Sounds like it may have been time somebody checked the tappet clearance of that exhaust valve, Ty. That and a lapping job might have prevented a nasty experience.
Kids' first tries at operating engine-driven equipment can be a bit traumatic if things go wrong. I recall my first exposure to driving was a three-wheeled motorcycle (Turner Tri-Van) in the back yard at age 11. Not knowing any better, I rotated the twist-grip throttle the wrong way to slow down. The vehicle finally came to rest with its back wheels jammed against the back wheels of two very valuable antique cars, and the trike's engine still screaming while its front tyre was still skidding on the bricks. At that point I tried moving the throttle in the opposite direction. Aside from a U-shaped back axle on the trike, and a few nightmares for me, no harm was done - but I still remember it quite well. Didn't seem to learn much from it though: I put my younger daughter on a postie bike at the same age and she did the same thing, but figured out the error before she hit anything. Maybe the younger generation are smarter than we were - they certainly claim to be.
