An interesting yet strange class last night

[SeaCat]

I took the first part of my Safe Riders Course last night. (MSF BRC) This was all classroom time so I showed up in Jeans, T-Shirt and boots. The class is split roughly fifty fifty between people 20 and younger and people 40 and older. Of the youngsters four of them are female. (Six are young speed freak males talking about the Crotch Rockets they want to buy.)

Okay so I look a bit different than the others in the old timers group. I'm short, I'm thin and I have long hair. (18 inch braid.)

One of the females, about 18 and soft decided she just had to limpet up to me. (I was talking with an instructor about a couple of things.) She wouldn't move away from me. She kept trying to chat with me and was constantly moving around me.

When the class started again she moved so she was sitting next to me.

I made sure she could see my wedding ring and even mentioned my wife a couple of times. (Things like, "My wife is looking forward to my getting a bike", and "My wife can't wait for us to start riding together." This was no deterent. She was there all through the damned class. During the next break she was right there and telling me her life story.

Damn it, I'm not there to pick up chicks. I'm there to learn skills that might save my ass and/or some skin. If I wanted to pick up chicks I would go up to Daytona or over to a beach.

On another note we did lose several class mates. We were asked if we had seen or been in any motorcycle accidents and to relate them. As we finished these three got up and left while commenting that this wasn't what they were thinking about while planning on riding. They didn't think they could deal with the risks.

All in all it was an interesting class. I'm looking forward to tomorrows riding time. It should prove to be interesting and fun. (As long as I can keep Tina out of my hair.)

Cat

 

[jomar]

On the other hand, nice to know you still got it, eh? As long as, well, you know...

 

[perfect_deb]

the mistake you made is that some chicks dig married men

you should have acted gay

 

[perfect_deb]

or, i've got a better idea

come on to her really heavily - tell you and your wife are into the group thing and BDSM (mention steel tipped whips and the pros and cons of inflatable anal plugs) and does she mind if your 26 biker mates watch and take turns........

 

[alyxen]

or, i've got a better idea

come on to her really heavily - tell you and your wife are into the group thing and BDSM (mention steel tipped whips and the pros and cons of inflatable anal plugs) and does she mind if your 26 biker mates watch and take turns........

I am now imagining the awkwardness if that backfires....

 

[SeaCat]

Well I had an absolute blast in the class today even though I cooked. It was hot and it was humid.

We started the day by being assigned our bikes and familiarising ourselves with the control placement on them. When everyone knew where their controls were we started with the simple things like Clutch and Throttle control.

From there we went into turning and running the bikes at slightly higher speeds as well as weaving turns and braking. By the end of the first hour it was coming back to me and I could watch the others in my group. One of them a young woman was so frustrated she was almost in tears. I pointed her out to the instructor who said he had already seen that. I told him I thought it looked like she was having problems with the bike itself and not learning the skills. I went on to say that if this was the case then she could use my bike which was running perfectly and I would take hers. He looked at me kind of strange but agreed with this idea.

Well it turned out her bike didn't want to shift. It would lock into neutral when she tried to shift into second. She had no problems when she climbed on my bike and used it. (She did well too.) I took her bike and with the permission of the instructor took it to the back part of the course so I could play with the shifter. It turned out to be the clutch cable was just a touch loose. I fixed that and the bike ran fine after. (Even though it was ugly as sin. Someone had dumped it a while before and they hadn't replaced the tank, just painted the dent.)

After the next section of the course, (Low speed control and a rather tight slalom) my instructor accused me of being a ringer and wanted to know when I had last rode a bike. I told him and we then figured out that I had last been on a bike before he was born.

When we went in for the class room portion this afternoon we were graced by several videos that almost put us to sleep. We then had the written exam for our endorsement. I am proud to announce that out of 50 questions I missed exactly none.

Tomorrow is the last part of the course, again with plenty of riding as well as our riding test. Should be another fun day.

Cat

 

[Misty_Morning]

I took the same course in TN several years ago.

In my class only one person was a new rider. Everyone else was either taking it cuz the TN was craking down on folks without a motorcycle endorsement and/or for the 15% discount on motorcycle insurance.

My endorsement didn't transer to TN and I was gonna have to take the riding test. No problem...cept...the state was making the full test mandatory. No more just riding around the building.

And to be honest...there is no way I would have passed doing the figure 8 in a box.


Cool things was...the tests you took at the end, both written and riding, qualified you for your endorsement. All you had to do was go to the DMV with the certificate.


All in all...everyone learned something from the class...even the folks who had been riding 30+ years.


Have fun!

 

[SeaCat]

I took the same course in TN several years ago.

In my class only one person was a new rider. Everyone else was either taking it cuz the TN was craking down on folks without a motorcycle endorsement and/or for the 15% discount on motorcycle insurance.

My endorsement didn't transer to TN and I was gonna have to take the riding test. No problem...cept...the state was making the full test mandatory. No more just riding around the building.

