12-23-2015, 04:45 AM
If you were not having these concerns, I would be worried about you.
I completely understand your situation. I introduced my son to riding on an electric toy bike at age 6, he quickly graduated to a PW50 and rode at least 1000 laps around the house that year before getting him his first "real" bike, a KTM 50. Three years later, he is pestering me almost daily for a KTM 65 as he says the 50 is too slow and he is bottoming out the suspension on the track.
The first few times he rode on the track with me, I remember looking over at him and it was almost surreal as what feels like only a few years ago, he was a tiny, three pound, premature baby...and now he is my riding buddy.
I started to think about 8-10 years from now when he asks if he can ride one of my street bikes and it terrified me! I began to question my own judgment about buying him his first bike.
Life is full of risks, how much you are willing to accept and doing your best to manage those dangers. What good is safely living to 90 with a heart full of regret for missing out on adventures with your son?
Do your best to minimize risk by buying him a sound bike, the best gear you can afford, and keep him professionally trained well beyond the MSF course (i.e. Keith Code, RawHyde Adventures, and refresher courses and track days every 2 years). I'd recommend as much saddle time on a dirt bike away from traffic, drunks and soccer moms on cell phones. And keep an eye on him, his frontal lobe will not be fully developed until he is in his mid 20's so yes, expect some immaturity and questionable judgment until then.
Our children are "on loan" to us for a very short time, enjoy every minute you can with them.
I completely understand your situation. I introduced my son to riding on an electric toy bike at age 6, he quickly graduated to a PW50 and rode at least 1000 laps around the house that year before getting him his first "real" bike, a KTM 50. Three years later, he is pestering me almost daily for a KTM 65 as he says the 50 is too slow and he is bottoming out the suspension on the track.
The first few times he rode on the track with me, I remember looking over at him and it was almost surreal as what feels like only a few years ago, he was a tiny, three pound, premature baby...and now he is my riding buddy.
I started to think about 8-10 years from now when he asks if he can ride one of my street bikes and it terrified me! I began to question my own judgment about buying him his first bike.
Life is full of risks, how much you are willing to accept and doing your best to manage those dangers. What good is safely living to 90 with a heart full of regret for missing out on adventures with your son?
Do your best to minimize risk by buying him a sound bike, the best gear you can afford, and keep him professionally trained well beyond the MSF course (i.e. Keith Code, RawHyde Adventures, and refresher courses and track days every 2 years). I'd recommend as much saddle time on a dirt bike away from traffic, drunks and soccer moms on cell phones. And keep an eye on him, his frontal lobe will not be fully developed until he is in his mid 20's so yes, expect some immaturity and questionable judgment until then.
Our children are "on loan" to us for a very short time, enjoy every minute you can with them.