Is 13 Too Young? - Page 3

 

wrote:

The 13-year-old doesn't make that that decision, his/her parents do.

 

wrote:

A certain aspect of the license training curriculum seems to have
failed, because this young racer died on his warm up lap.

The organization needs to retrain those kids not to be so eager they
crash out while warming up the engine and tires.

In contrast, I recall when a kid in our pit (this "kid" was in his
mid-20's and worked in a bank) crashed on cold tires at Willow Spring
on his warm up lap.

He was so disgusted with himself he was going to hang it up for the
day and I asked him what kind of racer was he, to let a little plastic
damage end his day?

So he repaired the bike and rode in his novice race.

But his dad, instead of supporting his motorcycle racing, started
paying him $1000 a month to stay off the racetrack...

 


I'm not certain this is the case.  Racers have been upping the ante on
the warm-up lap for years as tires have gotten better and better and
better.

On this particular weekend, numerous MotoGP professional riders with
hundreds (if not thousands) of races under their belts crashed
multiple times during practice, when they are supposed to be testing
out the traction, because this particular racing surface was uniquely
slippery in certain places.` and at certain times of the day and of
the weekend.

I would say that investigation is warranted, but that unless there is
a pattern of crashes on the warm-up lap in the youth series that
extends BEYOND this particular track and this particular weekend, then
the incident that cost that young racer his life may have been an
unfortunate result of a unique set of circumstances rather than the
result of some lack of training or adult supervision in the
organization of the race series.

 


I was racing bicycles as soon as I could ride one, go-carts at 12, and
motorcycles at 15.


(A) You don't have to encourage them.  In fact, you'd have to beat
most kids off with a stick if they were presented with practically any
opportunity to race practically anything.  Young men are like that,
and some young women are too.

(B) It's difficult to race *non*-competitively.


Agreed.  But he died just like a 60-year-old racer would in the same
circumstances: doing what he loved.

 

On 8/29/2010 9:28 PM, don (Calgary) wrote:

For certain values of "high powered".  The bike he was riding produces
30HP or so.


If he's winning races right and left then he's making good decisions.
People who make bad ones don't win.  The bike is purpose made to be
ridden by riders his age.


Always is.  At least he went doing something he loved.