To Kid Or Not To Kid?
 

A recent conversation among poker-run organizers on attendance age-limits raised great questions, https://www.offshoreonly.com/article...-or-not-to-kid.

From the OSO home page.

No doubt some parents need a reminder about bringing kids to adult events like these.

I for one love seeing families together on events . Now that being said it’s all in the parenting as to what you want your children exposed to at the after party’s.

I have a 14 year old son and he did his first poker run at the age of 12. He has been boating with me and my wife sence the age of two and loves it just about as much as I do. I loved having him as my first mate a 1000 times better then when i did a run with just the guys. It will be a memory of mine that i will take to the grave. And plan to do more together. With that sead there is runs that i would love to do but dont because i dont think they would be appropriate at times. So i pick what we do around that. Thats just me same gos for our local islands some places at times are better to take your kids then others. When it comes to respect for other boats i have seen many adults that have way less then my 14 year old son on many occasions. If he where to do something to damage something that would be on me as the parent and i am ok with that. So i see both sides. Thank you to Elite poker runs for putting on the family friendly event here in ohio
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I'm amazed every year seeing kids down in Key West during race week. I guess it is better than having them down there during Fantasy Fest. :picard1:

Love it!!!

We wont bring our kids to Key West Poker Run or Dessert Storm. May take them this year to Powell Challenge. Other than that, we bought another Cigarette specifically to get our young boys on the water and accustomed to offshore powerboats. Maybe plant the seed. They absolutely love it! My 11 y/o has been driving boats since before he could walk. Our 25 y/o daughter grew up around boats and loves them so much she now owns a Scarab CC (actually two) and is marrying a performance boat mechanic! LOL

But big party poker run weekends? It's doable but we like to actual party and have a good time (aka drink...not boat and drink but nightlife stuff) and that isn't something we'll do with the little guys. So, we pick our weekends of which they'll go and which they wont. We did bring our daughter to Key West for her first trip with she was 16 and she was hooked immediately. But she's mature beyond her years (as those that have met her can attest). Goes with us every year now and met her fiance there. Do it right and it can be the right thing to do. Come to think of it we did take her down on a buddies Tiger to KW one year for the poker run when she was about 8 or 9 but we did not expose her to any of the craziness back then. You can actually see her in the bolster with me in the pic of the Tiger running out of the bay in KW. We also have a great pic of her holding the fuel lever filling up the Tiger with Elway in the background filling up the Rough Rider :D

Stu nailed it though. It's not really an organizers job to parent members kids or decide where members will or wont take their kids. Hopefully members are smart enough to, as he said, go with social etiquette or norms.


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Key west is one I would think twice about bringing the kids for the sole purpose I literally don’t think there’s anything else to do there besides drink alcohol !! Then again when I’m there I’m not really looking for kids activities.

No kids in events like these is my take.

However I really don't like kids at all and will never be having any, so take that for what it's worth.

I don't mind our local weekend raft ups to have the kids and we all have fun. But for Poker run events I don't think it is the place or time until they are bit older (16 ish if I had to put a number on it).

at the tickafw 200 we let kids ride in the boats and come into the marina. but there is a fenced off area around the fun house that turns into 21 and older for the night time festivities. that's also due to having a gambling permit and liquor permit.