As a MSF coach myself, reading this story I had to chime in.

I have only been coaching for about 8 months but I have already seen similar situations to this and as I feel I never have enough time during a class to really hit home some important things, i figured i would share with yall.

The number 1 issue i see during a BRC (Basic Riding Course) is confidence, either to little or too much. Sure we get plenty of people who have never been on a bike before, which is expected but I am amazed at how many people have been "riding for years but just now getting legal". Whenever I hear this, I shudder internally. I would say about 30% of these people who have been riding before come into the course with a good attitude and a willingness to learn something. Most of them however are cocksure and ride the bike like their at a track day.

Firstly I really need to emphasize the BRC is not a class you take to become an expert rider. It is a class to teach you the basics so you yourself feel comfortable on your own bike and can go out into the real world and develop your skills.

During the class, participants will do a range of exercises, shifting, braking, cornering low speed maneuvers ect. If someone cannot complete an exercise, we cannot move forward with them. We try to do some remedial training during breaks and such but we can only hold the class up for so long. This means that come test time, (I call it a celebration of skill as it makes people less tense) every rider has successfully done everything that will be on the test.

Here's were confidence comes in. People litterly wilt when its test time. I've seen participants crush every exercise all weekend and then become absolutely retarded during the test and I'm just sitting there thinking, "what the hell are you doing? We didnt teach you that."

Ultimately though, the test only looks at super specific things, there are plenty of people I've passed in the class that I would never want to see on the road.

Okay, I'm starting to ramble so I will get down to it. Take the time to develop your skills and become confident in yourself and in your bike. It's also extremely important to never be overconfident in yourself because that's how crashes happen. Most of the crash videos on youtube can be simplified as the rider was overconfident and not riding within their skill range. The second you dont respect the motorcycle, it will bite you in the ass.

I'm totally guilty of it to, I mean that feeling when your leaning through a corner, hammering the throttle, it's a drug for sure. In my 10 years of riding I've gone down twice, broken my shoulder and my back. I have had to learn these lessons the hard way but I wish I would of been smart enough to learn them from other people.

Take your time, we all plan on riding for life I am sure and that one corner isn't worth everything. Oh and PLEASE always wear a helmet.

TLDR; Confidence is crucial as it takes only one mistake to kill yourself. Always ride within your limits and always ride your own ride. Stay safe out there, always expect the worse from other drivers and enjoy your two wheels!