Advanced Roadcraft course

[hellokitty]

I am wanting to do an advanced roadcraft course, the riderskills one looks good. Has anyone done it? I understand it is a full day with one on one training.
They bring up these points -

Have you ever been in any of the following situations:
- Used up another of your nine biking lives and lived to tell the tale
- Tried to keep up with your mates and found yourself struggling while cornering
- Misread a corner and got on the brakes to scrub off the speed
- Unable to explain why the bike reacted unexpectedly
- Felt your heart miss a beat as you lose traction briefly
- Found yourself on the wrong side of the road when negotiating a curve
- Not sure if it is safe to overtake


Or am I better to do some training in shorter bursts - like 1 hour lessons with an instructor.

It isn't cheap but I appreciate that the knowledge will be more than worth the cost, I am just not sure where to go.

Any experiences or (appropriate) opinions?
Thanks

[CookMySock]

Have you ever been in any of the following situations:
- Used up another of your nine biking lives and lived to tell the tale
- Tried to keep up with your mates and found yourself struggling while cornering
- Misread a corner and got on the brakes to scrub off the speed
- Unable to explain why the bike reacted unexpectedly
- Felt your heart miss a beat as you lose traction briefly
- Found yourself on the wrong side of the road when negotiating a curve
- Not sure if it is safe to overtake

All that comes with experience and time.

I think you are better off doing AMCC training days, or else just plain ol' trackdays. As long as you have the theory solid, you can just get on the track and grit your teeth and work through your issues one by one, and pick up what guidance you can get.

Also, doing the whole thing in one clout does not allow the critical consolidation process to work.

So yeah I suggest doing it in lumps rather than expecting a lot to come from a single course.

Suggest also getting into some books and getting the theory down solid, and do some shop talk with the hotboys (and girls) just to bounce off someone who is doing it.


Steve

[Ragingrob]

RRRS is very good. I'm not sure if the AMCC training days does anything like emergency braking/swerving etc but RRRS does and it's a great way to get to know your bike.

[Gone Burger]

Hey Kitty - All sounds pretty good to me. Any extra training in my books is good training.

From my own experience, I would suggest maybe you try to make it along to one of ProRiders training days at the manfield race track. I know, it's quite a mission from Auckland, involves a decent road trip. But I attended an all womens day there and Dutchee came all the way from Auckland for the training. She certainly didn't regret it either! It was the best thing I have ever done - for myself and as a rider. So good that I went and did a second day when they had a mixed course. And I'm going to book in for a third day in September.

Yes, it's on a race track. But its the most awesome environment to learn all the skills you mentioned above, with no traffic, or small car park to work around. EXCEPTIONAL trainers, and Karel Parvich sure lives up the her reputation. I am a far better rider with more confidence and skills that I use every day out on rides, and went to a whole new level on loving riding. I first took my 250 cruiser on the course, then took my new Boulevard cruiser on the last one.

Check out the course details on a thread under track days I think..

If you did come down from Auckland for it, I would love to head back up to Auckland with you. Been needing to get up that way again anyway for a wee visit on the bike.

[BMCruiser]

I really recomend Tricia of Roadcraft School of Motorcycling Ltd. I did a 2+hour one-on-one session with her and learnt an enormous amount. That made me much more confident on the road and greatly improved my safety skills. It's not just the things you know you can do better, it's also all the stuff you don't even know that you don't know

Her web site is http://www.rcsom.co.nz/

[george formby]

I am wanting to do an advanced roadcraft course, the riderskills one looks good. Has anyone done it? I understand it is a full day with one on one training.
They bring up these points -

Have you ever been in any of the following situations:
- Used up another of your nine biking lives and lived to tell the tale
- Tried to keep up with your mates and found yourself struggling while cornering
- Misread a corner and got on the brakes to scrub off the speed
- Unable to explain why the bike reacted unexpectedly
- Felt your heart miss a beat as you lose traction briefly
- Found yourself on the wrong side of the road when negotiating a curve
- Not sure if it is safe to overtake


Or am I better to do some training in shorter bursts - like 1 hour lessons with an instructor.

It isn't cheap but I appreciate that the knowledge will be more than worth the cost, I am just not sure where to go.

Any experiences or (appropriate) opinions?
Thanks

Thats a clever pitch, instead of telling you what they offer they have highlighted the issues which the training will help you with. I have done one & two day courses in the past & found that the different components in the training come together over the day. A bit like observation then road position then braking then cornering. Each bit is done separately then they are put together as it happens in the real world.
Training is good! It makes you think all the time. Good on ya.

[Spearfish]

Go for it!
They will cover many many K's over the day with you wearing a headset sometimes following, sometimes leading even a challenge or two to the way you think about riding then plenty of stops for a chat. they taylor the day to what you what with what they see you need.

I consider the expense of training an accessory for my bike. It probably has a bigger performance and comfort gain for the money than any extra bling bolted to the bike.

Just I.M.H.O though.

[Bass]

Have done the Riderskills advanced course and thoroughly recommend it.
It gets around pretty much all of the objections that DB has raised, by being adaptive. Because it is one on one, the instructor can first assess where the student is at, discuss what they particularly want to achieve and adapt the whole day's tuition accordingly.
Yes, it's expensive but money well spent.
Have done track days and RRRS. This one is the next step i.e. a progression, not an alternative.

[hellokitty]

thanks for the replies everyone - I am not sure if I have the attention span to take full advantage of the full day training or not, or if I will get brain overload. Either way I need the training, its just a matter of how I do it. I wonder if I could get the training I need in smaller doses and therefore be able to factor it into the budget? I guess a motorcycle instructor could do it?

Katiepie - I think Manfield is a bit far - maybe in summer? Anyway - aren't you heading up this way at some stage? I seem to remember a rumour of a ride? :-)

[Gone Burger]

Katiepie - I think Manfield is a bit far - maybe in summer? Anyway - aren't you heading up this way at some stage? I seem to remember a rumour of a ride? :-)

Yes it is quite a distance, but would make for a fun road trip. As for me up that way, I took the Keeway up a few times on my own actually (yes it was a loooong trip on the 250 and I ran out of gas between stations many times ) - But haven't taken my new bike up there yet. When the weather starts to head into summer I'll be coming up often. No better feeling for me than a road trip on my own up country to go an visit family and friends.

But still highly recommend the all womens day with Pro Rider - if you do ever get the chance it truly is an exceptional day - great training and so much fun.