I was out for lunch one afternoon while riding, and I parked my bike where I could see it, as I always did. A minivan pulls in and a little kid jumps out, sees my bike, and starts to climb it. The mother sat and watched. I was aghast! But justice was served when the little boy (about 7-8) burned his uncovered leg on the pipe. Screaming he was taken by his mother quickly away. To the hospital I would hope! He left skin on the pipe.

Making the garage off limits or covering the bike with at least a bed comforter would be your best bet I think. More important than the bike getting hurt, your children could be badly burned too. My little girls knows not to touch my bike and never does, but other children don't. Last thing you need is a lawsuit.

 

I don't have young kids in my garage but I also park mine with the right (a/c side) next to the wall. That's really the only direction it could topple over.

 

Build some kind of removable fence or barrier around it.

 

. . . .

 

My old man always just beat my *** when I got into something I shouldn't; seems to have been pretty effective.

Also, I've found that drawing attention to something seems to make it more attractive. Here's what I do:
1. Kids (grand) and wife stay out of the garage...that's my room. Y'all got the whole house.
2. Cover the bike and park it as stated, close to the wall on the AF side.
3. And then I say something like.. "did I mention the huge black widow spider I saw back in here?"

 

I've had the pleasure of dealing with this first hand, here's what I did.

I told my daughter if she wants to sit on the bike, daddy needs to be there. She's been great with that.

I caught one of the neighbors kids sitting on it while his father and I were having a beer. I quickly ran over to him, lifted him off, and told him not to sit on it because it was VERY HEAVY, and if it fell on him he would get hurt. His father's a great guy and told his son, "Mr. Jim is being nice, get off his motorcycle now, and don't ever screw around with that again".

Lastly, I park it against the back wall (AF side) and pull my wifes car up against it. You can't f_ck with something if you can't get to it.

 

Sounds like a bike cover is what I need to do! I already park it close to the wall, lecture my children and their friends, and attempt to keep everyone out of the garage. I'm hoping the cover will indeed make it less attractive for them to "explore".

Thanks for all the tips.

 

except if they think it's a tent and want to make it a fort..in which case... Claymores.

DEFEND THE FORT!

 

I really like the claymore idea but for those of us with kids it maybe a little harsh. My kids know the garage is not a play place and stay far away from the bike. I also keep it covered all the time.

 

How about keeping them gainfully employed doing some landscaping job in the back yard. They can't get into problems in the garage if they're too busy working. I have my first on the way so hopefully before she's old enough to have friends over society has decided to teach all they're children some manners and personal responsibility. Of course I'm not holding my breath