Riding with kids

[JRO]

Some states have passenger/age restrictions. If unsure, ask an officer.

I used to put my oldest son on my bike in front of me, at age two. We lived in a very rural area, and we would idle down to my parent's house. I will qualify that, by explaining that the boy could walk, talk, and was 'trained' by one year old. He was a very accelerated child; by age eight, his school started sending him over to college half the day, then back to his grade school for other half (until he rebelled against all school and refused to do any schoolwork, by 10 or 11). At two years old, he was quite aware of what we were doing (riding the bike), and was a perfectly capable passenger. Furthermore, he demanded to ride, and we were afraid that if he found the keys sometime, he might try to ride the bike on his own... As he'd already tried, with the car.

Fun times. My mother was incensed. I don't blame her. I was young. Today, I would never put a two-year-old on a street bike, even just to 'idle around', and I don't care if the brat had a restraint system and could recite The Gettysburg Address while doing a handstand. Small children have no buisness being a passenger on a motorcycle; at least until they can touch the footpegs. Then, they should wait until they're 17, at which age I will give them a ride around the block.

At age 29, my oldest is the only one of my kids with his own bike, who rides.

 

[kulwen]

My son started riding with me occasionally as soon as his feet could touch the pegs. He's on my Blackbird with me in my avatar. I modified a leather belt with handles so he would have something to grab onto because his arms couldn't reach around my waist (and no I'm not fat by any stretch). Kids don't have the strength to hold onto a grab rail IMHO.
He's now 15 and has ridden a lot with me over this summer because I've been picking him up on the way home from work at his summer camp job. I have the factory trunk on the FJR and this gives me some peace of mind knowing I won't lose him off the back due to acceleration. The falling asleep problem is a big concern though. I had a lady in a car next to me at a stoplight tell me that my passenger was asleep. Even after stressing the importance of staying awake, a week later a friend from work told me he saw him sleeping again on the back of the bike. I'm hoping my gruesome tales of what will happen to him if he falls off while I'm cruising the freeway will stop him from sleeping back there. Or maybe I still need to get one of those harnesses that hook him to me. :angry2:

Michelle, my wife falls alseep on the back of the FJR. MotoPort put D-rings on the back of my shoulders and on the front of her sholders so I could attach her upper body to me to prevent her from falling off. I don't want to get in trouble by giving her age, but is seems she never grew out of going to sleep when riding.

D-Rings might be a solution.

 

[Harald]

My son started riding with me occasionally as soon as his feet could touch the pegs. He's on my Blackbird with me in my avatar. I modified a leather belt with handles so he would have something to grab onto because his arms couldn't reach around my waist (and no I'm not fat by any stretch). Kids don't have the strength to hold onto a grab rail IMHO.
He's now 15 and has ridden a lot with me over this summer because I've been picking him up on the way home from work at his summer camp job. I have the factory trunk on the FJR and this gives me some peace of mind knowing I won't lose him off the back due to acceleration. The falling asleep problem is a big concern though. I had a lady in a car next to me at a stoplight tell me that my passenger was asleep. Even after stressing the importance of staying awake, a week later a friend from work told me he saw him sleeping again on the back of the bike. I'm hoping my gruesome tales of what will happen to him if he falls off while I'm cruising the freeway will stop him from sleeping back there. Or maybe I still need to get one of those harnesses that hook him to me. :angry2:

Michelle, my wife falls alseep on the back of the FJR. MotoPort put D-rings on the back of my shoulders and on the front of her sholders so I could attach her upper body to me to prevent her from falling off. I don't want to get in trouble by giving her age, but is seems she never grew out of going to sleep when riding.

D-Rings might be a solution.

