Whats the best you have taken home from a MSF course?

[mglowe]

The torque of the motor through the chain will "lift" the bike. Chop the throttle in a corner and it will squat. Shaft bikes are the worst at this.

Your right about shaft drives lifting the bike. Although I don't remember it squatting much - maybe because of time or the anti-dive forks ['82 Honda V45 Sabre] - kind of miss that lifting feeling though.

As far as the MSF Course. I would have to say "press"ing to initiate lean referred to as countersteering. I learned bad habits in my early days and did more pull then press. Today I work on that every ride.

Personally, I think the course is worth it - fun too.

 

[geetarhero]

I took a VERY shady motorcycle course in november to get my motorcycle license (they issue after the class and a few manouvers) and I did not get a whole lot of good info. merely the basics on how to drive down street on a bike.

I bought my fz at the bike show in january which left me with 3 long months of waiting to get out so I bought and read Proficient Motorcycling.
The best things ive taken from it and actually applied in an emergency situation;

if your taking a corner too fast and dont think you can lean much more, roll the throttle open and raise the suspension giving more lean clearance
when emergency braking on the front brake count out loud "one thousand one" before you reach maximum grab. (lowers suspension, weights front tire and adds traction for maximum braking without locking the front so easy)

and the best one: Just because you have the right of way doesnt mean the hood of that car wont kill you. RoW means nothing while 6 feet under

 

[CrazyBiker]

Not Target fixate and how to approach turns. There are a few things I don't agree regarding braking in a turn. I believe in trail braking though never had to try it.

 

[Steph]

Mine was looking through turns, last minute swerving and emergency stops.
For the last minute swerving, you came straight at the instructor in 3rd, when you got fairly close, he would put up a hand to tell you wish way to swerve. (Isn't swerve a funny word??) Gave me confidence!
The emergency stops helped me get so I wouldn't lock up my brakes (much) and helped me get a feel for a controlled skid.

 

[Roadstergal]

if your taking a corner too fast and dont think you can lean much more, roll the throttle open and raise the suspension giving more lean clearance

Rolling on the throttle doesn't give you more 'lean clearance.' It'll redistribute weight to the back, but it won't magically lift the centerstand. Steady throttle (to keep the bike balanced) and press more.

 

[DefyInertia]

I have never taken the MSF. everything that's been mentioned so far I learned from the forums or from riding with other riders. I'm actually a little skeptical of the MSF but don't have first hand experience so...

if your taking a corner too fast and dont think you can lean much more, roll the throttle open and raise the suspension giving more lean clearance

when emergency braking on the front brake count out loud "one thousand one" before you reach maximum grab. (lowers suspension, weights front tire and adds traction for maximum braking without locking the front so easy)

Disagree with that cornering strategy.

one thousand one is too long IMO!

Rolling on the throttle doesn't give you more 'lean clearance.' It'll redistribute weight to the back, but it won't magically lift the centerstand. Steady throttle (to keep the bike balanced) and press more.

Yeah, and if anything, you need to slow down.

 

[FizzySix]

Well, I tried to take home from the MSF course the cute girl sitting across the classroom but she wasn't interested.

So I guess the best thing I did take home was that the bike will go where you look! So do look through turns, don't look at what you don't want to hit, and don't look down at the ground in front of the bike unless you want to go there.

I just finished it this last weekend. Looking where you're going and 3 steps on takeoff were the things I remember most. Every time moving forward from a stop, we had to take 3 steps before pulling up our feet. We've get tapped on our helmet every time we didn't do it.

They want you to do a little duck-walk when taking off? Why?

I've always sort of thought that a rider who effortlessly takes off and gets their feet on the pegs the quickest was the more skilled rider than the one doing few steps until they get going.

 

[Lightndattic]

Are you sure you about fast? I think they meant too slow. No penalty for going too fast unless you crossed the boundary or slowed down during the turn.

Yes, he said too fast. I was within the boundaries, was smooth through the whole turn and didn't scrape anything while leaning. Now, he did see me out there doing the u-turn box on my own bike right after the first day ended, but I don't think he was trying to knock me down a peg.

 

[Lightndattic]

They want you to do a little duck-walk when taking off? Why?

I've always sort of thought that a rider who effortlessly takes off and gets their feet on the pegs the quickest was the more skilled rider than the one doing few steps until they get going.

They were more concerned about dropping the bike and the slow speed stability than anything else. Frankly, they were right with making us do that since half of the class had never been on a bike before and even doing that, there was a lot of unsteady weaving when starting off. We only had 2 people drop their bikes (brother and sister. the sister was the lady holding everyone up in my group). Both of them had line and foot penalties in the box, but still passed.

 

[geetarhero]

Rolling on the throttle doesn't give you more 'lean clearance.' It'll redistribute weight to the back, but it won't magically lift the centerstand. Steady throttle (to keep the bike balanced) and press more.

