BikeSafe Vs. IAM

I've looked at the two briefly and they both seem to be the same sort of thing. The BikeSafe is ?80 and the IAM motorcycle 'skill for life' is ?65. I'll want to be doing at least one of them when, and if, I pass :P

Any ideas which I should do or should I fork out a bit more cash and do both of them? Thanks in advance!

[SoulKiss]

Aww was hoping the 1st line in that post was going to be

"Live on Sky Sports, Easter Bank Holiday"

Dissapointed now

Bkesafe is a 1 day course run by the Police. IAM is a club run by 'advanced' bikers in their spare time. They will observe and give advice on how to get through the advanced motorcycle test.

You can't knock IAM for value for money though.

[Luckypants]

I reckon BikeSafe is a good introduction to Advanced Riding techniques and will open your eyes to what the IAM can offer.

Waste of time. If you have half a brain and some common road-sense then the odds of such training helping you avoid an accident that you wouldn't have avoided before are pretty slim. You need basic survival instincts and an ability to read things and spot potential hazards in a variety of situations. You can be taught it but it needs to be instinctive if you are to put it into practise and actually avoid an accident. So you will either have it (as a natural aptitude) or you won't.

Do neither of them and spend the money instead on a back protector or upgrading some other part of your protective clothing.

Originally Posted by Toypop

Waste of time. If you have half a brain and some common road-sense then the odds of such training helping you avoid an accident that you wouldn't have avoided before are pretty slim. You need basic survival instincts and an ability to read things and spot potential hazards in a variety of situations. You can be taught it but it needs to be instinctive if you are to put it into practise and actually avoid an accident. So you will either have it (as a natural aptitude) or you won't.

And just sometimes, it takes someone else to point something out to you that is blindingly obvious - once they have. I did BikeSafe then IAM and it most certainly *wasn't* a waste of time.

Originally Posted by Toypop

Waste of time. If you have half a brain and some common road-sense then the odds of such training helping you avoid an accident that you wouldn't have avoided before are pretty slim. You need basic survival instincts and an ability to read things and spot potential hazards in a variety of situations. You can be taught it but it needs to be instinctive if you are to put it into practise and actually avoid an accident. So you will either have it (as a natural aptitude) or you won't.

Do neither of them and spend the money instead on a back protector or upgrading some other part of your protective clothing.

Are you really saying that nobody has anything to learn, and if you aint got it you can't learn it? You've gotta be kidding!
The Bikesafe is really good but onl lasts a day, with IAM you can get as much input as you need or your time allows. Much of the advice is common sense, but it only seems like that once you know it. The opportunity to practice with somebody is invaluable IMHO, but then again if your the type that just thinks they know it all, then maybe a back protector would be a better buy.....

Originally Posted by chazzyb

And just sometimes, it takes someone else to point something out to you that is blindingly obvious - once they have. I did BikeSafe then IAM and it most certainly *wasn't* a waste of time.

Originally Posted by Toypop

Waste of time. If you have half a brain and some common road-sense then the odds of such training helping you avoid an accident that you wouldn't have avoided before are pretty slim. You need basic survival instincts and an ability to read things and spot potential hazards in a variety of situations. You can be taught it but it needs to be instinctive if you are to put it into practise and actually avoid an accident. So you will either have it (as a natural aptitude) or you won't.

total b****cks! IMO

Originally Posted by Toypop

Do neither of them and spend the money instead on a back protector or upgrading some other part of your protective clothing.

surely prevention is better than cure???

[jambo]

Well I've been riding about 9 years now. And I'd say I've been learning for all of that time. Some of us may be born with a super-human ability to judge things without any help, but I'm afraid I wasn't one of them.

I have done neither IAM or bikesafe, though I have been fortunate enough to ride with some very experianced riders who have informally commented on my riding and helped me tidy it up. Just watching someone who is confident and smooth through corners is an eye opener, and can make you realise how badly you're doing it.

Given that, statistically you're most likley to cause yourself injury loosing control on a corner, not through excessive speed but through dealing badly with the situation, proper training in this area has to be a good thing, especially if you're fresh from the DAS.

Good on you for looking into further training

Jambo