Independant Riding

Although it's been fairly well publicised that there's a forthcoming change to the driving test - the inclusion of 'Independant Driving' - I don't think it's so well known that this also applies to riders taking the accompanied test motorcycle.

Further details of independant driving and riding in the test here:
http://www.dsa.gov.uk/Documents/MPTC/2010/dsa_atb_newsletter_issue_22.pdf
In a DSA newsletter.

And more info here:
http://www.direct.gov.uk/en/Motoring/LearnerAndNewDrivers/PracticalTest/DG_189979


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Quiz Answer

Thanks to Voyager for providing the correct answer and also suggesting chevrons - which since that bend is preceded by a long straight might actually be beneficial. That said, I can't ever recall hearing of a crash there.


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Cornering - The Missing Link

OK, here's the 'answer' to yesterday's question, what was missing from the scene featuring a bend?

'A bend sign'

Here it is, in yesterday's photo it's half hidden by trees, some way in the distance. But a careful assessment of the scene from what was visible on the approach would have made this sign almost unnecessary.

Visible: a bend to the right
Visible: a railway viaduct
Visible: a bus stop, with waiting passengers

Add to that some general knowledge and common sense ( :) ), and the hidden details are already coming to life:

If the railway builders made a hole in the embankment and put a bridge in . . . that's where the road's likely to go.

If the railways almost crossing perpendicular to the road you're on - but you can see a bend to the right, there's likely to be a bend to the left.

Older bridges often weren't built for large lorries and double=decker buses - which have to pass through the centre of the arch.

But the signs are there for everyone, however good they are, to read and use. But often - as is almost the case from a distane with this one - they get overgrown. Then you need to rely on what you've seen earlier, combined with good assessment based on what you can see.



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Cornering . . . Continued

So, over the last few posts I've suggested my updating of a couple of well-known systems.

Safe, Smooth, Style - for an overall assessment of riding

Slow, Settle, Steer - a systematice approach to setting up for a corner

Now for another prompt, this time for assessing bends as part of that 'slow' phase.

Obviously (?) if you're slowing for a bend you'll need some sort of basis on which to decide what speed to slow down to. Mostly riders will do this without conscious thought, but some guidance on what to look for might be useful, both for riders as they start to work on bend assessment and for instructors encouraging the uptake of new concepts.

What should we look for?

A simple set of prompts which cover most aspects of assessment is:

Safety
Sight
Surface

Yup, more 'S's :)

This isn't an 'absolute' list, there's actually an element of overlap between them, and it's certainly not intended to be a 'checklist' to go through in sequence on the approach to a bend.

How might these prompts overlap? Here's an example:
Safety: your safety might be affected by something very obvious, such as gravel on an adverse camber . . . even though they're 'surface'.

Similarly, a blind bend might hide all manner of dangers, but is the greatest risk being from danger you can see or being able [or not] to react in time for a 'fresh' danger as it appears. So here 'sight' closely ties with 'safety'.

On bends where there is no apparent major danger then sight becomes the limiting factor, how much clear road surface can you see? What you can't see becomes a potential danger (remember the old 'Roadcraft' list: "What can be seen, what can't be seen, what may reasonably be expected to happen"), and that's what will limit your approach speed - or, more exactly, how much stopping you can achieve in the distance available.

Surface, when not a major danger on its own, becomes a limiting factor, perhaps due to poor quality surface or adverse camber, perhaps because of inspection covers.

I'll leave you to 'sort' the 'contents' of this post's header picture into the various categories and find the overlaps, but as a starter there are:

- Speed limit sign
- Road markings (hazard line)
- Road markings 'SLOW' x 2
- Junction sign
- Oncoming vehicle
- Bus stop, with waiting passengers
- Junction visible
- Other 'things' (signs, entrances, fences) on the left
- Railway viaduct visible over the trees

But what's missing from this view of a bend . . . ?

Answer tomorrow :)


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Through a Glass, Clearly

In these financially trubled times it's a brave move to start your own business, let alone manage to keep an existing business working well.

And, as with many things from 'D list' celebrities up, publicity - in the form of marketing - is lifeblood to business.

Take, for instance, a company web site. Many companies have web sites to be proud of, but how many actually get the visits they deserve and lead to the business those companies need?

This is where marketing comes in - good marketing, that is. And where Richard Avis has taken that jump to start his own business enabling others to benefit from his extensive knowledge, skill and experience of digital marketing through his new company Clear Digital Marketing:

http://www.cleardigitalmarketing.co.uk/


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More S Theory

Start with yesterday’s post if you haven’t already read it.

