Dangerous scooter tricks. AIBU?!

[TippyTinkleTrousers]

My 10 year old is driving me insane with his scooter.

He's obsessed and doing really really well with tricks.
He's got a scooter which he has customised and we spend a lot of time taking him to skate parks on weekends and after school (he's consistently shown us that he's not old enough/to be trusted enough to go to these places by himself).

But these fucking scooter tricks in inappropriate times (on the street, at school/outside school, on the shared drive. Basically anywhere) is driving me insane. He's allowed to do tricks at the skate park and thats it.

He'll swing the bastard thing right round his head without and regard of people who are around him.

I've gone ape shit about it (after telling him calmly time and time again). I've explained that he could bloody kill someone.
I've banned his scooter for a week.

He does it again.

I banned his scooter for a fortnight

He does it again.

I banned scooter for a month (best part of the summer holidays)

And it's been two weeks and I've caught him doing it again.

Hes now lost his scooter for 2 months.
When will the information get into his damn brain?!

Tricks at the skate park and NO WHERE ELSE.

For fuck sake, am I alone in this?! Why won't he learn?!

It wouldn't be a child.

It would be an adult.

No one else has a scooter obsessed child who does tricks?

Can you keep hold of the scooter but still take him to the skate park? So he can't ride it to school or play out on the drive but you still let him ride in the skate park?

I could but I feel like he needs to learn, this needs to be a punishment.

Am I being too harsh then, do you think?

Have you posted about him before ? (just rings a bell - if so, sorry it hasn't improved !)

I think it is time to take it away - you've given him plenty of chances, and really the damage he could do if he hits someone in the head with it doesn't bear thinking about.

I'd put it in terms of being grown up enough to take on the responisbility of a scooter round other people. Like people have to be old enough and sensible enough to learn to drive because if they are silly they could really hurt someone. He's shown he isn't grown up enough to take what you are saying seriously.

When I say take it away - I mean at all times other than at the skate park, obviously it's nice for him to get out in the fresh air and do something active, but if h e;s only safe at the park, then that's the only place he can have it. And say you will review the situation in six months or whatever.

This is quite a big thing round my way and I've been hit in the shins by swinging scooters twice so far. The scooterers seem quite oblivious to the risks eg swinging their scooter 360 degrees on a narrow pavement. I would totally lock the scooter up away until your DC has learnt to be responsible. But I am an old meanie!

I don't think you are being too harsh, but I think he really isn't getting how serious it is - because it hasn't happened yet. Would he not feel he was being punished if he can only skate under supervision at the park ?

I don't think you're BU at all! I would take it away completely. My DC are a bit younger but I say that if they can't play responsibly with something they can't have it!
That does sound very dangerous.
I would leave it and try again in a few months.

Oh.
I hope I haven't posed about this before, that would be embarrassing.

I will check.

I was getting de ja vu as well but I thought that was just because I've been considering writing this thread for a while.

I think I will have no scooter at all for a couple of weeks and then just have it at the skate park full stop.

That's the only thing that's going to work.

I'm going to check to see if I've posted about this before.

Ah yes. You could be describing mu DS (although he wouldn't swing it around his head)

The constant thump thump thump of the scooter indoors. The grinding, the mummy look at this, the requests for skatepark visits. TBH I'd rather he has a hobby than sat on his arse watching YouTube

The kids round here will ride their scooters along the pavement and then suddenly unexpectedly fling it down outside a friends gate o you nearly trip over it. We alos have kids (about 10/11/12ish) riding bikes along thepavement like maniacs really fast right up behind you, not a thought for others safety. I think some children this age can be very oblivious to the impact they are ahving on others.

Oh God I have posted about this before!

That's bloody stupid and I'm a bit embarrassed. It's practically word for word as well!
Its been a crazy, mental few months with all kinds of crap coming my way so that's my defence. Cringing here though.

No - don;t be embarrased - could easily be my memory being wrong, I just had a vague memory of another little boy who was scooter trick crazy - if it wasn;t you posting then at least you know you aren't alone !

It;s fine - you're asking for fresh approaches - nothing wrong with that.

(l'm always posting about cat poo in my garden - I get wound up and have to say it again )

Usually punishments need to be small and frequent, and ideally a natural consequence of the bad behaviour, if they're going to work. I think the rule needs to be, scooter at the skate park only because he's just not safe with it anywhere else. The temptation to do dangerous things with it is too great otherwise. And yes, for a child who love to scoot that probably is a punishment.

Maybe also consider turning this round a bit into a reward scheme. If scooting at the skate park is more fun than mucking around with the scooter at home, maybe something like, first limit the number of times you take him to the skate park each week for a while. Then say that if you will leave the scooter out for him to use at other times and if he uses it safely and only safely at these other times, then he can have an extra trip to the skate park as well.

Kleinzeit yes, that idea actually seems much more doable. It makes more sense then just banning it for 2 months and expecting that to work. Because clearly my approach isn't working.

Thank you.