Saftey concerns with dirt bikes?

Question

MY husband and son were looking at dirt bikes but i was concerned with my sons saftey, so i'm not letting him have it but everybody keeps telling me its just a bike with a motor. Can somone please help me!!!

He's 13 and he's had expirence with atv's but not bikes.

Answer 1

Do you worry about your son's safety if he went out for football, he could shatter a collar bone,break his neck, fracture a knee.
What if he was a pitcher in baseball and hyper extends arm from the finger tips to the shoulder and when he heals he is only going to have 40% use of his arm.
What about soccer, he can split his shin bone or break his ankle.
If he played basketball he always going to have knee and ankle problems.
My point is, Parents never worry about their kids as much when they play sports in school. but, when the kid ask their parents for a dirt bike so they can learn and start racing parents always freak out.
You can pick out any football,baseball,basketball or soccer player that has been labeled as the "Best Athelet" and give them a lesson and put them on a track alone and tell them to go three laps,they would quit after a lap and a half because they would be worn out.
Because it takes a different level of endurance,conditioning,disapline,tolerence for pain(that's right pain). remember dirt bike riders/racers ride hurt/injured, It's like a drug to us/it's our high and it's all pure adreinaline,heart and soul. Just about every motocross track in the United States has a person that teaches kids how to ride dirt bikes and all the safety,And if they don't have anyone that teaches,that's alright because you can ask just about any rider at the track if they can teach him how to ride and if they can't then they will introduce you to someone that can.
Make sure you get all the safety gear.....
(1) Motocross Helmet(if you buy a cheap helmet you get poor protection)
(2) Motocross Pants and Jersey and Gloves(Thor, MSR, No Fear, Fox....)
(3) Motocross Chest Protector
(4) Motocross Neck Pad
(5) Motocross Goggles
(6) Motocross Kidney Belt
(7) Knee Pads and Elbow Pads
(8) Motocross Boots and Socks
He is ready, Yes i have a son that races dirt bikes he is 10yrs old and his mother did not want him to have a dirt bike either when he started at 5 yrs old, Now she is at everyone of his races and she is very proud of him.
You, Your Husband and your son are all going to be fine, Why don't you get a ATV and ride with your husband and son. The entire family can learn together....Try it, you might like it.

Hey "swthollitoes" let me tell you something, If you want to to talk trash about freestyle riders, then you need to step up buddy! In my statement i made, not at one time did i mention anything about freestyle motocross....Where do you get off talking about something that you dont have a clue about, I'm a freestyle rider and just like a "real" motorcycle rider i have respect for other riders and their sport. We are not a cult and if our tricks are so stupid....Find a freestyle rider and talk a bunch of smack to him or her and see what happens....I will tell you, Your going to get your *** beat down,Bad! remember we are use to pain....Now go and sit in your corner and think about what you said.

Answer 2

So he dosen't want to play stick and ball sports (which you can just as easily get hurt participating in) theres nothing wrong with wanting to do something that all the other kids are not doing.

Can he get hurt? Sure he can. But there's not a sport out there that dosen't have risks.

And if your looking for something that your husband and son can do together, theres no better way for them to spend their time together than on a track or out in the woods on a dirt bike. Memories that will last a life time right there.
I know because I have cherished memories with my dad.

As long as you husband makes sure your son dosent ride above his ability then he will be fine.

BTW: As the guy mentioned above, he said he has never broken a bone. I have been riding for 20 years and I have never broken a bone either. Worst injury I ever got was I got down in back a little once from landing wrong over a small jump.

