As many of you know, after finding out that the MSF dirtbike school was too expensive for my daughter and I to take together, I decided to see if I could afford to purchase a dirt bike. For just a few hundred bucks more, I could purchase a bike and teach her myself (MSF instructor with 18 years of riding experience) and take her to a local track about 30 minutes from our house. What started out as a "maybe I can swing this" has turned into a definite event....
I bought a dirt bike for her this weekend - a 2002 Yamaha TT-R 125. I went to take a look on Friday, rode it around the yard (damn dirt bikes are fun!), and put a deposit down. I'm picking it up on Tuesday evening, maybe Saturday if Tuesday does not work out. It's very rideable as-is, but i'm going to replace the chain and sprockets and then do the tires over the winter. I wanted to talk the price down some, but it turns out I was buying it from a 18 year old boy that had outgrown it and he was selling it to pay for books at college in the fall. So, $800 it is.
I went home and managed to purchase a helmet, goggles, jersey, pants, boots, and gloves for a mere $154.00 with shipping!! Thank the Lord for Ebay and some other various websites. All brand new gear (except the boots; wanted somewhat used ones so they were broke in) mostly last year's models, etc. I should receive all of it by the end of the week.
My kid (daughter) has NO idea; and she's going to FREAK OUT when she sees this thing. And the most exciting bit is: she's going to be able to bring it on vacation to Myrtle Beach and go riding at a place that's only about 30 minutes from where we are staying.
To get her to the place to pick it up, i'm "white lying" that i'm going to pick up a "donor bike" to start fixing another bike that i've got in my basement. Totally plauseable - she'll fall for it hook line and sinker!
I will post some pictures up from the "surprise" event when I get them.
I've already figured out that if she likes riding, i'm going to sell my little cruiser and pick up a 2 stroke 250 for me. [moto]
Tuesday should be AWESOME!! ;D
You are the coolest mom ever!!! 8) [beer]
Can't wait to see pictures (maybe you can get some video too?) [thumbsup] [moto]
Talk about a score on both the bike and the gear!
Your daughter will be thrilled to death, I'm sure.
Can't wait to hear about her reaction when you surprise her! :D
you ARE the coolest mom ever [thumbsup]
after she's done freaking out, i'm sure she'll say it too :)
definitely the COOL mom! [thumbsup]
Last night I got the rest of the trailer done. I have an old boat trailer I converted to a motorcycle trailer a few years ago. It's been sitting for about 3 years since I didn't have a car that had a hitch - until today!!
Had to do the following:
tear off all old wiring
install new lights and wiring harness
take off wheels
get all rust off lug nuts with the dremel; coat them with tiny bit of 3-1 oil to keep from re-rusting (dirty job)
take off axle hubs and regrease bearings; reinstall
wheels back on
my hubby/stepsons (twin 16 year old boys) are going to repaint the wood deck this weekend I imagine. I also have a removable pingel wheel chock coming. Sort of wish it had been here yesterday, but it's not. I guarantee (the way my life works) it will show up this afternoon AFTER I get the bike. :P
The only thing that could put a "fly in the ointment" for picking up the bike this evening is my daughter is with her dad going to ride/buy a new horse (she shows english and western; sold her horse a few months ago and has not been able to find a new one yet). They might be longer than expected. I sure hope not...
awesome...
mom's buying her a dirtbike
and dad's buying her a horse
i hope your daughter realizes how lucky she is :)
Well, the joint pickup did not go as planned (did go and ride a horse and get it; his name is Homer [cheeky]), but I got it home and she was there. I called her cell phone and asked her to help me unload the groceries. She came out and I said "can you help me unload this bike, too?" She stared for a minute, and then ran down the steps, out to the street and the trailer, and then just hugged me for about 20 seconds straight.
She climbed up on it and was so excited. She said "I can tear around on this!" [moto]
I will post up some pics tomorrow of the kid and her new wheels.
The funny thing was, my husband was even more geeked out about it. You'd though i'd brought it home for him!!
[clap] [clap] [clap]
yep... you've got one happy kid :)
well done mom ;D
I think we need pictures of the bike and horse [cheeky]
yeah, pics are coming this evening. got way, way too late last night to post them and then I forgot my darn data cable to do it at work. you'll see the one horsepower and the 20 or so horsepower pictures tonight. [cheeky]
Ok, here's the pics:
my car and the trailer, in a reflection at a business near me. sort of can see my "towing package" LOL
(http://i277.photobucket.com/albums/kk65/mcgalinmd/Photo0111.jpg)
the new bike, with kid, too!
