So my daughter just got her scooter learners licence

[B man]

Just some thing ive noticed. How good is your daughters hearing? cause thats just as useful as sight on the road.

I have a full helmet for riding and i notice sometimes it cuts my peripheral vision and and dampens my ability to hear. I was litterly riding my moped in front of a bus for like 10 min before i noticed it behind me cause i couldn't hear it. And somtimes when i pull up to a stop sign (espically with hidden drives and roads) I almost ran into a few cars cause i couldn't see them come up out of the corner of my eye (bady when they go to pass you) and i couldn't hear them either.

But everytime i ride with out a helmet I never make mistakes. So im just saying try to get a helmet thats good,but not to constricting on the senses. also face shields are a must. I can't count the number of bugs it has stopped from hitting me in the face.lol


And a few things i like about bikes. WAY more agile. can easly get out of bad situation,

In a way there safer on One ways or small back roads. Don't need nearly as much road space.

Less distracting due to lack of radio or other things.


What moped/scooter did you get her?

 

[landuse]

there is a lot of good advise in this thread but there is a bit disagree with. i think kids learn instinct and reflex from parents and other people whether you realize it or not.

I don't think instinct or reflex can be either taught or inherited. I think it's a combination of your own personality, and experience. Skill can be taught.

I agree with both of you in some regards. I do think that you learn from your parents driving to some extent. If your parents are continually driving fast and running lights, you will be brought up in an environment where this sort of thing is OK, and you will probably follow this trend through to later life. I am not saying that all people would, but you would be predisposed to it.

I also think that some things like reflex and instinct are inherent in a person. Some people are just good at some things, and others are not. You get some kids that just cannot catch a ball if their life depended on it, and then you get others that can do it with their eyes closed

Just some thing ive noticed. How good is your daughters hearing? cause thats just as useful as sight on the road.

also face shields are a must. I can't count the number of bugs it has stopped from hitting me in the face.lol

What moped/scooter did you get her?

She has a full face helmet with a visor. Her hearing is as good as a full face helmet will allow.

We got her a Big Boy Pulse 125cc scooter, exactly like the one in the pic. Lime green

 

[OzFab]

I also think that some things like reflex and instinct are inherent in a person. Some people are just good at some things, and others are not. You get some kids that just cannot catch a ball if their life depended on it, and then you get others that can do it with their eyes closed

That's what I was trying to say...

Of all the things that come "natural" to me, I can't draw to save my life. My son, on the other hand, is a tattooist (I still have no idea where he gets that from, his mum's not exactly an artist... or a rocket scientist)

 

[Doc Sprocket]

Yes, anyone can be taught just about anything but, in that situation, can you honestly say that had nothing to do with natural ability? I'd only been driving for about three months at that point...

No. That was 100% natural, which is the point I was trying to make. Some of my thoughts in the source post came out a bit randomly, and out of context. I wasn't trying to say that it was a taught-skill move. How can you teach someone that in a one-in-a-million-situation, you can avoid being massively rearended at a red light by making an entirely unplanned, hairy, drifting righthand turn into traffic, just missing somebody by as small a margin as you can possibly muster?

I have a natural knack to be able to do what I do. True, over the years I have learned different tricks & procedures but, without the natural skill, I wouldn't be able to use them to my best advantage

Agreed- How about "Skills can be taught, natural talent cannot"?

Veering (nice choice of words, eh?) slightly away from the topic, I am very concerned about modern automobile technology. Antilock brakes. Traction control. Automatic parking. People becoming so reliant on technology that when the technology fails, they haven't a clue what to do. Scenario- Poor traction. Driver needs to stop in as short a distance (in a straight line) as possible. Driver was "trained" in new car with ABS. What is that training? Smash pedal down and hold. Never heard of "Threshhold braking". Driver smashes pedal down. ABS computer has aneurysm and fails. Now what...?

...Brakes lock, Driver skates off the road half sideways and over the embankment...

We, as a society, are becoming FAR too reliant on technology.

 

[landuse]

We, as a society, are becoming FAR too reliant on technology.

I wholeheartedly agree with this. One example of this is that people do not even know where to look under their bonnet for the wiper water bottle. I preferred it when you could actually look at your car engine and say there is the carb, there is the air and oil filter........