And to be honest...there is no way I would have passed doing the figure 8 in a box.


Cool things was...the tests you took at the end, both written and riding, qualified you for your endorsement. All you had to do was go to the DMV with the certificate.


All in all...everyone learned something from the class...even the folks who had been riding 30+ years.


Have fun!

Oh I am having fun, a lot of it as a matter of fact. I'm also learning.

The class is making me think about things I hadn't thought about when I was riding. It is also teaching me new skills, skills they have started teaching. (When I first learned to ride it was basicly here's your learners permit, try not to get killed. The test was a ride around the parking lot.

As for the figure eight, I'm actually looking forward to that. I managed a U-Turn today in less than 10 feet. (I measured it) even though we weren't working on close confines turning.

Tomorrow is going to be fun.

Cat

 

[SeaCat]

OKay so I showed up for the class this morning. It was warm and humid but the sky was fairly clear. I had a tank full of coffee in me and was ready to go. Then my instructor walks up to me.

"Hey, I've got you on a different bike today. Hope you don't mind."
Huh?

Well the bikes most were on are Kawasaki 125's. The bike he decided to put me on was their one Suzuki 250. Okay, a different bike and a slightly bigger one. I looked it over and saw the obvious differences. (The Brake Pedal is a bit higher than the Kawa's. The handle Bars are shaped different and the tank is larger. It also weighs a bit more.)

Only half of the class was there. The sun was coming up and I could see the parking lot we're working in. I asjed for and received permission to give the bike a test run to get used to it. With the help of my instructor I set out some cones. Nothing major, just fifteen cones in a straight line as well as some singles and doubles. I also set out four to mark the box for the "U" Turn.

I started out slow, making a couple of ciruits of the parking lot. Then I started in on a slow slalom, kicking up the speed as I went. I grabbed the brakes to feel them out. (That higher back brake pedal took me by surprise and I skidded a few feet.) By the time I was done I was scraping the foot pegs through the slalom at roughly 30 MPH. I was ready and I knew the bike.

Then we started the lessons. The first lesson was a simple turn. (High low high.) I cranked that puppy at 30 and third gear while the others were in first. The young lady who had been having trouble yesterday was again having trouble. This time though it wasn't her bike. My instructor waved me out of line to where she was sitting on her bike.

"Dude" Says he. "She isn't listening to me. She isn't learning from her mistakes. Talk to her."

Even her G/F was shaking her head.

Well I parked my bike and walked over to her. She was pissed. I told her to take off her helmet, which she did. I asked her what was pissing her off and she actually told me instead of telling me to piss up a rope. She couldn't get the bike to do what she needed it to do. I asked her to show me, I told her to do the slalom. Well I watched her and I could see the problems right off the bat. NUmber one she was too tight, and not in a good way. Number two she was riding the tank which got her off balance. Number three, because of the first two she was forcing the bike. I waved her to stop and talked with her for a bit. I got her to move back, I got her to lower her arms and most importantly I got her to relax. When she did the slalom the second time she did a hell of a lot better. She was ready to try again.

The next excersize was described to us. A "swerve" or avoidance move. I was picked to be the first one to do it. (Thanks teach.) When I thought about it for a second, and after seeing it demonstrated, I realized this was the same move you use when trail riding to get around things like stumps. I cranked up my bike and snapped it out. (It's actually kind of fun.) I then rejoined the line and while sitting there explained to the young lady what to do. She did it right the first time.

We went through every training excercise this way and she got more comfortable with her bike and even started having fun.

Then we had our riding test. Four stations. Double "U" Turn, (Figure eight in a box.) "Swerve", Diminishing Turn, and an Emergency Stop in a Turn. (In the last you had to down shift to first while bringing your bike to a controlled stop in a limited space.) I was chosen to be the first to go through this.

At the end of the testing cycle the results were posted.

I was informed by the training staff that I am the first person in the last two years to get both a 100 on the written and a perfect score on the riding test.

Oh and the young lady? She gave a me a nice kiss after telling me she had made it through the riding test with a loss of only 2 points.

Cat

 

[glynndah]

Good for you, Cat! A * and a from the good little witch.

 

[jomar]

Well done all around.

 

[SeaCat]

Well now it's time for me to get my bike and start the true learning.

I've got the basics so now it's time to work on the real riding.

Cat

 

[starrkers]

Now you get to practice those "stay upright" moves for real with people actively trying to kill you (or at least not even noticing you exist while almost hitting you)

 

[rgraham666]

Good for you, Cat. Well done.

If you quit being a CNA I see another career for you.

 

[perfect_deb]

I am now imagining the awkwardness if that backfires....

could get real interestin

 

[keeblercrumb]

What happened to 18 y/o Tina???? Did she give you a number or anything?

Do I have to wait for Chapter IV?




-KC