Tips on getting Dad into dirtbiking

[ca18det]

Hey guys,

My name is Dmitri, I am 19 live in Brisbane, Australia and love dirtbikes. I have a 98 wr200. I love trail riding, exploring new areas, and everytime I ride I seem to go further and further from home. Anyway my dad is like 40 something (maybe 42) and he has never riddin a motorbike in his life. ..Well actually when I was like 14 i bought my first bike ag100 farm bike he revved it to like 10 000rpm and dropped the clutch. You can imagine the rest. This was 10mins after I got the bike.

Anyway I dont think its a good idea teaching him to ride on my bike 200cc 2-stroke. I thought if i see an old xr250 in the paper I will definately buy it. But another thing got me thinking. Everytime I go riding, especially when I am riding with mates I always fall or drop the bike at least once. If its wet many more times. Sometimes there are days when i dont come off but have close calls. As I get more experience I sort of learn to avoid accidents, but of course they do happen. I am worried because my Dad is kida clumsy, his reflexes are slower and I know he would panic if something happened on the bike. Me for example when I started riding I used to brake alot. Infact at every obstacle. Now I always gas it and try to rase the front wheel.

I am just worried about safety. Do you guys rekon he could learn and then ride and be safe. Remember:

> 0 motorbike experience
> Clumsy + Slow Reflexes
> May panic in a dangerous situation

Sometimes we talk about him learning to ride, but its always just talk, you know.. Anyway what can make him want to ride the trails? What was an inspiration for you guys? Is these any photos images that make you want to go, "yup I want to go riding right now!" ?

Anyway what do you think?

>safety / >making him want to ride

-regards,
Dmitri.

BTW, very informative site. :)

 

[Uchytil]

That's a tough one. I think it's really cool that you want your dad to ride with you. Usually it's the other way around. My boys and I ride but that's got alot to do witht me starting them off since I rode most of my life. I guess there's no easy way around it. You can just straight up ask him is he'd be willing to go riding with you and go from there. If he say's yes maybe there's a motorcycle safety/ATV course around he could sign up for to get some riding lessons. Maybe you could scale back your riding ability around him if he rides slower and ride casually with him for awhile, your buddies may make him feel out of place if there blasting past him in every turn and filling his face with roost. I've seen alot of new riders that picked it up and now are hooked, but there are people that would just rather go fishing. How's the weather. I'm headed there very soon?

 

[ca18det]

Well, the weather is very hot and humid. I went for a ride the other day and came home and just collapsed! lol!

He is more the fishing kinda guy. Him and his mates go camping and fishing regularly, he invites me to come, but ...I'd rather not go. If we go riding it will be just me and him. To be perfeclty honest, I dont like blasting through trails anyway. Sure sometimes to nail it, is fun, but I love exploring trails at my own pace. So speed wont be a problem.

The safety course seems pretty good, but he doesnt even know the basics. And the other day i am riding down a trail and was thinking to mysef how with riding experience comes intuition. You know by the shading of the grass there is going to be a bump or hole, you can tell which puddles are going to be deep by the steepness of the banks into them, etc... And that is something he wont have. And I dont want him plowing into a drain pipe, or to go over a cliff etc...

-cheers
-Dmitri

 

[Dave.Smith]

Go fishing with your Dad, but take the bike along. If the fish aren't hitting go out and explore some.

 

[2stroke]

Hmmm... I almost dare not recommend it here.... but what about a mild mannered uh, 4 wheeled recreational off road vehicle? ( I think q*u*a*d) is a bad word on this board, but anyway that could be one alternative to a bike. Maybe that would have a smaller learning curve, and hell your dad could really take it easy on one of them.

(I dont exactly like them myself, except once I broke my leg about 2 miles into the woods, and someone hauled me out of there on the back rack!)
:laugh:

 

[ca18det]

Yeah, a quad is the only option for sort of safaety. Except ... what if you lock up a quad while going down a hill, it goes sideways, then starts sliding down, then it could flip! Many times on the bike i've been in that situation and either simply carefully dropped it or kept going down. Also we dont have a ute (pickup truck) and not planning to get one. Probably the best solution is what Dave.Smith said about fishing - thanx

-regards,
Dmitri.

 

[Tony Eeds]

Dmitri:

Does one of your mates have a mild mannered 4 stroke bike you can borrow for a day?

