Kids and motocross, a branch of Hersey's thread.

Clint1991

Clint1991

PR Addict
Was thinking about herseys thread and wanted some of you guy's openions on getting kids to get and stay interested in riding. And not just mx, but riding in general. I didn't ride mx growing up, was never aloud. Not going to be the same to my kids but I'm not going to force it on them, if they decide they aren't into it then whatever thats there choice. But mainly what I want openions on is my situation because I'm sure alot of you moto dads have had the same issue before. I bought my oldest(5) a PW 50 with training wheels to start out on. He loved it till he wrecked once, no injury or anything and now he wont touch it. Now it sits unless my wife plays on it. lol How do you get a kid thats now terrified of it to give it another chance without forcing it on them?
 
I never really had to, but one trick I would use was. If you are done (after a crash) ride it back up to the house/truck/ wherever.
And as soon as he got on the bike and started riding he would just keep riding. I kinda made it his decision with a little nudge.....
 
Yeah, my oldest just kind of a sensitive one. Not big into anything at all that may result in a scrape or bruse. My younger son is the opposite, isn't afraid of anything and loves the pw but is 2 1/2 and can't steer or run the throttle on his own. I have to run around the yard holding the throttle for him and steering and he never wants to get off, I can only run around in circles for so long though. lol Him I have no worries about. lol
 
Mine's 17 now. At 4-5-6 he loved having that PW and wearing the motocross gear but didn't
particularly like riding. He did a little, backyard stuff, but minor (to me) bumps and scrapes were
anathema to him. My backyard track got used by me, not much by him.

But he never stopped liking being around bikes and I wasn't going to stop riding every and anything
so he gradually rode a little more, here and there. Hardly ever wanted to go with me to ride, just to
be a biker and part of Dad's crowd though a non-riding one. Then one day it just clicked. About
14 he figured out that gassing it and turning left were things he could do and have fun. Now he's
committed to running local pro short tracks (already did a couple) and is doing almost everything
himself.

I guess the moral is, you don't have much control over it. Enjoy yourself and let your kids enjoy
themselves too. If they end up loving riding as much as you, great. It might be something you've
never done before though, like me. My first dirt track ever was because my son wanted to go. I'm
enjoying the riding, though I'll never be good at it, but I'm really enjoying watching my son.
 
Yeah, my oldest loves bikes and going to the track and watching me work on them but the riding is another story. I was never an MX'er either, rode woods all my life. Mostly quads, but started on bikes. Then moved on to crotch rockets, then Harley's and because of my friends back into bikes but this time on the mx side. Lol I guess you put it best, if he takes to it then cool, if not so be it but I'm sure he will.
 
My 4 yo twins love MX I think only because they have grown up watching me. I dont force it on them but encourage it. My little girl is faster than my boy.....lol.....but she lacks the control and the respect for the machine that he has.

Im with DD, I ALWAYS make them ride back to the house/truck if they fall and want to stop or take a break. Teaches them to get back on the bike and clears the fear a bit. My boy was getting brave and took a full speed digger in the grass at the house. Cried for a while but got back on the bike. Got back up to speed ( to my surprise ) an hour later. Took another high speed digger. Those PW's need better suspension! This one beat him up really good. I didnt make him get back on because he was bleeding good in a couple spots. He cried for half an hour. The next day he was back on the bike. I cant explain why because he is very sensitive for a lil boy, he has fear in him that my lil girl doesnt for many things. So like Sturd said, it isnt really much under any control other than exposing them to it and giving them the opportunity to ride.
 
Don't let the pw s fool you. They are fast heavy and terrible suspension.
Got my kid on the mini adventure ASAP.
 
All my kids have grown up around MX. All have ridden bikes. The oldest, now 14, does not ride. She wrecked at a young age on a jump, and just never took a liking to it, she is an awesome competition cheerleader now, so no big deal. I couldn't figure out why all the sudden she was taking a liking to going to the races with us though.......and found out she has many MX followers on instagram, lol. Think I need to make her stay at home!!

My twins both started riding. My daughter, likes to just get out in the yard or field and ride here and there to play around once and a while. I am ok with that, soccer is her thing (although I HATE soccer).

Matthew started riding a bicycle at 3 1/2. a month before he turned 4 was riding the PW without training wheels. I always had a rule, no training wheels. You can ride a motorcycle when you can ride a bike. I got him a mini adventure for his fourth birthday, and was racing a month later. I have never pushed him at all. He plays football, basketball, and baseball until this year. He shines at football and basketball, but his love is racing. 50s he did OK. 65s he did OK. Now on 85s something is just now starting to click, and he is figuring it out. He has won 5 of his last 8 motos. But once again, I never pushed him at all! He had a bad get off at Briar Cliff this year. Did not want to go back out for his last moto that was shortly after his get off. He was beat up, but NOT hurt. I pretty much made him get back on the bike and go to the starting line. Best decision I made that day. Once he got back on the line and took off, he was fine. Did not ride like I knew he could, but was back on the horse that threw him off, quickly. I explained to him if you ride dirt bikes, your going to fall off dirt bikes!!

He gave up baseball this year so we could ride a little more, and it has paid off. He will still play football and basketball. I am not going to be a parent who races 24/7 and my son is burnt out at 12. Many kids get much faster in their teen years, and it is just a hobby any way.

