Avalon
Member Extraordinaire
So tomorrow my youngest will turn 16, he’s been determined to get a geared bike since he knew it was an option, and as such is one of only two people in his entire year group (roughly 300? kids) who will be doing his CBT and getting a 50cc.
He is something of an Arthur Daley when it comes to mountain bikes, e-bikes and e-scooters, he’s bought, sold and traded his way up using the Bank of Mum and Dad and the immortal phrase ‘can I borrow….’ which I have come to understand has a different meaning to us as it does to him, but amazingly, he managed to pay us back, and pretty much pay for his own 50cc geared moped (they’re all mopeds legally) in the form of a 70 plate Lexmoto Hunter 50, about the cheapest geared 50cc bike you could buy in the UK when they were new.
So we did the usual, paid for his provisional licence, CBT, and all his gear. I’m not sure how many other 16 y/o kids will rock up in Knox Handeoids, a new Arai, Kevlar jeans and Sidi boots, but as someone with the breakages and scars to prove why good safety gear is vital, I wouldn’t want him in anything less than I would, and do wear.
The bike needed a few minor bits, a service (it’s only done 9K miles) and obviously MOT/tax, some genius had taken the mirrors off (not needed for MOT) and fitted a Ali-Express LED up front, and the tyres were… well typically Chinese, so a set of Conti’s have been ordered, parts replaced and swapped, and the MOT booked for Wednesday.
That brings us to tonight, as I sit here wondering how on earth I find myself the parent to a 16y/o in a matter of hours, I totted up the financial damage, and honestly, I could have had a new Redwolf. The split is about 50:50 between insurance and everything else, but the point is, I now understand it’s almost impossible for a 16y/o to afford to be mobile without significant means or family support, and I now appreciate why I see kids of a similar age rocking about on illegal e-bikes capable of twice what a legal 50cc can do, no protective gear, no insurance or road tax, and only a balaclava to hide who they are. We have created a system where it is significantly cheaper and easier to ignore the law and buy a e-bike than do things legally and in doing so, have made the uptake at 16 less than 1% of those eligible. I can’t help but note the similarities between this and our chosen hobby on here.
Oh, if you’re local, and happen to see a bloke in full race leathers ringing the neck of a 50cc and crouched down on the tank to try and get the absolute most out of it, I’m sorry, please don’t crash due to laughter
He is something of an Arthur Daley when it comes to mountain bikes, e-bikes and e-scooters, he’s bought, sold and traded his way up using the Bank of Mum and Dad and the immortal phrase ‘can I borrow….’ which I have come to understand has a different meaning to us as it does to him, but amazingly, he managed to pay us back, and pretty much pay for his own 50cc geared moped (they’re all mopeds legally) in the form of a 70 plate Lexmoto Hunter 50, about the cheapest geared 50cc bike you could buy in the UK when they were new.
So we did the usual, paid for his provisional licence, CBT, and all his gear. I’m not sure how many other 16 y/o kids will rock up in Knox Handeoids, a new Arai, Kevlar jeans and Sidi boots, but as someone with the breakages and scars to prove why good safety gear is vital, I wouldn’t want him in anything less than I would, and do wear.
The bike needed a few minor bits, a service (it’s only done 9K miles) and obviously MOT/tax, some genius had taken the mirrors off (not needed for MOT) and fitted a Ali-Express LED up front, and the tyres were… well typically Chinese, so a set of Conti’s have been ordered, parts replaced and swapped, and the MOT booked for Wednesday.
That brings us to tonight, as I sit here wondering how on earth I find myself the parent to a 16y/o in a matter of hours, I totted up the financial damage, and honestly, I could have had a new Redwolf. The split is about 50:50 between insurance and everything else, but the point is, I now understand it’s almost impossible for a 16y/o to afford to be mobile without significant means or family support, and I now appreciate why I see kids of a similar age rocking about on illegal e-bikes capable of twice what a legal 50cc can do, no protective gear, no insurance or road tax, and only a balaclava to hide who they are. We have created a system where it is significantly cheaper and easier to ignore the law and buy a e-bike than do things legally and in doing so, have made the uptake at 16 less than 1% of those eligible. I can’t help but note the similarities between this and our chosen hobby on here.
Oh, if you’re local, and happen to see a bloke in full race leathers ringing the neck of a 50cc and crouched down on the tank to try and get the absolute most out of it, I’m sorry, please don’t crash due to laughter
. That was the end of my love affair with bikes as I've been a 4 wheel petrol head ever since and now drive an EV 