Now you need a computer to analyse your car

 

[OzFab]

No. That was 100% natural, which is the point I was trying to make.

Oh, I forgot to mention, I pulled out of it. The original manouvre described sliding into a corner & pulling out. In my situation, I adapted it to slow me & then pull out in a straight line, all within about 4 seconds (now I'm just showing off )

Agreed- How about "Skills can be taught, natural talent cannot"?

How about skills can be nurtured, natural talent can't...

As Paul said, some kids can't catch a ball to save their lives. You can try to teach them but I'm not sure the results would be successful

Now you need a computer to analyse your car

Ha, yeah, like that works! I can give you 2 recent examples where even a diagnostic computer couldn't diagnose a problem... if you really want me to...

 

[FatCat]

Veering (nice choice of words, eh?) slightly away from the topic, I am very concerned about modern automobile technology. Antilock brakes. Traction control. Automatic parking. People becoming so reliant on technology that when the technology fails, they haven't a clue what to do. Scenario- Poor traction. Driver needs to stop in as short a distance (in a straight line) as possible. Driver was "trained" in new car with ABS. What is that training? Smash pedal down and hold. Never heard of "Threshhold braking". Driver smashes pedal down. ABS computer has aneurysm and fails. Now what...?

...Brakes lock, Driver skates off the road half sideways and over the embankment...

We, as a society, are becoming FAR too reliant on technology.

I had a very similar situation happen to me at a stop sign. I bought a bike and took my brother with me to go get it. I rode the bike and he followed in my pickup. We came up to a stop sign and as soon as I came to a stop I heard tires squealing. I didn't have time to think. I pinned it, popped the clutch, and took off. The car smoked the back of my pickup. Sent my brother skidding through the intersection. Don't know why I reacted so quick but I'm glad I did. Also your right on with the new cars and technology. People think technology is a replacement for common sense. Travelling these roads all day it's a wonder some of these people are allowed to walk. Let alone drive an automobile. I guess "no child left behind" made it to driving to. Couldn't dare tell anyone NO! Even if it's what's best for them. Might hurt their soft little emotions. Like this "stop bullying" BS. Kids are turning into complete sissies. Sitting around waiting for someone else to solve their problems. Lots of you guys on here are young men. If your being bullied lose the self mutilation crys for attention and the other stupid ****. Go find your bully, look him right in the eye, and try to punch his teeth down his throat. Even if he whoops your *** this time I bet he won't try again. He'll look for an easier target. I'm just gonna shut up now. I feel a rant brewing. Don't need the big boot.

 

[Doc Sprocket]

I had a very similar situation happen to me at a stop sign. I bought a bike and took my brother with me to go get it. I rode the bike and he followed in my pickup. We came up to a stop sign and as soon as I came to a stop I heard tires squealing. I didn't have time to think. I pinned it, popped the clutch, and took off. The car smoked the back of my pickup. Sent my brother skidding through the intersection. Don't know why I reacted so quick but I'm glad I did. Also your right on with the new cars and technology. People think technology is a replacement for common sense. Travelling these roads all day it's a wonder some of these people are allowed to walk. Let alone drive an automobile. I guess "no child left behind" made it to driving to. Couldn't dare tell anyone NO! Even if it's what's best for them. Might hurt their soft little emotions. Like this "stop bullying" BS. Kids are turning into complete sissies. Sitting around waiting for someone else to solve their problems. Lots of you guys on here are young men. If your being bullied lose the self mutilation crys for attention and the other stupid ****. Go find your bully, look him right in the eye, and try to punch his teeth down his throat. Even if he whoops your *** this time I bet he won't try again. He'll look for an easier target. I'm just gonna shut up now. I feel a rant brewing. Don't need the big boot.

Man, you can rant with me anytime!!! Well, later, anyway. Lunch is over, gotta get bach to work. Dang floor isn't installing itself!

 

[jamyers]

I love a good rant!!!

 

[FatCat]

Lots of good subjects in this thread. I could rant for a while on this stuff. Good read


Quote: Mcdeja
My boys are only 6 & 9, so I still have a ways to go before I get to experience that level of terror and dread. Part of what brought me to this site was the desire to instill good driving habits while at the same time making it fun for them.

