SO WHAT IS A BIKESAFE COURSE?

You may have come across BikeSafe in your travels through the world of motorcycles and if so here are some further details and if not - here's what it's all about...

BikeSafe is a police generated motorcycle training scheme, aiming to help riders improve their riding skills so that they can ride better, anticipate what the roads might dish up and enjoy travelling really confidently while remaining safe.

BikeSafe started up around the millennium in North Wales and the Northwest of England, as a constructive response to the high number of motorcycle collisions happening at the time. The beautiful roads of Wales were calling to motorcyclists but some did not have the necessary skills to enjoy the roads wisely and were coming a cropper. Hence the formation of the Cheshire police-led BikeSafe programme, designed to up-skill motorcyclists. Greater Manchester and Merseyside police soon followed suit as the scheme took off. The idea was that police motorcyclists - really some of the best, most highly-trained motorcyclists around - would pass on further education to riders to help them to acquire the necessary skills to ride more safely and enjoyably.

The whole scheme has been so successful that it has grown exponentially, eventually being taken over centrally by Humberside Police, overseen by the National Police Chiefs Council (NPCC).

BikeSafe has now  joined up with VideoBiker which now manages the admin and website. Riders can now book onto their nearest course online and the number of courses offered is due to double in the coming years. There will be a local police officer running the scheme in each area which is offering courses and currently 34 police forces are offering the scheme, with more in the pipeline. The course can also be a stepping stone to further advanced rider courses offered by RoSpa, the IAM or the DVSA Enhanced Rider Scheme. The National BikeSafe course will take a day to complete going forward, although some local courses may partner with the IAM for further training if required.

The current cost of the course is £65 but there may be subsidies available locally from local councils, so it's worth enquiring at the time of booking.

The Course Itself
The first part is the morning session consisting of videos and a discussion about the way the police learn advanced riding and details on the: Information, Position, Speed, Gear, Acceleration system they use or IPSGA.
Then in the afternoon it's time to put the theory into action and there is a ride of up to 100 miles with a police motorcyclist taking up the rear and observing how you ride, so as to be able to give you feedback on what you could improve at the end.

BikeSafe has been a great success and would like to grow and offer even more courses in the next few years but, as with everything in the modern world, the police are already low on resources so this may be a struggle. Although the courses are currently mainly led by experienced police motorcyclists, in some areas trained volunteers are used where there are not enough police motorcyclists free to lead the courses.

The bottom line and real aim of the course is to get motorcyclists thinking and taking proper responsibility for how they are riding, rather than telling them what to do.

The unique benefit of having a police rider - really highly trained and with great expertise - giving you tips on how you could ride more safely and confidently, is invaluable and should lead to more confident and safer riders on the road which is a win win for everybody.

Have you been on a BikeSafe course in your local area and if so did you enjoy it and did you find it helpful with your riding going forward - or not? We'd love to hear about it if you have, let us know at: [email protected] or drop us a message on Facebook.