Today was a big day here at our house. Chloe got her very first motorcycle. She is now the proud owner of a new Kawasaki KLX110. And, boy was she surprised!
Kenny and I are both so very excited to share this lifelong passion with her. Let the good times roll!
Do your kids ride, too? Did you learn to ride as a kid?
Rachael is the whimsical writer behind the 20+ year old Girlie Motorcycle Blog. As a freelance blogger, she is on a mission to inspire laughter, self-examination, curiosity, and human connection. Girlie Motorcycle Blog can be found on several Best Motorcycle Blog lists.
Awesome! I hope she finds motorcycling to be as rewarding as we obviously do. My daughter wasn’t interested, but my son was so I bought him an XR70 at age 12. He lost interest after a couple of years, in part ‘cuz we always had to cart it to the local MX track to ride (the riding areas of my youth having been long since being developed or turned into county parks), but perhaps he’ll revisit the idea in future. I still have vivid memories of my first bike, a new Yamaha TY80 trials bike that Santa brought in ’74(?), and Dad (been riding about 55 yrs. now) teaching me to ride. And how to pick it up. And how to cover up bruises from Mom. :^)
Me, too Doug.
She looked at me early and said… “i love it.” So, i hope that she can keep the enthusiasm and the momentum to learn going. I daydream about us hitting the road together when she’s old enough to get an actual license 😆 The thought of it just fills my heart. One day….
Legal off-road riding has so many obstacles. It’s depressing. i can see why people get discouraged. We’ll be doing some trail riding days with an org called the LIRTC that uses private property not too far from here.
That is so great! My 15 year old son will ride on the back but he has told us he is not interested in learning to ride :*( We have to respect his opinion/wishes…
I’d like to get a sidecar to hook up the CB900F for either him or gear.
Well, knowing that you DON’T want to ride is definitely important. Though we’d like our kids to love what we love, good for him for being true to himself.
Love it. We are a 2 wheel family too. It is so much fun when the whole family shares a hobby, or for us, a lifestyle. My son started on a suzuki 50cc, I think it was called a peewee. He was 3 and it had training wheels. He raced it a few times on the flat track when he was 5 or so(minus the training wheels of course.) Then a Honda 70 and a KTM 50 somewhere in between back when he would race mx. We just got him the KLX 110L. This was his first experience with a clutch and he did great! Was popping wheelies by the end of the day. I hope this motorcycle bug bites Chloe too. It is such a great way to spend time with the family. Not to mention when she does start driving at 16, she won’t go and do something stupid. Or if she does, at least she will know how to pull it off right.
My dad got me my first dirtbike when I was 13, a 96 CR80 which I still have. He had been riding for years and ever since that bike I continued to be interested in riding. i think right when I went to college my interest dropped off a bit due to time constraints and I was living far away. When I got out of school though it was a no holds barred full blown addiction all over again!!
Congrats to Chloe! I hope there are many happy miles ahead!
Awesome. I am sure she will have many happy years of riding. Kudos to you for getting her enthused about it so early. Sure wish my mom had of done that.
Thanks, T- Same here! Kenny and I were saying how amazing it would have been to have the opportunity to learn to ride as a kid. I’m so glad we’re able to give her that.
My dad let me ride a small Yamaha streetbike when I was a kid but my mom vetoed anything bigger. My dad was a motorcycle-cop so he really wasn’t in a position to ban bikes altogether.
our boys both have dirt bikes/atvs, but they’re over at their mom’s where there’s a little more space in the back yard, so we don’t ride with them except on the back – which we are stepping up this year to longer trips. they’re 7 and 11, so it’s kind of weird not having much daily interaction in their riding (being as my partner and I are both nuts for motorcycling ourselves).
I’ve always felt so blessed that Hailey chose to ride. I’d shown her the various and sundry cool 50’s when she was 6 or perhaps 7 but it wasn’t until she was about 12 that the bug bit her. Once it did, we never looked back. She jumped onto her first bike, an XR100 and within hours had mastered kick starting, shifting, etc. All that made me so proud but the time we spent together, riding, driving to places to ride….that was the and continues to be the important part. I hope you, Kenny and Chloe are half as fortunate as I have been in that regard.
Fantastic! What a wonderful way for the family to come together. Can’t imagine my parents doing it. I had to dream about minibikes and motorcycles after the lights went out and sneak rides on other people’s machines. My parents were afraid I would shoot my eye out with a motorcycle…
She’s pretty funny. She’d probably be in to writing a post and taking photos. Now that you mention it, it would be interesting for me to read what her unfiltered impression of the learning process is.
