Travelling home from work today I pulled onto a motorway behind a man carrying his child behind him on a motorbike. The motorbike was similar to a sports-bike, though not as aggressively styled, and the child was riding pillion behind their (I don’t know if it was a boy or a girl) father (I assume)
What took me aback was that although they were both kitted out in proper gear the child was probably only about six or seven years old, the top of their helmet came up to their fathers shoulders and they weren’t able to link their arms around his waist but had to hold onto his sides (although its possible there were some sort of grips or handles to hold onto, I didn’t get a good look when I passed). They didn’t seem to be secured in any other way.
They were also both wearing black clothing with white striping, on a black motorbike, and as such weren’t particularly visible as I merged into the traffic, which on a motorway tends to be travelling at 70 mph+ and was starting to build up.
It just seemed awfully vulnerable to me and I wouldn’t be happy about a child of mine being carried like that. Just wondering what other people think?
The old statistic that horseback riding is 20x more dangerous than motorcycles may not be the most scientifically rigorous finding, but it’s enough to make me think the kid in the OP is not in excessive danger.
Sure. The adults around when I was a kid used to take us out on motorcycle rides. One time the bike even fell over when my grandpa had me on it going up a trail the bike couldn’t quite make.
Q: Can we agree that it wasn’t us? That we were too young to know that while wearing shorts, it was stupid to ride on the back of a MC? That the person who said, “get on” and never handed either of us a helmet was to blame, not kids who hadn’t even attended second grade?
I can’t speak for yours. Mine was a mentally ill creep 10 years older than me who all my sisters later said “Nobody wants Anything to do with That Asshole"because of his crazy obsession with scaring people, hurting animals/people, and pulling pranks.”
Oddly enough, he became a children’s dentist the next town over (taking over either his fathers or his uncles practice).
No, my family limited our contact with that family once we saw how they were protecting that one kid (who was Truly Mentally Ill). No, we never Ever used that practice for dentistry after that… and even today I would not let my kids go there.
Sure, why not? When my kids next visit their grandma she will probably take them for a ride on her motorbike. I rode on the back of bikes as a child. I wouldn’t let them go with just anyone, but I have no problem at all with the scenario in the op.
their feet properly touch the buddy pegs
If those two things are true I actually enjoy seeing kids getting the time on two wheels.
Want me to call the highway patrol? Put an adult-sized helmet on a clearly too small head or prop the kid on the gas tank in front of you with their legs dangling free. Either one, to me, warrants professional notification.
I’ve thought about what it would be like to take a kid on the back of my scooter. I would be OK with it around town, and for short rides, with the kid trussed up in the proper riding gear. The scooters have grab bars for the back rider to hang on to. My worry would be longer rides (my wife and I often go out for rides of several hour’s duration). I’d be afraid the kid would fall asleep and fall off.
Yep, no problem provided - as others have said - the child had the proper gear, was big enough to hold on, touch the pegs, and be counted on to stay alert and behave. All things which, imo, preclude taking pets for rides, which I’ve seen people do.
Here n Taiwan whole families ride scooters. We do that sometimes as well, with my son in front of me, my wife on the back and our daughter sandwiched between us.
I will ride without my wife and with the kids, but they both have helmets and I drive very carefully.
My pop rode us on his motorcycle when we were kids, I rode all 3 of our kids on my cycles and my kids now ride their kids on their cycles, and I’ve also ridden my 3 grand-kids on my cycle (not at the same time, though. ) The youngest being 6.
All depends…
Depended on who/where/on what they were riding.
They got to 18 so I guess in that, I was successful. My son gives all his kids rides or lets them ride, even gave rides to the two with MS. On horses too. In back of open pickup. My bulldozer when he had it there.
Would you let me give them a ride in a twin engine Cessna 310?
Personally I would be worried about a child that young falling off, and I would be concerned that in the event of an accident s/he would have very little protection in that traffic and those speeds. You can be the best rider in the world but all it takes is someone else to do something stupid, at least in a car they’re strapped in.
) The youngest being 6.