Kids and your sleds

Z

Zrxpilot

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Lindstrom
Seemed as good as any place to ask..

Got a couple nice sleds again. 03 viper and an 07 Phazer in mint condition. Also have a near showroom classic indy I am particularly proud of.

Kids are growing up (15 and 16), and wanting to ride them. They have their own and have ridden for several years. Nothing special, but well maintained and reliable units. Ones a 95 AC 580 and the other a 2000 340 sport. I do all the work on all of them.

I have a bit of a burn just flipping the kids the keys to the new ones as these are "mom and dads" toys. Its one thing to take them out one at a time and have them ride it within eyesight but I think another to let them run on their own. Good kids and I have no reason to think anything would happen.

Am I being a dick??
 

Nope...I got a hard time flipping the keys to my srx to my kids or just about anybody for that matter
 
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imo its just like giving a teenager the keys to a fast car. there young and naturaly going to try showing off regardless of how responsible u may feel they are. what happens when one gets in a wreck from going too fast and god forbid gets hurt or killed. can u live with them consequences ? that is the question u have to ask yourself.
 
tough call and it depends on the kids, how long they've been riding, what kind of shape their current sleds are in. If your kids are responsible and take care of the sleds they ride now, maybe they're ready. I know that at 15, the 340 just didn't do it for me anymore and that's when I bought my Phazer II. I had been working since I was 12 though. If you want to keep them in the sport, you might want to consider letting ride the newer sleds occasionally.

With that being said, there are few ADULTS that I would lend my sled to :-)*
 
I'm 16 and i just bought my self a 2002 viper, and i worked for every penny of that sled. It doesn't feel right to me when other kids are given f7's and 800 revs for no work at all.
 
phazerman said:
I'm 16 and i just bought my self a 2002 viper, and i worked for every penny of that sled. It doesn't feel right to me when other kids are given f7's and 800 revs for no work at all.
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now thats what talking about!Work hard and get what you want.Now write a book and give my one boy a copy.he he
 
All depends

It all depends on the kids. Do you let the 16 year old drive the car? If so then what is the big deal with a sled? I went away this past weekend and my 13 year old rode my 09 Nytro RTX all weekend. In my opinion you've got to give them an opportunity to be responsible before you can expect them to be responsible. The rules I gave him were: no riding alone and no boondocking. He had a call from a good friend to go boondocking and told him "I'd love to but I've got my dad's sled and I can't". My wife said it was pretty comical overhearing the phone call.

Madmatt
 
bought my sleds... rode them hard. think back to your teenage days.... bet you were like the rest of us, see how fast you can go, how far you can jump etc....want it beat on? give the keys up... just my .02 from experience and living through those days

on the other hand, ive had my dad ask to borrow my sled now as he has sold all of his... i hand the keys over, just as he handed them to me.

when your kids get older and get an awesome job and bring home a corvette or old camaro, and you asked for the keys, would you want them to say no?? lol
 
An 80 HP Phazer I can see letting a 15 or 16yr old run around on but a Viper no way. I rode my Dad's 700SX at 15 yrs old and brought it back with bent handlebars and a cracked hood. I was lucky I was already bleeding when I got home...this is your call but one thing I would stress at that age is NEVER ride alone. I bought my first sled at age 18 with money saved up from doing oil changes at the local Ford dealership. Make them buy their own, they will appreciate and value the sled WAY more if they actually worked and payed for it. Or cut them a hell of a deal on your current sled and upgrade ;)! You will have new riding buds
 
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i bought my last 4 sleds. prox 700, 05 rev 800 and a 2005 iqr 440/600. i now have a viper. my dad did a good job bringing me up by putting me threw steps of sleds. mini z stock, then modded it, then 380 then rev 600 and let me free affter that. when i didnt have money i road his sleds. he grounded the hell out of me when i did something wrong on my sleds he bought me. thats teaching respect. and when i ride his sled, i have alot of respect cause i no what the worth and how nice they are. if you kids have been through the same then let them ride it
 
How do your kids ride on there own if good and responsible give them the keys cause if you do not they will get them somehow, someway and take them out when your not around and then they will beat the hell out of them.
 
You are basically asking a parenting question. Everybody out there has parenting advice these days especially ones who aren't parents of teenagers.

