Advanced Motorcycling

(By Jim McCarter, IAM examiner for Bristol & Salisbury, and CW customer for over 20 years)

As more and more people spend increasing amounts of time and money pursuing the recreational activity of motorcycling, they are also recognising the need to improve their own ability. The motives for this differ as much as the individuals themselves do, but some of the reasons given are -

"I have recently got a bike again after a few years without one, and have only just realised how vulnerable motorcyclists are these days".

"My insurance is costing me more than the bike".

"I can't keep up with my mates when we go for a day out".

"I've just had a crash and it's shaken my confidence".

But what is it about Advanced Motorcycling that can make a difference? Well it's as much about attitude as it is about skill. Most people find they are able to ride faster and with more confidence as they are in control of the machine, rather than the other way around. They also find themselves wondering how they have lived so long when they used to ride so fast in the wrong places.

You can learn something new in two ways, by experience or by training. Experience is great because you don't easily forget what you learned. You found out that tarmac gets soft in hot weather because your bike fell over when you parked on it. So now you carry something to put under the stand or you find a bit of wood. No problem. But how much was the new mirror and fairing?

That's the trouble with Experience; it can be expensive (or it can hurt). The second drawback is that it takes a long time to learn some things while you may only get one chance at others. There's really no advantage in being a motorcyclist with the right of way, accept for later when you are wheeled into court as chief witness against the Volvo driver. The answer then is training. After all, training is simply someone letting you know about his or her experiences. Who you choose to listen to is therefore crucial.

So whom do you go to when you want to learn more? Well there is plenty of choice. You need only check out MCN or your local dealers but how do you decide which one is best for you? Firstly you need to think about whom you regard as being the most experienced motorcyclists.

The category that many people look to for expert riding is the Police. They not only have extensive training but cover thousands of miles a year as well. All other training organisations copy their techniques and so anyone who has been Police trained should be able to teach you what you want to know. The best of the best will be Police Class 1 Instructors, who teach the Class 1 Traffic Patrol Officers.

You cannot get trained at a Police Driving School unless you are a Police Officer (with certain limited exceptions). What you can get is tuition from retired Police Officers but because they are highly sought after they may be amongst the most expensive, charging £150 or more a day. You may also have to wait for a place. Most other non-police individuals will quote various qualifications but what do they all mean? While considering this bear in mind that this training is available to you as well and you too could undertake the same test and possibly achieve the same or higher standard.

British Motorcyclists Federation (BMF) Blue Riband - The BMF are well known for their popular learners courses and also offer an advanced course of training. This is followed by a test, not normally conducted by a Police Class 1.

Institute Of Advanced Motorists (IAM) - The IAM was founded as a charity to improve driving standards by means of a test. This is conducted by a Police Class 1 certificate holder and lasts for 11/2 hours. You will be expected to ride safely but progressively on all road types. At the end you are given a comprehensive debrief and successful candidates later receive a certificate and are entitled to an insurance discount with many companies.

Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents (RoSPA) - Very similar to the IAM but tests are graded, Bronze, Silver and Gold. They also insist on a 3-year retest to retain membership.

You will have noticed that only the first of these organisations offers training, while the other two simply provide a test. Now you can take these tests without any training but most people would not pass at the first attempt, unlike trained riders. In recognition of this, both organisations support a network of local independent motorcycle groups who offer tuition. The groups consist of people who have passed the test and want to assist others to do so. They also have a social side as any other motorcycle club might. Most groups have close links with their local dealer. Bournemouth & Wessex Advanced Motorcyclists are our nearest and their members get a discount while their observers provide assistance at CW open days, leading the groups of bikes on test rides.

The people who do the training within these groups are selected for both their riding and communication skills. They are volunteers who only charge the cost of their fuel. The group will have a joining fee of around £10 - £20 and some will add on the cost of the test for an all-inclusive price. The IAM has the biggest network of groups and has introduced qualification tests for the 'observers', the highest level being conducted by the Examiner (Police Class 1). RoSPA have developed a 'Diploma' course for their observers but the cost of this is only likely to attract those who intend to charge for their services outside of the group structure.

