I need help - want a bike

[Steve]

hi everyone, im a 15 year old and have had a 1977 yamaha enduro gt 80cc (mint) since i was 10 and will be sellign it within the next few days due to me outgrowing it. I will be workign this summer adn want to save up for a vision or other early '80s bike such as a seca.

The problem is my parents down't want me to get one. my dad had 2 bikes when he was a kid. I live in a small small town in canada. the problem is, I am loosing the arguement with them. she beleives they aren't safe "it's not your driving i'm worried about (but i know she is a bit) it's the other peope that won't see you"

I have been rding 3 wheelers and snowmobiles since i was 9 and have never damage ANY machine i have riddin or ever hurt myself. i also have the experience with my enduro (off-road use only)

So what i need is some ammunition for the arguement. please i really want a bike, how will i convince my parents that they are safe? anything you can give me would be greatly appreciated. thanks, Steve

[QQBS]

Keep on working on wearing them down.  Never give up!  Take a Motorcycle Safety Foundation riders course.  Pay for it yourself.  The beginners level provides bikes.  This all USA information and may not be applicable in Canada.  Inquire at local bike shops about similar programs in your area.  Maybe some of our Canadian Vnaries can point you in the right direction.  I've been riding for 46 years.  Cheers.

[Lucky]

Yor mother is 100% right, and that is how you will get your bike!

Any & every MSF instructor will tell you that one of the best ways to become proficent on a street bike is to learn to ride a dirt bike, so you already are ahead of the curve. ?

The key to being a safe driver is to learn & use what fighter pilots call S.A. --situational awareness. ?you have to allways plan ahead for any situation, particuarly left turning cagers. ?what saves your skin is thinking like every ride is a life & death situation. proper training, proper equipment (helmet, leathers, boots
7 gloves, even on those 90 degree, 90% humidity days), planing ahead as you ride, and allways knowing what you would do in any situation.

Take the MSF course, read every thing you can on M/C safety, and religously practice what you learn. ?when your parents see how seriously & responsably you are handling this they will change their tune. ?also have patience. ?if you cant take the time to learn it well & do it right, then it follows that the same will happen when your on a bike.

There are Old bikers, & there are Bold bikers, but there are very few Old, Bold, bikers.

--Lucky

[sgrprincees]

I had the same problem, and my parents still don't really trust me.  For my parents, I just kept telling them I wanted a motorcycle over and over, probably 250 times.

[collind]

Does everyone have to go through this?  I am amazed at how many people (including me) have to go through the process and come out clean on the other side (meaning alive).  My mom thought I was going to ride off and get flattened.  My dad had 2 bikes when he was younger... his first street bike when he was 16 with no previous car driving experience.  His dad told him he couldnt get one, and he did anyway, when his dad said, "I thought I told you you couldn't get one" he said, "yeah..."

He was a complete nutcase too, he rolled tires off his roof, threw rocks through people's cars, etc...  And he made me go through a long period of riding a dirt bike, then driving a car, then a few months before turning 17 he let me ride... and you know what?  I have not had a single wreck.  Never been hit, never hit anyone else...  I am no safer now after driving a car than before, if anything the car experience was bad be cause I had no fear of driving a car whatsoever, I felt totally safe and secure.  Riding a bike I am completely aware of my surroundings because if I make a mistake it can get me killed, but in a car, you are careful but not nearly as careful as on a bike.  It was actually worse for him to make me drive that car because I wanted to ride a bike more than anything... so when I finally got on the bike, I almost had a hard time being safe because I was just enjoying it so much, after waiting so long.  Of course people will say that a year isnt very long to wait... but it is if it is all you could think about every day for the entire year and the years leading up to it...  Having to get up every morning and get in that car was painful...  I'm not mad at my parents though, they just didnt want me to get hurt

Also, my dad never had a single wreck through all his years of riding...  and no previous car experience and being a much much more risky person than I was

[Silver_Bullet]

Steve,

All of the advise thus far is great.  Be persistant.  My parents would not allow me to have a bike.  Ended up racing MX with another guy's bike, crashed, got hurt, parents found out.  Not good.  Had to wait till adult, on my own to get street bike.  Have never crashed, taken riding courses and ALWAYS wear a helmet and protective clothing, whether local law allows no helmet or not.  Statistically, most motorcyclists crash because they didn't see it coming, didn't know how to avoid a crash, and they pushed the envelope too far(beyond their and the bike's limits).  I've been a cop now for 25 years and still enjoy riding, it's been a great hobbie and recreation.  As you've found with this BB, you can meet some of the greatest people on earth.
Mark

[Steve]

thanks for the help everyone. i knwo how some of you feel, i carry around a picture of a vision in my binder to all my classes. i really am a car lover but they are only fun if you have lots of money to put expensive parts on them. I thought that a bike is a toy and transportation and a car would just be transportation, no fun at all (probably a POS corolla or something). I also thought that in the future when I go to some post-secondary education iIwill have to carry around losts of stuff with me; requiring a car and since I enjoy riding my enduro so much, I think that now would be a great time to get one. also that gas milage would be awsome.

so far the points i have gathered are:
-Keep at them
-show them i will be getting all the proper safety equipment (I must have a helmet here in Canada but would wear one regardless)
-show them i plan on getting a safety course in addition to my liscense test and find some literature on safe riding ( I already own a book- riding for beginners)
-be careful

I know I will be very careful and i think taking a safety course would help me seeing what is happening and avoiding an accident. does anybody know where I could get a safety cousre here in canada? I live in Ontario, about 3 hours north of Toronto. does anybody have any more advice for me? it would be greatly appreciated. thanks allot, Steve

[Kenny]

Hi Steve,
     I'm located just east of Trenton Ont. I'm thinking your up Sudbury way or close to.
    Some of the local Colleges offer motorcycle safety courses in our area, you might want to check around your area.
   Also the Canada Safety Council offers courses and the C.M.A. might be able to offer some help phone# (905 522-5705). You can also check out their Web sites on a search.
      Good Luck    Ken S.    

[Steve]

looks like i'm done. I've lost i'll keep trying but i don't think there is much hope left. I'm pretty mad right now

[Cdnlouie]

Okay Steve this is all about strategy.  Talk Dad into getting a bike that you could share (down the road, of course).  Get into a fix-er-upper and enjoy spending time with Dad.

Don't get mad, that's no fun.  Be a good responsible kid.  Know this for sure, Mom really loves you that's why she just can't face the thought of you on a bike.  That can't be such a bad thing, right?

Totally sympathetic to your cause,

Louie   :(

[Rick G]

You might ask your folks if they would be  upset, if you wanted to be a carpenter, that can be a dangerous  occupation , fingers can be cut off and falls from ladders are possable .  Or an electrican , shocks and burns  are not impossable . They probably would be delighted that you want to undertake a  useful trade to support yourself.  Motorcycling  is no more dangerous  than those two occupations , if approched  with maturity  and caution.  Good luck!