The Most Asked Question, " What bike should I buy my child?"

One of the most asked questions on the Internet, for parents whose kids want to ride a motorcycle is, " what type of bike should I buy for my child?" This is usually followed with information about the age of the rider and gender...I guess the gender comment just helps the audience identify on a personal level with the future rider because other than that, it's not a consideration in answering the question.

The first question you must answer is, do you intend to ever let your child start racing. For help on this question reference, "How to get your kid started racing dirt bikes". I have talked with people who were certain they didn't want to let their child race, and then after purchasing the perfect trail riding bike, they decided to let their child race. Fortunately, if you bought the bike used, you'll probably recover most if not all of your original investment.

The second question is, how old is your rider? Two things a rider has to be able to do to learn to ride are handling the power of the bike, and being able to hold the bike up when it leans over. It's very important though not to underestimate the ability of a young rider to learn. It's real easy to buy a bike that your rider will outgrow in a matter of months. The time it will take your child to learn to ride is dependant on their coordination, and the amount of time they spend riding each week.

We will start with a young rider who isn't going to race and work our way through young riders who might want to race, and up to older youth riders who want to race.

3 to 7 Year Old Riders Racing or Not

Although I titled this section as "not racing", at this age and skill level many of the bikes are still excellent choices if your child and you decide to go have some fun on a track and race.

For the really young riders there are two types of bikes, 2-stroke oil injected and 4-stroke engine models. The oil-injected bikes have a canister that needs to be kept filled with 2-stroke oil. The oil injection system automatically injects the oil into the fuel before it enters the engine, at the proper ratio. The 4-stroke models run on just gasoline without mix oil.

It's important to remember that a 2-stroke engine is lubricated internally by the mix-oil that is injected into the fuel just prior to it entering the engine. If the oil canister runs dry the engine will seize up and need re-built. A 4-stroke motor also requires internal lubrication. The 4-stroke uses lubrication oil in the crankcase similar to how a car engine works. Again, the oil in the crankcase should be changed regularly, and have the level checked often to maintain proper lubrication.