offroading for kids - where, when?

Whan is the earliest time to start having a child do some offroading?
4-5 years of age?

And where? Are there any places in the bay area where you can go
on weekends?

I couldn't find any information on the AMA site...

 

Hey, try rec.motorcycles.dirt

My rules for introducing a kid to a dirt biking are

1) Can he ride a bicycle, really well? As in no training wheels, in
complete control of steering, braking and turning.

2) Does he really want to try it?

If you can answer yes to both of these, then go for it.

My third rule, because dirt bikes are relatively expensive and maintenance
intensive, is can he do any of the maintenance on it. Say, clean a chain,
or check tire pressure, or maybe even change a spark plug. Most people
don't really like this rule, but in my opinion, if you take care of all
maintenance from the very beginning, kids tend to not take responsibility
for the bike, and will lose interest quickly without constant infusions by
the parents of time and money.

As far as places to ride, Carnegie and Hollister State OHV parks are
easily within reach of the Bay area for day trips, and are an incredible
resource. See

http://www.all-offroad.com/DirtBikes/Where2Go/California_Riding_Areas.html

as a starting point.

 

Closest area is probably Metcalf. Don't know about the age.

Make sure you buy lots of good protective gear (helmet, boots,
chestguard, knee and elbow pads etc.) You also don't want him
riding out of your sight, so you either need to ride along
or keep him in a small area where you can watch him. Too easy
to ride the wrong direction on a trail or make some other
dangerous mistake.