06-22-2015, 10:40 AM
I took the MSF class as well and in my case it was definitely time and money well spent.
We had an interesting mix of students in the class including a few guys that had been riding "forever". More often than not, it was those guys that had the most time on a bike that would quickly raise their hand with what would turn out to be a wrong answer in the classroom. They weren't free from errors out in the parking lot either. Probably most telling thing was that at the end of the class everyone agreed that they had learned something (some more than others of course). Still, it's hard to argue with results like those.
Thanks to the class, rooted in my subconscious every time I ride is a focus on how I can avoid setting myself up for accidents. My goal is to minimize putting myself into situations where the odds are stacked against me. That doesn't mean such situations don't arise, but when they have, I've been fortunate so far to react as I learned in the class. The braking exercise was fun in the class, but more than once has proven to be truly essential on the street.
I can understand how guys who have been riding for their entire adult lives might feel like they wouldn't get much out of the class. That might indeed prove to be the case. I can respect the decision not to participate. My aim here isn't to preach, merely to add to the chorus of those who feel that they have benefitted from participating in the class.
We had an interesting mix of students in the class including a few guys that had been riding "forever". More often than not, it was those guys that had the most time on a bike that would quickly raise their hand with what would turn out to be a wrong answer in the classroom. They weren't free from errors out in the parking lot either. Probably most telling thing was that at the end of the class everyone agreed that they had learned something (some more than others of course). Still, it's hard to argue with results like those.
Thanks to the class, rooted in my subconscious every time I ride is a focus on how I can avoid setting myself up for accidents. My goal is to minimize putting myself into situations where the odds are stacked against me. That doesn't mean such situations don't arise, but when they have, I've been fortunate so far to react as I learned in the class. The braking exercise was fun in the class, but more than once has proven to be truly essential on the street.
I can understand how guys who have been riding for their entire adult lives might feel like they wouldn't get much out of the class. That might indeed prove to be the case. I can respect the decision not to participate. My aim here isn't to preach, merely to add to the chorus of those who feel that they have benefitted from participating in the class.