Proficient Motorcycling. David L. Hough

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СКАЧАТЬ the latest simplified curriculum. I’ve also heard from instructors who are embarrassed at turning out students who passed the simplified test but obviously weren’t ready for the road. The good news is that some state programs are taking more responsibility for their training courses, and some are even developing their own training to meet the needs of local riders.

      Rider training courses can give you a big dose of information all at once. The trouble with knowledge is that it’s a lot like French bread—it doesn’t stay fresh very long. You can gain a lot of fresh information from motorcycle magazines and books. A year’s worth of monthly reading adds up to a healthy dose of information to help stack the motorcycling risk deck in your favor. A lot of motorcyclists miss out simply because they don’t take the time to read what’s available. A number of veteran motorcyclists have told me they clip and save helpful articles in a notebook to study again on cold winter nights. You’d think the veterans would have learned it all by now, but that’s not the way it works. The veterans are still around because they continue to refresh their knowledge.

      I used to teach the MSF Experienced Rider Course (ERC), and I was an enthusiastic supporter for a long time, encouraging everyone to take the ERC and take it again every couple of years as a refresher. But the “new and improved” version of the ERC eliminated most of the crash avoidance strategies and control dynamics instruction, and I’m disappointed with the results. If you’re a relatively new rider, take the ERC. In my opinion, the latest ERC will give you an opportunity to practice your control skills. But if you’re an experienced rider, it won’t give you much of what you need.

      Fortunately, there are some alternative street riding courses available, including Lee Parks’ Total Control Advanced Riding Clinic, Atlanta Motorcycle Schools Street Smarts course, Bob Reichenberg’s Streetmasters Motorcycle Workshops, and the on-road Stayin’ Safe Motorcycle Training developed by the late Larry Grodsky. There are also a number of track schools that focus on controlled cornering and braking at real-world speeds, including Keith Code’s California Superbike School and Reg Pridmore’s CLASS Motorcycle Schools.

      Most important, there are several books about riding skills available, including the MSF’s Motorcycling Excellence Second Edition, Lee Park’s Total Control, and Nick Ienatsch’s Sport Riding Techniques. So perhaps the best “training” for an experienced rider is just to study the books and practice the skills on your own. I’ll provide references for the books and riding schools later on.

       Sight Distance

      I often use the phrase “adjust your speed to sight distance.” Let’s be specific about what that means. At a given speed, it takes a certain minimum distance to stop a specific motorcycle. If you expect to avoid that porcupine or those motorcycles splattered on the pavement just around that next blind turn, your speed must be limited to your stopping distance. For example, let’s say your machine is capable of coming to a stop from 60 mph in 190 feet. If you can’t see any farther ahead than 190 feet, your speed shouldn’t be any faster than 60 mph. If your sight distance is limited to 150 feet, you shouldn’t be riding any faster than say, 50 mph.

      Of course, trying to judge distance in feet or car lengths is unreliable. The pavement goes by in a blur, too quickly to make easy mental measurements of distance. The trick is to make time measurements. While you’re riding along, pick out some fixed object ahead such as a signpost, and count the seconds it takes you to get there. Count out loud, “one thousand and one, one thousand and two,” and so on. By taking a time measurement of your sight distance and comparing it with your speed, you can make more intelligent decisions about how far you are hanging it out.

      I’ll offer some guidelines:

Speed	Minimum Sight Distance
30 to 50 mph	4 sec
50 to 60 mph	5 sec
60 to 70 mph	6 sec
70 to 80 mph	7 sec

      Give these numbers a try, and see if you agree with my suggested minimums. If your reflexes are really quick and you can make consistent hard stops without dropping the bike or highsiding, shave off a second. If these minimums make you a little nervous, add a second. The point is to have a method of gauging honestly how your speed stacks up to your and your bike’s stopping performance. If you find that you are consistently entering blind situations at speeds too fast to stop within your minimum sight distances, the message should be obvious: get on the binders and slow down quickly whenever sight distance closes up.

      When you are approaching a blind situation such as the crest of a steep hill, is it reasonable to assume that there isn’t a problem ahead, even though you can’t see the road ahead? For instance, let’s say there is a driver on the other side of the hill backing up to make a turn into a driveway. Should you brake just because your sight distance is temporarily limited? Personally, I have seen enough hazards just over a hill or around a corner to be very suspicious. I don’t think it is reasonable to assume the road is clear when you can’t see the road ahead within your stopping distance.

       To Obey or Not to Obey

      As traffic grows more congested and aggressive, more motorists are bending the laws. You may find yourself in the dilemma of having to decide whether to increase the risks of a crash or increase the risks of a traffic ticket. For instance, consider those no passing zones marked by double yellow lines. Years ago, road crews were more realistic about the hazards and more frugal with the yellow paint. We could pretty well depend on the double yellow lines warning us of real hazards, such as hidden dips where another vehicle might be hidden from view or side roads where other vehicles could suddenly pull out. But some road crews have gradually extended the double yellow lines farther and farther, until some highways are double-yellowed from one end to the other. If you’re riding a quick motorcycle, it’s frustrating to hang back behind a creeping motor home or overloaded gravel truck when you can see the other lane is clear and you know you have plenty of zip to get around. More and more of us are giving in to the temptation to just ignore the yellow lines and get on with the ride.

       If you were motoring along at 55 or 60 mph, would you brake for this situation? I don’t think it’s reasonable to assume the road is clear on the other side of this hill, even if traffic on the road has been light. When sight distance closes up, I believe in immediately reducing speed and preparing for evasive action.

       You might be tempted to ignore the no passing lines and get around this slow-moving truck, but before you leap out and accelerate, scrutinize the situation ahead. Are you absolutely certain the truck isn’t about to make a left turn into that side road ahead?

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