My soon to be 11 year old son and I had a great time at MTTS last time but this year it doesn't fit in my schedule for work. And I've always wanted to do MOTD, but just haven't yet. No better time than the present, huh? Anyway, he'd have my hide if I went without him as he is a certified MINI nut just like me. I guess my real question is if this is a "kid friendly" event? I assume so, but just looking for some perspective from those that have been there. I know we'd be up for ziplining....
Save for the Brew Swap and the Wine Tasting all things are kid friendly. There is the Pinewood derby thing the Pittsburgh group does that is a hit with the kids too. There are always a few kids at MOTD and they seem to have a great time.
There are always a lot of kids running around. It reminds me a lot of my childhood... fewer electronics, more fresh air and imagination. The pinewood derby thing would be a great parent/child bonding thing, IMHO.
This will be our third MOTD and the second one that our daughter will come with us. Last year she was 9 weeks old. We had no problems with taking her on any of the drives with us. Everyone loves to see young Motorers.
This is my first dragon and I think it's just a personal judgement call. My stepkids are 14/16 and are "too cool" to spend a weekend without electronics and around MINIacs so heck no they're not coming. Haha! Vacation for hubby and I!
I second (or is it third now?) the pinewood derby idea for an 11yr old. Not only that, but if he likes minis, there is nothing better than hundreds of them everywhere! You could always spend a day 'away' from the drives too if he seems to be getting burnt out on minis. Plenty to do in the area as alternatives.
I took my then 12 year old daughter with me to MOTD5. (Our first) This necessitated me signing her out of school for 3 days (which she did not mind but Mom had misgivings about.:mad5 Since then she has been to all but one. She does have a hard time giving up the texting while we are there. ( Hourly trips to the upper dam parking lot for the burst of text messages she receives:rolleyes5 I have to say that I have no problem getting someone to ride along and she really gets into it. One year she had me almost convince to get her a 4 point harness as she was tired of getting thrown out the window while going over the Dragon. Hopefully she will be along again this year, but the dates conflict with her senior trip. For my daughter and me it was and still is a great bonding experience. Oh and now she is looking for a Pepper white R53 so she can drive the dragon in her own MINI!:devil:
My experience with kids at car events for over 30 years is pretty simple. Good kids are welcome everywhere and are a pleasure to be around. Not so good kids on the other hand...... Both of my kids grew up in parking lots and race tracks all up and down the east coast. Personally, I think they're the better for it!
My son is 15 this year. This will be our 4th MOTD. I can't tell you how much fun we have together. We load the Mini up with camping gear and have a great time cooking out over a fire every night. Year before last we got stuck in a small town for a night trying to get home. That was the year Nashville flooded. The next day we were the only car headed west on I-40. the only we made it home the next day was because we had the C.B. with us. Never leave home with out it! It was a great adventure we will both always remember. I sure your son and you will have a good time. Hope to see you there.
Last year I was in a group that was on a very spirited run of the Dragon and I was behind a couple whose 8-10 yr. old daughter was in the backseat. Seeing that my passenger almost threw up on a few occasions, I have no idea how that little girl made it.