As a reward for good grades in 6th grade my dad got me a Honda mini trail 50 , Yellow and White ..... and a sparkly Red Helmet.....with a back yard of 25 acres I had a good place to ride , and soon had a following of the neighborhood kids to watch and asking to ride . Well the next thing I know my uncle was standing with all us kids watching us as we each took a ride and he asked if he could take a ride ..... 
... now you got to understand I was a little bit scared of him in that he did not talk to much to me and add to the fact he was 6 ' 6 and built like a barrel . I now understand a lot more than I did then he had a career as a Police officer and made the rank of Sargent and then changed over to the Fire Department and retired as Chief, .... so it was with some reluctance on my part to let him take a ride if he was 300 lbs he was and ounce.
The helmet did not fit him so he easily stepped around the small bike and sat down after a quick explanation by me on how it worked and what levels and such did what he slowly started to ride off .....
Only to have the bike kick out from under him and send him flat on his back with the bike roaring at full speed kicking up and down between his legs as he held it out away from him as he lay flat on his back ... ....
Well all us kids ran up to him and quickly got the bike away from him and asked if he was OK ....he was and he quietly left us to continue riding .... this and two crashes made a big enough impact on me to know I will not be a rider .... one crash was I tried to cross one of the ditches out in the field only to stall it in the opposite bank and land with the bike in the water , it did not help I still had my school clothes on and new shoes ..... the seconded crash was a freshly plowed part of the field and a missed gear shift that had me bouncing for a short time in 3rd gear until one bounce set me in one direction and the bike in the other and if I had not had my helmet on I would have had a good knock on the head from the handle bar, as it was it bent them up good to the point they needed to be replaced . I did not ride much after that and soon out grow the bike and it was passed on the my little brother ....of no fear ....he had it less than one summer before it was a basket case and in pieces down in the cellar for many years .
About 5 years ago in a fit of cleaning I gave it to a friend who at the time was looking for a Honda mini trail 90.... He in turn started to repair it and found that it was to rich for him to repair and gave it to his friend and current owner of the local Honda Motorcycle Shop ..... The owner had his crew work on restoring it to show room condition and it now is on display along with other collector bikes in the back room I was able to find the owners manual and other paper work from when my dad purchased it from his dad back in the early 70's along with the rare back tail light assembly . this part was one of the first things to be broken and loss on these bikes granted it was not in grant shape having been left out in the weather and other abuses but still very repairable ...
Bill G.
Sorry for the long wind but the fingers felt like tapping the keys tonight ...
... now you got to understand I was a little bit scared of him in that he did not talk to much to me and add to the fact he was 6 ' 6 and built like a barrel . I now understand a lot more than I did then he had a career as a Police officer and made the rank of Sargent and then changed over to the Fire Department and retired as Chief, .... so it was with some reluctance on my part to let him take a ride if he was 300 lbs he was and ounce.The helmet did not fit him so he easily stepped around the small bike and sat down after a quick explanation by me on how it worked and what levels and such did what he slowly started to ride off .....
Only to have the bike kick out from under him and send him flat on his back with the bike roaring at full speed kicking up and down between his legs as he held it out away from him as he lay flat on his back ... ....
Well all us kids ran up to him and quickly got the bike away from him and asked if he was OK ....he was and he quietly left us to continue riding .... this and two crashes made a big enough impact on me to know I will not be a rider .... one crash was I tried to cross one of the ditches out in the field only to stall it in the opposite bank and land with the bike in the water , it did not help I still had my school clothes on and new shoes ..... the seconded crash was a freshly plowed part of the field and a missed gear shift that had me bouncing for a short time in 3rd gear until one bounce set me in one direction and the bike in the other and if I had not had my helmet on I would have had a good knock on the head from the handle bar, as it was it bent them up good to the point they needed to be replaced . I did not ride much after that and soon out grow the bike and it was passed on the my little brother ....of no fear ....he had it less than one summer before it was a basket case and in pieces down in the cellar for many years .About 5 years ago in a fit of cleaning I gave it to a friend who at the time was looking for a Honda mini trail 90.... He in turn started to repair it and found that it was to rich for him to repair and gave it to his friend and current owner of the local Honda Motorcycle Shop ..... The owner had his crew work on restoring it to show room condition and it now is on display along with other collector bikes in the back room I was able to find the owners manual and other paper work from when my dad purchased it from his dad back in the early 70's along with the rare back tail light assembly . this part was one of the first things to be broken and loss on these bikes granted it was not in grant shape having been left out in the weather and other abuses but still very repairable ...
Bill G.
Sorry for the long wind but the fingers felt like tapping the keys tonight ...
and i busted myself up but good racing Motocross in the 60's-70's.
