kids at the mtn bike park!

[Matchstix]

MMMM had a lot of grown ups pushing their bikes on the epic in places it was unnecessary.

 

Agreed not dogs on trails . .  especially in a bike park.

 

And kid are awesome to ramp over watch out for their arms. .  can ptentially get stuck in  a wheel and make you hit the dirt hard. .  especially if you are pulling of an insane 360 backflip tailwhip

 

[Danger Dassie]

How dare you!!

 

Jokes aside though, can't say I've really had an issue with the problems mentioned, but then I don't ride there that regular.

Sounds like it could also be a case of some parents just letting their kids roam around unsupervised in what they see as a safe enviroment.

[Tumbleweed]

How dare you!!

 

Jokes aside though' date=' can't say I've really had an issue with the problems mentioned, but then I don't ride there that regular.

Sounds like it could also be a case of some parents just letting their kids roam around unsupervised in what they see as a safe enviroment.

[/quote']

 

that's exactly what it is, but they should tell the kids what to do and what not to do?and what if one of them bliksems of that new bridge section. they'll never be seen again?

[Hog_]

 

that's exactly what it is' date=' but they should tell the kids what to do and what not to do?and what if one of them bliksems of that new bridge section. they'll never be seen again?

[/quote']

 

Which means we'll never see them again! That's what I like to call a problem that solves itself.

 

 

 

[KDEE]

Never mind the trails ( have stopped riding the trails at the park because of the kids ), but I have multi heart attacks when Im there with laaitie practicing on the BMX track...

 

My 9 yr old knows what he is doing, has a serious BMX race bike that left me eating bread and water for a month ( what fathers do for kids! ) and takes his practice seriously. He wars full kit whic includes a full face helmet.

 

So Sat pm are prime times for kiddies parties and you then get the whole worlds kids streaming onto the BMX track and crashing wholesale.. Kids on Makro specials, 16 inch bikes, MTB's that are way too big...

 

1. Down the start ramp and brake halfway up the first jump because its too high... slide all the way back down.. multiple roasties

 

2. Over the first jump and fall because the lip of the jump is faced for jumping.. Roasties and injuries

 

3. Join the track at any point... very important... wait for another kid/adult to come flying over a jump/of the berm and join just in front of them.. Injuries and eina to bikes... Abuse from parents once they find poor Johnny is also a given in this instance..

 

4. Beacause you are the only adult around for 300mtrs, you get blood and snot on your shirt...

 

The night of the very first Hub pre ride, I asked Geoff and others where the little kids would ride.... Some talk of a smaller BMX track, but nothing to date...

 

For R1800 for a B/Party ( eye watering ) what do you get?

No instruction on where and when to ride

A tiny tar area for kids with training wheels

No marshal to watch kids on the pump track or other areas. ( Adults cannot ride the pump track unless you use the kids as rollers )

A spot at the tables under the thatch... if you can fight of the other parents who also paid R50 per kids and feel like sitting there..

 

Our track charges R500 for a party and we close the track to the public for 4 hours for exclusive use, exactly because of these problems...

 

This is all first hand experience and something i have written to the park about..

 

Not everyone can ride at 5.30 am in the morning and so we dont ride the park on the weekends either. Pity, because I really liked it in the beginning..

 

 

 

[Thug]

That's why either a 29er or a 36er will come in handy at the Bike Park. Kid gets in front of you on a black route, no problem, ride over them and you won't even feel the slight bump.

 

 

[TiBones]

Here is the crux of the matter...... Do you think anyone involved in the running of MTN Cycle park is monitoring this thread.

 It (monitoring forums such as this) should be part of any organisation involved in any form of cycling. This is where the posts are that complain about poor service, ask relevant questions, have positive and or negative feedback about cycling related services etc etd

[KDEE]

Ali Maclean sometimes watches threads on the hub ( closest person involved I can come up with ), but in reality most unlikely... for all sorts of reasons..

 

I have always tried to first email or call before I participate with first hand experience.

 

[Tumbleweed]

That's why either a 29er or a 36er will come in handy at the Bike Park. Kid gets in front of you on a black route' date=' no problem, ride over them and you won't even feel the slight bump.

 

[/quote']

 

 

 

but turning it the twisty bits might be a bitch.

 

 

 

i don't see this as a management issue, because i often see the guys at the entrance telling the kids what to do and what not to do, especially first-timers. don't see how they could police that kinda thing anyway. it's up to the parents to get their kids out of harm's way.

[AndreZA]

i don't see this as a management issue' date=' because i often see the guys at the entrance telling the kids what to do and what not to do, especially first-timers. don't see how they could police that kinda thing anyway. it's up to the parents to get their kids out of harm's way. [/quote']

 

 

 

dit is maar net die gewone stoutgatrykmanskinders wat hulle boggerall steur aan re?ls want pappie se geld sal alles reg maak.

[KDEE]

 

That's why either a 29er or a 36er will come in handy at the Bike Park. Kid gets in front of you on a black route' date=' no problem, ride over them and you won't even feel the slight bump.

 

[/quote']

 

 

 

but turning it the twisty bits might be a bitch.

 

 

 

i don't see this as a management issue, because i often see the guys at the entrance telling the kids what to do and what not to do, especially first-timers. don't see how they could police that kinda thing anyway. it's up to the parents to get their kids out of harm's way.