I thought this to. Very good idea. I think every kid should have a go kart as a kid just for this purpose. I've ridden/driven things since I was a kid. When it came time to get my liscence it was easy for me. I was already comfortable with my abilities. Even when i started driving semi. Within a couple weeks i was handling the truck very well. Ive got the knack. I think a lot of this came from driving things as long as i can remember. Driving/operating things is second nature to me. You guys with your carts will have an advantage over your standard 16yo. These give you some hand eye coordination and experience reacting to changes in environment. Most kids go from stone cold clueless to driving a car. I think that would be tough without any experience.

Quote:Landuse
As a parent, you have this tendency to try and shield your kids from all things bad....or raise them in a bubble. This turns out to be a bad thing at the end of the day, as those bubble kids are never prepared to face the world. The bubble kids fall down easily at any hurdle, while the other kids are stronger and can face the world for what it really is.

I will agree that this is a bad thing. My best friend growing up and I grew up in very different homes. Best I can put it my family didn't have much when I was growing up. My dads handicapped and it's more than a full time job for my mom to take care of him. They tried hard and they were good to me and my siblings. We didn't have much but we always had a full belly and a warm place to sleep. Growing up in this we all learned what NO meant and we learned to do without. My friend on the other hand grew up spoiled rotten. My parents always kept 1 motorized toy on hand for my brother and I. We learned to wrench out of necessity. No fix, no toy. Meanwhile my buddy always had the brand new, best of everything. If he broke something mommy and daddy took care of it. They were never taught what it is like to fail, or get told no. They were used to being coddled and getting told how good they did when they did nothing to deserve it. His parents seriously screwed his life up. Now that we've gotten older me and this friend don't talk much. It seemed like I turned 18 got a full time job and started moving forward with life. Dudes still sitting around waiting for the world to be handed to him. 26 years old, still leaching off his mother for survival. Can you say failure to launch! He's riding a Harley(guess who's making the payment). This friend is very very jealous of me. We pretty much quit hanging out once I started making my own income and attaining nice things. I think it makes him feel like a failure when others bust *** and achieve their goals. He's never got to experience what it feels like to accomplish something. You young men need to fail. It's good for you. It builds character. When you get out in the real world nobody will coddle you and pat you on the back. Your just doing what your supposed to. If you never feel failure you'll never feel achievement.

 

[devino246]

No. That was 100% natural, which is the point I was trying to make. Some of my thoughts in the source post came out a bit randomly, and out of context. I wasn't trying to say that it was a taught-skill move. How can you teach someone that in a one-in-a-million-situation, you can avoid being massively rearended at a red light by making an entirely unplanned, hairy, drifting righthand turn into traffic, just missing somebody by as small a margin as you can possibly muster?




Agreed- How about "Skills can be taught, natural talent cannot"?

Veering (nice choice of words, eh?) slightly away from the topic, I am very concerned about modern automobile technology. Antilock brakes. Traction control. Automatic parking. People becoming so reliant on technology that when the technology fails, they haven't a clue what to do. Scenario- Poor traction. Driver needs to stop in as short a distance (in a straight line) as possible. Driver was "trained" in new car with ABS. What is that training? Smash pedal down and hold. Never heard of "Threshhold braking". Driver smashes pedal down. ABS computer has aneurysm and fails. Now what...?

...Brakes lock, Driver skates off the road half sideways and over the embankment...

We, as a society, are becoming FAR too reliant on technology.

I couldn't agree more!

I've come to have a bit of a problem going from cars with ABS to vehicles without it. My knee-jerk reaction isn't to pump a pedal, it's to stand on it. I've locked up the tires on my ABS-less Honda quite a few time, luckily avoiding collision.

If it weren't for the gubberment mandating things like they are...

Ha, yeah, like that works! I can give you 2 recent examples where even a diagnostic computer couldn't diagnose a problem... if you really want me to...

They don't really diagnose...just give a really vague idea of what's wrong.

 

[OzFab]

They don't really diagnose...just give a really vague idea of what's wrong.

They will pinpoint an electrical fault but, if your problem is mechanical...

One of the situations I mentioned was with my '96 V6 Camry; it had a miss that only appeared when the engine was warm & got worse over time.

Long story short, Diagnostic computer said an oxygen sensor was dead but injectors were fine. Turns out, the injectors weren't fine, one of them was dead but, because the pulse was getting to it, the computer said it was

 

[rwd4evr]

may be a bit late now but, putting her on a dirt bike away from said idiots on the road, to learn bike control is your best bet.

