Our little boy turned 3 yrs old today. Hardcorp wanted to get him a electric powered ducati motorcycle, but I think he's too little for it. You have to keep in mind that Ryan, our son, is just like HC..no fear of anything!! I'm afraid he will get hurt. I talked HC out of getting it for Ryan's b-day, but now he's talking about getting it for him for Christmas. Am I just being an over protective mom, or is 3 yrs old too young for a bike?

11-20-08

Ongoing debate, see my last post and tell HC that I'm right!!

 

I wouldn't do it. I'd wait and get the kid a dirtbike at 8-10, if he's ready/responsible. That's my $0.02.

 

you mean the lil ones they sell at walmart?
put training wheels on it and i bet you that things safer than a powerwheels...he wont bust his head open stumbling over the sides getting OUT of it!

i wouldnt worry, theyre relatively slow....

 

No, you are not being over protective. I do believe the sooner someone learns something the better. However, at three years old, there are still a ton of neuromuscular function that still haven't even developed. amd those that have, have tons of room for improvement. In a few of my classes, we have been looking at things such as this. For example, a young boy getting hit in the face with a football that is thrown to him. In the video, he has his hands spread as far apart as possible, which we all know is unecessary based on the size of a football. When the ball is thrown, since the child is still undergoing neurological development, there is a point at which he doesn't see the ball. Hence, getting hit face, as well as not closing his open arms until the ball is only a few inches away. I know some might find this as useless info, but I just thought I'd share.

 

With the proper protective equipment and suppervision anything is possible.

 

I was three whenI got my first one, Yamaha YZ50. I still remember my first ride like it was yesterday. Yeah, I had my share of crashes while I grew up, butDad geared me up like anybody should be, so I never got hurt. 27 years later, I'm still riding...and still feel like that 3-year old kid every time I thumb the starter button. I say let him get the bike, but never let him ride unsupervised until he's at least 10...worked for me.

 

those things are pretty fast for what they are.

 

I think he'd be good on a 600 or even a 1K. [sm=badbadbad.gif]

But seriously, it's better to start em off young with stuff like this for a whole lot of reasons. One is that having your son involved in something like this from an early age will lower the chances that he will get caught up in drugs and other bad stuff. My girlfreind is a psych major and she told me about some study that was done that followed a class of kids and all the ones that started getting involved with healthy activities at a young age ended up doing better in school and rarely got in much trouble.

Another reason why its good is because you can teach him to respect motorcycles so even if he is a crazy fearless kid he will still have the humility and common sense to not jump on a 1k the day he gets his license.

Another good reason is that he will pretty much be the coolest kid in his class. i wish my parents let me get into dirtbikes or something when I was young because I was kinda shy and didn't have much to talk about with the other kids. I eventually starting riding bmx bikes and got a tight knit group of freinds through that, but it woulda been nice to have that earlier.

Just make sure he always wheres all his gear and teach him all the safety stuff he needs and he'll be good. Worrying about him is natural, but atleast he will be doing something that you approve of.

 

ill teach my kids to ride when they are young probably starting 3-5 yrs old

 

Start him early, teach him right, always supervise and get him a helmet. My dad was always getting me toys like that when i was younger. He had strict rules and guidlines that if i didn;t follow had serious consequences. I know that 3 is a little early to think about teaching responsability, but its a great learning tool for more than just riding. i'd say let him have it