(http://i277.photobucket.com/albums/kk65/mcgalinmd/Photo0112.jpg)
the new horse, named Homer
(http://i277.photobucket.com/albums/kk65/mcgalinmd/homer.jpg)
Can it get any better for a 13 year old girl??
Dad paid for the horse
Mom paid for the bike with motorcycle class (MSF) earnings. I was 1/3 the way to the BST carbon fiber wheels with the $$ I spent. She better ride that thing! ;D
Wow, thanks for sharing. She is one lucky kid!!! [thumbsup] [thumbsup]
What a beauty!
The bike and the horse ain't bad, either.... ;) [thumbsup]
With the horse named Homer, will she name the bike Odysseus?
What a great mom you are.... [clap] [clap] [clap]
Congrats on making your daughter the happiest girl in the world!!!
Too cool!!
[clap]
Awesome! [thumbsup]
[thumbsup] - she is one lucky kid and you are one fantatic mom! Your daughter is stunning!
I've been researching local places to ride, and there's more than I thought. But my biggest worry is sending her off down a trail and something happens, and she's out there by herself. I would probably be taking her to trail ride before hitting the track so she can get her confidence up before making her go up and down on bumps.
So now my dilemma is: do I get a bike, too?? I'd have to sell my little cruiser to afford it - no more moneybags here. The rule of thumb in our house is - you buy one you sell one. You are only allowed one bike to be financed (my ducati). So there would be no choice in the matter. I just know sitting here now I'd want to be with her - for safety reason, and I hate to say, maybe fun too.
I can't do serious MX riding as I have had two back surgeries and honestly can't take the impact anymore.
Oh my, what's a gal to do?
p.s. I hate to say, I want to start that bike up and go rippin' down the alley on it. I grew up on dirt bikes, and looking at that thing, I sorely miss it. :(
Is there any way you can fit a Chatterbox or something to her helmet so you can talk to her on the trail? As long as she doesn't go too far away that might work.
But if I had to choose between a cruiser and a dirtbike, the dirtbike would win hands down!
Get the dirt bike. Enjoy the special time with your daughter. Before you know it, she will be going off to college. Mine went off to college 2 years ago and I miss her terribly. I would give anything to share this experience with her. You've done such a nice thing for her. Beats having her sit around playing video games or hanging out at a mall.
Brenda
P.S.
Your daughter is beautiful!
Thank you for the thoughts on my daughter; she is a spitting image of her mom, minus about 80lbs. [laugh]
The chatterbox is a thought, i'll have to see how expensive that is. I know the long range ones are about $250 a piece if I remember.
The more and more I think about it, the more and more the cruiser is gone. i'll post up a pic of the cruiser so you can see why i'm so torn....it's beautiful. But in the same breath, i've never been a cruiser gal. I just got such a good deal on it, I could not pass it up. It's great for around town stuff and two up riding. The monster is just not the best for me and my lanky daughter to fit on.
If I do sell the cruiser, i've got a 1975 honda trail 90 in my basement that could fit the bill of replacing the cruiser if I get it running.
To add more fuel to the fire, i've got twin 16 year old stepsons that want to learn to ride; the cruiser would be perfect, and my husband wants me to keep it for that purpose.
I've got a lot of thinking to do.... :-\
Well, I put on the new pingel wheel chock on the trailer tonight. It came awesome. But much to my mistake I bought the 3.5" one - which will only fit the dirt bike. Now i've got to get the 6.5" one for the monster. Oh well, it's only $$ right???
I decided to put the little cruiser on craigslist to see if i'd get a nibble on a trade for a 125 2-stroke or a 250+ 4-stroke. Much to my surprise, i've already got a cash only offer for the bike. Now i've got a HUGE decision to make. Sell or keep.
Sell:
1. no more insurance to pay
2. no more tags (pricey in MD - just short of $100 for 2 years)
3. I only ride it about once every 2 weeks to keep it fresh anyway
4. i'd actually have some cash in the pocket after, about $1200.00
No to selling:
1. perfect bike to teach the 16 year old twin stepsons how to ride on the street
2. nice to have a "slower alternative" to the Duc that can actually haul some stuff in the bags and on the luggage rack
3. the bike is PAID FOR, no monthly payment
4. would have to purchase gear for myself
5. would have to modify the trailer to haul two bikes. can only do one now.