Now you’ve done it! I remember getting my first bike at 11, a 1985 Suzuki DS80. It was a trail bike with a headlight and tail light. Only issue is that I lived in the city. The birth of the hooligan, riding illegally on the streets, ditching the cops, ah… what fun!
Awesome. Shared hobbies really ARE a great source to bond over. My wife and I both love motorcycling and it gives us something to look forward to on the weekends. I hope I can keep it up when we’ve got kids, and share it with them when they get old enough. Which (if my past is any indicator) will be sometime in their late 20s.
That is totally awesome!
How exciting for Chloe. Her eyes look pretty excited under that helmet.
…I am partial to Kawasaki green! 😀
I took my first ride on the back of a friends bike in high school. Our kids didn’t have bikes (we couldn’t really afford them back then), but they rode their cousin’s quads, and somewhere we acquired a freebee minibike (it was a little bugger!) that they rode around the yard.
Now three out of four of us have been bitten by the moto-bug and would happily forgo food in the house to keep bikes in the family! Priorities and all 🙂
Nice ride! With its low seat height, four-stroke power and automatic clutch, it just begs to be ridden, even by adults like me. Got a soft spot for the Honda Z-50 though. Do they still produce those cute little things?
Although this post is some 5 years old, I just came across it and loved it. My first was a little Yamaha 80 when I think I was 15. My dad had ridden an Indian back in the days of the original Indian. Some math tells you that some 45 years later – I’m still riding!
Do you want to adopt me?? You two are awesome parents! And congratulations to Chloe!
Aww, Thanks, Pam. I can’t wait to watch her progress. This is probably as exciting for me as it is for her!
Awesome! I hope she finds motorcycling to be as rewarding as we obviously do. My daughter wasn’t interested, but my son was so I bought him an XR70 at age 12. He lost interest after a couple of years, in part ‘cuz we always had to cart it to the local MX track to ride (the riding areas of my youth having been long since being developed or turned into county parks), but perhaps he’ll revisit the idea in future. I still have vivid memories of my first bike, a new Yamaha TY80 trials bike that Santa brought in ’74(?), and Dad (been riding about 55 yrs. now) teaching me to ride. And how to pick it up. And how to cover up bruises from Mom. :^)
Me, too Doug.
She looked at me early and said… “i love it.” So, i hope that she can keep the enthusiasm and the momentum to learn going. I daydream about us hitting the road together when she’s old enough to get an actual license 😆 The thought of it just fills my heart. One day….
Legal off-road riding has so many obstacles. It’s depressing. i can see why people get discouraged. We’ll be doing some trail riding days with an org called the LIRTC that uses private property not too far from here.
Your dad sounds like a cool guy 🙂
That is so great! My 15 year old son will ride on the back but he has told us he is not interested in learning to ride :*( We have to respect his opinion/wishes…
I’d like to get a sidecar to hook up the CB900F for either him or gear.
Well, knowing that you DON’T want to ride is definitely important. Though we’d like our kids to love what we love, good for him for being true to himself.
A sidecar sounds so fun 🙂
Love it. We are a 2 wheel family too. It is so much fun when the whole family shares a hobby, or for us, a lifestyle. My son started on a suzuki 50cc, I think it was called a peewee. He was 3 and it had training wheels. He raced it a few times on the flat track when he was 5 or so(minus the training wheels of course.) Then a Honda 70 and a KTM 50 somewhere in between back when he would race mx. We just got him the KLX 110L. This was his first experience with a clutch and he did great! Was popping wheelies by the end of the day. I hope this motorcycle bug bites Chloe too. It is such a great way to spend time with the family. Not to mention when she does start driving at 16, she won’t go and do something stupid. Or if she does, at least she will know how to pull it off right.
So awesome, Andrea 🙂
Watching your children find their own stride is so rewarding. You must’ve been so proud to see him racing. Kids are so cool <3
I hope it bites her, too. Its been so rewarding in my life, I can't help but wish that she would find the same and then some.
Great stuff and a good bike too! Our whole family rides. My eldest did his first 200km trip when he was 8!
Reading the kids’ ride reports was so awesome. LOVED those! I wish we had access to that type of riding environment for children here.
My dad got me my first dirtbike when I was 13, a 96 CR80 which I still have. He had been riding for years and ever since that bike I continued to be interested in riding. i think right when I went to college my interest dropped off a bit due to time constraints and I was living far away. When I got out of school though it was a no holds barred full blown addiction all over again!!
