Bike Safe NC

[Sonor]

This Friday I am participating in a training class that is offered free of charge to NC riders by the State Highway Patrol. It is a day long event with both class time and rides. They follow you on the open road and take notes. When you get back, they tell ya where you need improvement. I'll post a write up on Saturday.

 

It can be found at Bike Safe

[lawnchairboy]

safety training offered by the state? there is some NC tax I am glad to pay.

[NCStephen]

It is modeled after BikeSafe in the UK. It was brought to the NC SHP and has since been used to train other LE Agencies in NC so they also offer it. So look up BikeSafeNC and then see the other links. I think some of the ones are Durham, Jacksonville NC, and Forsyth County. I also think when I did mine there were folks from LE in Florida training for it.

 

I did mine in March 10 on one of the nastiest rainy days I have ever ridden in, and I ride in all weather. They cannot instruct you individually but can teach principles and observe and critique you against those principles.

 

It is a good thing to have the eyes of professionals measuring you against some know benchmarks.

 

They often book up pretty far in advance so check it out and sign up. At this time it is still free. It is a burden that the agency will endure right now but it often folks come in on their day off to help with this.

 

Z-man, looking forward to hearing from you about this. Hope to get my bike back sometime so perhaps a ride on the 11th??? It has been over three weeks without it.

 

NCS

[Jlaix]

I am looking forward to read your report. There is a program like that in Greenville and I wanted to try it.

[Michaelr11]

I took the BikeSafe NC course in Sept 2008 at the state police facility near Raleigh NC. It's a pretty typical mc safety course, except for the occupation of the instructors. Morning class and ride, lunch, afternoon class and ride, critique by your instructors. They kept talking about a course fee so I'm surprised that they have managed to keep it a free entry. Worth your time and would have been worth a typical MSF fee.

[Quinn]

Only thing missing from the course when I took it was the ability of the shadowing instructor to communicate with the students on the ride. Jim Ford's classes use a simple walkie talkie to mono ear plug for students with his being the only transmitting set.

 

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[motorman587]

It is modeled after BikeSafe in the UK. It was brought to the NC SHP and has since been used to train other LE Agencies in NC so they also offer it. So look up BikeSafeNC and then see the other links. I think some of the ones are Durham, Jacksonville NC, and Forsyth County. I also think when I did mine there were folks from LE in Florida training for it.

 

I did mine in March 10 on one of the nastiest rainy days I have ever ridden in, and I ride in all weather. They cannot instruct you individually but can teach principles and observe and critique you against those principles.

 

It is a good thing to have the eyes of professionals measuring you against some know benchmarks.

 

They often book up pretty far in advance so check it out and sign up. At this time it is still free. It is a burden that the agency will endure right now but it often folks come in on their day off to help with this.

 

Z-man, looking forward to hearing from you about this. Hope to get my bike back sometime so perhaps a ride on the 11th??? It has been over three weeks without it.

 

NCS

 

Hey, that was me......lol I was attempting to bring this back to Florida, however that "L" word gets folks nervous here in Florida. I remember that week as it was sleeting/cold/wet and the picture guy from the "Dragon" and his wife where in class. Still had fun.

[NCStephen]

Kewl, It is a small world. I remembered after I posted, that there were some out of state folks there. So I guess it was you and some folks from Indiana maybe? So glad to meet ya now since we didn't get to socialize much that mucky day.

 

NCS

[Horse]

FYI

 

http://www.bikesafe.co.uk/

 

Format varies between forces, but it's intended as a 'taster' session to encourage riders to go on to take formal post-test training.

[Albert]

safety training offered by the state? there is some NC tax I am glad to pay.

 

In PA both the msf basic and experienced rider courses are offered free of charge, by the state.

[tallman]

safety training offered by the state? there is some NC tax I am glad to pay.

 

In PA both the msf basic and experienced rider courses are offered free of charge, by the state.

 

Well, kinda, sorta, maybe,depends, no, ...

"The Basic RiderCourse 2 is FREE to Pennsylvania residents with a valid driver’s license or motorcycle permit.

 

The Pennsylvania Motorcycle Safety Program is funded through an additional fee that you pay when you obtain, renew or replace a motorcycle permit or license.

 

Out-of-state residents pay $150 to take the BRC2.

 

[Albert]

Looks like they've changed it. I've taken the ERC twice without paying. I understand the fee thing, I didn't mean to imply nobody paid for the training.

[RockBottom]

The Pennsylvania Motorcycle Safety Program is funded through an additional fee that you pay when you obtain, renew or replace a motorcycle permit or license.

