motorcycle safety class for scooter riders?

[Stig / Major Tom]

My son and I finshed our two day motorcycle  class today.
Obviously I was the only scooter rider in the bunch (son has a 5000cc something) -
Took a lot of ribbing - but I did show fairly well in the calss - riding a Yamaha 250cc (I think - no ID on it) dual purpose bike for 23 miles of classroom riding. That is a LOT of riding when you never leave a section of airport runway.

The principals of cycle safety apply to scooter riding as well.
Just hope 2 days of pulling in that clutch 1000 times won't mess up my Kymco riding tomorrow morning.
We took the class for a couple of reasons - when we passed the final skills test today - we qualify for our full 2-wheel license in Ohio (but must wear a helmet for 1 year - but always do anyway.)
Actually pretty lame licensing methods here in the USA, compared to the more advanced thinking in countries like England.
When I passed that simple written test a few mos ago, I was qualified to go out and ride out into trafficc on a 1600cc Harley.
See how stupid our licensing procedures are?!
Scary.......the way we Americans deal with certain important issues.
If you get more than a dozen DUI's in Ohio you might get in trouble!
Sad, too, really............

[GLV55]

My son and I finshed our two day motorcycle  class today.
Obviously I was the only scooter rider in the bunch (son has a 5000cc something) -
Took a lot of ribbing - but I did show fairly well in the calss - riding a Yamaha 250cc (I think - no ID on it) dual purpose bike for 23 miles of classroom riding. That is a LOT of riding when you never leave a section of airport runway.

Scarey.......the way we Americans deal with certain important issues.

Know how you feel, Stig. ,My wife and I were the only scooters in our class as well. A lot of the clutching stuff obviously didn't apply, but glad we learned all the safety maneuvers and skills. Nice thing is that they let us ride our scoots instead of the motorcycles. The others snickered until they saw how well the scoots corner with that lower center of gravity and CVT. We sure burned through a lot of gas on that parking lot for 2 days, though. I also agree about some of the stupidity of the American mindset ... kind of boggling, sometimes.

[MaryK]

The Motorcycle Safety Foundation does offer a scooter training course.... but not in every location.

Glad you took the available train9ing.

Scoot safely

[houndguy]

   First off, congrats on passing your class.   Sadly I agree with you however that the regulations are very lax with our licensing.  As my teacher said - "You are now ready to drive in a parking lot."

I would love to see some actual road testing, some additional things taught (like how to fall) and some more riding time.  But it's what it is and I don't see it changing soon.

Personally I think helmets ARE mandatory and the laws saying they are optional are wrong.   

[wakeupmaggie]

I have not taken the 2 day safety course here in NJ.  Your Ohio class sounds like the same deal.  However, I may have to.

I failed my motorcycle test yesterday at the NJ DMV on my Downtown 300.  Since it is about 300cc, I had to use the scooter course which was too small for me to maneuver.  I couldn't do the u-turns without touching the lines.  Maybe I need more experience and practice, but I honestly don't think I'll ever pass that test on my Downtown.

I also couldn't weave through the cones.  They are supposed to be 12 feet apart with a 2 ft. offset.  Maybe it was just my perception, but they sure seemed no more than 10 feet apart.  I probably should have been able to weave through those cones, but not this time.  I made it through only 2 out of 6.

So my plan is to get a small rentascooter to take the test with.  If I can't pass with that, then I guess I'll have to take the 2 day course.  Arghhh!

[ScooterCommuter]

FWIW, there's at least an unofficial "policy" in a lot of places to try real hard to fail folks taking the test at the DMV without taking the MSF course, in order to encourage folks to take the MSF course and get the test waiver. They want folks to get the training rather than just learning by experience and maybe starting out with bad habits. I've heard that from DMV guys and MSF rider coaches in a few states.

[johnson]

Ky lets anyone pass.  I was waiting in line to take the riding test on my Cali 125 and watched a guy riding his son's motorcycle put his foot down four times.  In the turn arounds, during the cone weaving, and he walked it to a stop.  They passed him.  At least he drove home in his car and the son rode the bike.

[CosmoKorny]

The MSF teaches low speed maneuvering and forces you to practice and become proficient at not tipping over  , something most riders would never do in real life even with "30 years riding experience.    ".  It also forces you to sit in a classroom for six hours and listen to a veteran talk about staying alive on a cycle.  Is this a bad thing?

Kudos to you Stig for getting in there with your son.

[CosmoKorny]

Wisconsin roadtest:  20 minutes with a one-way headset in your helmet while being followed by the examiner in a car.  I got two points off, out of 50, both for not protecting the inside of my lane while turning right.

I took the test first in CA in 1987, which was simply a matter of weaving through a series of cones, u-turning and weaving back to the examiner and stopping without hitting her.  She passed me but recommended the MSF, which I took and fell in love with being in control of my bike, then later took both the experienced and advanced classes.

Stig:  did you notice any adverse effects after clutching in the class?  I'll be taking the basic rider, on motorcycles, with my 16 and 17 year old sons this weekend.  We had initially planned on taking the scooter-specific class but it was cancelled.

[Vivo]

I haven't experience any motorcycle/scooter riding test...wish I had... been riding for more than 30 years.... The motorcycle license here is also the car driver's license but with the added restriction code... 1 for motorcycle only... 1,2 for motorcycle and car...

These are the steps in getting a motorcycle license (applicable to all engine sizes)

Step 1: Get a student driver's permit   
Step 2: Buy a motorcycle/scooter
Step 3: Bring your scoot to the LTO (DMV) to get your driver's license...
Step 4: Show the inspector that you can ride around the lot...
Step 5: He approves while you give him some "snack money"...
Step 6: They process your driver's license....

Done!   

[Stig / Major Tom]

Stig:  did you notice any adverse effects after clutching in the class?  I'll be taking the basic rider, on motorcycles, with my 16 and 17 year old sons this weekend.  We had initially planned on taking the scooter-specific class but it was cancelled.


[/quote]

I was very careful the next morning after the 2 days of motorcycle riding - but the scooter felt right at home after just a few mins. No issues with grabbing for a clutch - and I'm telling you, I grabbed that lousy Yamaha bike's clutch a zillion times over the 23 miles we rode on that small course. (the course was small, but we were on an unused runway - so we had lots of room to goof up.) In fairness to Yamaha (cause I really like their Vino 125~!) that bike had 5,000+ miles of class riding on it. The drive-train snatch on that darn thing would've unseated a lesser man!