Camping with my son

[benny57]

Considering motorcycle camping with my son. Tips? Suggestions?

[jgr451]

Make sure that you plan lots of things that a young fella of your son's age will enjoy;and all the gear all the time,both of you.

Hope that helps!!

[Visian]

How old is your son?

And... have you seen the BMW MOA CampSite? (http://www.bmwmoa.org/camping/camping.htm)

Ian

[Visian]

Also... paging Doug Grosjean to the white courtesy telephone.

Doug... tried your site, but got a 404.

Ian

[Mika]

Starting motorcycle camping with your son is a bit like testing out any new piece of gear. I went through this some years ago when my daughters wanted to go on one of the motorcycle adventures.

Assemble the gear you think you want to travel with and head to a sorta nearby park that holds interest for both of you. A nice day ride of about a tank of gas. Let your son know it is a test run. You can bail if it is a disaster, and if it is a big success (as I suspect it will be) you will both learn how to travel on a bike together.

[tourunigo]

Considering motorcycle camping with my son. Tips? Suggestions?

:type ... shades of ZAMM!...1,200 mile trip with my son Sean when he was about 14 on a /5. Those little incidents where Dad had to tinker with the bike became a wonderful 'conversation piece'. Now the boy is a class act tenor sax player with a bend to Reggae, R&B, Ska and Hip Hop (the first three I understand) and Mary and I (looking a bit like Narcs in the young audience) cheer him on. He takes us on 'his ride'. What a wonderful opportunity to travel with your son. Enjoy and savor every second (even the ones you just don't understand!). That moment is fleeting. Enjoy. -Bob

[R80RTJohnny]

As a son who has travelled with his father from 1977 to 1982 (before I got my bike in 1983) I would suggest talking with him to find out what his ideas are for the trip. Involve your son in the planning, map reading etc... This is a great time for you to teach your son respect for the road. The attitude shown in your riding will greatly be reflected in his later on.

And sometimes let him call the shots for breaks, food and sightseeing.

The fun, the memories. Take a lot of pictures.

[Belquar]

I never got to go anywhere with my dad on the bike when I was a kid. Then he sold it and for 20+ years we were a motorcycleless family. (moms request till we were grown and on our own)

Camping however was a common event. I will always cherish our trips together. Even in the early days camping in the backyard. First time I drank coffee was camping in Japan with my dad. Coldest camping trip ever. Camped on a mountain biking weekend.

Best trip ever though was Jackass Lakes in California. Half day hike into the dark. Slept under the stars. No tent. Got up and hiked in to the lake the next morning. Nothing like a high Sierra Lake at sun up.

I could go on for days. Take time and always make those trips happen. Some of the best memories of my life were learning the ways of the woods with my Dad.

Brian

[tourunigo]

:type ....ok, I held back on this part. My first BMWMOA rally was in Moodus. Besides the very drunk guy in the beer tent who decided that I should know why his wife never appreciates the house repair work he does:banghead , I met a guy who decided to tell me about his relationship with his father. Ok....so I'm a Social Worker but where on my FN forehead is it written! Big bear of a guy. Crying . In the beer tent. Never connected with his father. You have an opportunity here to connect.:hug You're fortunate.

(note: father/son is a whole other thread) -Bob

[PacWestGS]

Benny, just do it. You can read everyone else's take on the matter and decide from there. No matter what happens and if the two of you end up getting a motel room, it will have been worth every minute. Maybe not this trip but somewhere down the line, you will be able to look back on it and say "Damn, glad I did that" "Where has the time gone?"

If you have travelled and camped on a MC just think of what is needed to accomodate your son and plan from there....You'll be fine.


Doc

[jerryb]

Considering motorcycle camping with my son. Tips? Suggestions?

If he wants to stop and do something pretty bad like stop at a beach you're breezing by and you're in the mood to cover miles, go to the beach.

Watch him from falling asleep on the bike. You may even have to tie him to you if there is no remedy, so bring a strap.

jerryb

[BEinIN]

Benny, don't waste the the time and effort spent thinking about doing something. JUST DO IT! Make it fun for your son and it will be fun for you also. Take some pictures for the memories for you and for him. This also applies to any everyday activity. Enjoy the experience and the time spent doing it. In the future talking about the experience sure beats: Coulda, woulda, shoulda.