Both the IAM and RoSPA have their own website if you want to know more.

In addition many Police Forces run 'Better Riding' courses for the public. These usually consist of a number of theory sessions followed by one or two rides out and they're free. The rides out, in two's or three's, are tailored to the abilities of the individuals and can be great fun.

Most trainers give a balance of demonstration rides, when they ride in front, and critiques, when they follow you. Some use intercoms some don't. Some will have off road areas available for you to experiment with your brakes and practice low speed control. Theory will be a part of many courses, either at the roadside or indoors with slides, OHP's and videos. Most will make adjustments to exactly what they cover in order to suit your own needs, or at your request.

Now you know what's available and from whom you can consider what will be best for you. Just because someone charges more doesn't mean to say they must be better. Police trained generally means 'good', if its anything else then find out how experienced they are. Recommendation from mates will always be your best bet.

Some training is available one to one while others teach groups of two or more. Group training can be more fun and it means you get a break from instruction when it's the other idiot's turn. Your abilities do need to be fairly evenly matched though, otherwise one of you will feel frustrated or under pressure. Another advantage to learning with a friend is that you can practice together when not under instruction. However good your tutor, you are not going to learn everything all at once. You will have to spend some time practising before your next session in order to get the maximum benefit. This brings us to your next choices, how much training? And When?

An intensive course over a number of days is likely to make the biggest change to your riding. However taking on board a lot of new ideas quickly may mean you are likely to forget a lot quite quickly too. Nevertheless combining training with your annual holiday, by taking a week in a nice part of the country, can make the event very enjoyable. Particularly so if you have difficulty making a regular commitment to a course of tuition. On the other hand a regular course with time to practice, which builds on knowledge from week to week is likely to see the best end result.

A number of people are finding they prefer joining an IAM or RoSPA group and then supplementing this with an intensive course later. While any good instructor will be able to teach you something no matter what your present knowledge is, this idea makes sense because you will get more out of the intensive course if you already have a good grasp of the basics.

You can pay for training by the hour or the day depending on your tutor. Most will be flexible to meet your requirements but naturally full time instructors, whose weekends will be booked up well in advance, will prefer weekdays. IAM and RoSPA groups may run fixed length courses, individual tuition or a mixture and are inclined towards weekends and evenings. Although most groups have some shift workers who can accommodate weekdays. Most groups will also give you a free assessment to see if you like what they offer, while this will be a rarity amongst people training others for a living.

Track days are increasingly popular amongst those with sports machines (and some loonies on tourers). They certainly give you the chance to explore your machine's capabilities in an environment safe from cars and the law. If you learn nothing more than just how good your brakes really are, then you've got your money's worth. Cornering seems to be the main thing that attracts people as they can improve their style and smoothness on good surfaces.

Whatever training you choose to improve your riding, you can do a lot for yourself by reading one of the books that cover some of the theory. The best known of these is 'Motorcycle Roadcraft' published by HMSO and used in the Police Driving Schools. Most trainers use or refer to this book while the IAM has published its own book 'Pass Your Advanced Motorcycle Test' which is tailored to those who seek to take a test at the end of their training. In addition there are other publications that tackle specific areas such as 'The Assessment of Advanced Motorcycling' which details the minimum standards you need to reach in each aspect of riding in order to pass an advanced test. 'Not the Blue Book' puts meat on the bones of Motorcycle Roadcraft in terms of how advanced techniques should be carried out. Both of these are written by Police Class 1 Instructor and long-standing CW customer Dave Jones.

In addition our local IAM Examiner has written a brief for his candidates that tells them exactly how their test will be conducted. This gives an insight into what to expect if you submit your riding to the test. It's on a separate page under 'IAM Test'.

Whatever form of training you choose make sure you enjoy it. Nobody's saying it's easy and there will be times when you are tired or fed up but there does comes a point when it suddenly all makes sense. Then you find you actually enjoy motorcycling even more because it's something you can now do better and probably for longer.

Jim McCarter I.A.M. Examiner For Bristol & Salisbury