My Aerostitch doesn't come with D rings. What a rip-off - I should send that $500 jacket back! :winksmiley02:

Actually that's a good idea and got me thinking. I could wear a small backpack and then I'd have someplace to clip a simple harness onto. I'm thinking a plain dog leash might even work for a harness. And if the wife is riding with me, I could put a studded dog collar around her neck to hook the dog leash to! :yahoo: On second thought, maybe I shouldn't suggest that or else I'll be sleeping in the dog house. :dribble:

 

[ionbeam]

This light weight gadget fits over the drivers left ear and triggers an alert buzzer when it observes the driver's drowsiness. No Nap is an essential safety device, a MUST HAVE on all road travels.

 

[KnuckleHead]

This light weight gadget fits over the drivers left ear and triggers an alert buzzer when it observes the driver's drowsiness. No Nap is an essential safety device, a MUST HAVE on all road travels.

Is she yawning, or screaming from the pain?

 

[ionbeam]

[image Removed]This light weight gadget...a MUST HAVE on all road travels.

Is she yawning, or screaming from the pain?

I'd like to die quietly in my sleep the way my grandfather did, unlike his 4 other screaming passengers.

 

[Foxhuntr]

My daughters are 41, 28, and 25. They all rode on various motorcycles I had while they were small, starting at about 6 for trips around the neighborhood on my Honda CB350, or sitting in front of me on our Honda mini-trail on dirt trails. My youngest eventually went on to dirt bike with us on a Honda 100. None of them ride today, although my 21 year old grandson just got a Yamaha R6 and is in line for some of my hand-me-down gear.

 

[palerider]

[image Removed]This light weight gadget...a MUST HAVE on all road travels.

Is she yawning, or screaming from the pain?

I'd like to die quietly in my sleep the way my grandfather did, unlike his 4 other screaming passengers.

:clapping:

 

[Loki]

I have a 14, 12, 8, and 5 year old (all boys). Legally, here in Kaleeefornia, there are no age restrictions, but they must be able to touch both footrests. All three of the older ones have ridden pillion on short, around town trips, with the exception of the 12 year old, who rode pillion on a 6 hour ride to Laguna Seca this last July, and had a blast.

While I agree that you have to consider maturity (not age necessarily, but mental maturity), by the time my kids were old enough to reach the pegs, they fully understood the finer concepts of fear. As girls generally are more mature than their like-aged counterparts, my advice would be to take her for a short ride up and down the block and see how she reacts. Take your time to explain the safety considerations, how to pay attention, lean with you, etc. I am sure she will do fine!

... I don't want to get in trouble by giving her age...D-Rings might be a solution.

John T: I am sure no matter how young your wife is, she could figure out how to slip out of those D rings and alert the authorities!

 

[HaulinAshe]

As much as I hate to admit it, my brother's GoldWing was, and probably still is, the best thing for training pillions. You can sit them back in that big ole seat, plop down the armrests and see the smiles in the big mirrors. Even if they fall asleep they aren't going anywhere.

Being able to touch the pegs is a definite must, so is a properly sized helmet. Even a cheap rider/passenger wired intercom brings a totally new level of comfort and security to your rides.

I grew up on two wheels and really can't remember at what age I first rode behind Daddy. But you can sure bet I remember when he died and I could never ride behind him again. Between those times I can't ever recall saying no to a motorcycle ride, although I'm sure I did.

Make the memories for both of you just as soon as you comfortably can. Before you know it, you won't be cool anymore.

My $.02

 

[Spook]

This is not ment as an endorsement of any products, just some places to look for items.
Kid gear site: https://www.Motorcycle-Superstore.com/kids

Buddy Belt site: https://www.buddybelt.com/

Another harness: https://www.spankysparts.com/product483.html

Nachman International harness: https://www.amazon.com/HARNESS-NACHMAN-INTE...D/dp/B000UK3R32

I guess tying a kid to yourself works almost as good as an airbag if you get in a wreck.

 

[palerider]

I guess tying a kid to yourself works almost as good as an airbag if you get in a wreck.

Only if you get rear-ended.

 

[Spook]

I guess tying a kid to yourself works almost as good as an airbag if you get in a wreck.

Only if you get rear-ended.

