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I would strongly suggest a track school such as the CLASS schools. Reg Pridmore takes his school all over the country and is the most reasonably priced. He emphasizes street riding techniques and is an accomplished rider and teacher. He also makes you feel very welcome, unlike another "guru" that conducts reasonably priced schools throughout the US. I'm a big CLASS school fan, and based on three previous experiences, not a California Superbike School fan. Depending on your skill level, you can still learn a lot from either.



Something else you might do is a bit of reading. There are a couple of GREAT books out there and several more that are worthwhile. In my opinion, Nick Ienatsch's "Sport Riding Techniques" (ISBN #1893618072) is numero uno. His discussion of maintenance throttle and trailbraking are worth the price of the book on their own merit. However, he really covers every bit of sport riding from the beginning techniques to the most advanced. The next book I would highly recommend is David Hough's "MORE Proficient Motorcycling--Mastering the Ride." (ISBN # 1931993033). Hough discusses how to read the road and it's surfaces better than any other book I know of, and offers excellent advice on riding techniques, gear, visual directional control, etc. After devouring these two, here is a list of other worthwhile books, sort of in order of my preference for whatever that is worth: 1) "Total Control-High Performance Street Riding Techniques." by Lee Parks (ISBN #0760314039). 2) "Smooth Riding the Pridmore Way" by Reg Pridmore (ISBN # 1884313469). and 3) "Twist of the Wrist II" by Keith Code (ISBN # 0965045021).



In my opinion, Keith Code's other two books, the first "Twist of the Wrist" and "Soft Science" are pure garbage. David Hough also has out a book entitled "Proficient Motorcycling." It's a good book, but "MORE Proficient Motorcycling" covers the topics better, with more advanced techniques.



All of these books are available at Amazon.com at good discounts, usually with free shipping if you spend over $25. Hope this helps. Enjoy the ride. Cheers, Jack

 

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A quick addendum to the above: In Keith Code's "A Twist of the Wrist II" there is a lot of good material and a few techniques that many might question, but his discussion of the seven "survival reactions" and his "two step" are more than worth the price of admission. Maybe the worst book ever published on motorcycle riding is Pat Hahn's "Ride Hard, Ride Smart." It is a complete waste of time and I really wonder whether he's ever really ridden a motorcycle.



Lastly, while this book doesn't discuss riding techniques, it gives you all of the information you'll need to set your bike for the street or track. Truly one of the best motorcycle books ever put on the market is "101 Sportbike Performance Projects" by Evans Brasfield (ISBN # 0760313318). Sorry to be so windy, but I do have an image to maintain. Cheers, Jack



"just an old man riding a little motorcycle"

 

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I have gone to three of Code's and two of Reg's schools over the years. The biggest difference is attitude. My first Code school was back in the 80's, my last in 1997. Keith's attitude was that us pathetic little peons were so lucky to have the great "guru" who trained Eddie Lawson, Wayne Rainey, Randy Mamola, and Doug Chandler (they'd have probably made it without him, ya think??) stoop to our level to teach us. I have a real problem with anyone that looks down on me when I'm spending several hundred of my hard earned quid to attend his school. Most schools have two groups: one in the classroom, one on the track. My problem with Keith is that he has three groups: one in the classroom, one on the track, and one sitting around doing absolutely nothing. Of course, this cuts way down on your classroom and, more importantly, track time. You aren't told about this on his website or the literature when you sign up. You find out at the track. At that point, if you decide you've been raped and choose not to ride, you still sacrifice all of your money. Obviously, the only thing that this benefits is Keith's wallet. I also have a problem with having to attend four schools to get the whole curriculum in. In my opinion, Keith is condescending, greedy and plays eager young riders for a bunch of suckers. However, if you are relatively inexperienced, you will learn from his school. I understand his attitude has improved in the past few years (since I've attended his school), but I'm not willing to spend any more money to sit around for a third of the day to find out.

On the other hand, Reg genuinely makes you feel welcome. He is a super gentleman and truly a class act. As far as the body-steering vs. the "No BS bike," I think they both over emphasize their positions. Keith insists body steering doesn't exist, Reg says it's the only way to steer a bike. If you go out on a back road, let go of the handlebars, push on a footpeg and push your outside knee towards that peg, your bike will steer in that direction. It'll do it slowly, but it will steer. So much for no body steering. This same techniques also confirms that body steering is not the way to turn a bike quickly or precisely. So much for Reg's theory on the major way to turn a bike. Most students of the sport pick a middle ground: both Kevin and Freddie teach that you have to do both to effectively turn a motorcycle. They teach that handlebar input is the primary way to initiate a turn and you use your body to fine tune as necessary. I suggest going to as many schools as you can, read as much as you can get your grubby little mitts on and figure what works best for you. Based on everything I've read, if you can afford it (I can't), Freddie's is the premier school in the country. Reg's is the most reasonably priced. It is geared more towards street riding than the others, and you will learn a lot and have a great time. More information on Reg's CLASS schools can be found at www.classrides.com. I hope this has answered your question. Cheers, Jack