When is a child ready for a mx bike???

[fastfredracing]

So, the apple doesnt fall far from the tree, and it looks as if my son turnnig into a little gearhead. The kid loves to watch motocross racing on tv, and he jumps up and down with joy when he sees the nieghbors riding their quads/dirtbikes. ( Not to mention , he can tell the difference between a regular 911 and a 930, and prefers the look of a 917 to a 962). We have a level 3 acre yard, and our nieghbors have 8 acres loaded with trails,( we have their permission to ride there anytime). I grew up on bikes and some of my fondest memories of youth, were on a bike.
He is 3, and I am not sure he is quite ready yet, but as soon as he is , I want to put him up on two wheels. I have been pushing him around on a little bmx bike since he could walk, and I am pretty sure that he will be peddaling by this summer .
I am sort of in the mindset, that as soon as he can handle a bycicle , he should be ready for his first introduction to motorized bikes. I will of course have all of the necessary safety gear (although this is not how I started) , and the little dirt bikes have some good safetey features( a tether to shut it down if he gets out of control, and throttle limiting screws, so I can limit speed).
So what do you guys think, is 3 too young?? I figure the sooner I get him riding, we can progress into larger bikes, then carting, porsches etc.....
It is funny , when I found out my lady was pregnant, I thought my life as I knew it was over, but the reality is that it it just beginning again

[porsche4life]

I would say 5 or 6 but that is dependent on how small of a bike you can get. You might even try one of those little electric Razor bikes at first. Small and not too powerful.

I do have a vintage 60cc yamaha for sale that someone of you skill could fix however....

[941MXVET]

I'd say 5 or 6 also. That's when we start to see kinds start riding at our track. If my wife and I have kids, we'll be buying a Yamaha PW 50 as their first bike. Very well built, adjustable throttle stop, plus they haven't changed in years so there are plenty out there for sale.


Beware there is a bill that I believe has been signed, outlawing the sale of minibikes because there is lead in the paint. The AMA, and the Major manufactures are fighting the inclusion of minibikes in the "lead paint on children's toys" ban as most kids don't actually eat their minibikes.

[941MXVET]

For a full discussion on the "lead ban" issue check here:

http://www.thumpertalk.com/forum/forumdisplay.php?f=404

[jhynesrockmtn]

I just posted a little note and pictures about our most recent dirt bike trip. My son and I started late, he was 15 and I was 45 when we bought dirt bikes. I'd visit with a local motorsports shop and talk to folks who deal with the young kids and small bikes. I'd guess 5-7 as well. It's been great fun so far for us. I wasn't keen on the idea at first not having grown up with dirt bikes but it's a nice chance for us to take off for the weekend and spend some one on one time doing something we both enjoy. He'd kill to have a few acres to screw around on without having to drive for a couple of hours to go to an ORV area.

[Tim Hancock]

I started riding at 5 on a 1970 Z50. Back then, no one really made bikes for real little kids. Dad would put me on it and get me going. When I wanted to stop, I would ride past the garage and he would come out and get me off of it. Buy a PW50 and give it a go. At 3, you are probably going to have to keep him tethered. By the time he is five, you might be able to move him up to an automatic race type bike.

I have two stepdaughters and they both learned on Honda 50's I restored at 6 and 7 yr old. Couple years later, they moved up thru a KX60 to CR & KX 80's. They both lost interest in their teens, but both learned to drive in stick shift cars without ever stalling the engine. I am a firm believer that kids should learn to ride something with an engine at a young age.

With my MX racing background, had I ever had a son, no doubt he would have been on a dirtbike at a very young age.

[lendaddy]

My son has been on his Z50 since he was 3 but that was with training wheels. He just turned five and they are coming off in a week or two. The most important thing is getting them to understand the brake(s) and gas so that they don't panic. I also fashioned an adjustable throttle limit but the newer bikes already have em I'm sure (along with radio freq shut-down tethers).

Only you know, but I don't really want my son racing MX unless he begs me. It's an awesome sport and a ton of fun but he WILL get wrecked and broken up a lot.... I broke ribs, shattered my foot (seven places I recall), had a severe concussion and tore out a knee....my brother almost died in a nasty over-the bars neck injury accident and my other buddy also broke numerous bones....and that was just amateur racing.

[TerryH]

If I'm the kid, 2 hours after my first breath. If I'm the parent, when he is about 18.

[911boost]

My daughter was 3 when we got her a CRF50F Honda with training wheels. She just turned 6 and the training wheels come off full time this summer. She really only rides it when we camp, which is about 6 times a year for a couple of days each time. She has the gas / brake, change gears thing down pat. She also has all of the protective gear, and has wrecked it minorly in the past, each time getting up laughing.

It pretty much boils down to your child being tall enough to touch the ground, strong enough to hold their head up with the helmet, etc.

Bill

[slakjaw]

I got my first mini bike when I was 4

It was a Taco 22