 

Out-of-state residents pay $150 to take the BRC2.

 

True, but the fee is like $10 so it's still a steal. I've taken the BRC and the ERC/BRC2 three times. Was supposed to take it a fourth last weekend but it was snowed out.

[lkraus]

ERC here in Ohio was $25 last summer. Had to sign up in February to get a June date - schedule appears to fill up quickly.

I may have been expecting too much. It was a good days practice in slow speed maneuvering, but I feel the instructors could have spent a least a little time explaining HOW to ride slowly, ie. how to position yourself, weight the pegs, pick a line around the cones, etc. Instead, one of them would ride the course, while the other basically said "Do what she is doing" without pointing out exactly what was important. Feedback was just an occasional "OK" or "good". I would have rather had detailed criticism. I thinking I might look into a Lee Parks course next year...

 

 

[tallman]

Looks like they've changed it. I've taken the ERC twice without paying. I understand the fee thing, I didn't mean to imply nobody paid for the training.

 

Just chopping your busts.

I took a "free" ERC but in reality it was paid for by a grant.

$$ comes from somewhere.

It is great when the consumer gets a bargain and can learn something too.

Best wishes.

[Sonor]

Sadly, I am/was not able to attend the Bike Safe and canceled my reservation Wednesday eve. Flu like symptoms hit and though I am feeling better today, it would not have been good. When I do attend, I will post my experiences and thoughts about the training.

 

Hey RockBottom, few of us would know where the avatar picture is from - love that movie. :-)

[Horse]

ERC here in Ohio was $25 last summer. Had to sign up in February to get a June date - schedule appears to fill up quickly.

 

Blimey - that's cheap . . . at least it is by the standards of what we have to pay for a day of training this side of the pond!

 

Some examples:

Off-road: http://totalcontroltraining.co.uk/ . . . £225

On road: http://www.rapidtraining.co.uk/prices.html . . . £165 at 2 riders per instructor, or £285 if 1:1

 

Even subsidised training isn't cheap:

http://www.beabetterbiker.co.uk/index.php - £50 for a day

 

 

[Glenn Reed]

ERC here in Ohio was $25 last summer. Had to sign up in February to get a June date - schedule appears to fill up quickly.

I may have been expecting too much. It was a good days practice in slow speed maneuvering, but I feel the instructors could have spent a least a little time explaining HOW to ride slowly, ie. how to position yourself, weight the pegs, pick a line around the cones, etc. Instead, one of them would ride the course, while the other basically said "Do what she is doing" without pointing out exactly what was important. Feedback was just an occasional "OK" or "good". I would have rather had detailed criticism. I thinking I might look into a Lee Parks course next year...

 

 

Sorry you had a bad experience with the ERC. I paid five times that and had a very positive training course. I was very fortunate in that it looked like a major thunderstorm was going to wallop us so the other four riders didn't show, so I ended up with on-on-one training. Even so, the instructor took her time and explained what the exercise was going to be, when we would use it in real riding, and then went out and showed me. That portion would have been the same even with more riders. The fact that I was the only rider on the course after that, was completely a fluke, but one I will take.

 

Anyway, it doesn't sound like the crew you took the course from were anywhere near as conscientious (sp?).

 

 

[motorman587]

ERC here in Ohio was $25 last summer. Had to sign up in February to get a June date - schedule appears to fill up quickly.

I may have been expecting too much. It was a good days practice in slow speed maneuvering, but I feel the instructors could have spent a least a little time explaining HOW to ride slowly, ie. how to position yourself, weight the pegs, pick a line around the cones, etc. Instead, one of them would ride the course, while the other basically said "Do what she is doing" without pointing out exactly what was important. Feedback was just an occasional "OK" or "good". I would have rather had detailed criticism. I thinking I might look into a Lee Parks course next year...

 

 

That is how MSF wants the instructors to teach it. In fact we are called RiderCoaches, no more instructors. It is called adult learning. We only make corrections (coach) if it is a major error, the minor ones MSF believes the rider will correct on there own. I get in trouble with MSF or the Florida Riding Training Program Staff as I get told I talk to much......lol

[Horse]

. . . the minor ones MSF believes the rider will correct on there own.

 

Hmmm . . . that'll work if part of their training is self-awareness of what they're doing to 'calibrate' against what they *should* be doing.

 

FWIW, on my ERC I was told "Malcom, you're having too much fun!"

