Electric Scooters & Bikes - thoughts?
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Hi!
All of my kids friends have electric scooters and some have the bikes too. I have been scared to purchase anything electric with all the horror stories out there. Is there a way to make these safe somehow??
Send all the tips and advice please!
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My 2nd grader wants one so bad but he’s so damn impulsive we can’t do it. I have visions of him going right in front of a car.
I also think it can give some younger kids too much freedom. They should only be able to go as far as their little legs can carry them.
No opinion on older kids as we aren’t there yet -
So not sure you are going to like my advice but I don’t think I will ever let me kid get on one of those. As an OT who worked with people with acquired traumatic brain injuries, I saw wayyyy too many young adults who suffered awful brain injuries from electric scooters. IF you do decide to get one, I would put very strict rules on it about time of day, how far, what streets it can be used on, obvious helmet requirements! It’s not the kids on the bikes that are scary, it’s the crazy drivers in cars…hope this was somewhat helpful
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Using electric bikes is a hazard for children since they can’t control their speed which leads to higher incidence of head injuries. It also reduces the physical activity that is beneficial from using a regular bike.
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I’m a bit conflicted—honestly, I don’t think there’s a one-size-fits-all answer. I have three boys. My oldest is already driving and kind of missed the whole electric bike/scooter era. My 15-year-old has had an electric skateboard for the past two years and absolutely loves it—it’s given him a real sense of freedom. However we will not allow him to get an ebike, feel like he would be more reckless on it. And my youngest actually bought an electric bike with his own money but ended up selling it because all of his friend’s are way faster so his wasn’t cool enough. Fine by me!
In the end, I really think it depends on the kid and their level of responsibility. Some thrive with that kind of freedom, and others might not be ready. We’ve always raised our kids kind of like ‘80s kids—lots of independence and room to explore—so I tend to lean toward trusting them, but with clear expectations and boundaries.
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Our neighborhood mom facebook group just went off on the Summer scooter gangs hahaha so don't bring them around my neighborhood, they mean business! I do appreciate that they are trying to keep kids safe. The consensus on that group is a hard NO due to kids speeding and being reckless and generally making poor choices.
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We got our kids the ninebots made by Segway. We chose these because they only go up to 12 mph and you can lock the max speed from an app on your phone. We have younger and older kids, so we lock the speed pretty low for the younger kids.
We also like to ride with them and we purchased the GoTrax brand that go a bit faster, I think up to like 15 mph.
We have very strict rules when it comes to riding, you MUST wear a helmet and in our household you can't reach the max speed until you are old enough to drive a car so 16.
