Gremlin's Tall Stories

It’s been a while in the making but after making this blog: http://www.kiwibiker.co.nz/forums/en...829-09-2011%29 I found out about IAM (http://www.nz-iam.org.nz/) and started on a campaign to improve my riding.

With the mileage I do I’m sure my riding isn’t completely hopeless, but I do believe in being the best you can be. I did a lot of visiting YouTube, searching for IAM and the British bikers in action, especially the police. They get a lot of advanced training (of which I am quite jealous) and even better, they hold sessions with the British motorcycling public, having days where the bike cops attend, to give feedback to the riders.

I haven’t seen any of that here, but the police bikers’ training in NZ is based on the UK model. We public don’t get the open days like the British, so I resigned myself to watching videos of them in action, especially the police who can hold a running commentary of their riding, observation and actions as they ride. It provided some insight into their approach and mindset to riding.

It actually all started with blogs from KB members themselves. Blackbird (http://geoffjames.blogspot.co.nz/) has passed his IAM test after 8 months of hard slog since he started on the journey, and raftn (http://rogerfleming-raftnn.blogspot.co.nz/), inspired by Blackbird is now approaching his test soon. I read their IAM blogs, and essentially it’s about promoting better riding techniques to be safer on the road. To reduce the excuses to zero, it’s also incredibly cheap, with the qualified riders donating their time, and it’s then expected you give your time back in the future to help those coming through the ranks.

The test is essentially part and parcel of joining up, membership costs $40 a year. In comparison a session with a riding instructor would cost around $80 an hour. No decent excuse not to join huh?

However, I’m getting slightly ahead of myself. I felt the best thing to do was get some professional assessment of my riding. Plenty have told me I ride well, but they’re in the same boat as me, and not professional or trained instructors. I’ve had minimal formal training, doing BHS to get my learners in 2005, Ride Right Ride Safe on my restricted and then the Defensive Driving Course to shorten my restricted. Since then… nothing. Half of me thought I would be brilliant. The other half thought I would be assessed as a disaster, ridden with bad habits and I’d be ordered off the bike.

Tricia1000 (http://www.kiwibiker.co.nz/forums/me...684-Tricia1000) happened to post on KB late last year, announcing ACC was providing a once off subsidy of $100 to anyone undertaking some of her courses (along with other providers). This seemed like perfect timing, and having been busy late last year winding up work for the year I left it until early this year.

The weather however had other ideas. Tricia prefers to do the first assessment in the dry, so that your lines and riding are not affected so heavily by rain and road conditions. The weather took this as a perfect opportunity to get the first two planned dates cancelled, then Tricia was suffering a migraine on the third. The dates had all been over the quiet period of Christmas/New Year, and as we swung back into work the idea of training took a back seat to work. Then there were rides, marshalling for AMCC and even some emergency weekend work.

The TT2000 rolled around in February, then I joined the Gravel Riders Club and did a ride with them. Weekends filled fast with rides and marshalling and finally last weekend I knew I needed to get in contact with Tricia as the subsidy would run out in the mid-year. I asked if she had some space available, and she did, so I took Saturday afternoon, as I planned to have tyres fitted Sunday (for another ride next weekend – you see how this works then).

So today finally rolled around, the week hadn’t been a lot of fun working around 60 hours and only getting to bed at 3am on Saturday morning. Still, up around 10am, some little chores here and there (ok, work), dropped by Motomail to have a look at some gloves and then on to Orewa, where Tricia has her shop. I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t nervous in the slightest.

I filled in some forms, answered some general questions to give her an understanding of my position (ie, very little formal training, riding for 6-7 years, but over 230,000km) and why I’m doing it. We head out to the bikes, she uses walkie-talkies for bike to bike communication, but this is the best scenario for me, as I’m certain I can use my own CB to communicate, rather than have more speakers in my helmet, and sure enough, no problem. This will make communication extremely easy.

