Kawasaki Sportsbike Riders Club - Australia - Online Forum

Taken from another forum (cbr250.com):

Originally posted by Smiley
[br]A tragic story no doubt, but I'm interested in peoples opinions. Is a 3yo too young to be on a motorbike? Should it be illegal to put training wheels on a motorbike? How do you police something like this? What about if it's on private property? Personally I think it, like many things, comes down to common sense. It's just tragic when a lack of common sense by parents results in such a tragic outcome. Has Darwin just erased one more speck from the gene pool? Harsh...but...? Was this a forseeable outcome?

EDIT: There was recently a vid of a really young kid who was an extrememly good rider. So obviously in the right environment, young kids can excel.

Toddler killed on motorbike[/size=2]
[br]September 10, 2007 10:05am

http://www.news.com.au/heraldsun/story/ ... 61,00.html

A THREE-year-old boy has been killed while riding a motorbike with training wheels.

The child rode over a parched river bank and fell three metres headfirst on to a log near Horsham yesterday afternoon.

Ambulance paramedics said the youngster was wearing a helmet, but struck his head with so much force his heart stopped.

His horrified parents and other family and friends raced to the boy's aid after the accident at Quantong, along the drought-ravaged Wimmera River.

The boy's father carried him up the embankment and tried to resuscitate him while waiting for an ambulance.

The child was riding a Yamaha Pee Wee 50 fitted with steel training wheels with rubber tyres.

Two advanced life support ambulance teams were called to the scene at 1.39pm.

The boy was flown by helicopter to the Royal Children's Hospital in a critical condition .

He died several hours later.

A spokesman for the motorbike's manufacturer was shocked at the age of the child involved.

"I've never heard of a child that young using one," Yamaha Motor Australia's Sean Goldhawk said.

The company does not set specific age guidelines for the bike, which is one of the nation's biggest sellers.

But Mr Goldhawk said Yamaha did not endorse the use of training wheels.

"If you can't touch the floor you're not supposed to be riding it," Mr Goldhawk said.

A Horsham policeman who knows the child's family was among the first officers at the accident site, which is a popular motorbike riding area.

Sen-Sgt Elsom said the boy's parents were traumatised.

"It's a very tragic, unfortunate incident. I feel for the family and I know they will be suffering," Sen-Sgt Trevor Elsom said.

Sen-Sgt Elsom said the river was low and littered with logs because of the drought.

Rural Ambulance Service spokesman John Mullen said the boy was wearing a helmet, but hit his head so hard that he suffered heart failure.

"He's gone over ... and fallen into the river. The water level was very low and he hit his head on a log," Mr Mullen said.

"He went into traumatic arrest. His heart had stopped."

The popular motorbike ridden by the boy stands 48.5cm from the seat to the ground.

About 1500 are sold nationwide each year.

Police seized the motorbike and will do mechanical checks. A report will be prepared for the coroner.

I think it's wrong that only one company makes the game Monopoly. Steven Wright, Comedian.
[/size=1]

This one just stuns me, i mean theres a place for these sorts of activities, and within reason the 3 year old 'might' be able to use the pw50 safely. A huge dead-flat grass paddock with nothing to run into is safe, a 'popular motorbike riding area' with a 3 metre drop-off is just plain insane. And even though its only my opinion (flame me all you like), the parents were complety irresponsible letting him ride in an area like that. The problem was so much with the vehicle, but more the location. In a safer location where there are no obstacles or drop-off he might have been able to ride the bike in relative safety.

Personally i think it's ridiculous letting a 3-year old on a motorcycle, especially with training wheels. How could a 3-year old possibly understand what responsibility there is in riding a bike that can go what, 50-60km/h? I don't think it's fair on the kid to have to make decisions without having any perspective..........
Putting training wheels on a motorcycle isn't the same as putting them on a pushbike. It may help on a pushbike, cause of your low speed and movement, putting them on a motorbike isn't going to make it just as safe as a pushie. You'd think that people would have enough common sense to realise that if the child isn't big enough to ride the bike, then mayeb he's no suitable for it? Putting training wheels on a motorcycle is like using newspaper as a helmet cause they didn't have one in your size......... you may have something on your head that fits, sure aint safe though

tyreshredder wrote:Putting training wheels on a motorcycle is like using newspaper as a helmet cause they didn't have one in your size......... you may have something on your head that fits, sure aint safe though

Pffft. Get with the times boy. Don't you know we wear tinfoil ones now?

my opinion.... pretty bloody stupid of the parents.....

i agree with u shredder...

Neka79 wrote:my opinion.... pretty bloody stupid of the parents.....

a most unfortunate accident
and Nath..I agree

a 3yo does not have the reflexes or co-ordination or thought process
to handle a bike by themselves
a 3yo struggles on a pushie trike/bike and generally needs assistance from an adult
so they definitely need watching if on a powered version

I say that from having had kids..and grandkids
(and FFS ..NEVER let them ride on the footpath by themselves..they forget to brake at cross streets )

Smitty

i starting racing in the mini bike club when i turned 4, doing gymkahna or however you spell it.

so iw as riding at home when i was 3. i rode the pee wee 50 b4 i could ride my pushie, (partly because we lived on the side of a mountain, and its not very flat for kids with training wheels.

i wore all the gear, yeah i had a few crashes, the worst injury in all my racing has been where i have winded myself, and some bruising. no broken bones.

do it in the right places, wear the right gear and possibly mod the bike (my peewee had the throttle stopper in at 1st) i think it's ok.