I'm giving myself 24 hours to think about this. The funny thing is, I talked to my husband about getting another dirt bike to ride with the kid on because of how worried I was sending her off into the woods, and he said "You know, I was thinking the same thing. you can't send her off into the woods and not see her for some time and think she's ok. you really should ride with her. i would hate to have you sell the little cruiser, but it seems like you need to."
:-\ :-\ :'(
You missed a couple of +'s to selling cruiser and buying dirt bike, which is:
1. Spending quality time with my daughter.
2. Having fun dirt riding
3. Buying new gear
There will be time and space for other motorcycles in your life, but there will only ever be one of this daughter at this age, at this time.
Quote from: duqette on July 29, 2008, 06:51:10 AM
There will be time and space for other motorcycles in your life, but there will only ever be one of this daughter at this age, at this time.
well said [thumbsup]
Couldn't the twins also use the "new" dirt bike you may be purchasing to learn the basics of motorcycle riding? I know it's not exactly the same, but a good place to start at 16 right?
I mentioned this to my 9-year old daughter....she wants the horse...
Quote from: duqette on July 29, 2008, 06:51:10 AM
There will be time and space for other motorcycles in your life, but there will only ever be one of this daughter at this age, at this time.
I totally agree!
Well.........
I now own 6 motorcycles! [moto]
And the best thing yet, I didn't have to sell my little cruiser to do so!! Yippee!! This makes my hubby happy since he all of a sudden did a reversal and was not happy about selling the cruiser because he wanted his boys to learn on it and maybe take a larger trip on it.
One of the fellows that is a new MSF instructor at our range owns a metric MC repair/redo (aka hack it up) shop. He had a 1994 Honda XR200R for sale for $850, so I bought it!! He had listed it on ebay, I saw it, sent a panic "don't sell it" message, he called, I went and bought it. It's all ready for me to thrash it. New brakes, chain sprokets, the motor is redone. New grips, etc. He even gave me new handlebars. The only cosmetic (since i'm vain, i'll have to fix it) thing is it needs a new seat cover. But for now, red duct tape will make it beautiful! [thumbsup]
Went and rode it today, it was a total hoot...almost dumped it in his horse riding ring (his wife gives english riding lessons for horses) and was laughing the whole way.
I pick it up tomorrow after work. Now i've got to get my trailer modified to fit two bikes. Oh lordy, the money is flowing!! [clap]
That's great! I'm glad you didn't have to part with the cruiser. Now it's the "family" motorcycle right? There for the twins and possibly for your daughter to learn to ride on the street as well. So it shouldn't count in your total. ;D
I guess the cruiser is now the family bike (maybe all of us can ride it at once??) and it allows me to get more???!!! I think my husband might want to get another before me - he only owns one. 6 (or 5) is truly enough. [cheeky]
I'm now in the process of finding a cheap pair of boots, helmet (not cheap), and some goggles. I've got some gloves, and I can wear any long sleeve shirt and jeans. If I find some cheap pants, i'll get them, too.
When I have all the bikes home, i'll haul them all out of the basement and line 'em up for a photo shoot. :)
You can never have too many motorcycles. [evil] Like, you know, shoes, .... or bacon. [bacon]
[thumbsup] [thumbsup]
Congrats!! Sounds like you're keeping our economy afloat!!! [laugh]
This is great - this will really pull the family together. Enjoy these times - it goes quick!
Quote from: mcgalinmd on July 29, 2008, 07:58:10 PM
I guess the cruiser is now the family bike (maybe all of us can ride it at once??) and it allows me to get more???!!! I think my husband might want to get another before me - he only owns one. 6 (or 5) is truly enough. [cheeky]
I'm now in the process of finding a cheap pair of boots, helmet (not cheap), and some goggles. I've got some gloves, and I can wear any long sleeve shirt and jeans. If I find some cheap pants, i'll get them, too.
When I have all the bikes home, i'll haul them all out of the basement and line 'em up for a photo shoot. :)
Good for you on the dirt bike! You two should have lots of fun together.
Have you ever checked out motorcyclecloseouts.com? They have some really good deals on MX stuff for women. Helmets, boots, etc.
Motorcyclecloseouts.com is a great site; i've ordered gear from there before. I just ordered my boots (MSR world tour boots; they've got a little italian flag on the back!!) and i'm trying to get a helmet. I've got some gloves for now. Color won't match, but honestly I don't care. Just trying to get off on the cheap. I'm going to get pants, but not a shirt. I'm content with a long sleeve cotton t-shirt.
