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I'd really like to start riding, but convincing my mom to let me is probably going to be difficult. I "jokingly" brought it up a couple of weeks ago, and she was like "you can get a motorcycle when you move out" She's afraid I'll die or something. My dad is fine with it, so I should be able to use that to my advantage. My sister is going to get her permit (car) soon, and I want to go at the same time and get my motorcycle permit. I want to get my permit, do as much reading as I can, and take the MSF course in like late March/early April. Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

What is your age?

Do you already drive a car?

Ok first off of:
Are you the oldest, youngest or middle child?
How do you intend on paying for the bike/insurance? How about maintaining it?

The first thing is going to effect how your mother feels about pretty much anything you do, if you are the youngest chances are she will see you as the baby of the family(that needs to be protected) reguardless of your age and maturity. Thats just how it is with a lot of families, maybe not yours though.

There is a possibility that she will give the OK, with conditions that she thinks you will not be willing to meet. Like, oh I don't know... paying for the bike and insurance yourself. Think about this and decide if it is really worth it. Have reasons ready for why you want the bike so you can have an adult discussion with her and make her see that you have thought it out.

I don't know about the licensing laws of your state but a good tactic for getting your foot in the door is saying that you want to take a MSF course to see if motorcycling is really what you want. You should take the course anyways, for many reasons. In California to do this you would have to get your permit, then after you take the MSF all that would be left before you could get your license would be the written test at the DMV.

Best of luck,
Alex

I'm 18 (or I will be in a week), and I've been driving for seven or so months. I'm technically the middle child (twin sister, she's a minute older that me, and a younger brother). I expect to have to pay for the bike and everything myself (except for maybe the MSF course, I might be able to get my dad to pay for that) I'm going to get a job at Kohl's in a couple of weeks (if all works out), I babysit every once in a while, and I still get an allowance

Dan, I've been riding for over 30 years and my mom still doesn't like it. My advise id to tell your mom that you love her, and you don't ever want to do anything to hurt her, but you have to at least take the MSF course. Once you've been on a bike, and you don't end up dead or maimed for life, she'll calm down a little bit.......yea....right.
After all you three are her babies.

You definitely need to use your dad as leverage. Of course, this won't work if your mom wears the pants in the family. Show her all the safety gear you plan on getting and will wear. You do plan on getting it don't you? You also need to prove somehow that you wanting a motorcycle is not just a phase. Lots of people want motorcycles but most never commit and some buy a bike and let it sit in the garage for months and even years.

If she still won't budge, and you plan on buying the bike yourself anyway, just get the bike without telling her. I got my bike without telling my parents, and I never asked if it was okay with them. When you ask, you give them the opportunity to say no. They weren't excited to see it, but they accepted it and are use to seeing it now. They even helped me finance my new bike that I got in October by being my co-signer. Btw, I'm only 19 and obviously still live with my parents.

Do what I did, Don't tell anyone and then just kind of show up on the thing

oldschoolorange wrote:Do what I did, Don't tell anyone and then just kind of show up on the thing

I tried that. I flagrantly broke the "no bikes in this house" rule when I was 18 and showed up with my new acquisition. I had to move out. I guess that could be good or bad, depending on your circumstances.

Keep working on it with her. My mom said no, ever since I was 15 and was mildly curious. Now she likes the bike, especially since one of her friends rides and helped me pick it out. I also promised to take the MSF and bought a cruiser-style bike to start out on. It might also help if you start to point out "squidly activities" and tell her that it's stupid and you'd never do something like that. That's a lot of what I did and I'm sure it helped a lot. When she says yes, GO FOR IT BEFORE SHE CHANGES HER MIND. I did that with my mom, had a bike in the garage within a month, and now she can't change her mind...
Wrider

I think just showing up with a bike is a bad idea. It sort of hints that you dont have much respect for your parents feelings.

I was in a similar situation with my mother when I first decided that I wanted to ride. I sat down with her and explained that I was going to take a MSF course because I wanted to ride. She of course wasnt happy about it, but I explained to her how the course teaches you safety and that I would purchase all of the protective riding gear and do my best to be a safe rider. It will probably impress her if you are mature about it.