Small children on bikes on the road...

[coconuttella]

... Aged (I'm estimating) between 8 and 5, with parents chaperoning but the youngest were quite wobbly and they were on an A road, albeit a reasonably quiet one. AIBU to think this is reckless?

I'm all for teaching children to ride bikes, and for them to become proficient at cycling on roads, but at the appropriate age and competancy. A parent riding a few yards behind a wobbling 5 year old doesn't magically make them safe.... there's little they can do to stop them veering into traffic. And as for other road users, yes, some don't drive safely around cyclists... all the more reason to protect young children!

To those saying that it's reasonable because cyclists shouldn't be responsible for poor drivers, whereas that may be true, this would surely be very small comfort whilst hospital (or funeral even) if your child was the victim of such a driver!

Middle class cyclists are usually selfish
It just keeps on giving!
You can't enjoy riding a bike if you're middle class!
Quick, put out a memo

I don't think you're wrong op if the kids are very young and clearly not very good, but then if they were teaching them on the pavement you'd still have people moaning!

Are they the ones on penny farthings or with large picnic baskets full of ginger beer and smoked salmon sandwiches?

Local to me a 7yo died cycling on a road with a parent.
Mind, our roads are dangerous to cycle on as an adult, never mind a child.
We do cycle tracks only even though that means an awful lot less cycling than we would like.

DH did once get close to 40mph on a bike, but it involved a A road, a hill, a following wind and definitely no pavements!

The family OP describes were probably out for fun, so could have chosen another route. However DD will be cycling to school. There are marked, shared cycle/pedestrian paths along the A road section, but at some point she'll be too old to cycle on the pavement along the quieter roads. So she's going to have to learn to cycle on the road eventually. Not all of us just cycle for fun.

Sheepy I've hit mid to high 30s in similar circumstances (downhill with a strong tail wind and tucked down in the drops) and that's why I know, unlike eleventy that 40 on a pavement with pedestrians on it is impossible.

Perhaps eleventy and Ann should get together and see if their combined intellect was enough to constitute a halfwit.

I cycle with DD(7) and DS (5) on the road.. No choice, no pavements. DD in front, DS in the middle, me bringing up the rear. No real issues as yet, but some people drive far too fast..

I hit 38mph once, but it was down a long hill on the back roads of Derwent, so no cars or people around, and I was pushing it.
Normally I chicken out at 30mph!