Bike safe course

[TNJ]

I have signed up for a Bikesafe course run from Hayes in Kent.

Presumably plenty of you will have done one before so any tips to get the most from the day?

90% of my riding is commuting into London so doing about 6k miles a year in heavy traffic which is not really what the course seems to be about- but always good to learn new things.

Over to you

[Pope]

A group of us did Bikesafe way back - the certificate had Colin Edwards on his SP2.......

A great day; like minded people, nice roads (some familiar, some not) and I still remember the points raised at the time - really did come away thinking we had learnt something for the good.

Most of us had a least one 'issue' with our bikes - loud exhausts etc - but it just wasn't a problem; the instructors just got on with it.

Format was accompanied ride; 2 bikes with each instructor in the morning, bit of lunch and light learning in a classroom then back out for observed runs, taking turns to lead / be led.

Definitely makes you appreciate where you fit in on the road; how your riding can influence other road users - and it genuinely was fun and informative..........

Would do it again

[tjlazer]

Good fun, informative and free lunch. What's not to like? Alot of local London boroughs have codes to do it for free at the moment, so worth checking out if you live in town.

[papa3]

One of the best things I did hen I started riding. So many small tips and changes of habit but cumulatively they totally changed my riding.

[sooty61]

I did one in March at Hayes and thoroughly enjoyed it. They are a great bunch of guys who run it and I got some very good feedback and definitely feel my riding has improved (I have only been riding a year). It is quite weird at first having a Police bike following you and knowing that he is assessing you but they are very friendly and want to help. Go with an open mind, listen to what they tell you and ask questions in the morning classroom session. I then went on to join IAM but my experience is it is a very poor equivalent of Bikesafe so I haven't been back.

[tezzer]

I've signed up for one next month. Been riding on the roads since 1976, but never too late to learn a bit more and shake off some bad habits.

[sjg]

Did the one from the Ace cafe years ago. Was a good day out, bit of classroom and a couple of hours in traffic/filtering in the morning, then lunch and a few hours out in the countryside.

Picked up some good tips on filtering (particularly what's legal and what isn't) and making progress outside town. Fun to complete an overtake quite a bit over the speed limit with a police bike just over my shoulder and them being perfectly happy with it.

They guy I was paired with had about 18 months of London commuting under his belt so it was interesting to see where he'd got a bit cocky and overconfident on filtering and needed to reel it in a bit.

[308mate]

"For the first few miles, we want you to ride exactly as would in everyday life.."

Really?

I didnt.

[tezzer]

308mate said:

"For the first few miles, we want you to ride exactly as would in everyday life.."

Really?

I didnt.

That would get me a very large fine, and probably a ban. I just don't have the will power, but have survived 41 years on the roads so far.

[EagleMoto4-2]

I found the day really useful too, and for our group we had the bonus of riding round North Wales! The main things you will likely take from it are safe lane positioning to look through an upcoming corner, and focussing further up the road, as we all have the tendency to look just a few feet away from us.
Just check your bike over before you go to make sure it is road legal, tyres etc as there will be Police riders taking you out and they do have a look round the bike you will be using beforehand.

[pozi]

I found BikeSafe interesting but the course is rather time constrained so if you have ever done any other advanced riding it is more of a refresh. Also try and get partnered up with someone who has a similar bike and riding style to maximise your day, for example if you like to thrash your sports bike around country lanes do not get stuck with the Harley rider who wants to learn about filtering

The main takeaway is they encourage you to plan ahead, use the vanishing point to gauge the speed and throttle use through bends, in other words generally smooth out your riding.

[tivver500]

BikeSafe is an excellant start into 'Advanced Riding' - especially when you see how good the Boys in Blue are!
If you like the approach, and idea of it, then buy a copy of 'Motorcycling Roadcraft' (which is the Police riding manual).

Take up an advanced riding course - not your area but have a look at our group site on dsar.co.uk to give you an idea of what's available.
Ride safely

[darkyoung1000]

I've done two - both in Yorkshire.

The one run by North Yorkshire in Thirsk was excellent, I really learned a lot as they had the 'ride as you would normally' approach.
The one run by East Yorkshire in Beverley was very disappointing as they took the 'you must not break the limit at any time' approach.

It may therefore depend largely on who is organising it!

[pilotpaul]

Whatever your skill level and experience is, a Bikesafe course is well worth attending.

As an earlier contributor mentioned, some London boroughs give out freebies - check it out.

Go along with an open mind, enjoy the ride, you will learn something new and your riding will improve as a result.

[bogie]

If you want to continue you can join RoSPA for £30 a year...the training is "free" just some fuel for the instructor then you get access to (usually) the same bunch of guys as those doing the Bikesafe training. Go for a few 60-90 min rides out, study up on Roadcraft and then do your assessment.

Then you have a recognised "advanced" training badge....and come away with some skills, and habits to help keep you safe out on the roads.

I first did mine 8 years ago after an accident took me off the roads for 2 years. Since then found it beneficial and kept up my membership/re-assessments. Wished Id done it when I was a 18 yr old biker in the 80s....might have saved me from the few minor accidents I had back then whilst "learning"

[TNJ]

Thanks for all the replies.

I am looking forward to the course - may not learn a huge amount as I have already done a day with Rapid Training which covers similar stuff, but every little nugget of extra knowledge may one day keep me upright when I would otherwise be on the deck. For £45 for the day, it is a proper bargain!

Plus, no matter how quick and safe you are, trying to follow a class 1 police rider when he is "making progress" is a pretty humbling experience!

Whether it will help me in my day to day riding - commuting from Beckenham to Euston - is questionable. But I guess anything which makes me more observant and more aware of road positioning and defensive riding must be beneficial.

And anyway, it is a good excuse to get out on the bike for a day of fun riding - I love riding the bike to work but it is very different to going for a spirited ride through country roads.

[psychoR1]

Did the one around Kent with the Met out of Bromley a few years ago;

Noisy pipes on my R1 and small plate on my mates Tuono overlooked.

Instructor was on a full dress FJR1300, one of the others was on a black GSXR1k

Instructor had knee sliders that were well worn.....

Briefing started with;

"Boys - three things to remember today;
1. I'm not a copper,
2. I'm not a copper,
3. Unfortunately I am a copper and will be outside my patch so don't bin it or get caught speeding as I will have a lot of paperwork to do!"

We learnt a lot about riding to the system and how quickly a top rider can peddle an FJR.

Enjoy!

[Jiminycrocket]

I have just booked on this in Bromley on 14th July. I have had my licence for 20 years but back riding for a year.

A bit nervous / intimidated as I know I am crap. Equally it seems like a good way to get better.

All the feedback here seems positive... here’s hoping it will be useful.

[Jiminycrocket]

Thanks Swerni

[James_B]

I’ve done it a couple of times. No tips needed, really, other than to actually try to listen to what they say and act on it. The instructors tend to know their stuff, so take it in.