In 1992 I became involved the US-based Motorcycle Safety Foundation, which taught a simple cornering ‘system’:

Slow, Look/Lean/Roll

Slow upright and in a straight line
Look where you want to go
Lean the bike (by counter-steering)
Roll the throttle on through the turn

Like the 5xS, I was quite happy with this for several years, but moer recently have found that it wasn’t what I actually did.

So I spent some time analysing my own riding and found that I actually started to open the throttle slightly before looking and steering, although I would still roll on the throttle through the turn.

As with the 5xS, this was part of a longer re-assessment of how I taught successful cornering.

So now I’m pleased to introduce the ‘S’s of motorcycling numbers 4, 5 and 6! (Although, of course, they’re really another 1, 2, 3)

This is the Malc improved cornering system: Speed Settle Steer

Slow: set the speed for the bend, select the appropriate gear to suit

Settle: both bike and rider
– off the brakes
– check you’re relaxed and comfortable
– open the throttle to balance the bike

Steer: head and hands, look where you want to go, press to steer, roll on the throttle

This allows a rider a little bit of ‘breathing space’ as they approach the bend, which encourages a riding style where the bike enters the bend balanced and under control.

It also acknowledges that all three of head [look], hands [bars & throttle] are important elements of steering.



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How Many ‘S’s in Motorcycling?

A while back I posted about the expanding numbers of ‘E’s in road safety, starting from the original education, engineering and enforcement, and moving on to encompass (see what I did there? : ) ) Evidence, Engagement, Evaluation and Encouragement.

http://the-ride-info.blogspot.com/2010/06/how-many-es-in-road-safety.html

I promised that I’d re-visit this theme, and look at the number of ‘S’s in motorcycle safety. I also introduced that with a clip from Monty Python’s Spanish Inquisition (“Our chief weapon is surprise, surprise and fear” etc.). But being in a hurry I selected the wrong clip.

So on the basis that this post won’t have too many laughs, have a compilation of the the SI’s appearances on Python:



So, ‘S’s.

When I started my involvement in rider training (although, in those days we used to train the bike, because it was ‘motorcycle training’ :) ), there was a well-known, derived from police ‘Roadcraft’-based training, Four ‘S’ list:

Safety
System
Smooth
Speed

‘Safety’ was the priority, then ‘System’ - riding to the Police System of Motorcycle Control:



Next, ‘Smooth’, all actions should be carried out smoothly. Finally, if all three ‘S’s could be achieved, then add ‘Speed’.

Sometimes, there was a fifth ‘S’ added: Gloss :) , or ‘Sparkle’, often defined as “That indefinable gloss” . . . very helpful.

After a few years of repeating that, it struck me that – in my opinion, anyway – there was a significant problem with the existing 4xS list: it encouraged systematic riding ahead of smooth riding.

In my opinion this could be unsafe. Why? Let’s use ‘braking’ as an example: you’re slowing for a hazard, you need to lose a fair bit of speed (more than can be achieved by just closing the throttle), so you brake – but rather than applying them smoothly you ‘grab’, with the potential for wheels to lock etc.

Reverse the order, and take a similar scenario slightly further on through the ‘old’ system: having slowed using the brakes a gear change is needed, but although you survived and stayed upright despite the harsh braking, now you’re ham-fisted with the clutch and don’t match the revs.

Compare this to where’ smooth’ is more important than system: before braking you change gear [‘System’ rider now having a fit, “No No No NO!”] – but match the revs perfectly and use the clutch smoothly . . . then close the throttle and start to brake, again applying the brakes smoothly and weighting for the balance to shift to the front tyre before braking more firmly . . .

So my ‘improved’ prompt became:
Safety Smooth System Speed

With:
Safety Smooth System Speed Sparkle
If you wanted real ‘high standard’ riding.

This kept me happy me many years, provoking a few discussions along the way.

But more recently I’ve been thinking about this, particularly in light of my gradual move away from ‘advanced’ training.

A few years ago I took the decision to end my involvement with the BMF Rider Training Scheme, under which I trained riders for the Blue Riband Advanced Riders Award. This was a wrench, as I was the person who managed its introduction across the UK at 15 centres, launched at the 1989 BMF Show, and subsequently took it to 45 centres across the UK from the Orkneys to Northern Ireland and down to Cornwall.

Instead of training riders to towards an ‘advanced’ test, I’ve been working more on sorting problems, really helping riders to enjoy their riding, and overcoming hurdles they had.

As part of that I developed the three-level Whole Rider assessment format – I really must make that available some day – which is a single assessment format which can be used for all riders from novice through to advanced.

