Having a teen ride to school - endangerment?

"wafflycat" waffles*A*T*v21net*D*O*T*co*D*O*T*uk wrote:
"Claire" wrote in message
roups.com...

So, what do you think? Endangerment?

In that case I'm a seriously bad mother. My teenage son regularly cycles a
26-mile round trip to college & back. His previous school which was an
11-mile round trip he used to regularly cycle to. Before he did it himself,
his Dad and/or I used to cycle with him. Of course, I do happen to have a

Before my son got his driver's license, he used to ride down to the
barn on his bike - he was about 14. But since we have so many Amish
in the county, almost all the roads, and certainly all the main
highways have broad carriage width shoulders.

At 16 to 17, dd#2 rode a motorcycle down to the barn before 6 am
because she wasn't allowed to be out on the road at that hour in a car
on a provisional license but there wasn't a restriction on the
motorcycle license.

This same dd was taking adult evening classes (which she could drive
to) and she was run off the road coming home on a Tuesday night by
another driver who I presume was drunk or otherwise impaired. There
was no damage because she reacted quickly.

While I don't think that having a high school student (regardless of
age) riding 20 miles to school on a bike is child endangerment, I do
think that there might be a problem if the riding conditions were
horrible as stated (raining very hard on a road with no shoulders and
a lot of speeding traffic).

But it wouldn't have anything to do with the bike rider's age. If it
was dangerous, it would be dangerous whatever the age of the person.

teenager who is fit, healthy, confident, outgoing and learning to deal with
the risks life throws at him. He's caring (just watch how he relates to
animals and takes an active part in the medicating of our cat with a chronic
illness), and I can take him anywhere and know he won't let me down. But
what the heck, I must obviously be a bad mother....

Cheers, helen s

grandma Rosalie

On Thu, 2 Jun 2005 18:29:37 -0700, (Tom Keats)
wrote:

In article .com,
"Claire" writes:

Ron said if Len hadn't been over 18, he would have
thought about reporting his mother for endangerment.
---
So, what do you think? Endangerment?

I think:

1) getting mixed up in other people's parenting is getting
into some pretty skookum waters.

2) are we talking about high school? If so, 18+ is rather
old, but not extremely so (Len may have been born late
in the year and so started later, or failed a grade, or
had to miss a year for medical reasons.)

At least half my son's high school will be eighteen with they
graduate. I dont see this as abnormal, in JUne. Everyone whose
birthday was from january one to the present day will be eighteen.

Barb

On Fri, 3 Jun 2005 00:46:27 -0400, "animzmirot"
wrote:

No endangerment, but the parents are insane. The kid wasn't in any real
danger, the parents were trying to make a point that he missed his
transportation and needed to get to school on his own. Taxis are good... so
are friends who drive. Riding a bike 20 miles to school in good weather is
kind of bizarre...kids need to shower when they get to school or else they
would reek all day long. A few miles, sure. 20 miles...the parents need some
advice, but nope, not endangerment.

My husband rides his bike close tothat and doesnt always need a
shower. In very hot weather perhaps, but not in normal spring
weather.

On 2 Jun 2005 12:49:09 -0700, "Claire" wrote:

From a parenting list I'm on -- comments? (Names changed to protect
privacy...)

---
Someone was talking about kids walking or riding their bikes to school.
I would never let my kids ride to the high school. For one thing, it
is 20 miles away, and for another, over half of that is on two lane
busy roads with no shoulder, and usually high embankments on either
side. A few weeks ago, Ron took the day off and happened to be heading
along that road at about 9 am, on a day when we had a monsoon. (We had
4 3/4 inches of rain in less than 12 hours!) He came across one of his
older boy scouts (actually
no longer a scout, but an Asst. Scoutmaster, because he is 18), on his
bike, along that road. Ron stopped, turned around and went back for
him. Luckily he was driving the truck, and could take Len to school
then take his bike home for him so he could ride the bus home. Len was
soaked, thoroughly chilled, and terrified, from all the drivers who had
buzzed past him, splashed water all over him, etc. (And this is a kid
who does regularly ride his bike to school for various things, so it
was the conditions and not the road that terrified him.) He had
overslept, and his mother told him to get
himself to school. Ron said if Len hadn't been over 18, he would have
thought about reporting his mother for endangerment.
---

So, what do you think? Endangerment?

If my child oversleeps he has to get himself there. He also does not
get an "excused tardy" note from me.

The twenty miles sounds like an exxageration.

However, all and all, even at sixteen or seventeen this sounds like a
common sense issue for the boy.

Warm Regards,


Claire Petersky
Personal page: http://www.geocities.com/cpetersky/
See the books I've set free at:
http://bookcrossing.com/referr*al/Cpetersky

animzmirot wrote:

No endangerment, but the parents are insane. The kid wasn't in any
real danger, the parents were trying to make a point that he missed
his transportation and needed to get to school on his own. Taxis are
good... so are friends who drive. Riding a bike 20 miles to school in
good weather is kind of bizarre...kids need to shower when they get
to school or else they would reek all day long. A few miles, sure. 20
miles...the parents need some advice, but nope, not endangerment.