[Visian]

Benny - a good friend of mine, and MOA member (but not a forum regular) has been camping with his son since knee-high. He is also into fishing and has some very compact/collapsible tackle.

He packs his gear into a U-bag and then puts the boy in the middle. He says it helps keep his son in place, which give him peace of mind that the boy won't fall off.

Check out Two-up Tips (http://www.bmwmoa.org/camping/2-upcamping.htm) for more information. The tips in the table can be seen if you click/drag/highlight the table.... for some reason the table background is black and the text is invisible.

Ian

[DougGrosjean]

<<< Considering motorcycle camping with my son. Tips? Suggestions? >>>

So far, all the suggestions are good on this thread.

But how old is he? Makes a BIG difference on the focus of the trip.

I've taken 4-5 big trips with my son since he was 6 y/o (he's 11 y/o now), the most recent was two weeks ago down the Blue Ridge Parkway - about 2,000 miles for us in 9 days on an Airhead GS, mostly camping along the way.

I'd only add that you should plan on fun more than on miles. Be conservative in cornering (my son sometimes get nauseous due to hard cornering and fast / repetitive left / rights), and in miles. Discuss things ahead of time. Make frequent stops at interesting places. Bring appropriate gear (my son and I both have good rainsuits, riding suits, and Camelbacks). Figure out how to communicate for important things.

I've actually got a book coming out this summer, stories / experiences while riding with my son, and the Addendum covers a bunch of this. Below is a cut-paste / sneak peek of a couple areas, related to this thread. Following are just some snippets from the Addendum.

IMO, the book is far better than the Addendudm.... ;);)




--------Begin Book Snippets-------------

CRV Harness (riding harness for small kids)
Child's Riding Belt Company
P.O. Box 22 Site 14, R.R. 4
Edmonton, Alberta, Canada
T5E 5S7
Tel/ Fax (780) 973-3253
http://www.childridingbelt.com/

Children's motorcycle gear:
www.familymotorcycling.com
They sell a "buddy belt", which is a belt with handles. My son outgrew the harness above, he's over 100 lbs. now.

----------------------------------

Communication:

First, get the attention of the other person by tapping on a knee or shoulder. Then show what you want by holding up fingers:

One finger: restroom
Two fingers: gasoline
Three fingers: food
Four fingers: stop for the night
Five fingers: stop NOW.

The passenger can signal yes or no with their head, the driver can see it in the mirrors. We've found that the above covers almost every need.

-------------------------------------

Stopping to stretch at a park, taking a ride on a see-saw or a swing, throwing rocks into a stream, stopping to smell the roses often, taking in roadside attractions, taking walks - these things are important.

Why?

Because children don't remember or care how many miles you covered in a day, or how far from home you are. Instead they recall the fun activities you shared. An interesting hike costs nothing, and is long remembered.

A lot will depend on the child, too. My son enjoys caverns and trains. Maybe your child enjoys airplanes, or ships, or dollhouse collections, or ghost stories. They're really just little people, and they vary. Work with them.

------------------------------------

Other Information Sources
Motorcyle Safety Foundation
For the RiderCourse® location nearest you, call toll free:
1(800) 446-9227
http://www.msf-usa.org/

"Riding with Children"
By Art Friedman
Originally printed:
Motorcyclist Magazine, 1990
Currently at:
http://www.motorcyclecruiser.com/streetsurvival/ridingwithkids/

-----------End Book Snippets-----------------



I've actually started writing up our trip down the Blue Ridge Parkway, and have lots of photos to illustrate - but wasn't sure whether to post here or not. I don't think the MOA forum has room for pics? So far, I've just been posting it to the LDR List as I finish a day.


Then Ian wrote:

"Also... paging Doug Grosjean to the white courtesy telephone. Doug... tried your site, but got a 404."

Yeah, server was hit by a virus a while back. Admin is working on it. Thanks!


