but what about the drunk adults who cause more trouble than the kids, and are more uncontrolable, sorry but as a devoted father of two, i have to say that.                                                                                                                                                                             

its just common sence really

I think you mean "rare" sense CC

Drunk out of control adults are shown the "error of their ways" in my experience Ian. And if they're not, have a word with whoever's dealing with security, cos they're not doing their job right.

                                                                                                                                                                             

tell me about it, apart from my day job i am also a sia door supervisor, so i have my fair share of drunks to deal with, ijust think adults alot of the time can be a bigger pain in the arse than kids, ie a child is not gonna lamp you one or start trouble.  

a child is not gonna lamp you one or start trouble. Lets have bike shows just for kids then.                                                                                                                                                                              

hey, you got something there ric lol                                                                                                                                                                             

My complaint wasn't that kids caused trouble... it was that the parents didn't give a toss about their toddlers running around unaccompanied while they slept off their afternoon boozing sessions... or that one pi$$ed up individual was careening around in front of the stage with his 3 year old on his shoulders, piling into people, chairs and gawd knows what else... or that parents allowed their kids to run around up and down the entry/exit road while everyone was trying to leave the site...

There were at least 2 bike drops during exit... I'm sure the parents would've been wailing and whinging about poor little johnny being flattened by one! It's simple. You have children, you take responsibility for them.

                                                                                                                                                                             

well sed WB   u might be right...rare indeed lol                                                                                                                                                                             

I've been to rallies where under 18's were not allowed , its accepted ! these are adult events and advertised as such , even taking a wife or girlfriend along was a personal choice knowing that things could get out of hand . Then again there were many rallies that clearly stated they were family events , often managed by christian riders with no booze on sale , you were allowed to bring your own...but bad adult behavior was'nt tolerated at all here the kids ran free with no danger of being hurt and the parents could sit back and relax .If you dont enjoy it stay away ...at either venue the choice is yours .

If you dont enjoy it stay away ...at either venue the choice is yours .

I disagree. I should be able to enjoy a family-friendly event, despite not having children myself. I always have done over the past 20+ years.

Parents should keep their children under control and not get drunk, fall asleep and leave their children running around unaccompanied in the afternoon. (I'm not talking about pre-teens or teens here - I'm talking about 5-6 year olds!)

Parents should also realise that they're putting their children in danger by permitting them to run around an entrance/exit road on a Sunday morning while thousands of bikes are trying to leave a site... many of which are likely to have hungover and sleep-deprived riders...

Surely it's not unreasonable to expect parents to control/supervise their children at an event? When did so many parents become so irresponsible? Where's the parents' respect for others?

                                                                                                                                                                             

Did'nt mean to ruffle your feathers WB , but the family affairs i was on about were mostly very low profile small entry events and often the marshalls etc were parents as well , so the kids had the run of the house but not in an unruly manner , believe me they normally had firm but fair parents...on the other hand at the age restriction rallies iv'e seen big men literally act like a..eholes !

Teehee! My feathers are far from ruffled - I'm just disagreeing with your point

I've always preferred going to family-friendly events - partly because it means my friends with children can go - partly because the "adult" behaviour doesn't kick in til the kids are all tucked up in bed or at least away from the bar area - partly because I prefer a mixed crowd.

If I and people like me, stay away from family friendly events because of unacceptable behaviour by certain parents at them, this behaviour soon becomes "acceptable" and the "norm". I don't think it's unreasonable to demand that parents take responsibility for the supervision and control of their own children and their safety.

On a very small scale event where everybody knows & trusts everybody else, I accept that it can be a totally different situation. But on a fairly large scale event (approx 3,000 people) it's really too risky to allow your kids free rein like that.