Experienced riders course

[joesnomad]

I just signed up for an experienced riders course that will be held in May. In Pa they are free to take, as I have seen others post in some states it a couple of hundred $'s. I'm amazed that its free but I'm not complaining. From you guys and gals that have taken it what can I expect ? They allow you to sign up for it but don't even give you a clue as to what you will be doing. Any info would be appreciated.

[flightdoc]

Hi Joe,

Great decision you've made. Here's the link to the MSF info. I assume the course you are taking will be pretty much the same. You can always call them and ask.
Enjoy the course. Please report back what you thought.

vin


http://www.msf-usa.org/index_new.cfm...20RiderCourses

[mrfuni]

I took the course last year. Similar to the basic course, but the turns are tighter and the track is more difficult. Good thing to do.

[ells]

I did the basic course on their 150cc class bike. Did the advanced with my own and was more on the course with a few things pushed as mentioned, both MSF My insurance now offers a discount if you've had or retaken the advanced course within the last three years. I've never retaken it but should be looking into it. Going to their page right now to look at the schedule.

Well I completed the skilled riders edge course through Harley today. I was the only non-harley but everyone made me feel welcome. I came away feeling refreshed on my skills and more confident. Even dragged the floor boards a few times. Our instructors were both VERY GOOD. infact the 2 best riders I've ever seen in person. Both had been instructors for the state of Utah and MSF. They said if you take nothing else from the class you should at a minimum practice emergency braking and slow, look, press, roll and head and eyes.
One bad habbit I had that I wasn't aware of was that I was braking with two fingers. They told me I should brake using all four fingers because in an emergency stop you can pinch the other two fingers with the brake lever causing you to release the brake. One of the instructors had street glide and I was amazed at how fast he could stop that thing. I really saw how much more front brake could be used than I was using. He said many people have a bad habbit including himself to use the front brake but then once they feel it grab, they stop there. He said that is wrong - you should proggresivly keep applying more and more front brake. As the front forks compress in a quick stop the traction patch on the front tire is getting wider and you also have the weight transfer making the rear much lighter and easier to lock. The front brake should be a steady increasing squeez all the way to the stop.

The class ran from 8-5 with most all of it on the range. In all it was a great day excpet the nasty sunburn I got on my face and neck. Should have brought sunscreen. One more note on sunscreen: If you use it use the baby sunscreen or don't put it on your forehead! If you start to sweat and it runs in your eyes it will burn worse than pepper spray!!


A couple interesting statistics. They said 50% of motorcycle accidents have alcohol involved. Don't drink & ride - You're making yourself 50% safer right there. 3% of accidents with other vehicles are from the car rearending the bike - so your biggest threat is from the 11 oclock to 1 oclock postions. Most common accident only involving the rider is failure to negotaite a turn (entry speed too fast) slow, look, press, roll. Most common accident involoving other vehicles is left turn in front of bike.

[flightdoc]

Congrats on completing the course wolf!! You sound like an rider coach now. It's obvious you pay attention and take to heart what you are told. Good for you brother. I'll bet you feel much better about your riding abilities right now. Keep practicing. Makes a world of difference.

vin

[audiogooroo]

Nicely done Bro!

[ells]

Took the same course today but in Denver, MSF taught by ABATE of Colo. Some of the exercises had changed quite a bit in the 10 years since I last took it. Was very good for me to do it on the Nomad with lots of tight turns that make it a real challenge. S-turns in a box were the toughest. But as the instructor pointed out at the beginning , its not a contest or a test, just an opportunity for each person to learn, no examine at the end. Wolfman gives a good summary of some of the information they provide. We only had four Harleys, 2 sport bikes, a Shadow, and me. Another guy showed up with a brand new top of the line BWM but couldn't participate after he accidentally set off the alarm, which disabled the bike and he didn't know how or couldn't reset it. The course was squeezed into 6 hours 12-6P with only a couple short breaks. Was a lot of fun and I feel a lot more confident (but not over confident) with the sharp slow-speed turns and general handling of the Nomad to the point, more or less, I was with the 800B. Great course, couldn't commend it more highly.

[mrfuni]

Thanks for the tips Wolf...Got to think about those things when I ride today...

[flightdoc]

way to go ells. Now that you've taken the course...it's time to go out and practice what you've learned and you'll get better at it. The safety courses teach what you need to practice.

congrats

vin

[ringadingh]

HD is giving an advanced police training course here in a few weeks, however it is only available to certain HOG members. I would like to take such a course if it was available to all riders. Maybe I'll give the HD dealer a call and see if there is something available at another date and time.

[dantama]

Originally Posted by Ringadingh

HD is giving an advanced police training course here in a few weeks, however it is only available to certain HOG members. I would like to take such a course if it was available to all riders. Maybe I'll give the HD dealer a call and see if there is something available at another date and time.

I would be so interested in such a class.

One of my rider coaches said when he went through the police training the first thing they did was tape up their bars and dropped their bikes about 30 times just to practice picking them up.

[flightdoc]

A guy I teach with went through the police training. He is connected with a very active HOG group and the police lease their bikes through that dealer. That was the only way he got in.

vin

[tomk]

Great WM, thank you. I always wondered what to expect from that course.