For riders who simply want to enjoy their riding, without the ‘progress’ imperative often felt by those taking advanced training, the ‘speed’ and ‘sparkle’ elements may be irrelevant.

Also, those riders may not want to ride like a police officer on his best behaviour, they may prefer to move around like a motocross rider, or hang off like a grand prix star. That’s up to them to chose!

So I’ve shortened the 5xS back to three. Keeping ‘Safety’ and ‘Smooth’, I’ve removed the final three and, instead, added ‘Style’.

As I was moving away from ‘advanced’ training, I simplified my basic assessment of someone’s riding (although I’d use the Whole Rider Assessment and an advanced test format as necessary), asking just a few simple questions:

“Is their riding safe?”
“Is the riding in control?”
“Does the rider know what they’re doing and why?”

Which ties reasonably well with Safety Smooth Style.

Now, Q‘3’ isn’t just about ‘style’, it also encompasses far more about the rider’s awareness and the decisions they make. But from decisions come style, even self-expression. Hence the picture at the head of the post :)

So now you know, there are three ‘S’s in modern motorcycling.

Or are there . . . ?



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Greg Bennett - Guardian Angels and More

One of the favourite pastimes in the Palmer household is Gregwatching. It's a bit like birdwatching: you know the likely locations, typical appearance, so sit, wait, watch . . .

And, there! It's Greg Bennett - on our TV screen, wehterh in Foyle's War, The Bill [RIP], Midsommer Murders, or any of his other TV appearances.

But Greg has more talents, including writing as well as appearing.

Read more about Greg, his colleagues, his ideas and scriptwriting here

One of his current projects is Guardian Angels. I'll let Greg explain:



“One new English DCI. Five Welsh cops. Six bodies. Seven angels on a pier…”

A series of five fifty-seven minute scripts based around a CID unit in Swansea. Rooted in the culture clash of a new English DCI with his Welsh team, it starts light then becomes a serial killer thriller – with supernatural overtones...

Centred on a core team of professionals - who enjoy a spot of banter but like to get the job done - it focuses on their private lives, the moral dilemmas they encounter and their individual spiritual journeys.

Rather than being a traditional procedural police drama, it is characterized more by elements of fantasy - with story arcs that will take key characters deeply into the world of the Paranormal...


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Situational . . .

There's a mental 'system' which has been in use mainly in the flying business for many years called 'siutational awareness'.

It mirrors the mental systems often recommended by rider (and driver) training, such as the UK's Observe Plan Act, the MSF's 'old' Search predict Act and their new Search Evaluate Execute.

If you want to know more, read INTRODUCTION -Situation Awareness and how it can help drivers

But like many aspects of training, you need a way of assessing how well someone has learned the process.

Enter: situational judgement. This is a bit like hazard perception testing, but rather than 'just' identify whether someone can pick out a 'developing hazard', situational judgement looks at what your response would be to the situation (hazard) you've identified. After all, you might identify a hazard, but decide to accelerate rather than brake . . .

But following on from those two aspects of 'situational', I was intrigued to hear of 'situational leadership'.

This is a style of leadership (really? ;) ), Wiki tells us:

The Situational Leadership Theory, is a leadership theory developed by Paul Hersey, professor and author of the book Situational Leader, and Ken Blanchard, leadership guru and author of The One Minute Manager, while working on the first edition of Management of Organizational Behavior (now in its 9th edition). The Theory was first introduced as "Life Cycle Theory of Leadership". During the mid 1970s, "Life Cycle Theory of Leadership" was renamed "Situational Leadership theory".

In the late 1970s/early 1980s, the authors both developed their own Models using the Situational Leadership theory; Hersey - Situational Leadership Model and Blanchard et al. Situational Leadership II Model.

The fundamental underpinning of the Situational Leadership Theory is there is no single "best" style of leadership. Effective leadership is task-relevant and that the most successful leaders are those that adapt their leadership style to the Maturity ("the capacity to set high but attainable goals, willingness and ability to take responsibility for the task, and relevant education and/or experience of an individual or a group for the task) of the individual or group they are attempting to lead/influence. That effective leadership varies, not only with the person or group that is being influenced, but it will also depend on the task, job or function that needs to be accomplished.

All intersting stuff, but what's it got to do with motorcycling? :)

Well, consider the three 'situationals' as a process:
Awareness
Judgement
Leadership

You identify the hazard, decide the best plan, then put it into action.

That plan, and subsequent action, may mean you need to take the lead, to manage a sitation on the road - making what you want to happen actually happen. Pro-active rather than reactive.


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