I missed the first few pages somehow. Snoshoe, make sure you are standing when ever you jump. Be on the balls of your feet, but still be able to hit the back brake if needed. I saw the pic of your son, and it looks like he is seated the whole time. Best thing to do is gradually hit the jump fast and faster. Until you get a feel for it. Also, you can preload it, which is kind of like bunny hopping a bicycle, right before you get ready to take off from the jump, try bunny hopping so as your in the middle of coming up (your body) the quad is taking off from the jump. It takes practice, but you can get more height and distance with the same speed. Careful though, as most people that try this "whip" the bike because they push harder with one leg than they do the other. Brakes do factor a lot in jumping. Mostly your back brakes, because the momentun (energy) from your rear wheels is far greater than the front wheels. Which is why when you see someone do a back flip, they keep the throttle pinned.
When landing, try landing all four wheels at the same time, or at least the rears a spilt millisecond before the front. This will give you the most plush landing, as then all 4 shocks are absorbing at the same time instead of just 2. You can also throw your body weight around a little bit. I am a big boy like you right now (225) and it definately can be done.
Exhausted, your kids are adorable.
2008 700xx; Power Bomb header with power core 4 exhaust, Power Programmer III, pro armor nerfs, prm products control front and rear bumpers and full skid, 10" ITP rears, ITP Baja's fronts, RZR 2's all the way around, Uni filter, 13t sprocket, CCP steering Damper, DS450 shock swap, Dual Gasser Throttle, bar risers and Moose barkBusters. 730XX kit plus other engine mods!