I told my son he could have a bike....

[roundhouse]

....if he made straight As for the whole year. After discovering girls last year his grades plummeted. So I gave him the "all A" challenge. He has a 86 in 1 class and 1 month to bring it up the rest are As.

He wants one so bad, his phone will ring and his little girlfriend would ask for him. He would yell so she could hear "I am studying, I will talk to you at school" she will sigh and hang up. (i picture her rolling her eyes with a grumpy look on her face) he just shakes his head and mumbles about her wearing him out. I chuckle

he turned 15 yesterday so the drive to get a bike is stronger than the drive to touch a boob. (we have all been 15 and know how strong that feeling is)

so I am looking at dirtbikes now. I want him to have at least a years experience off road and then we will talk about maybe a 125 super moto or 250 ninja.

I would love to ride on the street with my son but remember riding my 1978 KE-250 and how close I came to death on a few occasions and the parent screams "NOOOOOOO!" in my head even though I ride

a promise is a promise.

 

[EsrTek]

Did something similar w/ my 16yr old... so far he's done the a's and next month going to get him a scoot to get him to school and the job he wants

 

[Blue-Sun]

What about a KLX250 (dual purpose) for him. Let him ride it in the dirt and take it on the street when he is ready.

He can "cut his teeth" in the dirt where the risk of injury is reduced, then take that exact bike on the street when you feel he is ready for the street.

He'll be familiar with the controls, acceleration, handling, etc after having tested the limits of that bike in the dirt.

You can also change the tires over to something more street-friendly after he is done in the dirt.

Just a thought... All the best!!

 

[JT]

What about a KLX250 (dual purpose) for him. Let him ride it in the dirt and take it on the street when he is ready.

He can "cut his teeth" in the dirt where the risk of injury is reduced, then take that exact bike on the street when you feel he is ready for the street.

He'll be familiar with the controls, acceleration, handling, etc after having tested the limits of that bike in the dirt.

You can also change the tires over to something more street-friendly after he is done in the dirt.

Just a thought... All the best!!

Not a bad idea.^

And thanks for sharing the story. Yes if he is blowing off the girls for the bike then he is destined to be a biker. Maybe he realizes how many more girls he will get with a bike! Lol


Sent from my one and only iPhone 5 using Tapa 2 da talk

 

[Fizzer6R]

i dunno, 15 or midlife age, it's a hard choice between a bike or a boob

yes get him on the dirt 1st before any road bike. even if you get a bike and his grades slip again, you can use it to motivate him, no riding until...

way to go, cool dad

 

[Anthony]

....if he made straight As for the whole year. After discovering girls last year his grades plummeted. So I gave him the "all A" challenge. He has a 86 in 1 class and 1 month to bring it up the rest are As.

He wants one so bad, his phone will ring and his little girlfriend would ask for him. He would yell so she could hear "I am studying, I will talk to you at school" she will sigh and hang up. (i picture her rolling her eyes with a grumpy look on her face) he just shakes his head and mumbles about her wearing him out. I chuckle

he turned 15 yesterday so the drive to get a bike is stronger than the drive to touch a boob. (we have all been 15 and know how strong that feeling is)

so I am looking at dirtbikes now. I want him to have at least a years experience off road and then we will talk about maybe a 125 super moto or 250 ninja.

I would love to ride on the street with my son but remember riding my 1978 KE-250 and how close I came to death on a few occasions and the parent screams "NOOOOOOO!" in my head even though I ride

a promise is a promise.

I was given the exact same deal at the exact same age. My goal was a simple mo-ped though. However at the time, I discovered that I was quite popular with the girls & since I was getting my Auto driver's license in a few months I bailed on the grades that year & pulled only a couple A's, the rest were B's and even a C! The class I got a C in was the same class that I ended up dating a few girls from. They were cheerleaders after all & you only live once!


I wonder how Sandy is after all these years. I hope she isn't still waiting by the phone for my call & has moved on.... LOL!

 

[linkgt]

Not a bad idea.^

And thanks for sharing the story. Yes if he is blowing off the girls for the bike then he is destined to be a biker. Maybe he realizes how many more girls he will get with a bike! Lol


Sent from my one and only iPhone 5 using Tapa 2 da talk

lol well said. But good stuff roundhouse.

