I've discussed this with fellow riders before. I took the course many years ago *over 20*. These are awesome for riders with little to no riding experience. I find the informational training very valuable but the driving part in general useless to anybody that has a decent amount of riding experience.

Slow speed driving? I and any rider can putt around at 5mph all day long riding the clutch/brake. The question is why would i or anybody else. Being able to navigate distance based cones at low speed doesn't prove anything. It's actually quite silly if you ask me. I live in the country so making a U-turn on about a lane and a quarter road is kinda the norm. Again that just says i can turn around. 12-18 mph brake slam is nothing. When are bikers traveling that slow in any place other then parking lots. Most safety courses spend a huge amount of time teaching low to no speed handling. Whats the point of it for anybody that actually knows how to ride a motorcycle? Kinda makes me wonder who came up with the driving skills test.

Again i find the classroom time invaluable education for both new and veteran riders. I find the driving part of class only of marginal value to non experienced beginner riders. Kinda like my first cager auto test some 30+ years ago. Turn left, turn right, drive ahead. Go back to test center. Parallel park. Go get your license. Most 8 year old farm kids that drive tractors could pass that test.

 

Having taken the class 20 years ago, you would not know that the course was completely restructured in 2002. That said, the range exercises are pretty much the same but, administered differently. They are designed to create a habit of good techniques that a rider can practice on his/her own to develop the skills needed for safe riding.
The braking example that you mention, the technique is the same at 12 to 18 MPH as at a higher speed. A slow progressive SQUEEZE on the front brake until stopped without locking the rear.
The slow speed maneuvers show basic motorcycle control and the same concepts as most riding, keep your head and eyes up, look where you want to go.

 

Useless? My wife had never been on a motorcycle or used a clutch in her life. She took the MSF basic course, then bought a Sportster and has been riding ever since with no problems. Her bike has never hit the ground. Seems like it worked.

 

As someone who has taught the MSF and now teaches Ride Like A Pro, this is all what I see. Not everyone is as good a rider as you. Some folks struggle with slow speeds or the basics of head and eyes. It looks like you ride a Sportster. That's a nice bike and a bit easier to handle at slow speed than an Ultra, Goldwing, K1200LT, or Triumph Rocket. Sometimes riders have difficulty with those bigger heavier bikes. A lot of it is confidence and comfort. You are no doubt confident and comfortable on your Sportster. But a rider who suddenly moves from a smaller to a larger bike sometimes needs a little extra work to get that comfort and confidence back. It's a lot easier to turn a smaller and lighter bike in a full lock 18 feet circle than a larger and heavier bike. From the picture you are flat footed with both feet down on the Sportster. Not everyone can do that. Some of the less than taller riders (like me 5'7") have to one foot it on the larger and heavier bikes, and that's where the extra slow speed work comes in. Sometimes it's just getting a smaller rider more comfortable on the bigger, heavier machines.

Here are some suggestions. Since you are good at slow speed stuff already, make the exercises smaller and tighter. Get the bike down to where you can ride it at a full lock in either direction. You could probably do 16 foot circles on a Sportster. Get to the point where you can do 5-7 full lock circles without dropping a foot. Then from that full lock work on making a good lean so the pegs or frame almost scrape. Work on making a full lock u-turn from a standing stop. In other words, from a dead stop, lock the bars to one side, and make a u-turn keeping the bars locked all the way around. While that may be easy for you, a lot of riders struggle with it and open the bars up at the last moment and widen the circle. And remember it's not just about making small circles, it's about working on the fundamentals of throttle, clutch, rear brake and especially head and eyes.

Lastly work on a hill. Find a nice steep incline and work on doing Full Lock Circles and Full Lock Figure 8s on that. Then work on the U-Turn from a Stop on the incline. You will probably find it's easier to do the full lock from a stop facing up the hill than down the hill. While it may be easy for you to muscle that Sportster around the steep hill, imagine what it would be like on an Ultra. The fun thing about steep inclines is that there is no room for error because unless you are Ming Yao you can't put your foot down on the downhill side to keep you from falling over.

You are lucky, you can ride well slow and fast. Not everyone can. It's easy to ride fast, the motorcycle is designed to go fast in a straight line. The difference is riding slow, especially on the bigger bike. In fact, most Police Departments focus on slow speed control.

Finally, it sounds like cones don't challenge you. Here is something I read on another forum that a rider similar to your level and skill did to inject some realism into his practice. I DO NOT SUGGEST THIS AT ALL, but only offer it as what someone else did for a good challenge. He would park his cars and truck in a lot and space them apart 20 feet, with less than five feet of a gap between them. Then he would ride around them doing the exercises. He said that suddenly it was a whole new world with vehicles blocking his vision, and the risk of injury or damage being real. Once again I would NEVER suggest this to anyone, including you. But I offer only as what someone like you did while looking for a real challenge. Do NOT do this in a public parking lot with other peoples cars, use only yours. That way if a mishap happens, no 3rd party is involved. Me, I would NEVER do it. I am content working on inclines, hills, 18ft circles and rodeo competitions. There is a reason motorcops work with cones.

Good luck and keep us posted on what your training and practice regimen is.

 

You have to take the course every 4 years to ride on military posts.
The fundamental stuff people forget after years of riding is mind boggling.
Everyone starts to develop bad habits in braking and swerving techniques.
The course birings those fundamentals back in focus. You got to remember, accidents or near accidents thankfuly are not an every day experience so it's easy to get rusty on accident avoidence skills.

 

Been riding for 40 years ,took the riding course with my youngest daughter a few years ago, I learned a lot, most important thing I learned is that no matter how good of a rider you think you are YOU DON"T KNOW EVERY THING, and if you pick up one thing during the course it will be worth it . I think they are a valuable course, but what do I know , like I said I've only been riding for forty + years .

 

Sure it's good. Hell, I know of a couple of riders that rode for decades that didn't know what counter steering was.

 

Wildon, I think you must have missed the part at the end of the MSF classroom instruction, where the class is told to take what they have learned safely at a slow parking lot speed, out on to the street and highways, and practice, practice, practice in the real world at ever increasing higher speed, until you have mastered what you learned, or in your case, already knew.

"Slow speed driving? I and any rider can putt around at 5mph all day long riding the clutch/brake. The question is why would i or anybody else. "

This forum and hundreds of others are full of stories about traffic jams, city driving in stop and go, Sturgis Main Street where bikes are backed up for blocks, or I-90 where they are backed up for miles. You may have a new found respect for slow speed driving with a 900 lb bike, loaded with gear, and a passenger sitting high behind you. It's totally different than driving a light Sportster on a lightly travelled rural road.

Take that 12-18 mph "Brake Slam" you criticize and apply it at 60 mph on one of your county roads and see if you can safely due an emergency stop in the distance indicated in the back of your motorcycle manual. Now do it on a curve, using the techniques taught at that slow speed. Take that same county road and see if you can swerve the yellow lines at 60 mph using the techniques taught at 15 mph.

MSF courses often have self-taught riders attending. They are often the ones with the "I know it all" attitude, who miss the first square corner due to bad riding habits, while the brand new inexperienced rider makes it.

 

Didn't say it was useless to NEW riders . In fact its the perfect learning environment for those who have never ridden before.

 

My first endorsement was via the military course. Although back then we only had to do it once. We all also drive cages and in the same way have to always be thinking. Did you lose your car/truck driving fundamentals over the years? Again I'm not discounting the non driving part of the course. It *driving skills part* kinda like that long a$$ course i was taught in the military *binary math*. I never used it once in the 12 years in the field.

Disclaimer: If your a never before rider ignore all that i debate here MY argument is for semi and very experienced riders.