You don't need to be an 'investor' to invest in Singletrack: 6 days left: 95% of target - Find out more
Sitting here troubled by a video I saw recently where a child prodigy is doing things well beyond whats normal for someone of his age.
The kids risk assessment appears to be controlled by his adult mentor and he's doing things that IMO hes not quite capable of and is on the teetering edge of significant injury.
Now, publishing these videos is one thing and opens up the adult for judgement, however is that where it stops? What if someone else gets hurt from not comprehending the risk of the activity at hand?
Yes we can watch cliff diving contests on Redbull TV, but there's a differential here between an adult performing something and a child doing it. Are children more likely to jump off a cliff if they just saw a video of a 7 year old doing it?
What about those brands that support the activity at hand.. via free stuff, an insta link etc. Lets say the tide pod challenge muppets were actually promoting Tide. 'Selfie death' style urban athletes sponsored by a rooftopping shoe company. What might be the legal recourse if one of the people influenced by these activities/images suffers injury by copying scenes that have been published that make it seem like just another day in the park?
In the UK I guess you'd call them a *****r for doing something so daft, but what about other litigious cultures, like the US where you can establish and succeed in a class action lawsuit for making your kids fat from eating too much Nutella, or crashing after assuming you van leave your RV to drive itself while you pop back to the Lazyboy to chill!
Google didn't throw up any common law case examples, but this made an interesting read
dying in search of instagram shots
I'm genuinely interested to know if I've just gone and got my knickers in a twist over stupid stuff, or if there's a actual issue with kids doing adult things and ultimately(potentially) causing the injury of others through emulation/imitation?
Unless they are actively encouraging other people to do the same as them without explaining the risks, then I can't see how they are liable?
It's pushy football dad and the overclearinng, nosediving 'FEAR IS JUST AN EMOTION' kid, yes?
No idea about the liability, but the dad is a prick, vicariously living his desire by pushing his son into dangerous situations he's clearly not capable of, without actually considering the consequences due to the need for insta-fame. It's a long, long way away from Jackson Goldstone.
Whilst the dad clearly has an, err, odd parenting style, I'm not sure there is much danger there. Hes clearly working up to things progressively, going the right speed and has technique. The pushyness makes me feel uncomfortable, but hes unlikely to come up massively short or long
I cant see how you can get to being able to sue them if you try it, otherwise every vid of someone doing something slightly dangerous would have the same risk. No more MTB videos of anyone
kids will do stupid things with or without social media. When I think back to some of stuff I did in the early 80s it makes me cringe at my stupidity and ignorance. That being said I did things without my dad pushing me to do them. I'm guessing this is about that 7 year old jumping and nearly crashing with the dad trying to be the spot light of the video.
Interesting comments on here. My boy is 11 and not at this level, but only 1 step below him really and jumping tables and gaps about 12' in length. But never once have I told him to jump something, he just really wants to. He's been for 1:1 coaching and the coach was impressed at his skill and speed of learning.
I've questioned a few times if my lad has the skills or whether it's luck, time and time again lucky. But then he shows me he actually has the skills by moving the bike about in the air, picking his landing spot and angle and a variation of jump styles to reach a goal. Always laughing always smiling. Well apart from the big hill he has to ride back home!
As a parent you learn that fear is a tough one, they don't have any, they don't see consequences of their actions, so you end up dragging them back in and saying no! Forcing them to stop, consider their jumps and getting them to think a bit.
I don't do Instagram etc but I put video up for a few mates to see, but don't see it wrong that someone does.
When I show videos of my boy jumping I get reactions that I shouldn't or "how can you ....." Etc. The answer is, because he wants to. I don't drag him there. Today is a rest day, but first thing he wants to do is jumpies.
or crashing after assuming you van leave your RV to drive itself while you pop back to the Lazyboy to chill!
This never happened.
But who are we talking about? Someone stick a vid up so we can judge for ourselves.
This never happened.
Correct. It's an urban myth that's been doing the rounds for almost as long as cruise control has existed.
... late 70s vintage, I just looked it up.
IMO kids can and do end up doing far worse by over exerting themselves and their bodies. Our daughter was pulled out of the "dance" classes at nursery as the teacher was having them pull themselves into the seal position and such, something thats long been known to increase risk of nerve damage.
Similarly her ice skating coaches have been encouraging them to push towards block splits. She has been told that under no circumstances should she be doing this until she is older.
The damage this can cause lasts a lifetime, its ridiculous how many so called professionals fail to keep up with best practice and teach the same things they learned decades ago (or didn't).
a child prodigy is doing things well beyond whats normal for someone of his age.