The first section is some urban assessment, I’m in the lead and she guides me through a plethora of lefts and rights around Orewa, Stop signs, Give Ways, roundabouts, the whole lot. A u-turn is also thrown in for good measure (I probably shouldn’t have told her I’m deliberately doing it on the BMW because I’m less comfortable on it having done only 44k on it, while I’ve done some 75k on the Hornet, all city work). I imagine she’s satisfied and we make our way out of Orewa north up old SH1 to Waiwera.

She’d made it clear in briefing that all stop signs, give ways, speed limits etc were to be obeyed, so I spent a bit of time trying to do the speed limit exactly (perhaps too much) instead of my usual +10 approach (indicated, so I’m somewhere in the grey zone). We’re held up going down the hill by cars, and Tricia picks up on my changing of gears and braking mid corner, which is a bit of a no-no in advanced riding. I felt I was in no danger due to being slowed by cars, but it doesn’t exactly excuse bad riding does it?

In Waiwera she wants me to practise my slow riding (with “Can you go slower than that?”…. “Can you go slower?” in my ear). I pull over to ask if she wants me to have my clutch in, as the bike won’t idle any slower. This is confirmed so I hold a pace just below walking speed (and slightly into wobbling speed) before we pull over for some theory. It was all taken from the Police Riders Handbook, which she’d asked me to read before any sessions so I would get more benefit.

I’d bought it and another book already, and found the Police one slightly boring, but a book full of information. I disagreed with some of it (like using power and phone poles to read the road) but Tricia explained in the UK these things were relevant. Like everything, there is no hard and fast rule, a lot is judgement calls and there isn’t a correct answer. I’ve understood this now that the advanced riding tuition is more about the knowledge to make sound decisions and teach a good set of skills, in order to make safe decisions.

My reading paid off, apparently I was the first NZ student (foreigners get it) of hers to be able to list the IPSGA system of control, brownie points for me! Some more theory, and while a lot might seem logical, for those that have never thought about it, it would hardly be an easy task. Hardest part was figuring out which answer Tricia was after as she asked the questions in cunning ways (or at least I thought so).

Back on the road, another trip through Orewa (I’m rarely ever there but I was fast learning its streets) and to a place called Stillwater. Never been there, no idea where it is, but nothing better than strange roads to test your riding skills. The traffic was being mean, constantly in my way and seeming to turn into every road I was turning into, so as we turned into the side road to Stillwater we stopped on the roadside to give us some room. Tricia questioned some of my lines through corners, so I provided my reasoning.

Moving away and we still basically have cars in front of us, but at least some breathing room is there. It doesn’t last for long, but was apparently enough to drop Tricia as I checked after a few corners to find her a couple of corners back. Oops. Not a good idea to lose your instructor and I thought I would be slapped for it, but no comment. Perhaps I caught her on the hop.

The roads proved to be an excellent challenge, two manholes within a corner of each other, both on your usual line and sunken into the ground. Anyone not confident in their skills could panic, target fixate or generally screw them up. I adjusted my line and the BMW sailed smoothly by. We had another chat in the boatyard area, more feedback and then we ended up talking about comms systems, the cables and what options there were available, as we both use Baehr. The most amusing part was an older gentleman coming along and commenting on the bikes and about safe riding etc. If only he knew what we were actually doing out there…

Back to some shops near Orewa (don’t ask me where), some more feedback and Tricia asked what I disagreed with in the book, so I listed out the few concerns I had. Overall she was very impressed with my riding given I had had very little formal training and absolutely recommended I go through the IAM process, have an observed ride and to be graded in experience and skill. It was already my intended course, but the professional assessment of my riding was definitely what I wanted first.

Some light rain as we finished up, we couldn’t have timed it much better. 2 hours were over extremely quickly and we only did 45km. I headed south, doing some work before heading home for night.

Onward and upward, time to walk in the footsteps of Blackbird and raftn. I better do some more reading of their blogs and IAM. Once I pass the test and become a full member of IAM the training is not over yet, and you can train further to Observer status, where you return the advice to the next batch of willing victims coming through the ranks. First I need the initial observation to tell me how much work I have to do