled the boys & their trail bikes out to the off-road trails most weekends for several summers and then they both got their motorcycle safety training course for their 16th birthday gift and they graduated to road bikes. Did we ride together as a family when the boys still lived at home? The odd bike rally, the occasional toy run but not as a usual thing, no.

[e.z.nightrider]

I have two kids both out of the house now. My son shows no interest. My daughter passed the MSF BRC this summer with me and got her license, she is now the proud owner of Training Wheels. She can't get enough riding in either as a passanger on her boyfriends speed triple or riding her KZ 305.

They wear gear with the exception of HELMETS. Her mom and I both ride and wear helmets 98% of the time, that's what gives us our bigest lump in the throat. They just had a good friend survive a major crash (broken arm, leg, shatterd pelvis, two vertibra and major internal injuries) with no paralysis or head injuries. He was wearing a good helmet. They've now started to look for helmets, while this will make the lump get smaller it will never go away.

Ed Z.

[Wildkat]

How old were your kids when they started riding?

John and I have talked about it... but one of our kids still walks into things... She's been nicknamed Crashley since she began walking... I can't even imagine her getting on two wheels... The other daughter is a daredevil.... which scares me to a whole other level... The youngest could probably handle it though... He's got a pretty good head on his shoulders... I just want to make certain it stays there...

My brother bought them an electric scooter a few years back that has been sitting in the shed collecting dust and I am just now getting to the point where my "Mommy fear factor" is low enough to maybe let them start on that...

As a parent... I don't think the knot ever goes away... Just means that you love them that much more... IMHO

[wingnut]

Both of our children are in their mid to lower 20s. Daughter is away at Grad school and has been on the back of the XS. She likes to ride as a passenger but I don’t think she will pursue getting her own. She has a friend down at school who rides and he has a mid sized Honda shadow. He showed up at her place to take her for a ride with an armored jacket and full face for her to wear. I was thankful for that as riding in Atlanta is scary in a cage so at least there was some good judgment shown on his part. Last night she complained to me that the loaner helmet was to large. I see a Xmas present coming her way real soon. My son use to ride on the back of a friends R1 when he was in high school. When I found out about that the lump almost choked me to death. He has seen my bike and rides on the back whenever he comes home to visit. I think the size of the 1100 scares him a little but some thing in the 650 range would work for him. He likes the old school style of the XS and XJ machines and would love to have Dad redo one for him. If I bought him one and something happened that would be the end (Mom dose not ride or approve of motorcycles). So if he drags one home on his own I’ll do it for him and would not turn it over until MSC was complete. I’ve had that lump for over 10 years now. Sometimes it gets smaller but its always there even with them only driving cages which they are both very good at. The thought of either one on or driving a bike makes the lump grow exponentially. They are adults now so they can do as they want but that lump will always be there. I know this as my Mother told me about hers returning to full size when I brought the SH home and started to ride again after 20 years of no bike. The thought of riding with either one of them on a pretty Sunday is one of my fondest day dreams but I can’t facilitate it in good conscience. Maybe a grandchild will show up one day with a desire to learn about old bikes, that would be way cool

[mro]

Both my daughters in the last year have asked me for there own motorcyle. I'm positive that there mother would never have approved of me letting them get a street bike so I don't encourage em. (she would be pissed at me because I'm not actively discouraging em )

Will not give em one, and been trying to discourge the older from getting a crotch rocket. Flat out refuse to even help em pay for a bike, but as both are old enough to not need my permission (one married for several years, other in college) have told em I would check over any bike they were interested in getting. So far been lucky in that they have yet to find one they like and can afford.


mro

[Cobia]

No Way.

My kids are 9 and 16. The youngest LOVES to ride in the back. Took him for 3 and 1/2 hr ride two weekends ago along the beach. When we got back he said that was the most fun he'd ever had. I can see him on one eventually. Both of us wore full face lids.

The 16 asked for one but I refused because he doesn't have the maturity. And he refuses to ride in the back, calls it the "BIATCH" seat, wouldn't be caught dead on it!! Same as others have expressed, if he drags one home....

But as I told both of them, I waited a long, long time to get one after my teenage years and I will not buy them one.

Would be nice to ride with them should things work out that way.

[fredintoon]

Start them young

Cobia posts:-"The 16 asked for one but I refused because he doesn't have the maturity. And he refuses to ride in the back, calls it the "BIATCH" seat, wouldn't be caught dead on it!! Same as others have expressed, if he drags one home...."

I was 14 yours old before I learned to ride a bike and that's one I had to borrow. I also had no formal motorcycle training whatsoever. OTOH my two boys could both ride bikes by age 5, rode trail bikes since age 10. passed their road bike course at age 16. Now age 25 & 27 their riding skills are easily twice what mine are.
Just because they started early and took a course.
Seems to me that any children with a motorcycle-riding parent (and especially with two of them) will be drawn to emulate their parents by becoming a rider themselves. Certainly you hope your kids will learn to be honest, hardworking, polite etc. by following the parental example, right?