I wouldn't let a 3yo on a pushie in a place with a 3m drop off, let alone a motorbike. Irrespective of training wheels it's all about location and the lack of parental supervision.

photomike666 wrote:I wouldn't let a 3yo on a pushie in a place with a 3m drop off, let alone a motorbike. Irrespective of training wheels it's all about location and the lack of parental supervision.

i think that is the issue, not the age.

Agreed, lots of parents put kids that age on bikes, its the location and supervision that were lacking.

Yeah, it's all about location and the kid's level of development. The kid's age is not an absolute factor, it's a judgement call. For instance, everybody doesn't suddenly become mature enough to hold a licence at 17, some kids could have been driving perfectly safely for years before that, while others never become safe drivers, no matter how old they get.

However, a place with a three metre dropoff was never going to be a good location. And, for mine, if the kid needed training wheels, then they weren't ready for a bike with a motor and should have stayed on the BMX (away from the drop-off).

Pah! Training wheels on a motorcycle, FFS! Just because you CAN ride a bike doesn't mean you SHOULD.
I'm sorry for the parents, but they clearly weren't thinking things through very well and ended up paying an appalling price.

My son was 4 when I let him ride the PW50 & he did not care that much for it but it wasnt forced on him either but as an example he was let loose in a flat paddok with one tree in the middle & guess what he hit? even under close supervision & throttle stop he still managed to hit that tree! .........at 3 I would say no way 4 was even too young for my boy, but the location would have to be the main factor to be considered before letting the sprockets loose. As for Wattie ....well he was born to ride

Interesting comments..

We bought our son a bike at 3, and we also put training wheels on it for the first few months.
He only road it in our yard (we have an acre) with both of us with him all the time. Initially we ran next to him until he got use to it.
The training wheels were fine for the first few rides as he was just going straight turning and going straight, until he was use to the throttle.
We also had the thottle heavily resticted so it was pretty slow.
He had no problems with it for over a year and a 1/2, then he had a little crash and didn't want to ride it anymore..
Kids are racing these things at 4, some can do it some can't. My oldest was quite tall and sensible for his age, the 2nd one is 2.5 and I can safely say he won't be getting a bike for a while as he is not as grown up as his brother was.
Like everything in this world, whats right for one person isn't for another.
My kid does more damage to himself on his pushy, skateboard, scooter and just falling over than he ever did on his motorbike.
Having said that, I wouldn't let my kids ride it anywhere else other than in the yard with someone very close, what others do and what they perceive there kids ability is, is not for me to pass judgement on..
The same thing could have happened on a pushy....

What business has a 3 year old on a motorbike????

its not like they crave it, put them on a push bike and they'll get the same enjoyment out of it - and they'll actually get some much needed excersise of their growing muscles...

you don't need to have been riding since 3 to be a good rider at age 25.

sorry but i think riding at that age is irresponsible - whether its on a 3m cliff or your backyard - why risk possible permanent back, neck, spinal, brain injury?? possibly cutting the life of a child short for your own enjoyment.

nobody can tell a parent how to raise their child, but come on.... a child of 3 would be just as happy with a soccor ball as a motorbike.

BikerBoy wrote:What business has a 3 year old on a motorbike????

its not like they crave it, put them on a push bike and they'll get the same enjoyment out of it - and they'll actually get some much needed excersise of their growing muscles...

you don't need to have been riding since 3 to be a good rider at age 25.

sorry but i think riding at that age is irresponsible - whether its on a 3m cliff or your backyard - why risk possible permanent back, neck, spinal, brain injury?? possibly cutting the life of a child short for your own enjoyment.

nobody can tell a parent how to raise their child, but come on.... a child of 3 would be just as happy with a soccor ball as a motorbike.

Oh, so these things don't happen on a push bike then. FFS, theres more kids in hospital from pushy accidents than any other cause..!!!

When your kid is brought up around motorbikes everday of his life, he would rather have one than a pushy or a soccer ball.
Go to your local mini bike club and see the 4 year olds out there having a ball.

That aside, as I said, some kids want to do it some don't, some can do it some can't.
Mine did, we bought him a bike, he had all the safety gear (more than any pushy rider wears) and only rode it with total supervision. He got over it, decided it wasn't for him and we sold the bike for what we bought it for a few weeks ago, without a scratch on him or the bike.
Don't get me wrong, Yes, 3 is too young and I wouldn't recommend it, but its only dangerous if you (as a parent) let it be, and that goes for everything they do.!!

BTW, we had it that restricted that his push bike was faster, another reason why he got over it..

What do your kids like to do.?

MadKaw wrote: What do your kids like to do.?

Play guitar... he wants to be a rock god! safe as houses

Wattie wrote:i starting racing in the mini bike club when i turned 4, doing gymkahna or however you spell it.

so iw as riding at home when i was 3. i rode the pee wee 50 b4 i could ride my pushie, (partly because we lived on the side of a mountain, and its not very flat for kids with training wheels.

i wore all the gear, yeah i had a few crashes, the worst injury in all my racing has been where i have winded myself, and some bruising. no broken bones.

do it in the right places, wear the right gear and possibly mod the bike (my peewee had the throttle stopper in at 1st) i think it's ok.

I agree with you mate, for all we know this boy could very well have been 3 years and 11 months old! I think if you have the right training and gear in the right environment it's fine. However, a parent must also accept that there are risks. Kids can die from falling over themselves and hitting there head. I have a good friend who's younger brother is brain damaged. Fell over when 5 and hit his head in the corner of a bench. Accidents happen, and unfortunately this one ended in death and tragedy. My boy had a peewee at four and I had no issues apart from scraped elbows and knees. however, any of those little spills potentially could have killed him. I felt it worth the risk, as I did allowing my kids to drive in a car (also another dangerous pastime) and ride horses (statistically more dangerous than motorbikes)