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Kidding, of course. You may just have to sack up and wait until you are 18.
That was a slightly different time, though.
I wouldn't worry too much, you can always race later...my parents were the same way and made me quit when I was 13. I was devastated and got really depressed and they ended up sending me to a shrink. I told him all I wanted was a motorcycle- this kind of thing can get pretty involved. They wanted to put me on drugs over this.
And maybe just try to have a conversation with him about what exactly it is he doesn't like -- the danger aspect, the financial commitment, insurance concerns, etc. Moto does teach a lot of great skills -- hard work, preparation, tenacity. Personal accountability (in a solo sport, you can't blame teammates when you have a bad race.)
If you are already riding on tracks, I just don't feel like adding racing to it makes it significantly more dangerous. But it will be significantly more rewarding for you as a rider. Even a guy in last place... is still a racer.
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I grew up on the same block as the Webb brothers...infamous Moto-Culture boys that have done it all and were part of the booming Moto-scene back in the late '60s/early '70s. They were part of the core motocross evolution in SoCal back in those days...even ending up in Moto-Publishing(Dirt Bike, etc - Tom Webb) & Factory Team Management (Factory Suzuki Off-Road and MX/SX - Mike Webb). They made me a Moto-Dude with an addiction to all things Motocross.
But, my parents? They weren't having it. "Motorcycles are too dangerous!". My grand-parents wanted to get me a dirt bike when I was a little kid; but, my parents said,"Hell NO!" (I didn't find this out 'til my grandpa told me one day at a race...that I'd won...at the age of '17...on a bike I bought without my folks knowing!). Yes, I had to sneak out and buy my own race bike! Years later, my parents wish they'd let me have that bike earlier. Why? They saw that it TRULY was my passion and they were STOKED when I earned my 1st support ride just 1.5 years after I raced for the very 1st time.
Over the years of racing in my late-teens thru early twenties, I'd earned some support rides, plenty of contingency checks and had an unbelievable amount of fun. Even when I got a job a Lockheed Missles and Space, Co. ...I could still EARN MORE MONEY IN CONTINGENCY CHECKS on a good weekend! As I worked at Lockheed, where really cool stuff was made outta really cool materials, I decided to take what I'd learned in the aerospace industry & see if I could apply it to Motorsports...I started a small company and 2 years later I left Lockheed. Nowadays I make carbon-fiber goodies for Motorsports, Aerospace & Infrastructure.
My life is pretty good these days and I still ride. I'm 54 and my family, including my parents, all benefit from my passion for Moto. Years ago my grandpa asked my dad..."Ya know, I wonder what he could have accomplished if he'd been able start all this when he was 10?!"
My parents are officers in my company.
They still get nervous about my racing.
They still get a kick outta how much I love it.
They make a good living because of it...because of my passion for Motocross racing.
Virtually all sports are dangerous.
I've seen a friend get knocked out on a golf course...by a golf ball. He's a military pilot.
I've had some of my worst injuries playing soccer.
My daughter has injured her ankle pretty darn bad...DANCING! She's a serious little dancer...at 10 years old.
You can get hurt doing ANYTHING.
Edit: Was pointing at TeamGreen's post.
She had a guy interested in her who was wealthy and had a support-class stock car ride. (I don't remember what it was called but it was/is a feeder for NASCAR.)
Nope, she wanted a motorcycle racer. I guess my 1999 class championship at BoDunk Raceway out in the sticks was more prestigious or something.
Until I was 18 this was a bit of an issue. BMX was a replacement at the time, though the first time I raced I got in trouble. She said no. I asked my dad to take me, and got both of us in trouble.
In the late 70s, our high school had a motocross team, and raced on Friday nights at Corona Raceway. For a time they wouldn't let me own a bike, but were okay with letting me race. (I still haven't figured out the logic on that one, but was happy to have the chance.)
As others have mentioned, find out what kind of insurance you have, and whether you're covered. It obviously sounds like it's an issue for your dad.
Do you have any friends who race? Would pops be okay with having them take you?
And that's pretty cool to know your story!
Pit Row
Best of all was that we had motocross P.E., which was the same time as our school's football team practice.
The football team was run with military precision...all crew-cuts and dress code. Our crew? Not so much. Being that it was the late 70s, it was more along the lines of long hair, boxers hanging out the bottom of our gym shorts, and Tibblin exercises. (Google Rolf Tibblin motocross if you're unfamiliar with him).
I've had health plans that disallowed any claims from any sport deemed "Extreme" BMX, Skiing, Snowboarding, you name it, and anything "During Competition" Oddly, Football is OK and if a 300 Lb linebacker breaks you in half and rips your head off, it is OK
Canada and other Social medicine countries dont have this problem.
The only Americans that dont have this problem are those on Welfare(Medicaid) and VA. Everythings covered, and no bills, just like Canada.
Insurance Companies look for any and all ways to deny paying anything. If they find a reason, the bill is yours.
People ask why Ferrandis headed back to France to get checked out and fixed up.........Im guessing to avoid having to pay a deductable here, or the whole bill.
How exactly did it work? Was MX so popular back then that many people raced? We had 3 guys in school that rode/race. Myself, my brother and a friend of ours. All from the same small town.
Boots and Helmet.
I grew up in a small farming town surrounded by desert so tons of kids rode and had dirt bikes but weren't into racing that I went to school with. We'd ride together all the time but lots of their parents didn't want them to race because it was "so dangerous."
For probably a half dozen kids who wanted to race my Dad went out and met with their parents and explained this to them:
It's safer for the kids to be racing rather than play riding out in the dunes (jeeps, 4 wheelers, riders going all different directions)
You're only ever on the track with riders of the same bike size and ability.
There is an ambulance and medical staff right there.
Everyone is going the same direction.
There are flaggers and people around to warn riders of danger.
It's way more dangerous for the kids to be riding down the ditch banks and canal roads where they could get hit by a truck or anyone who doesn't see them.
Is Motocross the safest thing you could do? No. But people ski into tree's and get hurt wake boarding and doing other activities all the time that aren't frowned upon like MX. All of those kids got a chance to race, some got trophies, some only raced a few times, some for a few years...but they got to line up and experience those butterflies and emotions. If it's truly something you want to do so bad I think it's unfair of your parents to withhold such an incredible life experience from you. Accidents can happen, but riding a motorcycle for the most part should be like anything....it's only as dangerous as you are dumb. Use your brain, take it easy, progress slowly, and focus on developing the correct technique and skills that will keep you safe at whatever speed you go.
Guesstimating? We had probably 20-30 riders at the school.
Teacher: How come you didn't do your homework?
Student: I couldn't, I had MX practice.
That wouldn't of work for me. Had it been hockey on the other hand, no problem.
What was the point system? How were points scored? It's not exactly like you were putting a ball/puck in a net. Olympic scoring like the MXdN? Were you competing against 1 school at a time or multiple schools? How did the racers/school line up?
I just think it's so cool. That must of been a California only thing?
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