[demonbane]

The most important drills they teach at MSF are the braking, swerving and cornering drills. Set up two cones about 5 feet apart and about 10 feet ahead of those cones place 3 cones(these 3 cones represent the obstacle that you need to avoid). Practice driving through the two cones and manuver around the 3 cones. To learn braking start off very light and work your way up to harder braking. Feel the weight of the bike shift forward. Once the front is loaded up you can apply more pressure to front brakes. Don't stomp on the rear brakes and don't grab the front. Remember the front brakes do most of the work so be gentle with the rear brake or you'll lock up your rear wheel.

Always wear at the very least a Helmet, Jacket, Gloves and Boots.

I can't stress enough how much attention you should pay to this post. ALWAYS ALWAYS ALWAYS wear your gear. The only thing that looks cooler than a guy zipping down the road in shorts, sandals and a t-shirt is a guy with full-body road rash. Talk about coolness....

The braking and swerving are great things to practice. ESPECIALLY learning how much to load up the front brake. If you're anything like me you'll almost certainly start VERY heavy on the rear brake. It's best to learn how to brake (and quite possibly how to skid) when your life doesn't depend on it.

 

[demonbane]

The best students are ones who come in fresh. You will have plenty of time to practice the RIGHT skills after the class and become a better rider.

As a student, and not an instructor, I have to agree here. When I took the MSF course I had never been on a bike before. There were guys there who had been riding for 40+ years, and a woman who had been riding for 10+ years on a permit because she couldn't pass the license skills test (now THAT is scary). Other than the couple of guys who were there to get cheaper insurance and who were already experienced riders, I did better than just about everyone else. I aced all of the slalom exercises and the figure 8. The only problem I had was learning to not overbreak with the rear during emergency stopping.

I do have to say that if he practices in a parking lot for a few weeks before going to the course he won't have too many bad habits. Not NEARLY as many as some of the 40+ year riders who couldn't manage to do the slalom through the cones.