 

Have to disagree there holy,

 

In the couple of times we have ridden there and the countless times we have been there to practice on the BMX track, not once has anyone at the payment portal asked me If knew where to go and what to avoid, etc, etc.. And we usually have kids with us...

 

On busy weekends with multiple birthday parties, a few riding marshalls with bibs and a few standing marshalls at the BMX track/ danger spots for passing/black routes would cost very little in the context of the amount of people at the park on a sunny weekend day..

 

I wont let my kids ride the trails alone, not because Im worried about them getting in the way of others, but because Im *** scared that they will hurt themselves.

 

Lots of 4x4 pavement driving parents think its a place to drop Johnny of the day in a controlled enviroment.... That indeminity is going to mean jack squat when some high powered lawyers child gets seriously hurt....

 

 

 

[Hog_]

I like the idea of having marshalls. Just take a few regulars, give them a cattle-prod and let them have some fun. Problem solved!

 

There are big signs up with the rules, signs saying 'no pedestrians' etc, but it seems that no one can read, or no one cares. A cattle prod will make people think twice.

 

 

 

[Tumbleweed]

 

That's why either a 29er or a 36er will come in handy at the Bike Park. Kid gets in front of you on a black route' date=' no problem, ride over them and you won't even feel the slight bump.

 

[/quote']

 

 

 

but turning it the twisty bits might be a bitch.

 

 

 

i don't see this as a management issue, because i often see the guys at the entrance telling the kids what to do and what not to do, especially first-timers. don't see how they could police that kinda thing anyway. it's up to the parents to get their kids out of harm's way.

Have to disagree there holy,In the couple of times we have ridden there and the countless times we have been there to practice on the BMX track, not once has anyone at the payment portal asked me If knew where to go and what to avoid, etc, etc.. And we usually have kids with us...On busy weekends with multiple birthday parties, a few riding marshalls with bibs and a few standing marshalls at the BMX track/ danger spots for passing/black routes would cost very little in the context of the amount of people at the park on a sunny weekend day..I wont let my kids ride the trails alone, not because Im worried about them getting in the way of others, but because Im *** scared that they will hurt themselves.Lots of 4x4 pavement driving parents think its a place to drop Johnny of the day in a controlled enviroment.... That indeminity is going to mean jack squat when some high powered lawyers child gets seriously hurt....

 

we're not that far apart on this one. the marshalls are a good idea. but your last sentence is what i'm getting at. i ride with my kids and let them go off on their own - they are 9 and 11 - and they tend to ride together, and, as they have were regulars at logwood, have an idea fo what to ride and what not to. but i would never just drop them off for the day. the kids i saw on angle grinder were all no older than 6. all were riding 16" bikes. the parents have to take some responsibility.

 

 

[KDEE]

Of course the parents are responsible and so they should be.

 

But in the case of the bike park, they are providing a venue that lends itself to parents kicking back at the Seattle Coffee shop, I mean its there so it must mean the we can sit there while the kids wander of .... right..?

 

Lots of parents have no idea just how big the park is to a small kid.... and thats where the park needs to be responsible.. Explaining when they sign in is one thing, after the indeminity they seem to abdicate responsibility..

 

At the very least, have a marshall at the top of the tar entrance to stop kids from going onto the trails easily...

 

[Tumbleweed]

Of course the parents are responsible and so they should be.But in the case of the bike park' date=' they are providing a venue that lends itself to parents kicking back at the Seattle Coffee shop, I mean its there so it must mean the we can sit there while the kids wander of .... right..?Lots of parents have no idea just how big the park is to a small kid.... and thats where the park needs to be responsible.. Explaining when they sign in is one thing, after the indeminity they seem to abdicate responsibility..At the very least, have a marshall at the top of the tar entrance to stop kids from going onto the trails easily...

 

[/quote']

 

 

 

as you said, we've had different experiences there. i've often heard the guys tell the first-timers what to do and what not to do, but if the kid doesn't have adequate supervision, you're asking for trouble. what i forgot to mention was that one of the kids on angle grinder had a jdbug "balance trainer"...you know, the ones with no pedals. what parent leaves a kid that small to wonder off? i don't think you can find fault with the presence of the coffee shop for the lackadaisical attitude, i think i would blame the coffee-shop-steakhouse-etc-mindset - "there's a playground, so i don't have to worry about my kids" attitude - of the parents on those potential hazards.

 

i mean, sure, there are single moms and dads who don't ride, but would it hurt to hire a bike and ride with your littlies for an afternoon?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

holy roller2009-06-08 11:54:49

[KDEE]

We are on the same page holy, especially the playground part...

 

The JD bug part doesn't surprise me at all... Some parents just shouldn't have children!

 

Thats why a decent area for kids to ride, near the coffee shop and stricter control in terms of who enters the trails and you have won half the battle...

 

Perhaps a armband with the parents phone number attached to the kid/bike would also help....

 

Im going to act dof the next time I am there and see if soemone tells me some do's and donts..

 

The only, and I mean only interaction I have had when entering is to sign, pay and ask for cable ties..... Thats it, not once have I been asked if I am familiar with the rules etc...

 

I cant help but use our track as example. Sure its a lot smaller, but you can see the kids the entire time and there is always someone watching for no helmets, riding the wrong way etc. Lots of gentle advice in terms of.... little Johny is really enjoying himself, but perhaps the big step into the bowl is not the best place to ride.... We have indeminities, loud and clear on the walls etc, but we are not so much worried that the parents may sue, but that the kids get hurt because the parents didnt know any better and we ignored them....