I would start out right there at home in the yard, maybe putting around the house a bit. Is there a fun place that you can ride to close to home that doesn't have any really tough terrain? It would be ideal if it ended up at a fishing hole that your dad didn't know about or was a new way to get to a familiar place.

Don't think of your dad as clumsy and slow, remember he raised you! My son would probably say the same about me, but I can still hold my own. :)

Good luck!

 

[ca18det]

The reason I compare him like that is because of his driving (car). Sometimes I really wonder how either doesnt see other cars, or takes too long to brake or accellerate etc.. I dont know anyone with a mild mannered 4-stroke. I guess the ultimate bike atm would have to be an old xr200.

Anyway thanx alot!

-Dmitri.

 

[dirt god]

maybe u can take him to a dirt bike dealer and have him try out some bikes thats what i did with my dad now were dirt biking every weekend and break i have he even got a 45 foot motor home and a 20 foot trailer

 

[rm85l]

if your dad is slow and clumsy, and needs to be safe, a crappy 250 will be good for him, actually a 230 comes to mind, electric start, no power, but enough to go just about anywhere, yes this seems like a great bike! especially because it is torquey, and fun! it might be a little too heavy if he wrecks it though. he will upgrade one day though, so if money is a huge factor in a few years, just get a 250 to start with, it wont be as good, but it'll do.

 

[jayden122]

yay another aussie ! lol sorry i dont have any info but yeah maybe get a ttr230 elec. start or crf230 there good learning bikes and ****

 

[High Lord Gomer]

I'm 42 and my body couldn't take all of the crashes that it took for me to learn when I was 20.

I'll second the suggestion of a utility-style 4 wheeler. It isn't intended for the steep hills and tough terrain. As long as he rides well within the limits of himself and the machine, he'll stand much less chance of getting hurt. Learning on a bike, even in mild terrain, will usually involve some crashes.

 

[Jaybird]

You could always explain to Pop how dirt biking is a great way to score babes.
Make sure Mom aint around....
:)

Borrow a mates bike and let Pop ride yours. It won't take long. Heck, you might even score a new bike out of the deal! (but don't count on it...Dad will prolly want the new ride)
:cool:

 

[Ol'89r]

I agree with what others have said about finding him a small four-stroke. An XR or TT-R or any mild mannered thumper under 200cc's.

Also, go fishing with your dad. This will give you a lot of time together to talk about your passion and to tell him how much you would enjoy him riding with you some day.

Another thing that may help. Go buy a video or cd of the movie 'On Any Sunday'. Sit down and watch it with your dad. He will enjoy the part showing the new rider popping the clutch and going out of control. :laugh: If he can watch this movie and not get enthused, he might possibly be brain dead. ;)

Good luck and I know how you feel. My dad wasn't the least bit interested in bikes.

 

[HubertGarfunkleIII]

let him know how much like it and how much fun you have doing it. and how you would have even more fun if he came with you. most kids dont like to hang out with their dads when they are 19 so i would think he would be happy you want to do something with him. where most kids that ride, and ther dads ride also, dont want thier dads going with them.

 

[fatcat216]

I think it is sweet that you want that old geezer to go with you. My Gawd, 42??....He's practically dead! (Kidding I'm in my late forties and just learning. There are plenty on this forum who took up this sport at age 40 or later. You never quit learning if you have the desire to learn.)

I think you are wise to acknowledge some things may not come naturally, and some things only come with experience. Where you are lacking wisdom though, is to expect the old fart to magically come on these, without, well, first braking a lot, without falling, without panicking once in awhile. You learned to gas it, but, first you had to learn a lot of other little bitty skills and get used to things before you had that confidence. You put him on a quad or a ttr and give him those instructions without first giving him the opportunity to master the hundreds of little skills prior, and you are providing a less than optimal experience. That isn't fair, clumsy or not.


Give him a chance to learn before you explore. If you can revise your expectations of him, and he's interested, you'll have a better go of things either way.

 

[dirt god]

i totally agree with a small 4 stroke maybe even a xr 200 i have 1 and there nice easy bike like every 1 says u should probaly get him a electric start because on my dads first kick start he fell over so many times or maybe for his birthday get him a used bike thats cheap and it wont matter if he falls oh and if u do get him into riding u might want to keep him out of the soft sand for a little while until he is good at balancing