Guys and Girls,

I just delivered a 1997 Polaris Trailblazer to the kids two days ago for their birthdays. You should have seen the "light in their eyes" when they saw their "new machine". It was as close as I've come to a religous experience in quite some time. They didn't care that it was a used machine, or that it was a Polaris and not a Honda or other make. They did care that it was all theirs. They promply set out riding it after reading the manual and watching a video, in 20 degree snowy weather (the kind of day that chills you to the bone), but for them it was a warm summer day. Both took their turns on it, waiting patiently for the other to get done. It was only nightfall and my (and my EX's) insistance that they stopped riding. They're probably riding it now as I write this.

I'm very proud of my childern, as you can tell. My daughter is a chip off the old block in the fact that she has only two throttle settings, full throttle and off. Thank goodness I got them a fairly slow machine. While my son is the more cautious of the two. My daughter is giving me gray hair because of more than the speed reason, she is growing into a woman (and maturing much too fast for my taste). My son is the most polite person you'd ever meet and he too is growing much too fast for my taste.

Sometimes I think we lose sight of what is really important in our lives. Oh sure, we come on here and talk about which pipe is best, which machine is best, which modification is best, but we almost never talk about the first machine we got, or the family that more than likely, lovingly gave it to us because they wanted us to be happy.

My children have spent the last several years quadless, every other kid in their neighborhood had one. But because of their ages I was reluctant to get them a machine. Last summer, I took them to camp and let them ride Celeste's machine. They couldn't get enough of it. It was then and there that I decided to get them a quad. It wasn't until recently that I came upon one that I could pay cash for. It was sitting in a forgotten corner of a bike shop with the sub transmission ripped out. The owner didn't have enough money to repair it. Because of my subscription to the ATV Connection forums, and the friends I've made here, most specifically Elroy (thanks again!), I was able to find just the machine I was looking for. I had a new sub transmission put in and I completed the rest of the repairs to the machine to make it ready for the kids to ride. This was more than just fixing a machine up for resale, this was a labor of love.

I arrived at their house and promptly showed them the Polaris safety video before they rode it. I gave them a strict set of rules to follow and told them that if they ever broke them, the machine would go to camp and they would only ride it when I was around. My children paid attention to the video like it was their favorite movie and poured over the owners manual like a Christian with a bible. Then they went out to ride it. Needless to say they were enthralled by it. They thanked me several times before I left (which was the hardest thing I had to do.

Sorry to get all sappy, but this was a moving experience in my life and I wanted to share it with you all.

Thanks again to the ATV Connection and Elroy!

 

what a nice post [img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-smile.gif[/img] i can't wait until i have kids. i've always thought of the day i buy them their first quad and how happy they'll hopefully be.

 

I totally agree with what you said.We the adults often forget that this sport is for kids too.And i have pictures of my boy when he got his first Quad a Eton Impuls 50 he looks so much differennt on it than his Breeze.But that little one got us broke into what we were headed for.We saw him race it in the mini mx class and at the start of his second season saw him crash bad and break both arms.That didnt slow him down he went to a bike for awhile with the same enthuseism and smiles.Now at 9yr old he can ride his 125cc with the best of the grown ups out ride alot of them.It makes me feel realy great to have him to ride with If all dads had things like this to do with their kids the world would be alot better off.Sorry if this got off topic but it would be nice to here about all our kids.

 

Mornin mike, I usually dont reply to many of the posts, but do appreciate all the folks who do. Theres some really great info and some talented people out there and I for one am grateful for this forum. Like I said I wasn't gonna respond but I had the same kind of weekend with one of my sons (I have 4) It was his first ride on his new quad. I will never forget his muddy smile, all you could see through his helmet and all that mud was his teeth and that big grin! Cant wait for warmer riding weather, but till then its not gonna slow us down. Take care,ride safe & often Bob

 

Greetings,

Last summer I went out in a big overgrown field and mowed a small maze (the kind you walk through). This was such a hit with the kids that I expanded it to include a drive-through maze -- several acres of winding/connecting trails through 5/6 foot high weeds. Then I sent the kids out into it. I've never seen kids so happy for so long -- well past dark. Imagine being 12 again and running through grass canyons with only your headlights to guide you. This is real cool stuff when you're a kid. At one point I couldn't stand being left out anymore so I jumped into my Durango and drove through part of it with them. They were a bit surprised to see old Dad bounding through the field in his SUV, but hey, how many ATVs can a guy own at once. (For the safety conscious out there, I should note that speed was kept to a minimum). Anyway, we all still talk about it and I'll make more mazes this year -- you can always count on the weeds.

PS This was in Blacklog Valley, not far from you Mike.

 

hey mike,
it wasn't sappy at all buddy! you gave me such a flashback to the day i pulled up at home with my oldest sons first gocart. the look in his eyes told me i was the greatest thing since nitendo 64! lol. since then he has grown into a 10 hp live axle electric start 2 seater so he can ride his youngest brother around too. the 10 year old of mine has a 5 hp gocart witch is truly a trail machine! so many hours later, many repairs due to too many guts and not enough experiance, and they still love the off road times we have. i would not trade them experiances for all the gold in fort knox!!! now the oldest wants me to sell the gocarts and start with the quads, lol. if he had it his way, he would be the next quad master of warren michigan, lmao!some day, when i can afford it, i too will be pulling up with new quads for my boys, and more memories will begin! in my humble opinion, i can say with conviction that the best times of my life are when the unexpected things you surprize your kids with leave you feeling like the king of the world, lol.
i would just like to say i thought that this was truly a great post to read, and has swarmed memories back into my thoughts.


my pictures

 

I agree 100%!!!!!!!! It's all about the kids and also the kid inside of us. I got my boy a 50cc and he took off like a shot. He had the same light in his eyes and it was priceless!!! I now got him the suzuki 160 and myself a 2002 Raptor. We spend every weekend together. His buddies will call him to go play and he will say no because he wants to be with his dad. Damn near brings tears to your eyes ( atleast mine). They grow up to fast, so I take every opportunity to spend quality time with him. Atving is an expensive sport, but it's like I tell my wife.... I know where he's at, what he's doing and who he's with.... ME !!!!!!

 

Greetings,

Couldn't agree more. As they get older, one of the most important things -- and toughest things -- is to stay a part of their lives. Peer influence will push in, but if you have something you can enjoy together -- really do together (not contrived) -- it will keep the communication door open and hopefully he'll model some of your good habits. Its one of the longest running positions found in most hunting and fishing magazines and ads -- find something that you can both be interested in and do it together.

 

Excellent thread guys! I still remember my first bike like it was yesterday.

 

I saw that light in my grandson's eyes last year when I bought him a 50cc scrambler,it was great!I also saw a different light in my daughterinlaws eyes,she was not very happy about the quad.After about a year she is ok with it now.I injoy riding with my family.