While im the furthest thing from a track expert and have very little experience on motorcycles at all, I would to point out that it is exactly what Hough printed in his book and all physics back it up. with the throttle closed the suspension is sitting further down than if you have the throttle open. both the front and the rear suspension will raise slightly if you just open the throttle to the point that its cracked.
This also will not increase (but also not decrease) bike speed based on physics principles of how a cone rolls

therefore you will be able to lean more. (just a matter of can you still make the turn or start slowing so the impact hurts less)

I am always interested in hearing counter points though, knowledge is power and this site is overflowing with it.
PS: I am just regurgitating the info I have taken in as well as in my own n00bie experience

 

[Boneman]

- Look where you want to go
- Should be looking 12 seconds ahead of you when riding (highway)
- If you find yourself too hot into a turn, "lean and believe" and don't hit the brakes!
- Proper lane dominace!!! (easiest way to spot a clueless rider and someone who hasen't taken a riding course is by their lane position..or complete lack of!)
- Your mirrors are your firends! Use them always and often.

BTW - Next week I start my MSF Instructor training!!! Been completing all the hoop jumping and application forms and I've finally been approved to begin my Instructor training with my local MSF! :thumbupVancouver Island Safety Council - VISC)
I have to complete over 100hours of training and shadow a few Skills and Traffic courses. I'm pumped. Looking forward to helping new riders and to giving something back to the riding community in the form of making some safer riders!

 

[Crotalus]

1. Look into the corner
2. Ride like the cagers can't see you, mostly because they aren't paying attention
3. Proper brake distribution (70% front, 30% rear)

 

[FZ1inNH]

Avoid target fixation and HEAD CHECKS!

 

[sjryser]

When (noticed i said when, not if) you lock up the brakes...

ver. 1...front brake locks, let go and reapply as needed to stop.

ver. 2...rear brake locks hold it on until you stop, try to steer to keep it upright.


Got to try ver. 2 yesterday when a cager slammed on her brakes in front of me to signal to a pedestrian that they could cross the street now. Would of swerved but I was next to a BUS!

40mph to almost dirty shorts in like 1.2 seconds-LOL

 

[agmom98]

I took the Beginner MSF years ago when I first got my endorsement and then took the ERC a few years later. The best thing I got out of the ERC was the opportunity to practice the U-turn exercises on my own bike and to push my comfort limits in a controlled environment. We did two sequential U-turns in a box and then, upon exiting the box, followed a serpentine painted line containing several tight U-turns in a row. We had the chance to do this portion of the course several times.

 

[VEGASRIDER]

-


BTW - Next week I start my MSF Instructor training!!! Been completing all the hoop jumping and application forms and I've finally been approved to begin my Instructor training with my local MSF! :thumbupVancouver Island Safety Council - VISC)
I have to complete over 100hours of training and shadow a few Skills and Traffic courses. I'm pumped. Looking forward to helping new riders and to giving something back to the riding community in the form of making some safer riders!

LOL....I know what you're about to go through. But once you're certified, it's very rewarding putting new motorcyclist onto the street once they successfully complete the course. PLus there are great benefits being an instructor, most cycle shops will give you a discount on gear, parts, and consumables. Not sure if Cycle Gear has a location in Canada, but you can get 30% off from them.

 

[blchandl2]

- Look where you want to go
- Should be looking 12 seconds ahead of you when riding (highway)
- If you find yourself too hot into a turn, "lean and believe" and don't hit the brakes!
- Proper lane dominace!!! (easiest way to spot a clueless rider and someone who hasen't taken a riding course is by their lane position..or complete lack of!)
- Your mirrors are your firends! Use them always and often.

BTW - Next week I start my MSF Instructor training!!! Been completing all the hoop jumping and application forms and I've finally been approved to begin my Instructor training with my local MSF! :thumbupVancouver Island Safety Council - VISC)
I have to complete over 100hours of training and shadow a few Skills and Traffic courses. I'm pumped. Looking forward to helping new riders and to giving something back to the riding community in the form of making some safer riders!

Good luck! It is tough, but worth it when you are done. I got my certification under the MRC/RSS program which is very different than the BRC.

Just remember, as an Instructor you are graded on a much tougher scale.

 

[VEGASRIDER]

I

I was stuck behind this one lady who absolutely DID NOT want to go fast enough to get into second. The one exercise where you shift up into 3rd and then back to 2nd, then back to third, etc., was a disaster. They put her last in the group, but after 2 laps around, the whole group was bunched up behind her and stalling bikes because we were not going fast enough for 3rd gear.

Got a 100% on the written and 2 points off the riding for going too fast through the 135 degree turn. I braked, looked and followed the outside-inside-outside path and was within the cones, but they said I did it too fast. I also came back the night after the first day and did the box on my bike. After that, doing it on the 250 was a breeze.

Seems to happen just about every class, Exercise # 8, matching gears to speed. LOL.

You're the second person who said you got dinged for going too fast during the conering test. You sure it wasn't too slow? There are no penalty points for going too fast. We time you to make sure you go fast enough, and if you're too slow, and depending how slow you are, you can get dinged. But 2 points isn't a valid number. Not sure how they came up with that number?

 

[Ryan T]

Keeping risks low and managing those risks
Search, Evaluate, & Execute (SEE)
Separating hazards
Breaking the crash chain
2 second following distance
4 second immediate path
12 second anticipated path

I learned so many things, I could go on and on. Yet still, I know I still have so much to learn.