 

[Superzoom]

Maybe get him a Suzuki TU250, which is only capable of maybe 75 mph. It's a pretty great bike for a beginner and cool enough. If he can ride it responsibly for at least a year, then get him something faster.

 

[BoneJj]

I personally would recommend something like an older 500R or something that's not a SS but more of just a plain sport bike.

 

[roundhouse]

i dunno, 15 or midlife age, it's a hard choice between a bike or a boob

yes get him on the dirt 1st before any road bike. even if you get a bike and his grades slip again, you can use it to motivate him, no riding until...

way to go, cool dad

that's how i see it too. it's not just motivation for the grand prize. owning one and not getting to use it may be even better at getting A

a firefighter buddy has 2 85 CC suzuki race bikes for sale for $700 each. he is tall and his brother is short (about my son's height) this may be a sign from the biker gods.

 

[buzzbomb]

that's how i see it too. it's not just motivation for the grand prize. owning one and not getting to use it may be even better at getting A

a firefighter buddy has 2 85 CC suzuki race bikes for sale for $700 each. he is tall and his brother is short (about my son's height) this may be a sign from the biker gods.

I haven't post my thoughts on this previously, because I'm so torn. My first bike a '76CJ360T I bought with the money from one of my first jobs. It truly changed my life.

When I think about my son doing what I did on my first bike, though? It turns my stomach and my mind goes blank. It scares me that much.

I want him to ride, if he wants to. Dirt bike, street bike. Doesn't matter. It scares the living hell out of me. Heck, I know how I ride now! I wouldn't want him to do that. I've got lots of years of experience, and a lot of that experience came from nearly meeting Death in person.

You've made the promise. Whatever you get him, his life will be in danger. Dirt bikes kill fewer teenagers than street bikes do. Still... I'd put him on a ninja 250. He's gonna do what he's gonna do.

At least with a 250, he won't get hurt because the bike was amazingly overpowered. Also, it's not a Honda Rebel, so he can feel proud of it.

Give the kid a dirt bike, and he'll take it on the street anyway. Getting him a sportbike from the getgo, he's got opportunity to learn, for when he upgrades it on his own.

I'm ATGATT. My son doesn't even question it. We get on a bike, we wear the gear. He doesn't question that anymore than the fact he's got to brush his teeth. I hope you've done that for your child.

 

[Skidro]

My parents always bought me dirt bikes, but said they would never pay for a street bike.

I paid for my first street bike around 30 years ago (Kawasaki 305), two wrecks & several thousand miles later...They still hate that i ride a street bike.

 

[roundhouse]

My parents always bought me dirt bikes, but said they would never pay for a street bike.

I paid for my first street bike around 30 years ago (Kawasaki 305), two wrecks & several thousand miles later...They still hate that i ride a street bike.

my folks do too. i rode on dirt before i got a street bike and i feel it made me a a more confident rider. if my son wants to buy a street bike someday then at least he will have experience.

i hit some gravel in a curve at 40 mph last fall and i am sure if i wasnt so used to the back tire sliding around from trail riding i feel i probably would have bit it.

 

[Little Miss Dangerous]

Dirt first is the way to go. I would've avoided my big accident late last year with more experience off road.

Trying to catch up now though! Love my CRF

 

[HotSauce]

Personally I think I'd revise your offer and get him a dirt bike if he get's his grades up, then the bikes availability transitions with his grades, falling below "A's" = no riding until they're back up. I'm 26 now, I rode dirt bikes some in high school, and never a street bike. I can't say I was never upset at my parents for letting my buy one, or getting a street bike (there were a few kids at my high school that had them) because the obvious cool factor and jump in popularity would be huge, but I think I'm close enough to that age to look back and thank them for not getting me one. When you're young, your invincible; even if you get him a 250, he's still gonna push the limits when you're not with him, and around all of those other kids he's going to HAVE to and WANT to show off. I don't always ride with all of my gear; helmet and jacket and gloves are always on whenever I step on the bike, but my riding pants only come out when I'm going on an extended ride, standard commuting and it's jeans for me, so if you're not religious about safety, that's going to rub off onto him.

