(Ed: This article/blog was lifted from the website of Motorcycle Philippines.com)
I have seen many ‘families’ ride their beloved motorcycle to the park, mall, etc. These include their toddlers and even their babies!
I believe children should not be allowed to ride motorcycles for the following reasons:
1. A child passenger ‘must’ place his/her foot on the pegs/floorboard provided to balance himself with the motorcycle.
2. Children have a higher risk of injury compared to that of adults. Their body will absorb all the impact in a crash as they cannotprotect themselves.
3. In an apparent crash, a person holding a child would lose his hold as it is a primitive reflex of a person to protect himself first before others in split second decisions.
4. A child cannot hold himself in position may it be in front or back of the rider. They still have small arms and hands and will not hold well around the rider’s body or clothing parts.
5. Child helmets mostly available in this country are not DOT/SNELL approved. Thus, it will not protect the head on impact and will only make the child’s brain scatter inside.
6. Children too must have protective clothing. And these don’t come cheap. Proper gloves (as with MX gloves) cost more than the most expensive Index helmet. What more with other gears?
7. Injuries occurred during childhood will leave scars that would remain until adulthood.
8. As we start the bike, most say that we set one foot on our grave, do not make our children do the same.
9. Motorcycling is really fun. Accidents are not. A parent would not forgive himself in such situations involving accidents.
10. There is a child safety seat in automobiles (attachedbackward), more so, responsible parents see to it that their child seats at the backseat. This is not applied to motorcycles.
I hope there will be a law about this. But in a long time I’m sure.
Call me anti-poor, but I wouldn’t want to call you irresponsible. — Ardiepot