MSF. . . For Everyone With No Previous Experience on Bikes

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pacedawg · #1 Unread post by **pacedawg** » Sun Jun 25, 2006 11:03 am

I have been reading posts on this forum for weeks now and have even posted a few messages/ questions. I just passed the MSF today. I had never ridden a bike, actually never even sat on one before! I hadn't driven a stick shift in years either. The MSF was extremely worth while. You could not spend the money better. The instructors were friendly, courteous and knowledgable. I think the best thing was their intent to help everyone pass. We had 3 people wash out. The last one quit before she was asked to leave but they did everything to help her. They gave her a lot of extra attention and were very patient. I was very impressed with the class. The class helps to gain confidence and get you comfortable with the bike. I must say that I was very nervous because I was the only person in the class who had never even been on a bike before but it really doesn't matter. As long as you are patient and listen to the instructors you will be fine. Once you get the feel of the clutch it is such a great time. They definitely got me hooked. I can tell I'll be doing this for a long time. I even think I am buying a bike tomorrow.

black mariah · Sun Jun 25, 2006 11:30 am

I don't understand how anyone could bail on something so simple. Talk about a lack of intestinal fortitude... kind of scary that those people are probably out there on the road in cars, isn't it?

pacedawg · #3 Unread post by **pacedawg** » Sun Jun 25, 2006 11:37 am

The first girl to leave was there because her husband bought her a bike for Christmas on a whim. She knew within the first hour it wasn't for her and she left. The girl in my group was havig a hard time with the clutch and stability. The last straw for her was when she dropped the bike. And that was all for her. . .

sharpmagna · Sun Jun 25, 2006 12:57 pm

Yeah I took the MSF BRC under the same circumstances. No prior motorcycling experience too and I would totally recommend it to anyone. The course gives you a good basis to start with and gives you some good strategies.

In my class we had 3 people fail. One was an older gent who had failed the BRC twice already. The instructors asked him to leave after the first day on the range because they didn't think he could cut it. Unfortunately for him, he had already bought himself a big Harley as his dream bike. When he failed the first time, he bought a little Honda Rebel to practice on. One woman quit after the first day on her own because she didn't feel comfortable doing it. Another woman stuck it to the very end but she failed because she got too many points on the final test.

I was totally suprised I did so well on the exam since I did not have any prior experience. I scored a -1 and failing was a -20. Only one person in the course got a perfect.

Sun Jun 25, 2006 1:23 pm

black mariah wrote:I don't understand how anyone could bail on something so simple. Talk about a lack of intestinal fortitude... kind of scary that those people are probably out there on the road in cars, isn't it?

It's not as simple for everyone, luckily they found out in the class and not out in the street. That's also why I suggest to newbies to wait until you take the class to buy a bike!

jstark47 · #6 Unread post by **jstark47** » Sun Jun 25, 2006 1:26 pm

black mariah wrote:I don't understand how anyone could bail on something so simple. Talk about a lack of intestinal fortitude...

I disagree. The instructors in my MSF class said some people are just not made to ride motorcycles. Facing up to the fact that YOU might be one of those, choking down a lot of emotions and peer pressure, and making the correct decision to terminate before you hurt yourself or someone else........ then doing it front of the whole class..... that's a difficult thing.

Where I come from, doing the difficult but necessary thing under pressure is not "lack of intestinal fortitude," it's grace under fire.........

Sculelos · #7 Unread post by **Sculelos** » Sun Jun 25, 2006 1:26 pm

I admit I have failed the msf course 3 times already, two of them last year, the first time I was kicked out for reckless behavior, second time I just didn't pass the final test because I didn't break hard enough, and failed to look threw the turn, the third time I did great up untill the test then going threw the two courners I stoped and that was enough to fail me, I am going back to take it later this year but I think I will take the advanced one as It's alot shorter.

Sun Jun 25, 2006 1:37 pm

jstark47 wrote:
black mariah wrote:I don't understand how anyone could bail on something so simple. Talk about a lack of intestinal fortitude...
I disagree. The instructors in my MSF class said some people are just not made to ride motorcycles. Facing up to the fact that YOU might be one of those, choking down a lot of emotions and peer pressure, and making the correct decision to terminate before you hurt yourself or someone else........ then doing it front of the whole class..... that's a difficult thing.

Where I come from, doing the difficult but necessary thing under pressure is not "lack of intestinal fortitude," it's grace under fire.........

Well said...

1will · #9 Unread post by **1will** » Sun Jun 25, 2006 1:55 pm

i feel bad for the girl who got the christmas gift. hopefully her husband was supportive and recognized it was foolish for him to spring that on her. considering the risks of motorcycling and the amount of focus it requires, it is not something to pursue if your heart is not 110% in it without any outside pressure.

1will · #10 Unread post by **1will** » Sun Jun 25, 2006 1:59 pm

Sweet Tooth wrote:
jstark47 wrote:
black mariah wrote:I don't understand how anyone could bail on something so simple. Talk about a lack of intestinal fortitude...
I disagree. The instructors in my MSF class said some people are just not made to ride motorcycles. Facing up to the fact that YOU might be one of those, choking down a lot of emotions and peer pressure, and making the correct decision to terminate before you hurt yourself or someone else........ then doing it front of the whole class..... that's a difficult thing.

Where I come from, doing the difficult but necessary thing under pressure is not "lack of intestinal fortitude," it's grace under fire.........
Well said...

yes. emotions definitely run high at the brc. it takes a lot of strength to throw in the towel. so much waiting and anticipation goes into i can't imagine how much it would suck to be counseled out, especially with the class seats being so hard to get. one young woman in my class, maybe 20 y/o or so, was crying after she didn't pass the test.