Not sure if this has been discussed on here but, I just got off the phone with one of my riding buddies and we were talking about the minimum age of racing pro (at the national level). I am not sure what your guys take is on this but, I think it could be an interesting discussion. I personally feel the absolute minimum should be 18 if not older. And there are many reasons I have behind this, school, physical and mental development and so on. Just curious what some of you thought on this topic.

I have to disagree and say 16 is the age. Think of all the greats in the past that started racing pro at 16. That would have made a 2 year delay on them getting into the big class.

AMA had it right with uping the age limit,buckled to pressure.
Personally know way to many failures as to making a living wage from ,home schooled,or no schooled want to be racers.
Give one of my buddys grief for his give everything to get his kid into pro racing vs my take " You are setting your kid up as a off ramp attendent at the freeway!! JR
Great riders are Great riders 16-18 ? Junk Yard Dog lasted to over 40

i think younger is better too.then when they are done sooner they can move on and still be young enough to figure their career path.most pros will never be able to make enough money to really live normal life from racing. it sucks the sport isnt mainstream enough to bring in real money for other than the top 20 or so guys. especially with the risk invovled then look at football and you got 20 guys on the bench who never play and make 300k a year min.

Sharkey, what about the 1000's of guys that never make it? If you extend that age limit it gives kids a chance to go to school and get somewhat of an education and not be completely behind. If you are able to turn pro at 16, anymore its almost a requirment to get homeschooled and divert ALL attention to racing. The 16-18 age difference isnt as big on the bike as it is in the mind.

In football you can't play pro until your college class has graduated. that's what 22? Basketball you can go out after high school that's 18. Even golf is 18. I agree it should be 18.

I'm for 18 min age and wonder at that.

I'm a PBR (Public Broadcasting Radio) fan and TV too but when I saw this (Change Your Brain, Change Your Body) I changed my mind.

Eighteen is ok 16's bad 25's spot on but what do we do about the law? Kids are adults at 18, drink at 21 and by most parts pushed outta-da-cradle somewhere in between.

Yeah, it would be nice if all the riders had to actually finish high school first.

I have always respected the guys (like Short) who actually had a normal high school experience.

quote:

Originally posted by mx510:
Sharkey, what about the 1000's of guys that never make it? If you extend that age limit it gives kids a chance to go to school and get somewhat of an education and not be completely behind. If you are able to turn pro at 16, anymore its almost a requirment to get homeschooled and divert ALL attention to racing. The 16-18 age difference isnt as big on the bike as it is in the mind.

most kids i know are still in school and their parents plan on keeping them in school. i think the percentage of homeschooled kids is pretty small really thats why i dont see 18 making much difference to most kids.

As a mom of a 17 year old I guess I'll way in....my son didn't start riding until he was 9 so he had a big disadvantage to begin with.

If the arguement for 18 is to get an education, I think you are missing the boat. If you want to have a chance at making it beyond a local pro rider, you pretty much aren't able to have a normal high school education...you miss to much time from school to hit the "important" races, let alone practice time. You have to be home schooled or online schooled and be able to put in as much time training as most kids do going to school.

My son is a "normal high school student" who has poor attendance! he missed 8 days of school just to go to the Amateur Open. There's Mesquite in April and who knows what else.

Then there is the financial end of things and I dont' even know where people find the funds to help get there kid there...trainers, practice bikes, race bikes, back up bikes, riding coaches, personal fitness coaches, mechanic etc...again, i have a "normal high school teenager" as he has ONE bike...that's all we can do.

So, I guess I'm for the age of 18 to turn pro. You are considered an adult and can sign your own contracts. Hopefully you've got your high school dipolma and know that the chances of making in the Mx world as a pro are rare, and have an idea of what you want to be if you dont' make it.

I would vote 18 or 19 years old and must have a high school diploma or equivilant in hand to sign up for your first pro race.

I do agree with Ted's statement that making all kids race Int until 18 will cause a mess. It might also make for some really awesome pro racing in the future, but time will tell.

I guess my final thought is I wish they had to take a "test" like a driver's test to display they have the skills, and also show a dipolma or equivilant.

There definately is some kids that are skill wise ready to turn pro at 16, I'm not sure that they are mentally ready, but I do agree that it depends on how they have been brought up.

I hate seeing kids move up too fast and also riders that are 25 be finished because they are too old for the sport.

this is a subject that has been at the top of our agenda for some time now. as Dawn said the cost of racing has made it imposible for my son to race on a national level. We did the home school thing, and it had a 75% success rate for us. the fact of the matter is we can not afford to go to the next level as an amature. My son is fifteen now and is running in the front pack at the local races. He has won some races but is a consistant front runner. Our plan is to come out in the spring in the a class. I have spoken to the AMA and was told that you can move to the 250 A class at 12 and the 450 A class at fourteen. I feel that Ryan needs to advance to the next level so that he can continue to get better as a rider. I know that alot of parents are going to think im crazy, but I think for us racing the local intermediate class is over.

Only the big races have an A class correct? So Dave your son will run the pro class locally? Will they let you do that?

Just to throw another monkey wrench in the works, and to fish a little. In the state of Washington, you cannot be employed until you are 16 and then you can only work 18 hours a week (I believe). Since professional racer is an occupation, you have to file a 1090 form and pay taxes, how do the labor laws look upon kids under 18 racing pro?

I cant find any rules stipulating that there is an age requirement for any of our local races, as for the employment thing, the labor law poster in my shop says that they can work at age 14, not trying to start a shitstorm just want to race and have fun. We gave up the Idea that a title in the jr. class was going to get us a factory ride. Our family has had alot more fun since we stopped worrying about pushing our son and our finances to the breaking point.

On the "A" class my understanding is that all local races are A therefor you don't need the pro card. We had a few "talks" with tracks as being local A race they really don't need/have to pay $$ to riders. YES a few tracks who were running pro-Am races didn't feel like spending money on a payout for the A class,most now do pay because riders were VERY UPSET,a few of us parents also,imagine that!
All this applies to AMA so really not a big issue around here,going East becomes MUCH larger problem. JR

not going east, just want to play with the local big boys. If you want to B the man you got 2 run with the men. Besides how many local pros have pro cards?

There is a BIG difference between local pro and having a pro card. Very few do, I can think of may 5 or so, and the only time they are riding local is if there isn't a race somewhere and there are enough riders there to make some money....getting your $10 or $25 entry fee back is just seat time.

Any of the tracks locally don't have an age limit to ride pro that I'm aware of.

Dave is correct--winning a championship as a Jr isn't going to get you far...I don't even know for sure if it helps you get a better sponsorship because I know for FACT that finishing 3rd at Lorettas doesn't.

lets face it, the difference between local and national in all classes is a ton, prob at least one class diff, the national pros are even more. In my opinion the fastest local pro couldn't have won the int. class at top gun, or at any of the big five nationals. We all saw Justin's speed. He is a true national rider. there are a couple of others that are closer than most, but we all have to admit that, this is a whole other ball game. Not taking anything away from our riders, but the national races are another box of puddin pops.It all comes down to exceptional talent, cubic dollars, and knowing people that can get you the equipment needed to be on a different level.

This message has been edited. Last edited by: dave s,