I think the most important thing in parenting is to have a plan and be consistent with that plan. As long as your plan is good, stick to it.

My approach . . .

If the children feel entitled to stuff (like so many today do) then no way. If you have been successful at raising kids who see the prospect of riding Mom and Dad's sleds as a privilege and will treat them with care and respect, then go ahead. You will know which one fits if you really ask yourself. The privilege to use Mom and Dad's sleds should be earned (not necessarily via money) and can be easily lost.
 
I'm 22 and been riding on a sled since i was able to crawl, holding on to the gas tank cap while dad drove, eventually riding my own 88 bravo and move and bought his old formula z 583 off him. I was 17 and my sled was down and me and a friend headed up to the cottage. My dad knew i could ride and offered me the keys to his 02 mxz 700! I was so pumped to ride it and it was a good feeling he trusted me. Long story short a blew a corner on a road and my buddy behind me hit me with his sled! Roughly 70mph we think obv trying to keep up with me. The sled rolled and parts got bent and i ended up I'n the hospital getting 22 stitches just south of my boys! The funny thing is he warned me about the snappiness of the machine and typical teen i said yea yea. To this day i feel horrible about what happened it was dark snowing and i was goin to fast. This will not happen to everyone! I'm just sayin what happened to me. I was an experience rider had my sled licence since i was 12 riding motocross since 8 and i F'd up.
 
I let my daughter ride my 02' Viper with a M-10 and all the mods to it...She started on a Mini-Z at age 7.. I don't have a 340 or 440 for her to ride,I have a 600 V-max and the Viper...I let her ride the Viper out on the Lake in front of me for about a half mile, She did just fine slow then alittle faster and a little faster...As long as you explain to them and show the the power they have and tell them to keep it slow then I see no problem with that..It does make you NERVOUS to see your child on your machine..The greatest thing you can give your child, Is memories of days like that, things they will NEVER forget...That's what life is all about...
 
Ding said:
You are basically asking a parenting question. Everybody out there has parenting advice these days especially ones who aren't parents of teenagers.

I think the most important thing in parenting is to have a plan and be consistent with that plan. As long as your plan is good, stick to it.

My approach . . .

If the children feel entitled to stuff (like so many today do) then no way. If you have been successful at raising kids who see the prospect of riding Mom and Dad's sleds as a privilege and will treat them with care and respect, then go ahead. You will know which one fits if you really ask yourself. The privilege to use Mom and Dad's sleds should be earned (not necessarily via money) and can be easily lost.
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abso-fricken-lutely!! I simply cant agree more with this. well said ding!
 
phazerman said:
I'm 16 and i just bought my self a 2002 viper, and i worked for every penny of that sled. It doesn't feel right to me when other kids are given f7's and 800 revs for no work at all.
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Im not a parent, but I just had to applaud this. Good on you man for working hard to get what you want. ;)!



and to the original poster....are we talking 16yr old boys or 16yr old girls? :rofl: makes a big diff.
 
Also I'm not a parent. I've been riding sleds quite a bit since I was 11 and some before that. First was an Arctic Cat Cougar 550 back in 2000?. Wasn't ever rode without dad being around. Then in 2001 (I was 12) he showed up with a second sled because it was boring riding alone. That would be the 97 SX 700 we still have. I rarely ever rode by myself until I was about 15 and it was usually just close to home. About 16 I was able to ride it alone, but I also had and still have a lot of respect for anything I ride and don't abuse them. I also knew the basics for spark plug changes etc and my dad trusted me. Heck I've been driving farm equipment (combines, tractors, etc) since I was 11. I think it all depends on maturity, knowledge of how to fix them, respect, and many other things. Nobody knows your kids better than you do. Trust between a parent and kid is a big thing.
 
Madmatt said:
It all depends on the kids. Do you let the 16 year old drive the car? If so then what is the big deal with a sled? I went away this past weekend and my 13 year old rode my 09 Nytro RTX all weekend. In my opinion you've got to give them an opportunity to be responsible before you can expect them to be responsible. The rules I gave him were: no riding alone and no boondocking. He had a call from a good friend to go boondocking and told him "I'd love to but I've got my dad's sled and I can't". My wife said it was pretty comical overhearing the phone call.

Madmatt
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You've done well with your boy there, Matt. He listens well and has earned your trust, so I'd be the same way as you with him.
 
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