Enhanced rider scheme

[Pbassred]

Opinions ?

[bonio]

Don't know about it... Any details?

[husoi]

I did the IAM practice until I was comfortable with the riding and leant enough to be safe.

Not doing the test or keep paying to be a member.

 

[Pie man]

I think it depends what you want to get from it. I like the BikeSafe course, class room work, answers direct from Plod, then the observed ride.  

[Bungleaio]

I did it about 6 months after passing my test and it was good, my original instructor did it and it was about £60 I think, the rest of it was paid for by the council as part of a road safety incentive. It was recognised for a discount by my insurer.

 

4 hours ago, husoi said:

I did the IAM practice until I was comfortable with the riding and leant enough to be safe.

Not doing the test or keep paying to be a member.

 

 

If you signed up with the IAM then you've already paid for the test, why not take it? I've done very well from being a member of the IAM through their associated discount schemes.

[bonio]

Soz. Now I get it.

They all cover the same basic things: positioning on the road, observation, planning, plus getting into the right gear, doing the right speed, in the right place. Then some stuff on overtaking and bends. I learned a huge amount and became a much better rider.

I keep my membership going, but only because the local group has good rides and meetings, and its a way of getting to know other riders locally.

[Steve_M]

Always take additional training from a reputable source. Be it Bikesafe, Enhanced Rider Scheme, IAM / RoSPA, i2i, trail riding, Hopp Rider Training at Cadwell Park, Motogymkhana.. whatever.

 

Anything that improves your knowledge skill level / Roadcraft will make riding more enjoyable and hopefully make you a safer rider. A bonus for me is how much enjoyment I got from doing those things, too.

 

Like @bonio I kept my IAM and RoSPA (Norfolk) membership renewed as they had regular (weekly for both) rideouts for both skills maintenance and social reasons. Unfortunately my local groups here up north have only the occasional group rides so I’ve let my membership lapse. 

[manxie49]

All much of a muchness really,  and all pretty much teach the same stuff.  As long as the organisation is a recognised one, then all learning is good learning.  I did IAM and more recently a slow riding / manoeuvring course.  Former Police motorcyclist did that training, and in fairness I learnt more from that half day than I did from most other types of training.  IMHO training should be geared to your needs / weaknesses, with an objective to improve on them, and a good instructor will do just that.

[Pbassred]

Thanks everyone. I acknowledge the benefits of additional training, but I was asking specificly about the Enhanced scheme. £70, a certificate approved by the DVSA and you get to tick the additional qualifications box at insurance time.  Only on person here did it?

 

[bonio]

Didn't know about this scheme until you mentioned it @Pbassred.

Looking at what it covers, it seems to be more or less the same stuff as IAM and ROSPA do. Main difference is that you're trained by a qualified DVSA instructor, whereas with ROSPA and IAM you get a volunteer who's had some additional training. And you get a radio ear piece so you can hear the instructor as you go; I can imagine that could be really useful. 

[exportmanuk]

Hi  I deliver both IAM and Bikesafe in Manchester   Bikesafe though a great start is only one day and whilst it may identify weaknesses and give you some pointers on how to correct them it does not really do a great deal of coaching. The Rospa and IAM course are spread over a number of weeks and hopefully help you establish better habits and hopefully many of these good habits will stick around with you for a good while.

Bikesafe is often an introduction to further training.

I can't comment on ERS as I have not experienced it directly but anything that help your riding improve and become even more enjoyable is always a good thing.

 

Edited May 23, 2023 by exportmanuk

[Bungleaio]

7 hours ago, Pbassred said:

Thanks everyone. I acknowledge the benefits of additional training, but I was asking specificly about the Enhanced scheme. £70, a certificate approved by the DVSA and you get to tick the additional qualifications box at insurance time.  Only on person here did it?

 

You should do it, there will be 2 of us then.

[Mississippi Bullfrog]

I've looked at various additional training schemes but they have always run on Sundays when I am working. I hadn't heard of this one until now. There are several trainers not far from me. I might ask if any of them do midweek training when I'm able to find some time. 

 

I'm sure I've picked up a few bad habits over the years. 

[Pbassred]

Did it.  Passed.  Loads of feed back too.  Not all of it enjoyable but in the context of "advanced", all good.  I think there aught to be more courses that go beyond DVSA but not "delivering a kidney" elitist like IAM.  Preferably a day course like bikesafe but with on the bike training rather than just an observed ride.  A couple of years ago I did a California Superbike school "corning confidence" day and got around their car park course quite quick, but it caries no weight on the road.

Edited May 30, 2023 by Pbassred

[manxie49]

Congratulations on passing your course.  Must admit, I'd never heard of the enhanced rider scheme till you brought it up.  The thing is, as with all training, as long as you learnt something, and took something away from it, then it wasn't time wasted.  On a personal note, I disagree with your comment about IAM training being elitist.  IAM, for a lot of people, tends to fit in better with their work and home commitments, as it did for me.  There was no set day or time when I had to attend for training, and the instructor worked things around my schedule.  Other courses I've done wouldn't / couldn't do this.  So for me, IAM fitted in nicely with my shift work.  Cheers.