I knew the day was going to be a huge success when I got all green lights and no turners at roundabouts so that I didn’t have to put my foot down after joining Hindmarsh Drive at the Canberra Hospital till I pulled up at Stay Upright (SU). I was later accused of running red lights but that was not true. However on a non-heated grips machine with no fairings, I was frozen so fast was good. As I arrived a few very keen people were already defrosting and by 8.30 there were 12 of us gathered to hear from our instructors – Andrew and Andrew (thanks to SU for making the name bit easy).
We started with introductions all round which set the scene for a very relaxed course, which of course gave us all the chance to find out a bit more about our fellow students and their riding skills. The day followed a similar format to other Stay Upright courses – a bit of theory, practice and then recap with feedback and questions.
First up it was about our bike’s Balance Point – handling the bike from the ground, understanding what it takes to move it off balance (out of the ‘manageable zone’) and appreciating its weight. This was followed by learning to walk our bike around by slightly leaning it onto a hip and within the ‘manageable zone’ and (with feet clear of pegs) move it backwards and forwards.
Next, after a run through of the best body position, we leapt on our bikes and in two groups had a session on cornering where we all learnt the benefits of a few key points – scan ahead, turn the head, prepare for the corner, lean & turn, moderate speed and use of the back brake.
After that things got a bit more complicated – manoeuvring at low speed with a series of stops followed immediately by a turn and another stop. For this exercise we used the bike’s friction point and with a constant speed established, focused on use of the brake to vary speed. After a few runs through everyone was more confident with this technique – or system for manoeuvring say in car parks, even when loaded with luggage and maybe a pillion.
U-turns were the next challenge after a briefing on technique and use of a steady throttle and speed moderated by the rear brake. A range of performances turned up in this exercise but I think we all learnt a lot – for me as clearly the worst, it was mainly that I need a lot more practice!
And finally (after 2 coffee breaks – one including the arrival of a coffee van, which was a great alternative to the instant version available in the kitchen) we did turning and stopping at low speed, through a series of generously spaced cones, using the rear break for slowing and stopping.
That all done with much success and some outstanding performances, we retired to the training room for a debrief and to receive our Certificate of Attendance. The group agreed that the session was more than valuable and served as a good reminder that formal training can chase away bad habits and that skill refreshing is great and should be a constant for everyone.
A big thank you to our two excellent instructors Andrew and of course to Mick Winters for his role in initiating the course happening in the first place, chasing up members to participate and for facilitating the opportunity for our slow riding to improve. Thanks also to the other 11 trainees (now graduates) for joining in and doing what Ulysseans do so well – riding and socialising.
Jenny Carlin
