Bike School
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Cruiser
Joined: Dec 2011
Posts: 140
Likes: 0
From: Newmarket Ont. Canada
Bike School
Well I'll make this as short as possible. I have been riding for over 40 years. All of those bikes we're every kind but Harley's. Last fall I ordered 2 new ones a Wide Glide for me and a 1200 for my wife. Now...she had to get her license....she rode alot but never got one. So I booked a weekend course at Centennial College here in Toronto for her...then I think, hell I can't let her do that on her own, so I book one also. 3 day course. 3 hrs. Friday in the classroom. full day saturday on the course, and 3/4 day sunday on the course, and then the TEST. Here I am in a riding jacket older than the kids teaching me..lol...Sir ..please keep that right foot of the ground, Sir..please don't use so much front brake, Sir..Sir...Well as I said this will be short. My wife passed and so did I but ...I did learn something, I had so many bad habits with my grips, lane changes, and taking to much **** for granted. So rest easy Ontario..this old guy is good to go!
Outstanding HDF Member
Joined: Jul 2010
Posts: 2,979
Likes: 57
From: PA
Well I'll make this as short as possible. I have been riding for over 40 years. All of those bikes we're every kind but Harley's. Last fall I ordered 2 new ones a Wide Glide for me and a 1200 for my wife. Now...she had to get her license....she rode alot but never got one. So I booked a weekend course at Centennial College here in Toronto for her...then I think, hell I can't let her do that on her own, so I book one also. 3 day course. 3 hrs. Friday in the classroom. full day saturday on the course, and 3/4 day sunday on the course, and then the TEST. Here I am in a riding jacket older than the kids teaching me..lol...Sir ..please keep that right foot of the ground, Sir..please don't use so much front brake, Sir..Sir...Well as I said this will be short. My wife passed and so did I but ...I did learn something, I had so many bad habits with my grips, lane changes, and taking to much **** for granted. So rest easy Ontario..this old guy is good to go!
I have husband & wife friends who did the same thing. He'd been riding all his life and her just starting, they both took the course. He said, like you, that he hadn't realized how many bad habits he had acquired over the years and was really glad that he took the course with her.
Seasoned HDF Member
Joined: Oct 2007
Posts: 10,946
Likes: 822
From: Nevada
Congrats to you and the wife!
I attend a trackday about every year. I've been riding 35+. I always learn something new. Unlike a piece of chrome, which is gone when you sell a bike, proper cornering skills are lifelong.
I attend a trackday about every year. I've been riding 35+. I always learn something new. Unlike a piece of chrome, which is gone when you sell a bike, proper cornering skills are lifelong.
Road Master
Joined: Oct 2009
Posts: 1,109
Likes: 89
From: Tampa, FL
congrats.
In the USA if you pass a Motorcycle safety class you get a discount on your insurance. Do they offer the same in Canada? You should let your insurance company know you took the course and passed.
If i am just stating the obvious I'll take my punishment.
.
In the USA if you pass a Motorcycle safety class you get a discount on your insurance. Do they offer the same in Canada? You should let your insurance company know you took the course and passed.
If i am just stating the obvious I'll take my punishment.
.
Ultimate HDF Member
Joined: May 2008
Posts: 6,508
Likes: 169
From: WPB, FL
I took the MSF course 4 years ago when getting back into riding after a 40 year hiatis. All I needed to do was to take the course so I could use the endorsement to get my license. After all "I already knew how to ride" or so I thought. These courses will teach the most seasoned veteran new tricks and will consistantly point out old bad habits. I highly recommend the MSF to everyone. I purchased a Ride Like A Pro DVD setup last year also and have learned from that as well but I'm thinking it's time for the more advanced MSF course for myself and/or possibly the 2-up class for the wife and I.
Who says you can't teach an old dog new tricks?
Who says you can't teach an old dog new tricks?
Elite HDF Member
Joined: Feb 2008
Posts: 3,817
Likes: 2
From: Novi MI
In 1970 I bought a new Honda CB350 when I was 19 years old. I didn't know how to ride. The salesman put the bike on the center stand, showed me the gears, 1 down, 4 up and out the door I went. When I started riding again 10 years ago I passed the test on my own but I took the advanced riding class and bought the "Ride Like a Pro" dvd because riding a light sport bike is a lot different than riding a heavy cruiser. I remember thinking to myself there's no way I could do the cone weave on a big Harley.
Last edited by barjbar; May 21, 2012 at 10:22 AM.
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Outstanding HDF Member
Joined: Jul 2010
Posts: 2,979
Likes: 57
From: PA
In 1970 I bought a new Honda CB350 when I was 19 years old. I didn't know how to ride. The salesman put the bike on the center stand, showed me the gears, 1 down, 4 up and out the door I went. When I started riding again 10 years ago I passed the test on my own but I took the advanced riding class and bought the "Ride Like a Pro" dvd because riding a light sport bike is a lot different than riding a heavy cruiser. I remember thinking to myself there's no way I could do the cone weave on a big Harley.
It doesn't make sense to me that you can forgo the DMV test and really never have any kind of tested education and still get your license. It seems like a huge loop hole in the system that puts completely unprepared riders out on the highways.
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Tourer
Joined: Sep 2011
Posts: 343
Likes: 1
From: Canada
I used to instruct the CSC (Canada Safety Council course) and I can tell you the worst riders are those that have been (supposedly) riding for years. They have usually picked up so many bad habits that they're a menace to themselves and any one around them. Some recognize it at take either a refresher course or an advanced course and the reaction at the end is the same as yours, I learned alot. Congratulations on your wifes and your success, you did the right thing.
Outstanding HDF Member
Joined: Dec 2010
Posts: 2,036
Likes: 8
From: Temecula, CA
I took the advanced course 2 years after the basic course and was SHOCKED to find out that if you pass it, you get your license - even if you didn't take the basic course. It was a one day thing - NO classroom time, NO written exam, no real education (you had to give back the little pamphlet used) and basically, as long as you didn't lay down your bike, you passed. 4 of the guys were on brand new bikes and really had no clue of how to ride. I actually felt bad for them because these are the guys who end up being statistics.
It doesn't make sense to me that you can forgo the DMV test and really never have any kind of tested education and still get your license. It seems like a huge loop hole in the system that puts completely unprepared riders out on the highways.
It doesn't make sense to me that you can forgo the DMV test and really never have any kind of tested education and still get your license. It seems like a huge loop hole in the system that puts completely unprepared riders out on the highways.
When I took the course almost three years ago, I had riden a dirt bike once...and layed it down. The course was a three day course and I was concerned about passing so I studied hard. I paid attention during class and when we got to the cones I had issues with the little Rebel I was on because I couldn't turn the bars to full lock because I would hit my knees. Thus I dropped the bike. I went home that night and practiced the same manuver on my Sportster (much easier to do on it actually...) and the next day did the cones without any issue because they had me sit on the back pillion when riding it. I aced the final test with them and felt, at the end of the three days, I was a better rider. I don't see how a one day course would help but the three day courses are well worth the money and time.