[Closed] Kids on cycling paths are they worse than dogs 😉

Err I presume you'd just try and avoid him??

You could reflect on how you had to learn to ride once.

I'd just stop, smile, and let him/her carry on 🙂

be careful when approaching a family train, they have a habit of pulling out from behind mum or dad without looking.

What is the thing to do when a kid is wobbling towards you and then its either collect him or take to the undergrowth. Dad was apologetic but it could of gotten messy if I had hit the little blighter.

Perhaps you should ride a little more considerately to other cycle path users 😀

Use your superior skillz to avoid them or even better smile and offer them some encouragement now they have joined the gang.

^^ This ^^

Shirley, all STWers are honour bound to bunny hop him and pull a 90yd cowboy yeehaw as you wheelie away?

Perhaps I should wear a Stetson to enhance my lone ranger twinkle smile.

Slow down - it's a cycle path! Of course there'll be wobbly kids on it.

Hmm... last time I had some little kids ahead of me on a cycle path the wee boy challenged me to a race. Whoever win gets to keep the losers bike!

I talked the stake down to [i]"Buy the winner an ice cream"[/i] then raced him and his little sister (who was on her first day without stabilisers) for a mile or so to the shop.

Gave them both a couple of quid to buy some ice cream and carried on my way with a lighter pocket but a happy heart 😀

You could always just ride on the road.

did my mo'bike theory test a short while ago. the phrase "slow down and be prepared to stop" comes to mind!

Graham you got beaten by a little boy and an even littler girl??! You must be RUBBISH on a bike or really really old (like over 30) or both!

offer them some encouragement now they have joined the gang.

after all.. they have more right to be there.. it's [b]you[/b] that hasn't grown out of playing around on bikes..

You must be RUBBISH on a bike or really really old (like over 30) or both!

I'm 36, so both. 😀

I particularly liked the little boy riding along shouting "Loser. Loooooooo-ser. Looo-hoo-hoo-ssserrrrr. Did you go to Loser School?"

I talked the stake down to "Buy the winner an ice cream" then raced him and his little sister (who was on her first day without stabilisers) for a mile or so to the shop.

We need a best post of the day button for that. I hope you had your elbows out and head down

I wouldnt batter you. I'd expect you to stop or slow down if there was a risk of collision though.

You could scream "GET OVER TO THE LEFT" at them like the joey in lycra on a Marin did to my 6 year old lad in Richmond Park earlier. Luckily I wasn't in earshot otherwise I might have embarrassed myself.

I hope you had your elbows out and head down

Yep, and the granny ring spinning as fast as I could crank it 😆

Nice one Gee To the Power of Ess! 🙂

I [s]w[/s][b]C[/b]ouldnt batter [s]you[/s] anyone

At least, unlike dogs, they don't crap all over the place, and generally aren't attached to the parent with fifteen feet of almost invisible string.

Shout at him on your right that what most riders shout at me, or hand the father a leaflet about the various free cycle training courses availible in the locality, and then tell him youre going to write about his child and the fathers percieved lack of parenting and cycle skills on a a bike forum.

..urm....slow down, prepare to stop-hazzard..... someone doesnt know their Green Cross Code !!! :wink:...

It was a bit of a perfect storm scenario 😆 couple of walkers taking up half the path family approaching with little Jonny in the front. He sees me and I slow down to a bout 3mph. Dad shouts for little Jonny to stop and he just spears left right in front of me. No where to go apart from into the foliage. Due to the walkers the path was only about a yard wide. No harm done to any of the parties involved.

Good to see none of Sundays STWrs are that sanctimonius 😉

I'm lucky to have a number of traffic free Sustrans cycle paths close by, the nearest being about 100 metres away, I am glad to see so many families out riding and happy to see a future generation of MTB'rs taking their first tentative riding steps (pedal strokes) Once you realise they have so much to concentrate on controlling their bike that guessing the speed of other oncoming riders is going to be suspect, then everything is fine.

On the canal towpath the other day a day was cyling towards me following his kid. He shouted to his son to go to the right(my left) the side I was already on and the correct side to pass. I just stopped on the left side of the path.

The dad in this case gave me a right dirty look - to which I replied - ride on eh left please
Its good to teach your kids to ride and offroad paths are good - but FFS you ride on the left!

Is there an actual rule about riding on the left on bike paths?

It would seem sensible and logical to do so

Logic has no place here.

I think one just needs to use some common sense.

FFS you ride on the left!

Do you?

Can't say I've ever particularly cared which side someone rides or passes on a path.
Do you shout at pedestrians for walking on the "wrong side" of the pavement to TJ? 😕

There was a little dude out with his dad at Cannock yesterday. He heard us coming and told his lad to move over. I said no way keep going until he needs to stop or dabs down etc. All of a minute later he had a little stutter and we made our way by, just said to the little fella "nice work buddy, keep it up" his dad gave me an appreciative nod and thankyou and on we went. Did it spoil our ride,, errr no!

graham yes - its a urban multiuse path (towpath) heavily used by bikes and pedestrians as are many others locally - 90%+ of folk ride on the left to allow for confusion free passing - you will probably be passing another bike every 100 m or more often.

If you don't ride on the left you get confusion when passing so yes - ride on the left to allow passing without confusion.

Of all the things that bother me, this wouldn't be one of them. Slow down, stop, or as a last resort do a massive bunny hop over them 😉

We ride/drive on the left-hand side of the road in this country; one would assume that it's the natural thing to do on a cycle path. It's what I do without even thinking about it.

FFS you ride on the left!

On the canal towpath

On our local towpath I try to get my little boy (3) to ride on the side furthest from the canal irrespective of which side that is, on account of how he's still getting the hang of how gravity works and stuff, and might fall in the water and catch leptospirosis or something lovely like that. Perhaps the dad in this case wanted to avoid the same thing?

Unfortunately common sense does not prevail in this world.
Does that kid have every right to be there on that common use path? Entirely
Would I let my kid ride his bike on a path where cyclists commute at high speeds?
Absolutely not.
Regardless of who's at right here, the law won't protect you, your own judgement might, and if you're an idiot then that's your problem!!

I think the dad probably did - however I was already on the left side right on the edge of the hard surface.

If he wants to pass like that by going on the right hand side of the path he is going to get incidents every hundred yards along there. Its a busy path that is well used. I did stop/ I was not going to risk going in the canal for him by having to swerve to the wrong side across in front of the wobbly child

I must admit that if I'm taking my boys along the towpath I make sure that they're on ths side furthest away from the water. Makes perfect logical safe sense to me.

There are no rules on the bike paths other than dont run into people.

Is there one single ballsack left intact on this forum?

I weep for humanity. Then I weep more. 🙁

selfish parent there? Why do your children mean that I have to swerve tot eh wrong side to pass them at risk to me? You would just end up with me stationary on the left side of the path - I ain't swerving towards the water to avoid them when they are on the wrong side. Too unpredictable.

Why would you have to swerve? Only reason to swerve would be because you weren't looking where you were going. There is no wrong side other than in your head.

"I must admit that if I'm taking my boys along the towpath I make sure that they're on ths side furthest away from the water. Makes perfect logical safe sense to me."

Having kids with the sense to not fall in the first bit of water they are within an inch of would make even more 'perfect logical safe sense'.

Natural selection my friend! Maybe your little fetishes just aren't meant to make it to sexual maturity for the good of us all! 😉