Just make riding fun for them. Once you make it feel like a chore than they will not want to ride again. And let them go at their speed, not yours.
 
My son started just before age 4, and he still takes time out of his work schedule to bang bars with the old man at almost 20. How does anyone stay interested in anything? It has to be fun! De-emphasize the competition aspect, and set a good example. Ride with your kids, and show them how to ride, don't just tell them. Forget grilling and technique. Let them have fun. Give them info as they request it. Don't turn ride time into school time. Get off the track. A big mud puddle can entertain a kid with a machine for an entire day. Little kids don't even know they are racing. If they want to follow the kid in front of them around the track, let them! And please stop yelling instructions while they are racing! They can't hear you, they can't understand you, and you are not only distracting them, but you are scaring the other kids around them who just see some adult yelling. Give the pointers in the pits before and or after the race. Wouldn't it be nice if the only thing mini racers heard as they went around the track was parents clapping and cheering from all the parents when they went by?

Nothing makes a dad happier than racing his son, giving it all you've got, and catching him sail past you in the air out of the corner of your eye.

Making sure your kid is having fun is far more important than making sure he rides well, rides correctly, and rides competitively. My most enjoyable racing has been many years past the days of hoping to be a top contender. I'm sure my son will remember the days of racing the old man a lot longer than the awards he picked up doing it.
 
By the way, I am officially at the "he's going scary fast" stage. Pea gravel half mile
at Ashland last night, he finished 3rd O/A in a combined 250/+30(all 450s) race on his 250, passing
people with a high/low move, sideways on the gas from about 1/4 of the way around the corner.
Impressive stuff.

I scared myself a couple times on my 450, watching him was far scarier.
 
I tried earlier with my oldest a few years ago, she just didn't seem to care. So, I decided to sit back and see what happens. She didn't even notice that I had sold the fifty for two years. She could take it or leave. Now the middle child has been on me for months. I finally caved. Now it's everyday, when are we going to ride. She actually asked permission to ride while I was at work, because she said she needs more practice. The oldest almost thinks she has to try and keep up with her sister, so she tries to ride, but you can tell that she doesn't really want to do it. She just does it because she thinks she has too. Maybe eventually the oldest will change, but until then Kinsey will be burning fuel.

Just like everyone else has said, I don't think you can make it happen. It's either there or it's not, kind of like hunting for mushrooms. I will say it can be exciting when you find some. I can the tendencies already to getting sucked into being a mini dad. I was shopping online after riding last night........uh oh.
 
BriarcliffMx said:
I tried earlier with my oldest a few years ago, she just didn't seem to care. So, I decided to sit back and see what happens. She didn't even notice that I had sold the fifty for two years. She could take it or leave. Now the middle child has been on me for months. I finally caved. Now it's everyday, when are we going to ride. She actually asked permission to ride while I was at work, because she said she needs more practice. The oldest almost thinks she has to try and keep up with her sister, so she tries to ride, but you can tell that she doesn't really want to do it. She just does it because she thinks she has too. Maybe eventually the oldest will change, but until then Kinsey will be burning fuel.

Just like everyone else has said, I don't think you can make it happen. It's either there or it's not, kind of like hunting for mushrooms. I will say it can be exciting when you find some. I can the tendencies already to getting sucked into being a mini dad. I was shopping online after riding last night........uh oh.
Click to expand...

LOL. Hey i have two 2013 50s for sale if you can use one, I will make you a good deal!!
 
I agree with John 250, no training wheels. I think the training wheels make it a bit more dangerous and harder crashing and it takes the excitement out of it for them. If they can ride a bike they can ride one with a motor. I have learned over the years to not force him to ride or practice, if I do he shuts down. I do get a bit miffed when he spends all day riding his 110 and not putting laps in on the 65. I used to force him to put laps in on the race bike but sometimes they just feel like fooling around. When he was younger we would play hide and seek on the bikes, me on a crf 50 and him on his PW. Tag with a ball and a cone for base was always a favorite, although the wife didn't agree with him cruising around holding a ball to throw at the next victim. I think what has kept mine in the sport the most is our neighborhood. Having friends to ride with and a track of some sorts that is fun. We have the worst possible lay of the land for a track but we built it amidst the trees and creeks and I prep it like I'm running a national. When the neighbor kids are not around and he is in pitty of no one to ride with I throw a leg over the bike and rip laps with him. Now that he is getting older and left the quad world behind I have had more time to race myself. I never realized how much it meant to him when I race until I watched a video of me my wife shot racing. I could hear him in the backround yelling "go daddy, go"! I really don't enjoy being critiqued by a 9 year old though. Bottom line, we will never take this sport to the next level so why act like we are! Fun on the way to the track, at the track and on the track. Don't get me wrong, I don't believe in the everybody gets a trophy deal but at a rookie age kids need more encouragement than critique. As they advance you can be honest with them. The kid already has 6 years racing experience under his belt from quads to dirtbikes, motocross to GPs, local racing to Nationals and I dread the day he decides to hang up his boots. So, I will make sure I am not the cause and it is his choice. His first ride was a Barbie jeep that I bought at a yard sale, one 18 volt Dewalt drill motor (yes, the motor bolts right up) and some extra voltage he holeshot every kid in the neighborhood! Good luck!

PS. It is amazing how much a smart phone can make you dummer. Been a while since I posted from one of these desk top things.
 
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