Bah...before we had so many freaking traffic cops in this country, the kid would have been out drag-racing. A certain number of kids pretty much always engage in risky behavior. They can't drop out and join the Marines at 15 anymore, so they find stupid (as opposed to noble) ways to get adventure.
I blame the feminization fo the Boy Scouts, which used to be a worthwhile organization. The kid should have been put in the Marine Corps cadets early on, and maybe this would have been avoided. We are hunters by nature and life in suburbia makes young males edgy ... exposure to healthy adventure activities will help get some of this out of their systems.
You're right. Kids can't even play kickball in school anymore -- too violent, someone might get hurt, someone might feel bad if he isn't chosen for a team.
Life for boys today sucks.