Child prodigies have a habit of doing that.
That's actually pretty nerve wracking to watch and I don't even have kids. Daddy's pep talk is cringeworthy.
The comment section says it all really.
I've seen a lot worse at schoolboy MX meetings...
I witnessed a franco-belgian magazine's Facebook page implode a few weeks ago after they posted the Harry Schofield clip from Tea & biscuits. Quite a few parents felt that these kids who ride well should be promoting a more safety conscious image and wearing their sponsor's protections than building a media persona.
Crosby Zoomerman's overshot landings give me the shivers.
Hmmm, the general vibe I get from Crosbys Dad is of a condescending manipulator. I could imagine that if he'd not had kids he would have either started a cult or become a motivational speaker (basically the same thing)...
Nah, pimping your kids for insta-likes and to compensate for your own failed dreams of gnarrdom is just low... Just let them be kids FFS!
Only watched enough to get the general idea but don't see a problem. The kid seems fully capable. Judging from my experience with my own two boys (3 + 1) they won't do anything they don't want to do the little £$(*)%!
Looks like when a child rides a bike to this level they're doing adult stuff, then when an adult hopes to ride to this level they're being childish/mid-life-crisis (from the general non-gnar population at large).
Doh just noticed video title 🙄 maybe I'll watch a bit more....
OTOH perhaps, before commenting, I should watch the whole video more and put a little more thought into my comments.
Just watched that, have to agree with the comments, the kid has obvious talent but is too young to rationalise and is seriously sketchy on the landings. Having a 7 year old myself it's difficult (personally) to empathise with her at times and can be incredibly frustrating when she doesn't process things like an adult would. Difference is I don't force her so far out her comfort zone she becomes a liability to herself. Yes, kids need encouragement and occasionally a little push to build confidence but that's just over the top.
I’ve seen a lot worse at schoolboy MX meetings…
No doubt, pushy parents are everywhere. We all see them. Doesn't make it right though.
Doesn’t make it right though.
I didn't say it did.
I used to receive treatment similar to that throughout my youth MX days.
Except I along with many others was shown more stick than carrot...
So long as the kid isn't being pushed to do something he obviously doesn't want to, there's no harm in a little positive encouragement/mentoring. IMO it's the best time to learn skills as you have no fear and bounce easily when they go down.
I spent my teens in the local woods building and riding some stupidly sketchy jumps in the local woods with my mates. The 'adult' (18-20) members of the group were always giving us hints and egging us on, but it really helped develop as riders and I can't remember anything worse than a broken collarbone. I also rode with a riding club where I was the youngest member by a couple of decades and they really helped me to push my limits on technical terrain.
Kids will be kids, and it's better there's adults there rather than have the kids go off and do it without around.
That said, this applies to mountain biking, MX, football etc and not free climbing up a skyscraper..
Wow, those jumps are massive!
Wow, the dad is an annoying pillock!
I think they'll be ok. Kids are resilient. When he has that big stack and Dad drives him to A&E (can't you just hear the supportive talk in the car on the way there!? Barf!) he'll recover fine and be back out there within a few days. Even losing a few teeth at 7 is nothing to worry about.
singlespeedstu
SubscriberI’ve seen a lot worse at schoolboy MX meetings…
yep, exactly this. Got my first bike at 4 yrs old and crashed a lot, by 9 I was jumping a kx80 clear over the 30 ft tabletop at gleniffer braes track @ paisley and I was pushed and shouted at/encouraged to push harder every weekend when I raced. As long as the kid is enjoying it then why wrap in cotton wool to turn out a big fearty.
Perception of risk varies by age. Absolute risk does not. It is therefore possible that the young perceive risk closer to the absolute level and accomplish things the old can not.
...As long as the kid is enjoying it...
Would be the nub of it for me.
I don't necessarily have an issue with kids taking calculated risks.
But Daddy's affection seems to be tied up with facing down the fear, taking bigger and bigger risks (that Crosby doesn't quite seem equipped for) and making sure there's an insta-banger in whatever he's doing...
Nurturing talent means encouraging your kids to do something they enjoy, be confident in it but also let them progress at their own pace, and recognise when they're approaching their limits.
That kid was one over-shot, nose heavy landing from broken bones. Young Crosby is going to go OTB in a big way at some point primarily because his Dad wants the likes.
When that happens the potential knock to his confidence and resultant loss of enjoyment in riding are going to make getting back into it harder. I certainly don't think his Dad is equipped to deal with that scenario... Trying to instill a "go big or go home" mindset into your 7 year old is not how you make a future champion, whatever some might believe.