Answer 3

let your son get a bike. Let your husband teach him to ride it and be responsible. Dirt bikes are great fun. Let them share this time together while they can. I have been riding since age 7, and now, almost 30 years later, my dad and I still ride, but more importantly, we share a bond no one else can relate too. we got that bond while out riding.
Dirt bikes get a bad rap on the televisin, because all they show are pro racing and the freestyle idiots that crash all the time.
I have been riding for almost 30 years, and sure I have crashed, had stitches, and stuff like that, but have NEVER broken a bone, or anything. I was always able to go to school or work the next monday.
Your son will be fine, especially if your husband is there to help him out. He will want to try those tricks and jumps, but with your husband there, he probably wont.
Dont let these dumb freestylers on TV give you a bad idea about riding. they are a tiny cult of riders out there that all they do is trash stuff, and get hurt while riding. but you have to look at why. they are doing back flips and tricks on a motorcycle that are mostly impossible for most of us to do.
plus to answer the question about the bike with a motor. this is untrue. a motorcycle is a piece of machinery that is not anything like a bicycle. it has suspension, and it has a lot of other featurs that bicycles do not have. you dont even ride them the same, the only similarity is that the two have 2 wheeles....LOL
I find it easier to ride a motorcycle. and a lot more fun...

just make sure your husband teaches your son to ALWAYS wear the safety gear!!! always wear a helmet!!!!
but also to wear items like his riding pants, jersey, gloves, kidney belt, chest protecter, goggles, and if possible, a neak brace.

Answer 4

There is no difference in safety between an ATV and a bike; the level of what is safe riding is decided by the rider and not the machine. Did you not think to check out what caused your BIG accident by looking at what you hit and if riding slower could you have missed it; or; not bothered to investigate and thought BAD LUCK... I would change your approach to racing about "how good you are" to "I have a lot to learn before I'm good" and tame down the need for speed, that way you will be a better rider in the future. Think about it and maybe your parents concerns are right but their solution to the issue is wrong......

Answer 5

So, you will let your son ride ATV's and not dirtbikes? Did you ever think that it's easier for an ATV to roll over and crush your son? There is risk in everything, but in my personal experience, I have had more injuries riding ATV's than I have ever had riding dirtbikes, and I've been riding them for years.

Kids feel more safe with the four wheels and stability of ATV's so the get comfortable fast, and that's when kids start getting injured. I had to help work a station at a local fair where a motorcycle dealership had brought little four wheelers for the kids to ride... 50% of the kids ended up underneath the four wheelers because they had flipped them.

What I'm trying to say is that dirtbikes are not as much of a risk as four wheelers/ ATV's. There is still a risk, as there is with everything, but if you are going to let your son ride ATV's then you really have no argument about not letting him ride dirtbikes. If your son is wearing all the right protection then he is more safe on a dirtbike than he is on an ATV.

Answer 6

i have been riding for 6 years and racing for 4 and im 15 now and i have never had any serious injurys just a broken toe and to the comment above kids are smart enough to ride a dirtbike and are amazing at it honestly the least amount of wrecks i see at the races are in the 5-13 year old range

Answer 7

Kid down the road from me flipped his dirtbike maybe a year ago. He lived.. and that is probably too bad. The bike flipped up and landed right on top of him when he hit a pothole full of water he didn't realize was as deep as it was. Had a helmet on, but some part of the bike struck him in the forehead when he was on his back and he is a vegetable now. Shunt in his brain to drain the fluid out. Back in diapers, doesn't respond or seem to know where he is. The crazy thing is about 5 yrs or so, his older brother had flipped an ATV and was killed. Makes me wonder why they let another kid have a machine way too young. IMHO... old enough for a license, then old enough for a dirtbike. Younger than DL age.... forget it. They are not mature or experienced enough to make the quick decisions needed to correct a problem in a crisis. They over correct, or don't correct at all and it ends up in tragedy.

Answer 8

I've been riding all my life and I can tell you with ZERO doubt, motorcycles are far less dangerous than 4-wheelers. Anyone who says any different is either a girl or gay.

Answer 9

as long as he has the right protection gear he's perfectly safe (as long as hes not doing double backflips) if he really likes the sport you should let him carry on it's a lot of money for gear and a bike but if he loves the sport let him do it

Answer 10

dont listen to cb he's a ****.let ur son get a dirtbike make sure you get all the safety gear though like...helmet,goggles,chest protecter,jersey,pants,gloves,boots,and thats it you can get training wheels for his bike too. go to this website for the dirt bike http://seattle.craigslist.org/sss/.................. and this website for the gear http://www.dirtwerkz.com/Merchant2/merchant.mvc?Screen=CTGY&Category_Code=650...............good luck