Choose a Motorcycle Safety School
Attending a motorcycle safety school is a smart decision if you are learning how to ride. There are many schools offering safety courses, but only a few that offer the quality training that will prepare you for riding on the road. When the time comes to choose a motorcycle safety school, make sure that you include some very necessary steps.
Steps
- Do your research by consulting all the resources available, such as the internet, the yellow pages, the DMV, police department and municipal court. All of these resources offer listings of local motorcycle safety schools, although the last 3 can provide a list of recommended schools.
- Opt for an established riding safety school with a strong and respected reputation. If people and organizations are talking positively about a safety riding school, then that is an optimistic sign that you should take into consideration when making your final decision.
- Seek recommendations from friends who also attended safety riding courses. Personal testimonials from former students are a great way of selecting schools because they have first-hand experience. Friends also have nothing to lose by telling you that the school is not so good.
- Make sure that the school you choose is accredited and recognized by a national organization, such as the Motorcycle Safety Foundation. This will ensure that you will receive the best quality motorbike safety training. Additionally, attending a recognized motorcycle safety school may entitle you to discounted insurance rates.
- Select a riding safety school with experienced instructors. Ideally the riding instructors should be commercially licensed and accredited, and should have more than the 3 year minimum riding experience requirement. Veteran riders can offer more varied training based on their vast scope of experience. You also want to know where school instructors received their basic training, how advanced they are, and how often they teach.
- Inquire about the quality of the bikes that are used and whether they are maintained regularly and replaced when they become unsafe. You also want to make sure that the school provides a bike size that you can ride. Often, beginner courses provide the bikes and mandate that you use them, whereas intermediate classes allow you to bring your own bike, so make sure that you will be comfortable learning on the bikes that are provided. The last thing you want is to learn on a heavy cruiser if you are of a small build, and you also don't want to ride a light street bike if you are of a larger build.
- Confirm what you are expected to bring with you and what the school provides you with as far as equipment. Many motorcycle safety courses provide you with the helmet and gloves, but many will expect that you bring and wear riding boots before getting on a bike.
- Find out what kind of surface you will be training on. Since you will most likely be riding on the road, you really want to train on asphalt or concrete. This will better prepare you for a real driving experience.
