05-25-2016, 05:17 PM
There is little doubt that we all can be better than we are, at whatever we do. There is even less doubt that many new riders do not have the skills necessary to ride a motorcycle safely in heavy traffic.
The question is, what is the most economical way for them to improve?
Over many years, watching new drivers and riders I believe that it is not more or better training, it is the time spent practicing, not moving the machine in traffic, but simply operating the machine. Lots and lots and lots of time. Time that would be simply prohibitively expensive if done under direct supervision of professional instructor.
So my advice to new riders is this:
Get some basic training; it won't hurt. But when you are done with it, you are in no way fit to ride in traffic. Spend at least 50 hours practicing, alone, on an empty parking lot, so that operating the machine becomes a "muscle memory" activity. Then and only then venture into traffic, either with an instructor or alone.
This is completely different from what any novice rider motorcycle training course I know of offers. They all give you just a couple of hours of instructions of operating the machine, and then take the new driver on the road, with an instructor, typically riding with a group of trainees, who all obviously still struggle with just operating the machine and thus learn little or nothing about riding in traffic.
The question is, what is the most economical way for them to improve?
Over many years, watching new drivers and riders I believe that it is not more or better training, it is the time spent practicing, not moving the machine in traffic, but simply operating the machine. Lots and lots and lots of time. Time that would be simply prohibitively expensive if done under direct supervision of professional instructor.
So my advice to new riders is this:
Get some basic training; it won't hurt. But when you are done with it, you are in no way fit to ride in traffic. Spend at least 50 hours practicing, alone, on an empty parking lot, so that operating the machine becomes a "muscle memory" activity. Then and only then venture into traffic, either with an instructor or alone.
This is completely different from what any novice rider motorcycle training course I know of offers. They all give you just a couple of hours of instructions of operating the machine, and then take the new driver on the road, with an instructor, typically riding with a group of trainees, who all obviously still struggle with just operating the machine and thus learn little or nothing about riding in traffic.