BikeSafe Vs. IAM

Have you considered ROSPA?? Im doing mine atm and i only pay for the test and my instructors bacon buttys when we stop for a break lol!

I have done bike safe and am about to take the IAM test. I can say for sure that the IAM skills for life package is excellent value for money and if most definitely NOT a waste of time.
My bikesafe course only cost me £30 and was well worth that - but to be honest the best thing i took home with me from the bikesafe day was a leaflet from the IAM for the skills for life package.

I'd been riding a year when i had my first observed ride, and now after 6 observed rides of about 2 hours each my riding has progressed more than i ever thought possible. As somebody else said u can have as many observed rides as it takes to get up to test standard - all for £85.

When i've passed my IAM test i'm gonna enrole for the ROSPA one. All of these things are run by charities at a highly subsidised rate, but if u only have the cash for one of them i'd skip bike safe and enrole for the IAM - they will teach u everything u would have covered ob bikesafe and a whole lot more.

Originally Posted by Rhiwbina_Squirrel

The BikeSafe is ?80

Do you guys have to pay for BikeSafe? No wonder ours is cr@p up here then, it's free.

IAM a much more comprehensive thing than BikeSafe mate, you can't compare the two other than the teaching principles will be similar.

My BikeSafe ride was a one hour observed ride (observing three of us in turn so actually it was 20 minutes) followed by little in the way of constructive comment and a bollocking from a copper for gunning it too much on an overtake. Something that the an advanced riding DVD I watched says I should do, move across the line in a lower (responsive gear), without committing to get a second good clear view, then use plenty of power to get past swiftly and cleanly before backing off the throttle and returning to your own side of the road. The copper bollocked me for it saying I broke the speed limit unneccesarily and could have cruised past nice and slowly using less power . I learned nothing new as I had already read Motorcycle Roadcraft for the second time in my biking career. No test and no certification at the end of it. Maybe you guys get a full day and more quality advice if you are paying 80 quid for it.

IAM is a weekly meet where your riding will be observed by an advanced rider and advice given until you are of a standard to pass the test. The certification can result in reduced insurance premiums. I haven't done it but it's certainly on my wish list. All these folk saying how much it has improved their riding can't be a co-incidence, must be worth doing IMO.

I started my IAM training straight after my DAS and it has proved invaluable. I will be doing the test this year but the things i've learnt are very handy. "the system" is a very impressive way to just make progress and allow you to really take in everything around you.

I definitely recomend it for the money because I thought I knew it all after riding crossers as a kid but, i was told although i could definitely ride the bike fine I wasn't really making the most of my surroundings to make safe and rapid progress. After a few hours and many a telling off i now feel much more confident and relaxed (which is very important) on my bike and enjoy it even more.

I have done both. Bikesafe is a short assessment of your ride with advice from a police rider who looks for anything, like bad habbits poor road position and as far as I remember there is a video and over all discussion.

The IAM - well that depends on where they are and who they are. Non professional people who happen to be a member of the IAM and well it goes on for a long time. Its all a bit anal really. For instance shoulder checks and life savers going into corners? I mean come on the hazard is in front of you.

But I am all for advanced riding, just get some good instruction from an ex -police rider and you can't go wrong with that.

Originally Posted by Tzindo

The IAM - well that depends on where they are and who they are. Non professional people who happen to be a member of the IAM and well it goes on for a long time. Its all a bit anal really. For instance shoulder checks and life savers going into corners? I mean come on the hazard is in front of you.

But I am all for advanced riding, just get some good instruction from an ex -police rider and you can't go wrong with that.

I reckon those two phrases back each other up - never heard of that one before

Originally Posted by Tzindo

But I am all for advanced riding, just get some good instruction from an ex -police rider and you can't go wrong with that.

That was the guy that taught me the basics.

Garry.

[JamesMio]

I was at our local BikeSafe on sunday just gone, well worth it (bearing in mind ours was free!) and opened my eyes an awful lot.

Not sure I'd have paid ?80 for it, as it's really an introduction to Police/Advanced riding but I came away from it buzzing with confidence, and my cornering which I'd been having a nightmare with previously, is all but cured now.

I'd already booked onto IAM a week ago, so just need to get in touch with them to being my training, but if it's anything like the BikeSafe it'll be well worthwhile.

Let's be honest, the worst thing that can happen from Advanced Training is you lose your ?65-80. Weighing that up against the best thing being they could teach you something that potentially saves you from becoming a statistic one day & I'd say that's a pretty good gamble really!

Firstly I've not done any IAM or Rospa training. I've done lots of bikesafe quick evaluations and a Bikesafe weekend which cost 95 quid for me and Lissa pillion which included dinner both days.

Any training or evaluation is helpful, and it's not just about going around corners. Riding in a straight line you should always be assessing the scene and moving your position on the road accordingly.

To say training is a waste of time is absolute nonsense.

From what the various police officers told me, I would plump for Rospa over IAM, But I believe they may not have so many centres as the IAM.

See if any forces within sensible riding distance are offering free or low charged Bikesafes. Don't worry too much about cans, plates or dark visors unless they are really taking the p!ss. At the end of the day they just want to help you ride quickly as safely as is possible

I've done Bikesafe ( worth the money and full day ) and now looking at the next options, No matter how long or short a time you've been riding/driving you never stop learning.

Originally Posted by Tzindo

For instance shoulder checks and life savers going into corners?

As an IAM observer I have not noticed this on any of the books.....could you please point it out to me?

I know for a fact that NO ONE in our group suggests this! So I am wondering whether you just misunderstood the comment or whether indeed someone is talking porkies from the IAM group you've been in