The rear tire of my daughters bike was a disaster. I've had to get it relaced (spokes) at the cost of $180.00. If I could have found a used one, I would have bought it, but all I could find was the 16" version, not the 14" like hers. I'm good at fixing certain things, but not re-lacing a wheel. I left that one up to the professionals. :)
All the bikes are home now, but it's looking like we won't get to ride until after our vacation starting next Friday. My daughter is with her dad at Kings Dominion and then has her first horse show this weekend. Besides, i've got to teach SAT and SUN for MSF classes (all day both days) and her bike is in disrepair right now.
AND i've still got to get the trailer modified to fit two bikes. I hope to have that done this weekend. :)
Way to go [thumbsup] Happy [moto]
I wish I could order any womens gear. I'm a size 16 (but don't look it; i'm "sturdy" built :) ) and they don't make women's gear that big that I could find. And I did a lot of searching! I have almost always ordered mens stuff, so this was not a big deal to me. The only thing I pretty much could have purchased in women's gear are the boots. But the price is way over the top, so I got men's boots. All my gear should be here by the time I leave on vacation. Good timing, huh?
It's a definite now; no dirt bike riding until August 18th or so - back tire on the kid's bike won't be done, and the trailer won't be fixed until after vacation. My full and part time job have me occupied every evening from now until we leave on the 8th for Myrtle Beach. Darn!! >:(
On a good note, the kid tried on all the gear I ordered for her, and she says it fits great. The sleeves are a little short on the jersey but it will do for now. She's a rather tall 5'5" 13 year old gal. :)
wow you rule. you can adopt me... ;D i promise i am house trained!
tara
I think it's fantastic that you'll be able to ride with your daughter. You will surely make some great memories for her to take along. Keep the updates coming!
Just got the new spokes in today for my kids rear wheel. I'll deliver them to the repair shop, and the tire will be done tomorrow. I'll put the tire and new chain/sprockets back on and we'll take the bike down the alley for a spin to check it out. Then when we get back from vacation, the trailer will be modified - then we're ready to go.
My daughter notified me that she went to the basement and tried on all her gear when I was at work the other day. Everything fit - minus the jersey that has sleeves a tiny bit too short. I'll order another one and then we're ready to go. All my gear gets delivered this week.
Both me and my daughter have been invited on our first "play date" with our new bikes. Have family friends that go dirt biking in western MD and have invited us!! Yippee!! I'm so excited - and hope to have my daughter up and shifting through at least 3 gears before that date. I think we can do it! ;D
That's great! Sounds like things are moving right along.
Oh uggggggg..............wrong spokes! Got the 16" instead of the 14". Well, the only good thing about this is that the wheel will get fixed while i'm on vacation. I can reinstall it when we get home.
Thank the lord my repair guy is a friend; he's going to pick up the spokes at the dealer when they come in and take care of it all for me; I'm sure this is going to cost me a pretty penny! :-[
Oh well, time to stop thinking of dirt bikes and start thinking about Myrtle Beach! Yippee!!
I just returned from vacation, and my kid's bike is all DONE!!
The rear wheel is re-spoked (by my shop owning teaching buddy) and re-installed (by myself last night). Dirt bike repair is wicked easy.
All her gear is here, now mine is on the way, minus boots that were sent to me in TWO different sizes. AArrrgghh!!
I am going to take the bikes out tonight and take some pics of them together. My first ride will be by myself on Saturday or Sunday, next week for the kid and me. Unfortunately, the kid started high school today. Bummer. :(
I think the one thing i've learned through this experience is to be patient. With bike issues and now gear issues, it seems like a soap opera. But the end is near and we'll be riding together soon. Oh, and also that a TON of bike maintenance can be done yourself with the right tools and time.
Finally!! On August 31st, the kid and I made our maiden voyages on the dirt bikes!
We went to a state forest near us, where for $15/bike per year you can ride an 18 mile trail. I bought the permits loaded up the trailer, got all our gear ready, met our friends, and began the one hour trek to the trail.
The people we were going riding with had been to this trail before, which was a good thing. We were seemingly in the middle of no where, and if we had to do this trip on our own the first time I don't think it would have been successful. Our friends consisted of a husband and wife couple, their son and his friend (both 16 year old boys with tons of experience), and their 4 bikes.
