My thoughts on the MSF course

[dabuddha]

Well I just took the MSF course this last weekend. To provide a background on myself, I've never ridden a motorcycle in my life nor have I driving a car with a stick shift. So I was completely new to this.

The first two days of the course (wed/thur night) we went over different things about the bikes as well as various scenarios and what to do. I learned quite a bit and the statistics the instructor shared with us were eye-opening.

The next two days (sat/sun morning) we actually got on the bikes and were on the "range." It was physically and mentally exhausting given all the various things we were learning but it was great! I went from a nervous guy sitting on this huge machine (suzuki gz250) to a somewhat confident driver shifting, braking, swerving, low speed turning, etc guy. My body is all sore this Monday morning but I learned so much.

Unfortunately, I failed the driving test because in the 135 degree turn, I slipped over the line by about 2 inches. That was an automatic 10 point deduction The instructor told us (the failures) that we could take the test one more time so I'm going to do that. But all in all, I got more than what I was looking for from the course.

I'm thinking now to go get my learners permit from the MVA and get a used GZ250 (I found it comfortable to ride and it's what's used in the course/test so I figured why not. I was going to get a ninja 250 first but thought I'd go with the gz250 and then work my way up to a sportbike). For all those nay sayers, I definitely recommend the course even if you have riding experience. It's the little things you learn that make a huge difference.




Sorry didn't see the stickied post on top

[drumbandit]

Yeah that turn is somewhat difficult. I actually took the test in the rain and it was hard to see some of the lines. Nonetheless, I was able to make the turn (at the proper speed). I even dragged a peg, which kind of scared me.

[littlec]

Originally Posted by dabuddha

Well I just took the MSF course this last weekend. To provide a background on myself, I've never ridden a motorcycle in my life nor have I driving a car with a stick shift. So I was completely new to this.

The first two days of the course (wed/thur night) we went over different things about the bikes as well as various scenarios and what to do. I learned quite a bit and the statistics the instructor shared with us were eye-opening.

The next two days (sat/sun morning) we actually got on the bikes and were on the "range." It was physically and mentally exhausting given all the various things we were learning but it was great! I went from a nervous guy sitting on this huge machine (suzuki gz250) to a somewhat confident driver shifting, braking, swerving, low speed turning, etc guy. My body is all sore this Monday morning but I learned so much.

Unfortunately, I failed the driving test because in the 135 degree turn, I slipped over the line by about 2 inches. That was an automatic 10 point deduction The instructor told us (the failures) that we could take the test one more time so I'm going to do that. But all in all, I got more than what I was looking for from the course.

I'm thinking now to go get my learners permit from the MVA and get a used GZ250 (I found it comfortable to ride and it's what's used in the course/test so I figured why not. I was going to get a ninja 250 first but thought I'd go with the gz250 and then work my way up to a sportbike). For all those nay sayers, I definitely recommend the course even if you have riding experience. It's the little things you learn that make a huge difference.




Sorry didn't see the stickied post on top

You shouldnt have failed for going over that line. At least in NJ that wouldnt fail you. Its still a 10 point deduction i think but you only fail if you lose 20 points. And how did you take the course without your learners permit?

[HaMmErD]

i just got done with msf course today. Most difficult was the figure eight
u-turns inside the boxed lines. Passed it great learning experience very exhausting though. It was about 97 degrees today and had so many bike courses to go through. Glad i didn't have to retake it.

[Research Monkey]

Sounds like you had a good time. I'm looking forward to taking it!

Originally Posted by littlec

You shouldnt have failed for going over that line. At least in NJ that wouldnt fail you. Its still a 10 point deduction i think but you only fail if you lose 20 points. And how did you take the course without your learners permit?

I don't have a learners permit but they said i could take the course (taking it next weekend)

[darwin]

I'm pretty sure that the BRC doesn't require you to have a permit. I took mine last weekend without a permit. I thought I'd get a deduction on that corner because I came really close to clipping the cones on the inside of the apex of the turn (oops)... They told us to go fast though :laugh:

[g®eg™]

21 points to fail, so 10 for going outside the line wouldn't fail you.
did your instructor tell you it was "only by 2 inches" ?
otherwise, it would have been you looking down (lose more points).

but no mater, the most you could have gotten for the corner was 15, so you must have picked up some in the box, the swerve or the quick stop.

go take the test again, you'll probably pass second time through.

[Colin]

Marylands rules on the 135 degree turn state that going outside the lines is an automatic failure. IIRC, in MD that's the only automatic failure other than dropping the bike. They're pretty strict on people being able to handle turns at speed.