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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.
Waiting for the Zoo fighter to say he would of battered me 😆
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! 😉
Young kids have the legal right to ride on the road too.
Would you let your kid do so?
If they were killed, the driver would be at fault so its ok isn't it?
cos I would be riding on the left, I would see another cyclist approaching and would go automatically to the left edge and I will not swerve over to the right across infront of children or other riders as I don't know what they will do and I amnot putting myself at risk
Just look - 99% of all riders on the canal do this - ride on the left
TJ - not in my expereine they dont. Most of them ride down the middle and dont slow down for anyone let alone kids, hence safest place for kids to be is on the right.
Answer me this - if you were riding along a long straight part of the canal and you could see from say 400m away that someone was riding along the right handside of the path furthest away from the water would you try and force them to move left?
Left, right, whatever.
Kids and animals - they are both unpredictable. If you see them, slow down.
Yup - I will already be on the left and will always will go to the left - every time.
99% of people go to the left to pass.
Bit selfish that TJ. I'd just get the kids to stop on the right and make you look like a right tosser. 😀
sbz - its selfish to think your kids have right of way over me.
It's more selfish to think that you have right of way over them...
Especially as the riding on the left thing is only a rule in your head.
I just don't understand why anyone, ever, accuses cyclists of being selfish..
the real question is. how many on here would love to push both sbz and TJ in?
I love it when people try to rigidly apply rules to situations where a bit of anticipation and generosity work better.
When I took my two eight-year-olds on a wobble down the local towpath recently, they were firmly instructed to take the side furthest from the water whenever pedestrians or cyclists were encountered.
If I'm pedalling on a towpath and approaching a family group, or pedestrians, I'll always put myself on the canal side well in advance to make them feel more comfortable.
Canal towpaths are flat. You can see a long way ahead and position yourself in the most sensible spot well in advance. Why anyone would need to swerve to avoid a family group is beyond me.
What martinhutch just said.
martinhutch - if you did that on my local canal you would be having an altercation every hundred yards or so and annoying a significant number of cyclists on a busy multi use path where 99% of people would be riding on the left and expecting to pass that way as well
Pedestrians yes expect them anywhere but cyclists - on the left please
how many on here would love to push both sbz and TJ in?
No - but I'd pay to watch them ride towards each other on the tow path.
No - but I'd pay to watch them ride towards each other on the tow path.
😆
Can I add that it would be good if they were both being chased by braying dogs?
Anyway, the way I look at it is, it's great to see kids on bikes - far better than seeing them in the back of a car. If I'm approaching an adult on a bike on a towpath or similar, I'd expect us both to pass on our lefts. If I see kids on bikes, I'd slow down and just pass so as not to scare the bejeesus out of them. Say hello, have a laugh with everyone, and hopefully ensure that I haven't made a child feel negative about being on a bike and made the parent(s) think "What an arse!".
Lets all of us be generally awesome to one another.
if you did that on my local canal you would be having an altercation every hundred yards or so and annoying a significant number of cyclists
Glad to say that every other cyclist I met for 16 miles between Skipton and Saltaire was friendly, understanding and accommodating to my two. Lots offered words of encouragement and praise, which was even better.
Must be horrible on your 'busy, multi-use path'.
Different circumstances call for different approaches. Film at 11.
Oh I would slow down, be encouraging and so on. I would like to see the parents teaching the nippers courtesy and sense which would be to ride on the left and pass on that side. Doesn't seem too much to ask does it?
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!
I don't see any reason that anyone should be forced to ride on any side off-road, often kids ride on the side farthest away from an obstacle and I'm reasonably skilled on a bike so more than happy to assume to higher "risk" and ride on the other side. Also, being an adult, I've pretty good speed and depth perception so it's not too hard for me to make that judgement fairly early on and assume the best position to let all pass happily. Of course there are some times when people both assume the same position at the last second, which can be sticky, but in general it works in the "kids have right of way, after that stick to what side you're on OR think early enough to move before the other person" wayy.
So I am on the left. kid with dad behind - kid is wobbling about using the whole path. I see them 50+ yards away and move right over to the left and slow as I normally do to allow them to pass. After I have done this and when only 20 yards away the dad says "go right" to the boy taking him directly into my path - the same line I had been on for a distance. Now if I go to the right at that point I am going to have to cross the path right in front of the child wobbling about on his bike. Not a good move - the child is not predictable.