My little honda pulled the two bikes great on the newly modified trailer, even up some darn big hills (muddy ones, too!). When we finally got to the parking/unloading area, I was psyched, and so was the kid. We got the bikes unloaded, helped our friends get our "camp" set up, and then put on our gear. Sydney's bike kicked over easy, mine was a little harder, and I had to adjust the idle to keep it from just dying. I knew about this in advance, so I had brought tools and it was not a big deal at all.
Everyone was ready, so we start up the trail. All of a sudden, the gal we were riding with (the wife) stopped and said the bike was not working. Her husband swapped bikes with her (they both had Honda CRF 230's) and we started again. Within 20 seconds, he stopped and said that the clutch was "gone" and the gears were not engaging - meaning that bike wasn't going anywhere fast. Crap, we now had 6 riders, 5 bikes. And to top it off, the gal had a MAJOR fall last year on this trail, fracturing and dislocating her ankle. This was her first time back riding (she's got mad skills) but she got a pretty bad anxiety attack and then refused to ride. So our friends went back to our camp, and my daughter and I set out on our own.
I'll break the ride apart by miles, as the portion of the trail we rode was about 13 miles long:
1-2: a nice smooth uphill road, all packed gravel and dirt. A good confidence builder for the kid as she was going to need it!
3-6: we're on top of the ridge/mountain now, pretty flat with a few minor hills, some rocks, but some MAJOR mud holes. Syd went through one and she had water and mud dripping off everywhere! :) We also had wild turkeys and 3 deer run in front of us.
6-9: OH CRAP! We're now going downhill, with tons of loose rocks, ditches made by runoff from rains, exposed concrete drain (nice drop on the other side), and the trail is shaped like a V, with that ditch running down the middle. And let's say, if you go off the trail, you are not stopping for a while! ;)
9-13: DOUBLE CRAP!! Now we're on the side of the mountain, which consisted of incredible uphill runs of about 100 yards long, loose rock, ditches, incredble drop offs on the right side, and trees just waiting to greet us if we get a little squirley! After the uphill run, then it's about a 200yd flat run, then YIKES! A 100+yd downhill run with more ditches, loose rocks, big HUGE rocks that have dropoffs on the other side, and to greet you at the bottom of each hill?? A HUGE puddle of mud and water, with a banked turn to head back up the hill. [thumbsup] I can't tell you how much fun that mud was...
Last 100 yds: the most incredible mud puddle as deep as 1/2 your wheel, both feet in the puddle, then the coolest uphill climb that put you back into the camp.
I will say this, if I had known how techincal this trail was I would have never brought my kid here. She had had ONLY 1.5 hours of riding EVER before she started out on this trail. I even went up some hills thinking "she'll never make it". But to my amazement (and the others that were with us), she kept right on going, only having a broken brake lever and a flat front tire with a tear in the side wall. But i'm confident the tire was going flat before we got there.
Once we got back to the camp, my kid got off, looked at me with mud dripping off her bike and helmet, and just smiled. [moto] She was into it!
For the second trip, I gave up my bike to the husband and wife couple (hubby riding) after some major convincing to the wife she just HAD to go riding. I waited at the camp and ate lots of chips and stuff! So off went the husband, wife, my daughter, and the two boys. About 90 minutes later, here they all come back. Kid managed to drop the bike 2x, but it was due to the front flat she had. The wife was now riding my bike, and raved at how great it was and that she wanted it. NO WAY!! :)
I took a third trip, riding with one of the 16 year old boys - was that crazy!!! [evil] We did about a 4-5 mile loop in about 15-20 minutes. It had one hill that was real rocky going up, and I though I was out of the woods so to speak, but we started going downhill, and I honestly was praying to GOD to get me down. I was going real fast, there were tons of loose rock all the size of my helmet or bigger, and it was probably a 15%+ grade going down. We got back to camp, and I was laughing as it was one of those "do or die" moments in motorcycle riding. If I had touched brakes of any sort, I was going down and it was going to be UGLY! It really proved to me to just trust your equipment and to make sure it's properly working at all times.
Overall, it was an incredible experience. I will never forget the day, ever. I was so proud, and at one point on the trail when I was riding behind her, I actually shed a tear. All those diaper changes, baby seats, and temper tantrums finally paid dividends - I WAS RIDING WITH MY KID! [moto] [beer]
Sweeeeeet!!! [thumbsup] [clap] [beer]