You also need to think about college...he moves away and that bike becomes a whole new chick magnet. Now he's riding it to parties because everyone likes seeing a motorcycle, he limits himself to one drink, but then that limit starts relaxing, and before you know it he's riding intoxicated. I was the same way with my cage; I regret it but I can't change the fact that I did it.

Sorry for the long response, I just think a dirt bike would be the better route, go rip some mud on those on the weekends and build his riding ability, then when he's out of college and in the real world, let him have some fun on the street. He'll respect the bike more when he's older.

Thanks. hope my 2 cents helps and whatever you decide, always stay safe.

 

[JT]

Personally I think I'd revise your offer and get him a dirt bike if he get's his grades up, then the bikes availability transitions with his grades, falling below "A's" = no riding until they're back up. I'm 26 now, I rode dirt bikes some in high school, and never a street bike. I can't say I was never upset at my parents for letting my buy one, or getting a street bike (there were a few kids at my high school that had them) because the obvious cool factor and jump in popularity would be huge, but I think I'm close enough to that age to look back and thank them for not getting me one. When you're young, your invincible; even if you get him a 250, he's still gonna push the limits when you're not with him, and around all of those other kids he's going to HAVE to and WANT to show off. I don't always ride with all of my gear; helmet and jacket and gloves are always on whenever I step on the bike, but my riding pants only come out when I'm going on an extended ride, standard commuting and it's jeans for me, so if you're not religious about safety, that's going to rub off onto him.

You also need to think about college...he moves away and that bike becomes a whole new chick magnet. Now he's riding it to parties because everyone likes seeing a motorcycle, he limits himself to one drink, but then that limit starts relaxing, and before you know it he's riding intoxicated. I was the same way with my cage; I regret it but I can't change the fact that I did it.

Sorry for the long response, I just think a dirt bike would be the better route, go rip some mud on those on the weekends and build his riding ability, then when he's out of college and in the real world, let him have some fun on the street. He'll respect the bike more when he's older.

Thanks. hope my 2 cents helps and whatever you decide, always stay safe.

Some good points....

 

[redwing-2001]

....if he made straight As for the whole year. After discovering girls last year his grades plummeted. So I gave him the "all A" challenge. He has a 86 in 1 class and 1 month to bring it up the rest are As.

He wants one so bad, his phone will ring and his little girlfriend would ask for him. He would yell so she could hear "I am studying, I will talk to you at school" she will sigh and hang up. (i picture her rolling her eyes with a grumpy look on her face) he just shakes his head and mumbles about her wearing him out. I chuckle

he turned 15 yesterday so the drive to get a bike is stronger than the drive to touch a boob. (we have all been 15 and know how strong that feeling is)

so I am looking at dirtbikes now. I want him to have at least a years experience off road and then we will talk about maybe a 125 super moto or 250 ninja.

I would love to ride on the street with my son but remember riding my 1978 KE-250 and how close I came to death on a few occasions and the parent screams "NOOOOOOO!" in my head even though I ride

a promise is a promise.

More importantly, you are a good parent by showing him the value of setting a positive goal and putting forth the effort to achieve something he values. What an important life lesson. Well done.

 

[roundhouse]

More importantly, you are a good parent by showing him the value of setting a positive goal and putting forth the effort to achieve something he values. What an important life lesson. Well done.

thanks. i want him to know there are no rewards mediocrity. but when one works especially hard there are great rewards and if a person does crap work there are penalties. going to look at a pair of bikes this weekend.

 

[Sascha]

I know done people don't like the idea but I know I'd feel a lot better with a GPS tracker on board. Get him a spot or something similar so you can use the threat of not being able to ride if he goes over the speed limit(within reason) or goes else where he shouldn't.

And if god forbid he gets in a crash he can use the sos feature on the spot. There are other brands out there so do your own research but I think it'll be a way to give you peace of mind and force safe habits on him.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[JT]

I know done people don't like the idea but I know I'd feel a lot better with a GPS tracker on board. Get him a spot or something similar so you can use the threat of not being able to ride if he goes over the speed limit(within reason) or goes else where he shouldn't.

And if god forbid he gets in a crash he can use the sos feature on the spot. There are other brands out there so do your own research but I think it'll be a way to give you peace of mind and force safe habits on him.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

very good suggestion