Have a look at this video clip showing what those Spaniards get up to from an early age, you may spot a few people you know.
When we were at Cartagena in March there was a number of kids aged about 6 or 7 throwing supermotos around a similar set up. No time for tears, you fall off, your Dad puts you back on and push starts you and off you go again. Absolute madness, wish I'd had the same opportunity . Andy
My 5 year old lad started last week at the Scott Redding Young Riders Academy. The sad reality though is that his dad isn't a talented ex-racer. I'm sure it's not just coincidence that many of the successful racers in bike and car racing are sons of former racers.
Get in now with racing fraternity, you know chuck a few hundred grand at a racer and buy their friendship, then you can use them when he gets a bit older
It's not lack of talent, it's lack of opportunity. Smith, Redding and Kent are all gp riders on the back of their parents' investment in them, but it takes a rare type of faith to throw your life savings into sending jnr to Spain on the off chance he might do okay. A few years ago I bumped into Mark Forsyth doing an article on kids racing, and we watched a lad called Bradley Ray tearing it up on a minimoto. Hope he's still into bikes, cos he was a proper talent.
And a lack of investment and opportunity. Football and tennis are big sports for us..oh no hold on, the spanish are better at those too...
Bradley's in Red Bull Rookies this year.. Red Bull Rookies Cup | Rider | #28 | Bradley Ray :: Red Bull
Just been watching him in the motostar championship at Brands. The kids good! From 32nd on the grid he finished 4th! And if hadn't been red flagged he may have just made 3rd in the last two laps. But Joe Irving from Holmfirth came 3rd
Obviously a video that is an important part of a pro-racers resumé. That and the photo "Me when I was 6 with (insert name of popular gp racer) at Laguna Seca".
Pressure. Right from day 1. It's wrong. As you say, luckyskua, that's how it is, it's the facebook generation; I think it's wrong of the parents, teams and sponsors to put that kind of pressure on a kiddie - but the Spanish kids seem to cope...
It happens here, just not as structured or supported. And its fun for kids mostly. Or made fun from what we saw.
My lads 5, he'll be 6 in October. As well as starting out on bikes he also does swimming 1 night a week, after school art club, tennis coaching on Saturday mornings, and I'm about to start him learning Wing Chun. He's not pushed in to any of it. It's about giving him opportunities to try different stuff. If at any point he turns round and says he's not enjoying it or I doesn't want to do it any more then he will stop, with the exception of the swimming because we feel it is an important skill to have. We are very lucky to have the Scott Redding Academy so close as there is very little elsewhere in the UK for kids that age to get the coaching in such a safe (ish) environment, and that's the real reason why we don't have the champions in this country. Yes, motorcycling is dangerous, and I was more scared than my boy last week when he rode for the first time. The intention is for him to just learn to ride a bike and do regular track time, no different or dangerous to horse riding. He'll not be pushed in to racing, although the goal of the academy is to get them to that stage. He'll only ever race if it's something he wants to do, and if he does want it I'll do all I can to support it. I wish I had been given the opportunity at that age, and i think most kids would feel the same.
Handing things to our children on a plate, driving them from one experience to another and allowing them to give up when they lose interest doesn't do them any favours; it doesn't equip them for life. Things need to earned and valued. Hard work needs to be rewarded. Problems need to be addressed and worked through. Parenting is not about being your childs 'best friend'.