Teenagers who are reasonably fit can ride 20 miles with no sweat, literally. If
that's really a problem, don't most high schools have gym areas with showers and
locker rooms?

I often rode my bike 10 miles to school, because it was faster than walking to
the train station, waiting for the train, riding the train, then walking to
school. (35min vs. 1hr) It let me do things on my own schedule, and gave me
more flexibility in where I could go. For example I could get to swim practice
at 6am, which was too early for the train, and to work after school; which was
miles from the nearest train station. Traffic was horrendous. I rode through
incredible downpours. It never bothered me one bit.

Matt O.

dragonlady wrote:

In article ,
(Tom Keats) wrote:

2) are we talking about high school? If so, 18+ is rather
old, but not extremely so (Len may have been born late
in the year and so started later, or failed a grade, or
had to miss a year for medical reasons.)

Very few kids graduate from high school before their 18th birthday.
Graduating after their 19th birthday is not terribly uncommon, either.
This time of year, most seniors are 18, so there is nothing at all
unusual about an 18 year old being in high school.

That doesn't make sense. Almost half the student body in a typical American
high school would be18, if you figure half the kids are born between the usual
age/grade cutoff date in December, and graduation in mid-June. I was born in
January, so I was one of the oldest in my class.

Matt O.

In misc.kids Barbara Bomberger wrote:
On Fri, 3 Jun 2005 00:46:27 -0400, "animzmirot"
wrote:

No endangerment, but the parents are insane. The kid wasn't in any real
danger, the parents were trying to make a point that he missed his
transportation and needed to get to school on his own. Taxis are good... so
are friends who drive. Riding a bike 20 miles to school in good weather is
kind of bizarre...kids need to shower when they get to school or else they
would reek all day long. A few miles, sure. 20 miles...the parents need some
advice, but nope, not endangerment.

My husband rides his bike close tothat and doesnt always need a
shower. In very hot weather perhaps, but not in normal spring
weather.


If this kid could average a 20 mph (extremely fast), he'd spend an hour
getting to school. He would definitely need a shower afterwards.

But this whole argument is moot. There's no way the story is accurate
even if it is based in reality. A test run riding to the school (12 mph)
would previously prove the ride takes an hour and forty minutes.
Anything faster is a race. Not the grandma cancer race either.

Translation:
Hi parenting group, my mom, I mean, uh I know this kid, really mean
parents, who made me, I mean, their kid ... should I report them to
CPS?

Claire wrote:
snip

So, what do you think? Endangerment?

No, not endangerment.

But...I have a much more effective technique up my sleeve, should I need it.


So far, my ds (14) has been very responsible about getting out the door on
time (missed the bus twice in a year). If he were to make it a habit, I
would shortcut the bus route to get to a stop before the bus. I would then
wait for the bus to arrive, and make a point of giving him a hug and kiss
before he got on the bus. I'm sure getting a hug and kiss from his father
in front of a whole busload of friends (or enemies, for that matter) would
be much more effective than making him ride his bike 20 miles.

I'd like to see someone decide a hug and a kiss is endangerment.

Austin
--
I'm pedaling as fast as I durn well please!
There are no X characters in my address

Teenagers who are reasonably fit can ride 20 miles with no sweat,
literally. If
that's really a problem, don't most high schools have gym areas with
showers and
locker rooms?

I often rode my bike 10 miles to school, because it was faster than
walking to
the train station, waiting for the train, riding the train, then walking
to
school. (35min vs. 1hr) It let me do things on my own schedule, and gave
me
more flexibility in where I could go. For example I could get to swim
practice
at 6am, which was too early for the train, and to work after school; which
was
miles from the nearest train station. Traffic was horrendous. I rode
through
incredible downpours. It never bothered me one bit.

Matt O.


I never rode to high school, but biked 18 miles each way in college when I
was still living at home. It really isn't as far as it sounds for someone
who is in shape and used to riding. Of course, I'd have a hard time doing it
now! And rain and snow are just part of the joys of commuting by bike
where I am from.

-Shelly

In article ,
"Matt O'Toole" wrote:

dragonlady wrote:

In article ,
(Tom Keats) wrote:

2) are we talking about high school? If so, 18+ is rather
old, but not extremely so (Len may have been born late
in the year and so started later, or failed a grade, or
had to miss a year for medical reasons.)

Very few kids graduate from high school before their 18th birthday.
Graduating after their 19th birthday is not terribly uncommon, either.
This time of year, most seniors are 18, so there is nothing at all
unusual about an 18 year old being in high school.

That doesn't make sense. Almost half the student body in a typical American
high school would be18, if you figure half the kids are born between the usual
age/grade cutoff date in December, and graduation in mid-June. I was born in
January, so I was one of the oldest in my class.

Matt O.



Actually, well over half of the high school seniors are 18 when they
graduate -- the age/grade cuttoff varies all over the country, but when
my kids started school it was September 1 or October 1 (October for the
older child, who then graduated at 17, September for the younger two,
who graduated at the more typical age of 18.)

Of the six kids in my family, five of us were 18 when we graduated, one
was 17.

In a quick survey of friends whose kids have graduated in the past five
years or so, almost all of their kids graduated at 18; one was 17, and
one was 19.
--
Children won't care how much you know until they know how much you care