Having a walk and some scooter fun on the Marine Parade walkway last Sunday turned into evasive action and a moment of fear for Napier woman Melissa Abraham-Smith and her two youngsters.
They had been enjoying the first day of daylight saving with a late afternoon stroll and scoot in the sun along the walkway around 4pm when they were startled by the sight, and sound, of a speeding go-kart.
"There were heaps of people about at the time and there was one lady on a bicycle who had to get off the path and out of the way."
She said the go-kart looked to be a racing type and was "blasting along really fast". It was driven by a man who appeared to be in his 30s.
A second man who she thinks was with him was riding a quad bike.
"But he was on the grass - the go-kart was on the path. He came towards us and we had to get off and on to the grass."
Mrs Abraham-Smith said she and her boys, 3-year-old Conner and Lachlan, 5, who were riding their scooters, had just got on to the path at the Ellison St boundary, when a set of barrier bars near the parking area failed to slow the kart driver down.
"There was no room for anyone else as he went through the bars, and he didn't slow down."
Her main concern was for Lachlan who had scootered off ahead as she walked with Conner.
"But, thankfully, he saw it coming and was able to get out of the way. He was pretty shocked though and I was too. I wanted to yell something at this idiot but I just couldn't."
Mrs Abraham-Smith said the karter had gone up and down the pathway a couple of times and was last seen heading south towards Awatoto.
"I now wish I'd called the police."
Napier Community Police Sergeant Nigel Hurley was not impressed by the karter's choice of a track.
"That's crazy stuff and it is an offence - it is in breach of the bylaws."
Mr Hurley said there had been similar reports involving people using motorised machines on the pathways before.
"If we see them we will stop them."
Under the Napier City Council bylaws for reserve areas, it is prohibited for anyone to obstruct, disturb, annoy or interfere with any other person's use or enjoyment of any reserve area.
Under the clause covering vehicles, it states that except for areas designated for that specific purpose no person can ride or drive any vehicle, cart, motorcycle or power cycle on a reserve area.
Anyone in breach of the bylaws would be committing an offence and faced penalties and infringement proceedings.