The Journey Begins...

...with the smallest step.


A coworker needed a Range Aid to help set up exercises for his motorcycle school. Would I be interested?

I have been riding since I was a teenager. I love bikes and riding. "Sure."

Weeks went by. Our schedules didn't coincide for a while. Then, he came to me and said that what he really needed was another RiderCoach. He would pay the expenses if I would take the training. It would be during the summer vacation. Perfect. This had much more appeal. I would be teaching people to ride and making more money. Great! At the same time this would give me an opportunity to improve my skills (my biggest strategy - SKILL = SURVIVAL) and finally see what the "MSF" was all about.

I had heard of the Motorcycle Safety Foundation before. Once upon a time, I researched how one could improve riding skills and had discovered the MSF. I had wanted to take a class for a long time but did not know which one was right for me. The Basic Rider Course was apparently for beginners. I then found out that the Experienced Rider Course was not about advanced skills per se, but rather basic skills for people who needed a refresher. This was discouraging. I wanted to know about mastering braking techniques, expert cornering, road strategies, high speed swerving.........I wanted to be challenged and figure out ways to protect myself. I wanted the good stuff. (Little did I know at the time, I was lacking fundamentals that would prove to be very valuable and could have been learned or perfected simply by taking the Basic Rider Course.)


There were a lot of hoops to jump through in order to get ready. I was informed late in the game that the training course to become a RiderCoach would be held in June, not July as was previously thought. I was still working during June. This was going to be tricky. I had to apply for personal leave. I had to prepare for over a week of absence. Difficult to do if you do it right. Resonsibility. Would I even get the leave approved? The State had requirements. There were forms, papers, fees.......

Then I learned more about the program. It was rigorous. Not everybody made it through ( this seemed sensible to me but not exactly reassuring..... I had a lot riding on it because if I didn't pass, I would not get reimbursed by my sponsor or the State, I would have lost wages, I wouldn't be working as a RiderCoach making money...........etc.). There was pre-course work. There was homework. You had to pass a strict riding evaluation. Wow.

On the other hand, I thought, I wanted a challenge and one presented itself. I may have had a lot to lose but I also had a lot to gain. I also got lucky. The RiderCoach Prep would be held in Maine not far from me! "Okay," I thought. Let's do this!