Who would guess that Thomas the Tank Engine could take down a dirt bike?

The new Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act, designed to protect toddlers from the dangers of lead paint, makes no distinction between the toy a tot might lick and the dirt bike an older sibling might ride.

"Two weeks ago," said Kim Love, controller of West Hills Honda in Moon, "I had to remove $20,000 worth of vehicles from my sales floor because some of the metal alloy components, like valve stems and brake pads, contain lead and aren't safe for licking.

"You know how those kids love to lick a valve stem."

Actually, whatever controversies there may be about dirt bikes, kids mistaking them for lollipops is not one that ever has come up. But it's easy to see how this overbroad law came about.

Congress was reacting to the recall of 45 million toys and children's items last year, including the Cookie Monster and Thomas the Tank Engine, that were contaminated by lead and other dangerous stuff.

So Congress voted overwhelmingly last summer -- 89-3 in the Senate and 424-1 in the House -- to impose the toughest lead standards in the world, allowing only minute levels in products for children 12 and younger.

I doubt any of those 500 lawmakers was thinking about dirt bikes when they voted "yea," but the result is not only affecting cycle dealerships already contending with the economic downturn, it's having the unintended consequence of making the pastime less safe for those who own and ride dirt bikes.

Ron and Kim Roupe of Georgetown, Beaver County, bought two four-wheeled all-terrain vehicles for their grandchildren's birthdays last July. The Roupes have three acres -- "and no grass in my yard," she says -- because the grandkids, now 9 and 10, have been riding since they were 4 and 5 (with time out for meals, sleep and school, of course).

The grandparents learned the hard way -- in a motorcycle spill 15 years ago that tore the skin from their arms and legs -- that protective gear is a must. So the kids have to wear jeans, helmet, goggles and boots when they ride anywhere, and add chest protectors and gloves when they ride trails. Mrs. Roupe sent me photos of her grandson, Alex, and granddaughter, Chey, in helmets that Darth Vader would envy.

The Roupes bought extended warranties for the new vehicles but found when they returned to West Hills Honda a couple of weeks ago that the dealers wouldn't order new parts for them or service them. The vehicles since "have been taken off quarantine," as they're designed primarily for youths 12 to 15, but the Roupes still couldn't buy gloves or a larger helmet for the growing 9-year-old boy.

"I was so hot, I could have bit nails in two," Mrs. Roupe said.

What were the odds of either of her grandchildren ever mouthing their vehicles?

"Slim to none," she said, "and Slim left town."

Congress is aware of these glitches. Matt Dinkel, a spokesman for U.S. Rep. Mike Doyle, the Pittsburgh Democrat, said most members of Congress believe these problems can be fixed without new legislation. They're talking with staff at the Consumer Product Safety Commission about new guidelines.

Earlier this year, the commission decided that thrift stores and other sellers of used children's products didn't need to certify that their wares "meet the new lead limits ... or new toy standards." And if a manufacturer makes a reasonable determination that a lead-containing part is inaccessible to a child, that's OK, too.

The trouble is, almost everything on a dirt bike is accessible, as are the alloy frames on all-terrain vehicles.

A spokeswoman for the safety commission said it hopes "to provide some guidance in the very near future. We're talking weeks here, not months."

I'm still trying to figure out, to paraphrase Tina Turner, what gloves have to do with it. Why couldn't Mrs. Roupe buy protective gloves for her grandson?

Ms. Love of West Hills Honda says that the way Honda is reading the rules, "clothing fabric is exempt but none of the fasteners are." So until the manufacturer provides the distributors and dealers with something saying the snaps have been tested to have a lead content of less than 600 parts per million, the gloves aren't for sale.

A spokesperson for the U.S. House Committee on Energy and Commerce said testing isn't necessary if products aren't likely to contain lead, but dealers are wary. They recite safety commission rules that have them erring on the side of waiting and testing and keeping products off sale.

Mr. Doyle said the safety commission was "woefully understaffed during the Bush administration" but beefed up under the recent legislation. It should soon straighten this out.

Sweeping reform almost always needs a tweak.

"It was never intended to apply to non-ingestible items," Mr. Doyle said. "I don't think they lick their dirt bikes."