Total Motorcycle Community Forums

Just to throw in my 2 cents.

The difference between the two routes is that the MSF teaches you riding technique, you get feedback from professional instructors, and you get the tools you need to become a safe and effective rider.

Does riding on the street with hills and other obstacles help you learn? Sure, but you want a good foundation before you add those in. Otherwise it's like going from arithmetic to Calculus, you may be able to figure it out, but by then it could be too late.

Most if not all of the MSF classes end with an instructor saying "Great, you're now qualified to ride a motorcycle in a supervised parking lot."

Also, not sure where you are, but passing the Va DMV test is a cake walk compared to the MSF skills test. So your comparison of people going elsewhere to get their license in this state is the other way around. People get a license from the DMV and still have no idea how to counter steer.

jonnythan wrote:

hordak wrote:You wouldn't have your 16 year old kid drive your geo metro around the walmart parking lot for a few hours then give him his licence and the keys to a Corvette.

You know, ignoring the fact that a car is far easier and more foolproof to operate than a motorcycle, parking lots *are* standard operating procedure for teaching teenagers to drive.

I first got behind the wheel in a parking lot. So did my two brothers, my girlfriend, her brothers, my cousin, etc. Drive around a big empty parking lot for a half hour (or more, if needed, especially if driving a manual tranny) to get familiar with the mechanical operation of the vehicle. It's quite a bit better to learn just how the steering wheel, throttle, and brakes respond in a safe parking lot environment instead of in traffic.

Yes your first drive is in a parking lot. However you don't get your licence after that first drive. You have to complete real world driving. When I got my licence I had to drive for so many hours (50 I believe) before I could take the road test.

Alright then, it seems like you know what you're going to do. So do it.

hordak wrote:

jonnythan wrote:

hordak wrote:You wouldn't have your 16 year old kid drive your geo metro around the walmart parking lot for a few hours then give him his licence and the keys to a Corvette.

You know, ignoring the fact that a car is far easier and more foolproof to operate than a motorcycle, parking lots *are* standard operating procedure for teaching teenagers to drive.

I first got behind the wheel in a parking lot. So did my two brothers, my girlfriend, her brothers, my cousin, etc. Drive around a big empty parking lot for a half hour (or more, if needed, especially if driving a manual tranny) to get familiar with the mechanical operation of the vehicle. It's quite a bit better to learn just how the steering wheel, throttle, and brakes respond in a safe parking lot environment instead of in traffic.

Yes your first drive is in a parking lot. However you don't get your licence after that first drive. You have to complete real world driving. When I got my licence I had to drive for so many hours (50 I believe) before I could take the road test.

Most states don't require you to have any actual road experience before getting your license. Mine certainly didn't.

Besides, most states require you to have your driver's license before you get a motorcycle endorsement. In other words, you have to already be qualified to operate a motor vehicle on public streets. The motorcycle endorsement only permits you to operate a 2-wheeled vehicle in addition to a 4-wheeled vehicle.

You generally have to already pass the license requirements to operate a vehicle on the streets before you are allowed to do so with a motorcycle.

storysunfolding wrote:Also, not sure where you are, but passing the Va DMV test is a cake walk compared to the MSF skills test. So your comparison of people going elsewhere to get their license in this state is the other way around. People get a license from the DMV and still have no idea how to counter steer.

Really. I keep hearing people talk about how hard the DMV on cycle test is and that's why they take the course hence my Drivers Ed example. Problem is it is all hear say. No one has actually taken the DMV route they just repeat what others have told them.That's why I am looking for advice from people like onin24eagle. People who actually tried it both ways.

I've taken both the MSF BRC and completed the DMV course. I didn't even break a sweat with the DMV course. For the DMV course you never have to go over 10 mph or do ANYTHING challenging when compared to the MSF.

Of course that's just for Va. Where are you located?

storysunfolding wrote:I've taken both the MSF BRC and completed the DMV course. I didn't even break a sweat with the DMV course. For the DMV course you never have to go over 10 mph or do ANYTHING challenging when compared to the MSF.

Of course that's just for Va. Where are you located?

Thanks for the advice. That is what I am looking for.

Peoples Republik of Kalifornia for now. Maybe Ohio in a couple of months.During the off season

Um.

The MSF is a class. Its purpose is to teach you how to ride the motorcycle.

The DMV test doesn't teach you anything. It's a skills test.

Motorcycle skills are not trivial or intuitive. Take the class.

storysunfolding wrote:I've taken both the MSF BRC and completed the DMV course. I didn't even break a sweat with the DMV course. For the DMV course you never have to go over 10 mph or do ANYTHING challenging when compared to the MSF.

Of course that's just for Va. Where are you located?

Wait I'm confused, the DMV in some states offers a course?

Brackstone wrote:

storysunfolding wrote:I've taken both the MSF BRC and completed the DMV course. I didn't even break a sweat with the DMV course. For the DMV course you never have to go over 10 mph or do ANYTHING challenging when compared to the MSF.

Of course that's just for Va. Where are you located?

Wait I'm confused, the DMV in some states offers a course?

No, he's referring to the DMV skills test, which uses a course in some states. There is no instruction - just a test.