Then someone else:
"Watch him from falling asleep on the bike. You may even have to tie him to you if there is no remedy, so bring a strap."

Much better to pace yourselves and plan appropriately. A strap would scare the heck out of me - you'd have to rig it like a climbing harness, if you want to safely support the entire child.

When we used the CRV harness (like a climbing harness), my son could drift off back there, and be secure - but it was clumsy. Now, no harness, so he can't fall asleep - but he's older now, and that's less of a problem.

FWIW, on our BRP trip, we rode about 200 miles each day, and that allowed a lot of leisure time for hikes and photos and cooking most of our own meals. Our final day out, we rode just over 500 miles w/o a problem - but that's a new record for him.

And I don't think the numbers mean much - each child is unique.

I cherish those trips - for a few days, the world is just the two of us.

Best,
Doug Grosjean
NW OH / SE MI

PS - Added photo of camp breakfast from two weeks ago...

[Mika]

Benny, just do it. ...If you have travelled and camped on a MC just think of what is needed to accomodate your son and plan from there....You'll be fine.


Doc

Don't have kids yet do you Doc?

Doc is right just do it, but think like a kid when you are doing it.

[PacWestGS]

No, but my wife fits the category well (5'2" 105#) used to fall asleep in ten-minutes or less on the stock pillion, Rocky Mayer fixed most of that and a 'BestRest' sport backrest took care of the need to wake her up when or if I needed to pass a row of cars. Otherwise she is like (ME TOO) like a child on the bike.... :laugh

My wife loses interest when the scenery gets boring, and so we have to do things that are of interest to her, like 'shopping' and eating. My wife eats a little all the time, I eat twice a day, go figure.

Nope no children, the two of us 'kids' aren't responsible enough and it gotten to late in life to start. :p


Doc

[BradfordBenn]

The other thing I know from talking with my passenger is that the communication system helps alot when riding along. My passenger might be older than most kids, but figure it still applies.

[Bob_M]

When my boy was young he loved trains (He still does!) We would go on the bike to tourist train rides all over the Pacific Northwest. Stop more often than you would by yourself. If his helmet bumps against yours slap his thigh to make sure he is awake then pull over and walk around a bit. Feed him well and let him do a lot of the talking during meals. Good times! :thumb

[tourunigo]

When my boy was young he loved trains (He still does!) We would go on the bike to tourist train rides all over the Pacific Northwest. Stop more often than you would by yourself. If his helmet bumps against yours slap his thigh to make sure he is awake then pull over and walk around a bit. Feed him well and let him do a lot of the talking during meals. Good times! :thumb

:type .. that sums it up for me :clap -Bob

[Dylan76]

Great information here. My son is turning 3 and obsessed with wanting to ride on "daddy's vroom vroom" he calls it. Looking forward to when he can.

[Stuff2C]

I raised two girls and the fight was always which one EARNED the trip. My oldest (now a mother herself) earned her IronButt bunburner 1000 passenger @ 15. One thing about my two was they were very low maintenance. They were just excited to go. The sites and scenery were just what their sponging brains needed. Comfort to them was being with Dad, the weather, seat, tent didn't really matter (KIDS ARE TOUGH) just warm and dry works.
Just be careful which campfire you choose to visit...let's just say some are more kid appropriate than others.

WOW! as I read and write this I'm really missing those days...maybe I need to borrow a kid for a couple of weekends and show them what I'm missing.

LUCKY YOU!!!!!!!!! :thumb

[DougGrosjean]

Back a ways, post #14, I mentioned a book I was bringing out this summer on riding with my son, during the time he was 5-8 y/o, titled "Wheels".

For anybody interested, it's been out about a week now:
http://www.authorhouse.com/BookStore/ItemDetail~bookid~32002.aspx

Addendum is tips on riding with young kids, mostly applicable to long trips. Post #14 in this thread, I posted an excerpt from the Addendum.

I'll repeat what really matters, after the child is back home safe: the times I've spent on a motorcycle with my son, just the two of us, are like magic. The whole world is just the two of us for a while.

Best,
Doug Grosjean
Pemberville, Ohio

[Arkane]

Dont forget Towels