Picture showed kid in front. Guess you could put one in back too. It will also cushion your roll if you leave the bike.

 

[Rev Ed]

I took my kids (daughter and a son) with me as soon as they were tall enough to reach the pegs and I felt that they would follow my directions. I had a well fitting children's helmet for them in addition to other gear. Of course, I had an older Yamaha Venture back then so they were relatively enclosed.

Instead of setting an exact age, I believe it should depend on the confidence level of the pilot and the maturity level of the child.

 

[teecb]

I believe here in CT the age is 12...

 

[palerider]

I guess tying a kid to yourself works almost as good as an airbag if you get in a wreck.

Only if you get rear-ended.

Picture showed kid in front. Guess you could put one in back too. It will also cushion your roll if you leave the bike.

Execellent safety device. Way better than an airbag.

 

[Art FJR]

I suggest having a buddy following you on your first trips as an observer. My son was probably 8 on his first rides.

I used a belt from a nail pouch around the both of us. There was no way in hell he was falling off. But I still wasn't really comfortable with that solution should we go down. So I was really, really careful in the beginning.

I then got a belt that had the place for a D-Ring and put the belt around me tightly with the D-Ring for him to hold onto. He can reach the pegs.

We did short trips at first and then lengthened for trips for ice cream 20 miles away.

I did a 120 mile trip with him on a day that was too hot with a buddy following. He fell asleep on the back in the twisties and I was alerted by my buddy.

Don't do it on a hot day, take frequent breaks, have a buddy follow you.

I really like the suggestion of the Gold Wing with the comfy seat and arm rests.

You can tell when they are getting tired when their head hits your back when you break or anytime their head touches your back.

Needless to say, when you are riding, ride as defensively as you can. Without question, kids love it.

Art

 

[Topspeed]

I have to laugh when I see this picture of myself as a kid. Sitting on the back of my Mom's bike (3or 4 years old) in a child safety seat made for a bicycle, with my feet inside a couple of small trash cans. Don't know what she did to attach the seat and trash cans. Some of my earliest memories are from the back of that bike.

 

[EXPDSGT]

My son started riding with me when he was about 6 years old. The rule was that he had to be able to sit on the seat with both feet on the footpegs at the same time. Weekly for months he would go out to the garage to "check" his fit. One day he came running into the house screaming "I can touch!" Before the bike even got started, I made sure he had a quality, fitting helmet, jacket, pants, boots, etc....We started out with just short rides around the neighborhood and around the village and as he got older we progressed to longer rides at higher speeds until he was probably the most experienced pillion I ever traveled with. His riding with me lasted until he was about 13 and then it just wasn't cool anymore. I think about those times often now, they were some of the finest memories we had together....

I was doing a search and this came up. Thank you and your wonderful son for protecting our country (when others seem to be trying to put us at risk). I can only imagine your pain -- but remember there are many of us who truely appreciate what he did. You can be so proud of him and I just wanted you to know I am proud of him too, serving, so that we can freely live in this great country.

 

[oldryder]

1. big enough to reach the footpegs

2. mature enough to follow directions

bear with the following; IMHO theres a good point there .....

suggestion: when my kids were small we lived on a lake and had to deal with the fear that one of the kids would go in the lake unsupervised and drown.

little kids have lots and lots of rules; take your shoes off when you come in the house, hang up your coat, make your bed, brush your teeth, etc. etc. etc.

we wanted someway to help them differentiate between the hundred everyday rules and the DONT GO ON THE BEACH WITHOUT A GROWN UP rule.

my wife and I invented "SAFETY RULES"; break a safety rule and you could get hurt or die and YOU WILL GET A BARE BUTT SPANK (we hardly ever spanked them so this was a big deal to them.) the rules about staying away from the lake were SAFETY RULES. ditto for rules to stay away from the rural highway we lived on.

When the kids were ready to ride on the bike they got a few new SAFETY rules to follow. we were comfortable they understood the importance of the rules associated with being a passenger and dad/daughter rides have become a family tradition.