Encourages you to undertake further motorcycle training. I recently gained my DVSA Enhanced Rider Scheme certificate
A platform from which I could undertake some advanced motorcycling
On Saturday 17th April, 2021, I woke up early and travelled to Northallerton Police Station HQ, on a sunny but cold morning, to take part in a North Yorkshire Police run BikeSafe course. Arriving in time to fill up the tank before the course started at 8.45 am, my heated gloves came in useful on the ninety minute journey.
I had originally booked a place for the previous summer, but Covid-19 had meant that workshop had to be cancelled. My original thinking was that, because of the corona virus restrictions, I hadn’t been on a motorcycle for many months and that this workshop would give me a platform from which I could undertake some advanced motorcycling. The cost of the course to me was £65 but is heavily subsidised and the true cost is nearer £250. I did feel a bit of a fraud, as I had undertaken the same workshop some three years previously. However the original reason for booking stood, as I hadn’t been on a motorcycle in 5 months, with one recent exception on a branch ride out.
Prior to attendance, you are sent a range of resources to read and view to prepare you. The workshop is split into being classroom based in the morning and in the afternoon you undertake an observed ride. There were numerous differences between the two courses, including the weather, which had been atrocious on the original observed ride and on which I knew I hadn’t done as well as I would have wished.
The morning session was presented by Nigel Atkinson, a former North Yorkshire Police Motorcyclist now retired, and whilst the video resources he used he said were a bit tired and outdated he used them in a way that fully engaged the eight workshop participants, two of whom were female riders. It takes a special skill to capture and keep the attention of a group motorcyclists and Nigel did this very well. The room we used felt like a proper learning environment and it was Covid-19 secure. On your socially distanced desk was a BikeSafe coffee mug full of bike goodies, great touch. What was even better was that throughout the morning three Police Motorcycle Officers actively participated in the workshop. The training is based on the Police Handbook ‘Motorcycle Roadcraft’.
The morning covered various topics including: junctions, cornering, filtering , overtaking and group riding. The latter provoked some interesting issues. Nigel explained the importance of having a system in group riding that avoided the necessity for those following the ride leader to take unnecessary risks in order to keep up. He referred to some rare, but serious, cases where those participating in a group ride had ridden in such a manner that it had collectively caused one of the riders to take unnecessary risks resulting in a fatal accident and the other riders were subsequently charged with an offence under a ‘joint enterprise’ of riding in a dangerous manner . One of the police officers recounted a case of three riders, two of whom had much more powerful bikes than the third who in trying to keep up with his mates had an accident and had died. The police officer had gone to the surviving riders’ houses that evening to explain their friend was dead and then to seize their motorcycles, helmets and leathers: they were subsequently charged with an offence of causing death by dangerous. I wonder if the Triumph Owners’ Motorcycle Club (TOMCC) might benefit its members by developing some principles about Group Riding and develop a code of good practice for Branches to adopt on their ride-outs?
The afternoon consisted of an observed ride from Northallerton to Manor Farm {Biker} Café in Leyburn through some beautiful North Yorkshire roads and into the Catterick Garrison area where you have side roads for army tanks to join you . One police observer is allocated to two course participants. I lead the ride out and the other rider did the return journey. I have to say I thoroughly enjoyed my observed ride and that there is something weird, in a nice way, knowing that the police motorcyclist at your side is not there to give you a ticket but everyone else around you doesn’t know that; I took great pleasure in overtaking the Royal Enfield who was riding super cautiously. Seriously, the feedback from the Police Officer was constructive, fair and comprehensive.
Post course this came in the form of a three page report along with my certificate of attendance; a few days later the new resources that Nigel had referred to on the day arrived in my mail box. The course encourages you to undertake further motorcycle training and I recently gained my certificate on the DVSA Enhanced Rider Scheme.
BikeSafe, £65 well spent? You bet. Well done, North Yorkshire BikeSafe team.
This article was first published in the TOMCC Nacelle Magazine (July 2021)
