Has anyone failed Motorcycle Safety Course?
 

Hey Guys,

I just signed up for My Motorcycle Safety course on June 9th and 10th. I am kinda nervous on taking this class. Has anyone taken this course? Has anyone failed? Or know someone that has? Also if you fail do you know if they let you retake the course again for free or is there another fee? It was $195 for the course. I had a 1995 Kawaski Ninja 600 3 years ago and only rode around the neighborhood for a couple months before it started to had problems and I sold it. So at least I have a idea kind of. Any help or suggestions?

Also I'm planning on getting a Suzuki Gsx-R600 soon. Dont want another carburetor bike.
http://trendsmotorcycle.com/wp-conte...R600-white.jpg

Thanks guys:tup:!
Jason

Did the course back in Ontario in 2004. It was straight forward and a lot of fun really. All very basic stuff but useful. One lady failed off the course, but she had no reason to be there... no clue how to handle a bike.
If you drove before, you should be fine. Just don't pull any crap on the instructor or stunt....
I am not sure if they retest without the course fee again or not... might vary by country/state...

Thanks for the info! Were you nervous at all? I remember when I rode I let the clutch out to where it catches and then give it gas..hopefully I can get that timing right again

Don't be nervous, like wheee! said, it was actually easy and a lot of fun. If you've had previous riding experience the first hour or so on the bike will be kinda boring. They actually teach you how to walk with the bike first then will teach you how to properly get on the bike.

Once you've moved past that, they will teach you how to feather the clutch and learn the engaging point. The fun part begins when they take you through the paces of learning how to do figure eight within the boundaries (if they make you do this, 2nd gear is your friend and feather the clutch and the accelerator). They'll also teach you how to properly take on turns and reaction/stop time. Don't be surprised if you don't go above 3rd gear in class.

Best advice I give is for you to never ride beyond your comfort level. Start small like in your neighborhood then gradually move up to street then highway.

I took my first motorcycle safety course in 1999 and got my license but never bought a bike. I bought my bike in 2005 so I took another class just a refresher which was just for fun because I took it with my brother and sister in law.

The people that taught my class, had a policy that in the event that you failed the riding part, they will either have you stay or have you come back the following weekend to practice and re-take the test. They didn't charge another fee for this. So, I guess it depends on the company you're taking it with.

Stunting at a MSC? Now that would be a true stunter! Do a stoppie and say it was an accident to see what they say....

Thanks bud. When i had my bike I never went on the highway.. was trying to take it easy on streets with less traffic.. one time tho i picked up my bike from the shop.. as i was heading to my mother in law house.. the bike just shut off while i was going 40.. I had to coast into a parking lot.. luckily there was no car behind me.. found out that the shop didn't tighten the battery connector and the screw came off. But anyways. Hopefully this nervousness will go away.

The MSC should alleviate some of the nervousness. It's good to be nervous but not so much so that you're too nervous to ride because I think that might cause you to have an accident by not making the right decision. I saw that in my sister-in-law, they got too cocky and rode with a group (of experienced riders) with only having maybe 12hrs *** time on the bike. She was so nervous that she lost focus, hit a guard rail went down an embankment and had to be airlifted to the trauma center. She was fine but her confidence was shot. After that accident she was not able to ride in the highway anymore. They ended up selling their bikes.

The more you're on the bike the more comfortable you'll be.

If you fail the msf course, you really have no motorfunction coordination and its a wonder you're able to walk upright without falling over or down :)

You get points for various exercises. There's a minimum number of points you need to achieve to pass the class. Most people make some mistakes and still pass. It's fine.

I read this phrase elsewhere, but its appropriate for here.

"At the end of the course, you become a qualified parking lot rider"

Note, get yourself a used bike a few years old, and something with less power/agility than the bike in the OP. Those things are super responsive, turn on a dime, and are likely to get a new rider into trouble.

So should I start off in a used 250? I found a couple on craiglist for a good deal!

250 Would be ideal, but maybe something like a ninja 650R. It's got that sporty appearance, but is more forgiving.

http://www.brp650forum.com/Ninja_650R_1.jpg

I took the msf course, super easy. If you can ride a bicycle and can drive stick in a car you should have zero problem passing this course.

As for a starter bike, as long as you respect the bike starting with a 600 should not be an issue. I rode a 1985 honda nighthawk to learn for only a month before i went and got my 600. And that was before i even took the MSF course.

You will be fine, just practice self control lol

as long as you listen to what you are told you should be fine. people that fail are scared of the bike and shouldn't be there.

As much as i hate to admit it, i failed my first test on my course. Basically how it goes is if you make to many mistakes, you fail. If you drop the bike, you fail. If you hit something, out fail.

I was on the last part of the test and all we had to do is do a light turn (with pylons) at 40kmh. I was going abit to fast and used to much front brake and the wheel turned 90* sideways and i high sided and went flying through the air. So since i did that i failed but the instructor told me there was another course starting that weekend (i was doing my course weekday nights) and i would have to pay the $60 to redo the test.

The weekend came, the course was done and they broke for lunch before their testing. The head instructor asked what i did wrong and if i knew why it happend, i told him everything and he wanted to see me go around the track for a few mins. I did all the things he asked then did the test and got 100%. He gave me my licence and told me not to bother paying the $60. He said **** happends and i learned what i did wrong. That was in 2006 and that has been the only time i dropped a bike. I've owned my 08 ZX6R since April 2009 and i've never dropped it.

Thanks everyone for the help!

The msf course is super straight forward. I had never been on a bike until the day of the on bike portion of the course. I was a little nervous initially but after we got on the bikes it all went away and the rest of the day was a blast. There was one guy that did fail in the class I was in, he lowsided on the same part of the test as snakes709 messed up.

Also this nonsense that a 600cc sportbike is a terrible starter bike is just ridiculous. As long as you respect the bike, a 600 will be just fine to begin with. fwiw I started on a 600 and am still here to tell the story.