Congrats to Chloe! I hope there are many happy miles ahead!
You can absolutely tell how much you love doing what you’re doing when you ride.
You’re all in and you clearly LOVE it. I think that’s so awesome. Definitely inspiring 🙂
Awesome. I am sure she will have many happy years of riding. Kudos to you for getting her enthused about it so early. Sure wish my mom had of done that.
Thanks, T- Same here! Kenny and I were saying how amazing it would have been to have the opportunity to learn to ride as a kid. I’m so glad we’re able to give her that.
I have three words for you…… “Best Parents Ever!” 🙂
😆 Thanks, Ant
You are the coolest! She’s a lucky kid.
My dad let me ride a small Yamaha streetbike when I was a kid but my mom vetoed anything bigger. My dad was a motorcycle-cop so he really wasn’t in a position to ban bikes altogether.
Boy, moms sure can be sticks in the mud, huh? 🙂
That’s cool that your dad was a moto cop! Do you have old photos of him at work?
that is so cool!
our boys both have dirt bikes/atvs, but they’re over at their mom’s where there’s a little more space in the back yard, so we don’t ride with them except on the back – which we are stepping up this year to longer trips. they’re 7 and 11, so it’s kind of weird not having much daily interaction in their riding (being as my partner and I are both nuts for motorcycling ourselves).
Thanks, K!
Do you have issues with the boys getting sleeeeeeeepy on the back of the bike?
I’ve always felt so blessed that Hailey chose to ride. I’d shown her the various and sundry cool 50’s when she was 6 or perhaps 7 but it wasn’t until she was about 12 that the bug bit her. Once it did, we never looked back. She jumped onto her first bike, an XR100 and within hours had mastered kick starting, shifting, etc. All that made me so proud but the time we spent together, riding, driving to places to ride….that was the and continues to be the important part. I hope you, Kenny and Chloe are half as fortunate as I have been in that regard.
Yea, it always seemed like you two cherished that time together. Its nice to see her still be interested when she’s a grown woman now 🙂
I hope we have that with Chloe as well.
Fantastic! What a wonderful way for the family to come together. Can’t imagine my parents doing it. I had to dream about minibikes and motorcycles after the lights went out and sneak rides on other people’s machines. My parents were afraid I would shoot my eye out with a motorcycle…
Have fun!
😆 Thanks bunches, Steve!
Wow, that’s so awesome. You totally made MY day with that picture. 🙂
Now I can’t wait for Chloe’s guest posts on FuzzyGalore!
::hugs:: Thanks, Kathy 🙂
She’s pretty funny. She’d probably be in to writing a post and taking photos. Now that you mention it, it would be interesting for me to read what her unfiltered impression of the learning process is.
Now you’ve done it! I remember getting my first bike at 11, a 1985 Suzuki DS80. It was a trail bike with a headlight and tail light. Only issue is that I lived in the city. The birth of the hooligan, riding illegally on the streets, ditching the cops, ah… what fun!
HOOLIGAN!!
You sound very much like my brother 😆
Awesome. Shared hobbies really ARE a great source to bond over. My wife and I both love motorcycling and it gives us something to look forward to on the weekends. I hope I can keep it up when we’ve got kids, and share it with them when they get old enough. Which (if my past is any indicator) will be sometime in their late 20s.
Brady
Behind Bars – Motorcycles and Life
http://www.behindbarsmotorcycle.com
😆
That is totally awesome!
How exciting for Chloe. Her eyes look pretty excited under that helmet.
…I am partial to Kawasaki green! 😀
I took my first ride on the back of a friends bike in high school. Our kids didn’t have bikes (we couldn’t really afford them back then), but they rode their cousin’s quads, and somewhere we acquired a freebee minibike (it was a little bugger!) that they rode around the yard.
Now three out of four of us have been bitten by the moto-bug and would happily forgo food in the house to keep bikes in the family! Priorities and all 🙂
She looks awesome on her ride and outfit. I bet your a proud parents to Chloe! Congrats and thanks for sharing!
Nice ride! With its low seat height, four-stroke power and automatic clutch, it just begs to be ridden, even by adults like me. Got a soft spot for the Honda Z-50 though. Do they still produce those cute little things?
Although this post is some 5 years old, I just came across it and loved it. My first was a little Yamaha 80 when I think I was 15. My dad had ridden an Indian back in the days of the original Indian. Some math tells you that some 45 years later – I’m still riding!