Armyman,

Thanks for the follow up. You posts have some excellent points for all to consider. My older son is very responsible for his age. He and one of his friends own their own Lawn Care maintenance business. So, obviously, he is very familiar with operating heavy machinery. He excels in the classroom as well as sports. He is open and honest with both his mom and I. Now, don't get me wrong, this isn't to say that he hasn't made mistakes and won't make more in the future. I just feel that he has clearly demonstrated that he is ready to handle this responsibility.

My younger son. That was a tougher call. Very mature for his age, but I question his ability to discriminate between "fun" and "dangerous". That is primarily the reason he will have much closer supervision than my eldest.

Once again thanks for the feedback.

BTW, do you know if there are other training sources? Thanks in advance for any reply.

 

Oz,

I am truly glad to know that you’re committed to proper rider training for your boys, and I applaud your efforts.

Beyond the ATV Safety Course, I know of no ATV training materiel specifically directed at children. As usual, the nanny-state’s interference in your life on behalf of the noble goal of safety (or any other “noble” goal) results in those who need the service most being denied it. Never forget Quinn’s First Law, “Liberalism ALWAYS produces the exact opposite of its stated intent” (go to www.warroom.com for more details).

I have heard that some ATV Safety Courses run by large motorcycle/ATV dealers occasionally offer loaner quads to students. You could contact your local ATV Safety Instructor and inquire about the possibility of an appropriately sized loaner being made available. Most probably there will only be one mini loaner available. But even if you have to take one child at a time to the course, it would be worthwhile.

When I bought my SP90 it came with a safety video specifically geared for kids. Perhaps you can buy or borrow a copy from your local Polaris dealer? Failing that, email me your mailing address and I will make you a copy of mine.

Army Man

 

My son had an LT-80 (automatic like the Breeze). This was OK for putting around, but as I began to take him on cross country rides the shotrcomings of an automatic -NO ENGINE BRAKING- became very apearent. The tendancy is to lock up the back brakes and end up sideways on steep downhills. My son has lost all his confidence when downhilling because of this. I just bought him a TRX 90, so we are going to start over learning how to do this. Anyway, I passed up the Breeze for this reason.

The Recon on the other hand is a real peach!! We were up in the Sierras (at over 10,000') this weekend. On old narly mining roads, the little Recon went rock hounding everywhere that the 4X4 Rancher went.

 

i totally agree. not because im a concerned parent, only a 13 year whos 5'8 and 170lbs! how am i supposed to make a 90cc haul my fat ***?! so you see, it probobly wouldnt. my kawasaki ke 100 enduro(2-stroke) is powerful but still has trouble going because of the harsh weight. im looking forward to buying a honda trx 300, because i remember having one at like 7. then my dad sold it to move in this house. it was a 95 honda 300 4trax, i only drove it like twice about a hundred feet because somebody was too lazy to feed my heffers(young cow). it got the job done. i may not have been able to touch the shifter but like i said it hauled. the only thing i knew was to start it. push the start button, push the "thumb thingy" as i called it at the time. a year later my father took me to my uncles family reunion. little did i know he had monster quads. that honda 300 was amung them. they got into talking about them, standing next to them asking every specific question you could come up with. they called me over and my uncle hoisted me on the seat, they took pictures blah blah blah anyways he jumped on it with me and started it, i wasnt expecting to go, and when he did i almost flew off the back, hitting my head on the racks. i quickly screamed and hung on to him. he were flying (it seemed like we were. mabey we were going around oh say a whooping 10mph) through the woods, hitting bumps and curves shifting weight side to side. then he stops and tells me to get upfront. he was gonna let me drive! it took a little while for him to tell me how to shift.. i quickly took the advice, it was "when the rpm gets too high, let the gas off so you dont grind gears, then shift UP on the shifter." it was sort of like a bike, only shifting when not pedaling. from that day forward my dream was to own a honda trx300. im looking for one now, im selling my dirtbike to get one HOPEFULLY. if its too high priced, ill look for a honda 350 big red. those are beast! yes, 3wheelers are crap but i love em. ever rode a 250 big red? friend down the road has one with electric start, reverse, and hi/lo. everything + - something the 300 has. hi/lo was the advantage while 4 wheels had over the big red. (id pick 4 wheels. [img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-smile.gif[/img] does anybody know the book value for (the exact model as the 95, i mean it has to look it) only in an older year so its not too much $$? remember i love in canada, so, how much would a good used trx300 be canadian? my budget is like $2500. a big red is only 1500, so, i could swipe one easily. i still want that 300 tho.

 

We have two recons for sale! run awsome. e-mail me at mxglory@hotmail.com if interested