200S for son

[95UTShee]

Well here goes... Been a “member” here for probably 10 years or more. Life and kids and work happened so haven’t been on much since... Anywhoo, my father-in-law bought my son a 200S (84 maybe?) a few years back when he was like 5 (older spoiled cousins got cheap Chinese bikes and wouldn’t share)... Been sitting in storage ever since. Son is abt to turn 9 and was wondering what ppls thoughts were abt. 9yr old on a 200S? I personally started on a 81 110 at 11 or 12 (riding solo) and got myself into PLENTY of trouble on that little beast.. Given proper guidance, how young is too young for a 200S? It could use some TLC and I think it could be a good learning/bonding experience for us to bring it back to life... Thoughts? Thanks!

[wonderboy]

I think it is possible, but it depends on how strong your son is and how he fits on the machine. You don't need to be very strong to ride, but in terms of how strong a little kid is, there is definitely a limit. When I put my daughter on a 70 when she was pretty little, the tendency was to simply let the machine take her where ever it wanted to go. She didn't take charge and really make the machine go where she wanted it to go. We were riding in a big open field, so this was ok to get her used to the machine. And on a 70, it has the throttle limiter screw, so speeds were low.

Also, you'll want to make sure you son can reach the handlebars comfortably and not be reaching as far as possible just to get a grip.

I think a good way to approach it is for you to get a machine and play follow the leader. This way you can set the speed (nice and slow) and help him learn to steer the machine as he follows you. He can watch how you shift your weight (exaggerate it, even at the slow speed just to show the idea).

Has you son ridden anything else motorized? I say try it out, but make sure to keep it in the lower gears only (maybe even just first) to keep speeds down while you see how he does.

[ironchop]

I bought my son a 200S off my neighbor when he was 11 and had no issues after alot of instruction.

Not sure about nine but I agree that it depends on how big he is and/or his riding skills

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[atctim]

My first trike was a 1985 200S. I was 9 years old when I got it. Be sure he wears safety gear, teach him the ropes (like never put your foot down, and lean INTO the turn) and he should be fine. He will never outgrow it is a good thing - just gotta keep him in check as a "youngin".

[Wbeverly07]

I had a similar question when I picked up my 200s we have 3 kids and of course they wanted to ride it so I figured I would teach them. There are 2 8 yr olds and a 10 year old. With each one of them we sstarted in first gear only had them practice moving the handlebars back and forth at a stand still to make sure they had the strength. Then I started it up and put it in gear and let them practice using the throttle smoothly as I walked beside them ready to hit the kill switch just in case. When I saw that they could manuver at slow speeds and were comfortable running around the yard I put it in second gear and repeated the process. After several days of this and honestly listening to the motor just about blow up I decided to teach them proper shifting techniques. I put them in the front as I sat on the back rack in a wide open field and started in first and had the one 8 year old just sit there to listen to the motor no helmet as I was in control of the trike and also so they could hear my instruction. It worked very well and they are getting the hang of it

[86125m]

please teach these kids proper shifting and not let them learn on a fully auto bikes. My x-girlfriend, who has a fully auto Yamaha grizzly, rode my 200m a few times stalled it out twice and couldn't figure out how to shift the thing. I didn't even know you could stall out a semi auto bike but I was proven wrong. that being said a 200 s depending on the size of the 9 year old should be fine as long as he is taught to respect it and lean into the turns.

[ironchop]

The BEST thing I taught my son at 11, which my wife gave me death threats over, was how to ride it on two wheels on demand.

Now that sounds insane but it has nothing to do with stunting and everything to do with teaching him how to ride out of a potential rollover or flip. Now at 23, he will tell you it was the most helpful thing he learned and kept him out of the ER from taking turns too fast with not enough inside leaning. It's easier for him to regain control once the first wheel leaves the ground in a turn.

Boys are boys and no matter how responsible they act in front of you, as soon as you aren't looking, they are being stupid or attempting stupid stuff. It's rare that this isn't the case so don't assume your own child is above that.

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[wonderboy]

The BEST thing I taught my son at 11, which my wife gave me death threats over, was how to ride it on two wheels on demand.

I never thought of but that really makes a lot of sense!

To me, the analogy is of taking your kid to a large open parking lot after the first snowfall and teaching him (or her!) to do donuts and powerslide. You not only learn the techniques to recover, but get that feeling (calibrate the assometer) for how much it takes to get a car to slide. It gives you a good sense for what the limits are.

[ironchop]

I never thought of but that really makes a lot of sense!

To me, the analogy is of taking your kid to a large open parking lot after the first snowfall and teaching him (or her!) to do donuts and powerslide. You not only learn the techniques to recover, but get that feeling (calibrate the assometer) for how much it takes to get a car to slide. It gives you a good sense for what the limits are.That's exactly how I learned to recover from sliding in slick conditions, matter of fact.

Good analogy

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[350for350]

I had a similar question when I picked up my 200s we have 3 kids and of course they wanted to ride it so I figured I would teach them. There are 2 8 yr olds and a 10 year old. With each one of them we sstarted in first gear only had them practice moving the handlebars back and forth at a stand still to make sure they had the strength. Then I started it up and put it in gear and let them practice using the throttle smoothly as I walked beside them ready to hit the kill switch just in case. When I saw that they could manuver at slow speeds and were comfortable running around the yard I put it in second gear and repeated the process. After several days of this and honestly listening to the motor just about blow up I decided to teach them proper shifting techniques. I put them in the front as I sat on the back rack in a wide open field and started in first and had the one 8 year old just sit there to listen to the motor no helmet as I was in control of the trike and also so they could hear my instruction. It worked very well and they are getting the hang of it

I taught some neighbor kids to ride several years ago on a ATC90 since it's all I had for them to ride. I did almost this exact thing except that I didn't ride with them while teaching them to shift. There was an empty grass lot next to my house so they used it and my yard. They didn't leave these until they could start from a standstill, shift up to third, and shift back down to neutral at a stop. Then we would go other places. I also didn't let them know that it had a high range until they were pretty good at shifting and avoiding obstacles.