About two years ago the Highways Agency produced a very good - especially for a freebie - DVD called 'Great Roads Great Rides', which was given away free with Bike magazine. In total, over 600,000 copies were given away!
They've now followed it up with the carefully-named 'Great Roads Great Rides 2'.
HA
"Great Roads Great Rides 2" is a new resource to help riders 'read the road' successfully and stay safe while enjoying their biking experience. It will be launched on Wednesday, February 25 at the annual RoSPA Road Safety Congress in Blackpool.
The package includes a DVD film and interactive package. With clever filming techniques, it puts the viewer on the bike, inside the helmet and close to the road, and features a 14-minute ride-out from motorway on to urban and countryside roads.
Riders can then use the second section offering an interactive challenge when the disc is used with a computer. Here the ride-out section freezes at specific points so the viewer can have a go at identifying the clues that they would use when reading the road ahead. When the viewer gets a highlighted clue right they score a point. There is also an option to display all useful hints and tips throughout the journey.
Watch the 'riding' section here (along with other HA videos).
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That video isn't all that bad - perhaps I should pay more attention to the (generally appalling) motorbicycle magazines dross out there.... Do you know if this is being given away as a DVD in some publication as well?
ReplyDeleteBetter than having to pay for some trivial '600cc shoot out' filled chip wrapper - it's free and the Highways Agency will (apparently) give you a copy!
ReplyDeletehttp://www.direct.gov.uk/en/Nl1/Newsroom/DG_175404
Got my disk yesterday.
ReplyDeleteSame film as on the 'net - but higher quality image and sound on a big TV and the pretty impressive production and editing quality is obvious.
There were a few things about the ride I didn't like - waving at passing bikes pretending they are his mates and then his voice over criticises one (who was overtaking him) for wearing 'jeans and trainers' and the unnecessary (and potentially DSA test failing) of slowing down to let a car out of a side road. None of that was necessary or desirable.
There is an interactive 'game' which is pretty well done - albeit in a DSA sort of way - that should encourage riders to think a bit about what they are doing. If I were being overly critical I'd say that they don't explain the 'scoring' enough but it isn't that hard. But the background 'soft rock' soundtrack is pretty dire and a mate of mine was very put off by that (I just turned the sound down!)