[myshkin]

Hi everyone,

I attended the NC Bike Safe last month in Winston Salem and really got a lot out of the course. We had 12 riders all of us on the mature side. The syllabus is a good general review of topics involving the safe operation of a motorcycle and it provided a good opportunity for all there to discuss the topics in depth. The presentation was done in a power point format and the officer who gave the presentation really did a good job. Kinda like a safety stand down for you folks who were or are in the military. The two rides we went on were on back roads and therefore really fun and provided all sorts of road conditions to practice what had been discussed in class. The only thing I thought was missing was a debrief after each ride. We had to wait until we sent in the evaluation for the course to receive a link to our debrief. The debrief consisted of rankings from 1 to 4 in each area graded and some general comments from the officer following you. It was not critical so at least in my case I don't know the areas I need to improve in.

 

I've noticed an increased awareness in my riding on my part since taking the course. All in all it was really a great experience and I would recommend it to everyone no matter what their riding level experience.

[motorman587]

When I did the instructor course, there was a break between rides ie coffee, soda break and there was when the motor officer should have told you the good and bad.....unless it has change back then.......Can I copy and paste your comment to Sgt. Brown??

[myshkin]

Hi Motorman,

My course critique has already been submitted including my disappointment at not being debriefed on the ride so I don't think it necessary to send my post to Sgt. Brown.

 

When we returned from the first ride we started back into the discussions and the second ride ended in a gas station parking lot where we took pictures and said goodbye.

 

We were told upfront that to get the debrief on the two rides we would have to first submit our course critique and then a link would be sent to us for the ride debrief so the policy may have changed. It wasn't what I was expecting from the course description posted on the web site and I was expecting some constructive comments on my riding.

 

Overall everything else about the course was outstanding and really beneficial to me in every aspect.

[NCStephen]

That wasn't my experience of BikeSafeNC with NC SHP. The folks from Forsyth were at the same training to learn how BikeSafe is done to take back to Winston. Part of the learning was the discussion after each ride. The motorofficer wasn't to be an instructor, but critiqued and graded what he observed. At the end of the first ride, that critique was a chance for discussion on what was observed, why the grade, what a better grade would look like for each area. At the end of the second ride, similar discussion, areas noted of improvement (better grade) and areas that might still be improved. I would think this important and should be reported back to Sgt Brown. He may be very aware of it but then again he may not be. It is an issue for quality control and if the change has been made, he is an appropriate person to hear of your disappointment in not having immediate feedback. Then again, they may have made that choice because of factors we don't know about.

 

NCS

[myshkin]

You make a good point. I'll contact the WSP department about this again before passing it up to Sgt. Brown. I think the discussion after each ride is critical to the improvement of each rider. In fact, we should leave our egos at the door and have a group debrief so all can benefit from each others mistakes.

[motorman587]

You make a good point. I'll contact the WSP department about this again before passing it up to Sgt. Brown. I think the discussion after each ride is critical to the improvement of each rider. In fact, we should leave our egos at the door and have a group debrief so all can benefit from each others mistakes.

 

Maybe you rode prefect and there was nothing to critique............

[myshkin]

Maybe you rode prefect and there was nothing to critique............

 

 

Yeah... I wish! Just got of the phone with Sgt. Brown. The intent of the two observed rides is that the rider will ride in their normal fashion on the first ride (passing cars, cornering, braking etc.) and on the second ride the rider will use the techniques of the system riding taught during class. Both rides are debriefed immediately following the rides and an on line debrief can be downloaded after the student provides a critique.

 

Sgt. Brown said he would correct the misunderstanding before the next class which is scheduled for the 28th of December.

[rfetested]

No more classes shown as being sceduled for this year or next.

[myshkin]

Check this link: http://www.bikesafenc.com/

 

There are two classes, one on the 17th in Henderson County and the other on the 28th in Winston Salem.

[motorman587]

Mark, the lead instructor for BikeSafeNC also offers this..... http://www.motomark1.com/ He video tapes your riding and then you go inside the classroom. You are fed etc............

[Juzar]

Mark, the lead instructor for BikeSafeNC also offers this..... http://www.motomark1.com/ He video tapes your riding and then you go inside the classroom. You are fed etc............

 

I took Mark's precision maneuvering class earlier this year. Highly recommended it. Its a full day class in a parking lot. Personally for me slow speed handling is a weak point, learned a lot from him.

[Sonor]

 

I took Mark's precision maneuvering class earlier this year. Highly recommended it. Its a full day class in a parking lot. Personally for me slow speed handling is a weak point, learned a lot from him.

 

I took Mark's Precision Maneuvering class a couple of years ago and it was very enlightening. I did it on my R1100R and think I should take it again this time on my RT. I can't say enough good about his class.

[Sonor]

Seems as though the 2012 classes are now posted. I am thinking of registering for the April class.