 

[landuse]

may be a bit late now but, putting her on a dirt bike away from said idiots on the road, to learn bike control is your best bet.

Thanks for that. Better late then never. Fortunately she has had a bit of experience with riding the minibike that I made "FOR HER". She loves that thing and rides it often. It was amazing how fast she took to it in the beginning, and she had never ridden anything except a bicycle and gokart before. She just seemed to have a knack.

 

[91blaze]

Like this "stop bullying" BS. Kids are turning into complete sissies. Sitting around waiting for someone else to solve their problems. Lots of you guys on here are young men. If your being bullied lose the self mutilation crys for attention and the other stupid ****. Go find your bully, look him right in the eye, and try to punch his teeth down his throat. Even if he whoops your *** this time I bet he won't try again. He'll look for an easier target. I'm just gonna shut up now. I feel a rant brewing. Don't need the big boot.

Ok, you need to get out of the past with this. I'm 18 and in college now, but from 7th-10th grade I was bullied. Don't know why, they always said just because I was me I hope you realize, though that (in Indiana at least) if you get in a fight with someone you get in legal trouble whether or not you started it. There have been several stories on the news about this too. My problem was, if I got in any type of fight, I would lose my full-ride scholarship to Purdue (where I'm now attending). So maybe people like you should shut up and think twice about what they say. If I had the choice, I would have beat the crap out of those people, but only if I wanted to spend the rest of my life paying off college.

And if you think the bullying today is harmless like it was back then, think again. I got beat up several times and bullied to the point that people thought I would bring a gun to school. One kid even got suspended for a week because a teacher saw him. It only stopped because they grew up and finally saw what they were doing.

Now that that's out of the way, I will got back on topic. The point about people being reliant on technology is very true. I learned how to drive in an F350 and now drive a blazer who's front wheels lock up and rear wheels keep spinning, both at the same time . If anything, this has taught me to be a better driver because I have to anticipate what is going to happen so I can stop in time, especially if it's raining or snowing.

Personally, I hate people who ride scooters. Around here, those are the idiots who lost their license or are too young to drive. They go 30-40 mph on the 55 mph highway, ride in the middle of the lane, and dart through traffic. It may be different where you are, but around here, I would suggest against anybody wanting to ride a scooter.

 

[Doc Sprocket]

Guys- I cracked open a brand new thread for the bullying stuff, please take it over there. Let's keep this for poor Landuse, facing another parental nightmare.

 

[exenos]

Guys- I cracked open a brand new thread for the bullying stuff, please take it over there. Let's keep this for poor Landuse, facing another parental nightmare.

I'm just read that thread and am wondering what the responses will be like since we have a large number of young guys still in school.

 

[landuse]

Blaze. It is obvious that people who are too young to drive are going to ride a scooter. If you want some independence, what you going to do? And the fact that they ride in the middle of the road is because they are legally allowed to do so, and if they dont they will probably be pushed of the road by people like you. A bike needs to be ridden like a car. You arent going to be seeing a slow car riding in the ditch on the side of the road. Here you cannot ride on the freeway if you have a scooter. It is people like you who i am worried about to be riding out there with my daughter.

 

[fowler]

i want to get my bike licence but am scared fo people like blaze

u see it a bit around here
people who accually swerve at bikes

they ride in the middle of the road because each ordernary car lane is broken into two lanes with there own set of rules

but on that note bike riders and scooter riders dont help them selves
bikes that dart though traffic are bad
one accually overtook me in the emergancy lane then cut infront of me before he hit the bridge pillar
what the hell is with that

also or coarse scooters are going to be picked on when they travel 20kph below the limit
not going to lie iv got right up scooters in a 4x4 because they wouldnt speed up or let me pass

as long as your daugther fully respects the road rules and keeps up with traffic i dont see why she will have issues

 

[91blaze]

Hey I never said I would swerve at them or anything, just that they annoy me. Bike riders are fine by me, it's the scooter riders that cause traffic jams. It's especially stupid because the 55 mph road we have has shoulders big enough for a car, yet the scooters choose to drive in the middle of the road so nobody can pass them. Even the huge tractors around here pull off the road every once in a while to let traffic pass, but the scooter drivers don't. Does that really make sense?