Why at that point should I move right - away from convention, towards danger, putting myself on collision course with the child?
One of the routes on my commute follows a Sustrans trail along the side of the River Wye and through the summer months it can be chock full of families either walking or riding during my commute home. They go left, right, stop, or disperse in all directions. I ride accordingly and don't [i]assume[/i] anything; life's not long enough to stress about the rights or wrongs of trail etiquette on these occasions.
TJ, I'd like to think you are trolling? No-one can be as intransigent and lacking in altruism as you in real life, surely?
It's sensible to ride on the left.
Riding along a cycle path (not next to a canal) around a blind bend, guy coming towards me. I'm towards the left but move right over... and he moves across to his right! So smash, we both end up on the floor. He was a bit larger than me so went down a bit harder, rolled around on the floor and moaned a bit.
If we did convene to ride on the left, it wouldn't have happened, and I did say that it might be an idea to start doing so
psling - what was I supposed to do in the situation I outlined above?
As it is I came to a halt on the very left of the path.
Sustrans trail along the side of the River Wye and through the summer months it can be chock full of families either walking or riding during my commute home. They go left, right, stop, or disperse in all directions.
Likewise on the "busy multi-use" path here along the Tyne: Sustrans/NCN route (N72), heavily used by walkers as it is on the Hardian's Way, plus dog walkers, day trippers, families, kids walking to school, horses etc etc
No way I'd shout at any of them for not sticking to some invisible rule that I've just made up. I just keep my eyes open, ring my bell and slow down or pass as required.
In your situation TJ I'd have gone right as soon as the dad called "go right", said a cheery hello and thought absolutely nothing about it.
Kids, especially ones that are still learning, should be given right of way, encouragement etc. For them riding a bike is still hard and they need all their concentration to stay upright let alone worry about which side to pass on. Its really selfish IMO to expect them to move out of the way for you so you can get home 10 secs earlier.
In your situation TJ I'd have gone right as soon as the dad called "go right", said a cheery hello and thought absolutely nothing about it.
I would have probably hit the kid it was that close 0- certainly too close to make the manoeuvre safely. I was already right on the left of the path remember and the child in the middle
Its really selfish IMO to expect them to move out of the way for you so you can get home 10 secs earlier.
I didn't expect them to move out of my way - I moved out of their way completely and ended up stopping as the dad gave the kid stupid instructions to ride at me - which meant the kid altering his line to ride towards the side I was on.
If the kid had gone straight on then there would have been no issue
TandemJeremy - Member
psling - what was I supposed to do in the situation I outlined above?As it is I came to a halt on the very left of the path.
I agree, it can be confusing / difficult but sometimes we have to concede, especially if a child is involved (and especially sometimes when that child is being further confused by a parent shouting directions at them which may or may not be making sense to the child).
In a perfect world it would make sense if everyone passed to the same side, gave way up or down hill as per the accepted norm, etc., etc. but reality is different and where animals and children are concerned it's generally best to just accept the potential unpredictability of the situation even when 'responsible adults' are with them.
I agree psling - which is why I stopped. Unpredictable child, stupid parent. I stopped.
I was not going to cross the path in front of the child
You lot must be REALLY bored....
I wonder if his dad would have pulled you out of the canal as quickly as you would have helped pull the kid out of the canal 😯 😆
which is why I stopped. Unpredictable child, stupid parent. I stopped
Well you could have chilled, and left it at that. No comments were really necessary and certainly its not something to get upset about in retrospect.
ian - the dad gave me a right dirty look and tutted - I merely asking him to ride and pass on the conventional side which will save him a lot of altercations along there.
This all reminds me of a rather humorous incident a couple of months back, where I encountered a family group on the Forth & Clyde canal - did exactly what other folk want TJ to have done, and hauled over to my right to let the more wobbly members of the oncoming family pass on the inland side of the canal. Unfortunately, for some reason, the mum decided she had to try and pass to her left, which given she was wobbling about on the bike something terrible, was never going to end well...
I was gallant enough to jump down and give her a push back up the canal, while her hubbie got on with the job of pissing himself laughing.
Whilst riding on the left is sensible for adults it's probably not the main thought going through a young kids head as they cycling. I'd say it's more reasonable than selfish to assume an on-coming adult would give a kid the right of way on a path and unless they have a big L and R written on their hands I wouldn't expect them to mover quickly/confidently in given a direction to head in either...