The IAM, like motorcyclists.......only slower!!:smile:....arf arf arf!! I have been on bikes for 37 years, hypocritically, I earn my living through rider training. Like most 'dangerous sports' , occasionally motorcyclists have a 'bad day'....If you live through it find a quiet room somewhere and give yourself a good talking too but don't overanalyse it, or you'll never ride again. (if you discover that you were a twat, don't do it again!!!) Brush yourself down, get back on your bike....keep smiling and have a great day, and remember: The lifesaver is the chosen weapon of the Jedi Knight!! Learn by your mistakes....you don't really need some bore of an IAM observer to tell you that!! (Bless them!) Ian
Don't agree with your IAM's comment. It doesn't matter how boring IAM's observers are or are not, the fact is you are being observed and you will be getting some feed back on your riding. If you only take away one or two riding tips it could make all the difference to your confidence and safety, which can only be a good thing. You earn your living through riding training, I would imaging that is mainly training new riders? A lot of old gits like myself are more likely to approach IAM's, ROSPA etc than a training centre. They are ideal for the born again bikers like me, maybe not your spotty teenagers!
With the new changes introduced in January the 'average age of the combat soldier' in rider training is definitely not the 'spotty teenager' anymore but more the 40-50 year olds (they seem to be the only one's that can afford it these days!!) How many riders actually ask the IAM Observers what their qualifications and experience is? Sadly (and I am not generalising here) an uncomfortable amount of these 'observers' have little in the way of experience themselves, they are unpaid volunteers (bless them), and arguably some of them do it for all the wrong reasons. (Our local guys have never ridden abroad, never been on a racetrack and can barely scratch up eight years experience between them FFS!!) Unless you are riding unaccompanied the guy behind you is your best critic, because he will see you in your natural state of riding.....I know my mates have a 'no hold barred' critique system!!....its very effective!! I am not knocking advanced rider training, but there are very experienced, certified, professional, paid instructors....and then there are 'the others'. Riding a motorcycle is meant to be fun and safe, and 10/10 to those who seek training..... .....but my point is with regards to the OP that it is not a sticky plaster for when you fuck up.....Advanced riding is a way of life!!
Certainly that's my experience of IAM members. I spoke to some local to me and they had no experience at all, most of them racking up less than 5 years' riding each. And most of them had amassed more accidents than me in their short riding lives. Now, despite my bluster I'm a distinctly average rider, so that doesn't say much for the IAM guys. I'm not having a go, we're all into biking for roughly the same reasons, but I do think you need to pick your trainer wisely. I'd much sooner send a mate to a bikesafe day than point him/her at the IAM, purely and simply because the trainers are a known quantity. And if they had the money available, the obvious choice would be a professional riding instructor. Besides, I have neither a beard nor a penchant for warm flat beer...
Speed doesn't kill. Inappropriate speed does. Wheelying down your high street is inappropriate. Why hoist your main agent for stopping in the air? Do not speed in cities, towns and villages. Do not speed where there is high traffic. Do not speed when filtering. Go no faster than 5mph greater than the semi stationary traffic. Put lights on full beam when filtering on mway. Do not speed heavily along roads with lots of junctions. Do not speed round a bend if you cannot see the exit. Do not speed when conditions or visibility is poor. Always wear the best leathers and armour you can afford. Do not pop down shops in jeans and trainers. Do not race your mates. Remember the guy at the back has the tougher job keeping up. Wait give them time. Ride at your own pace, use your common sense. There is a time and place for > 100mph. Never stop thinking. Do not focus on the guy in front, look past him and use peripheral to keep an eye on him. Leave enough space to stop. Never trust anothers indicators. Never ride hard near schools, mums have a job keeping an eye on their unruly passengers. If you have loud pipes, use them. Let people hear you. When people move over, thank them. Do not give people the finger. No matter how dumb they have been. Enjoy your ride and get home safely to ride another day. Remember time and place.
I went on a ride with the local IAM a few years ago, the lead rider dropped his bike twice, on the last fall we came around the corner to find him crawling out from the trees and undergrowth And he wasn't the only one to drop his bike that day! we all have an off day where nothing goes right.
Stuff the truth, I've just been and maxed out the Blackbird - it's definitely life-affirming after wobbling round on aircooled v-twins for too long...
...and for Gods sake learn to use the rear brake. Drag it from the off at lights. Drag it in roundabouts. Use it (modulate) it in long sweepers. Practise using it with throttle plus body position.
Hmm. Is the IAM really that poor? That sounds shocking. I bet I could learn something from someone. I just wonder who that might be. I have ridden frequently with guys faster than me, and learnt a lot from watching them ride. I also know people who like riding behind me because they say they are learning from me. I suppose that after 30 plus years riding on mainly long trips, that isn't unreasonable. I do apply myself when riding. I'm fairly unimpressed with the road positioning of most of the people I ride with - too wide on corner exits because they didn't enter the corner on the right line. And I don't do dodgy overtakes. I'm never in THAT much of a hurry.
Err...maybe not all of them...I'm merely highlighting the fact that just because you have an IAM badge doesn't make you a riding god (or give you the right to offer your opinion on my riding when it wasn't asked for...), but these are the type of people I've met, so I can only say what I've seen. I'm at the position in life now where I am definitely slowing down, but I'm still more than enthusiastic about hopping on a superbike and giving it some. It's a good place to be, and I can only put it down to years of riding rather than any specific training - familiarity, I guess. That's your best training - get on the sodding thing and ride it.
