The world is certainly changing and the future is electric dirt bikes, especially for kids. Yet gas-driven dirt bikes still dominate.
This brings us to the question: Which one should you choose?
Electric dirt bikes are better than their gas equivalent for children, given that they’re lighter and are more than 90% quieter. They’re often cheaper to buy for kids and much cheaper to maintain. However, a petrol dirt bike can be topped up with fuel quickly while an electric dirt bike needs recharging with a mains power connection unless it has removable batteries.
While electric bikes are the way of the future, consumer sentiment and dealership preferences keep the majority of kids on petrol-driven dirt bikes. In this article, we hope to change this.
Gas Dirt Bikes vs Electric Dirt Bikes
Frontaer isn’t biased but we’re concerned for the future of the sport. You see, there are many eco-warriors popping up trying to get popular riding areas shutdown. They’re convincing governments to close areas to dirt bike riders to let their endangered flowers grow.
The worst part? They’re winning. Their arguments stem from the fact that dirt bikes cause havoc on the terrain. What they’re really saying is that they’re loud and lead to green house gasses. That may be true, until now.
Gas dirt bikes created a stigma for many years aided by the small segment of the market who was wreckless on 2 wheels. They created a bad name for the rest of the good riders.
Now, with the invention of electric dirt bikes, we think the industry is in for a big shake up. One that we have been looking forward to for many years. For adults and kids alike, these dirt bikes will allow us to experience many epic riding areas, but with some real upsides.
Kids Electric Dirt Bike Advantages
Kids love dirt bikes but that sound can be concerning. Many of them won’t tell you that it sounds like a lion roaring in the woods. This is why kids get turned off from riding these machines because they sound so intimidating.
As you can see, some good reasons to go in this direction. So not only are electric bikes much quieter for young hands and ears, but they also have these advantages:
1. You Can Control The Throttle Output
All-electric motorcycles for kids which are used in offroad environments come with a learner mode. You as a parent actually can select this within the settings of the onboard computer. This restricts the throttle so that, even if your child twists the throttle too hard, they won’t be pulling wheelies or lose control and crash into a tree.
2. There is No Toxic Smell
That smell can be heaven to some of us grown adults, but some kids really hate the smell of petrol. Worst is when it spills when you’re trying to fuel up the gas tank. They are sensitive to these smells and this is yet another thing that can discourage them from riding.
3. No Burning From Hot Engines
There have been children admitted to hospital because they crashed and the exhaust fell on their legs. That hot exhaust left a pretty significant life-long burn and certainly the child has been scarred for life, both mentally and physically.
4. Super Easy Maintenance
Apart from regular tune ups, oiling the chain and changing the rear tires, there isn’t much else that needs to be done. If you’re a mechanically-tuned parent, then you don’t need to worry much about anything.
5. More Aligned With Where Kids are Today
When we adults were in school, we didn’t learn much about sustainability. Today it’s a hot topic in schools and children are genuinely interested in this beyond the classroom walls. Their electric dirt bike makes for a great show-and-share topic that they’ll be proud of.
6. Much Lighter to Handle
Even the PeeWee range from Yamaha in their 50cc and 80cc equivalents often weight more than the rider themselves. That’s concerning for both parents and the child. Electric dirt bikes for kids often weigh less than 100 pounds or 40 kgs. Even loading/unloading the trailer is something that they can do too instead of trying to wrestle a dirt bike that weighs twice as much.
7. More Power on Tap
While they might not want it initially, as their skills grow, they’ll want to go faster. There is simply more power available to kids on electric dirt bikes and it’s almost in unlimited supply. Keep twisting that throttle and the motorcycle goes…and goes…and goes.
8. It’s Free to Ride
We’ve left the best until last! It’s free to ride these if you can get power from the sun or have an electric charging point near you. Most offroad riding parks have amenities with powerpoints where you can charge the battery overnight which is what most families do.
So Why Do People Still Buy Gas Dirt Bikes for Kids?
Good question and this has got to deal with convenience as well as consumer preference. You can walk straight into a dealership and walk out with a gas dirt bike right now. With electric dirt bikes, their distribution isn’t as widespread just yet.
You see, some of these dealers make massive profits in the future as you come in for repairs and servicing. If they sold you an electric dirt bike, then you’re far less likely to be back in the store and so it’s far less revenue for them. The only thing they can make money on is the upfront sale and the apparel. In the future, we see less demand for dirt bike mechanics as the world moves towards electric.
Thus, as a parent you’re having to buy a dirt bike online. Given it’s a large purchase financially (kids electric dirt bikes cost between $2,200 and $5,600), you can imagine that there are fewer parents who would feel comfortable with big purchases online. Additionally, most of your parts would need to be ordered online too.
Yet for what they’re worth, it’s just better to get kids a start today with the future of dirt bikes. And that is to go electric.
