As motorcyclists, the problem with young riders is something we are going to have to tackle ourselves. If we want anything to change.
I came across 5 young riders on a single day last week, probably all riding illegally. One had no headlight, 3 were wearing shorts and T-Shirts. Two had proper kit and were riding off-road bikes. Gave me a nod as they passed me on my E-MTB.
If I’d been on my KTM they may well have stopped for a chat.
I trained the Notts police off-road team many years ago, who were very successful in tackling the off-road riding problem. But that is not where the problems mainly are. It’s on road. Off road riding really is just a nuisance – mainly noise, and complaints from land owners. Tractors do far more damage.
So what can you do?
Firstly discourage your youngsters from riding a motorcycle if under 16 years, when they can do their CBT. An E-Cycle or E-MTB can be legally ridden from 14 years. Good chance to learn braking and handling skills – and the use of disc brakes and suspension movement.
They can race mini motos etc. and off-road, but it’s expensive. There are facilities in some areas where they can ride, but sadly they are rare. There is no national equivalent of ‘Young Drivers’. There should be.
Personally I’ve never had a problem talking to young riders. Never had any abuse.
Motorcyclists come from all walks of life, sharing a common interest. If you breakdown roadside the next biker along may well stop to help.
The Problem
In 2022, in the 14-16 young rider age group:-
115 KSIs in total
60 were underage
55 were riding 125cc machines illegally
In 2023, in the 17-20 year old group:-
36 young rider fatalities
50% higher than the 24 fatalities in 2019
Double the number from 2020, which at 18 fatalities, was probably affected by COVID 19.
The extent of the problem seems to be a well kept secret.
The Main Issues
Illegal E-Scooters.
Average rider age 16 years.
50 deaths all ages so far. >1,000 serious injuries.
Underage Riders
40% of fatalities. Many others probably had no licence. Proper training is vital.
Upgrading to a 125cc
The risk of upgrading from a 30 mph moped to a 125cc geared bike capable of 60 mph with no extra training.
No legal requirement for more training. The vast majority of KSI’s are on 125’s.
Emergency Braking.
The DVSA advice is wrong. Apply your rear brake immediately. Do not snatch the front brake lever, or stamp on the rear brake. Apply the brakes steadily. Practice.
Consider riding with two fingers on the front brake lever and clutch, and just squeeze both in an emergency. This should save you >1 sec and critically should reduce your impact speed by around 15 mph or maybe avoid an impact altogether. You’ll probably survive a 30 mph crash, but not at 40 mph.
A New Approach?
I started again, this time with pre-teen riders and Bikeability, who are supported by the Dft.
We already know that there is a serious problem with PTW braking, so I asked them how they teach braking to young cyclists.
Received an immediate response. Somebody cares.
They are taught to ride covering their brakes, how to brake progressively, and particularly to avoid snatching the front brake. Perfect.
So moving to a motorcycle, the skills are immediately transferable.
The question is then why are PTW riders not taught to cover their brakes, and why is PTW braking so poor?
Bikeability cover 44% of younger riders who should be more open to accepting advice before they become teenagers. Braking skills can be embedded more easily with younger riders creating ‘muscle memory’.
There is now also a ‘halfway house’ with E-Cycles from 14 years, which they also cover, many with disc brakes and front suspension, where they can experience weight transfer and the front suspension compressing when braking.
Motorcycles and cycles could be part of the National Curriculum, within Physics, centre of mass, friction, tipping, leaning, speed, gyroscopes, kinetic energy, braking distances etc. I think it helps when you have a practical example of the theory.
Regarding the essential difference between cycles and motorbikes, it is simply speed, and mastering throttle control which is straight forward.
What is vital to grasp, and to be taught, is that momentum obeys a ‘Square Law’. So it takes 16 x further to stop from a motorbike’s 60 mph as it does from a bicycle’s 15 mph.
The major danger is young riders jumping on motorcycles of 125cc and above, which can get to 60mph or more, without any training.
The official advice from both the DVSA and from Roadcraft is to complete your braking before the corner and apply a light throttle to maintain speed through the corner. This leaves all the available tyre grip for cornering, and balances the cornering forces equally on both wheels.
If you have to slow or stop, the advice is to close the throttle and/or use the rear brake.
If you need to stop more quickly, and you have the room, the advice is to bring the bike upright, and brake hard with the front brake.
It’s good advice. Take it.
Alternative Actions
You should always consider riding covering your brakes, which should save you over a second in reaction time.
If you believe you need to brake mid-corner in response to a hazard, usually caused by too high an entry speed or a tightening corner, the advice is to simply look around the corner where you want to go, rather than where you feel you might end up.
You should counter-steer instinctively, but you can also counter-steer deliberately with practice, pushing on the inside bar. The bike initially falls in the opposite direction to which the steering is pointed, and into the turn, helped by the gyroscopic effects of the front wheel, after which the rider will instinctively turn the bars back to stop the machine falling further.
A modern machine with good tyres and ground clearance (not cruisers), can be banked at circa 45 degrees or more on reasonable road tarmac.
Many crashes have been caused locally, the Lincs police informed me, on corners where the rider could have got around easily had they had the confidence. If you’re not confident leaning the bike, then practice mid lane on an empty wide safe road, or try some on-track training where you can practice in relative safety.
Providing the bike is not banked at an extreme angle, there is a surprising amount of grip still left.
Practise
Practise is vital, to avoid the usual panic reactions, involving both braking and cornering.
It takes, in theory, 200 repetitions to achieve the required ‘muscle memory’, which means that your reactions in hazardous situations will be automatic. Panic is probably a major root cause of crashes, see ‘YouTube’.
So lightly apply the rear brake gently into corners and mid corner to feel how the bike reacts, and always ride covering your rear brake.
The Theory
This is the ‘Traction Circle’ for motorcycles, and looks like a fox’s face.
You can see it’s a linear relationship between braking and cornering. The greater the braking force, then the less grip left for cornering. The fox’s ‘chin’.
Looking at front wheel braking track data logs, in practice racers can brake quite hard into corners, but the front brake needs to be released steadily and off completely at circa 50 degrees.
Racers trail brake as it reduces lap times and prevents competitors overtaking. It is also risky and the main cause of crashes.
When using the rear brake only instead, in theory, the rear starts to slide at around 30 degrees of lean with maximum rear braking, and again runs out completely around 50 degrees. And it’s only half as effective at reducing speed, which is why racers mainly use the front brake.
Road Riders – Emergency Braking Mid Corner
You have 3 options, in order:-
Close the throttle
Apply the rear brake
Apply the front brake
The effect of closing the throttle is to slow the bike and transfer weight onto the front tyre quickening the steering marginally. The effect depends on engine size and configuration, with big singles giving usually the highest rate of braking.
Using the rear brake has a similar effect, but instead pushes the rear suspension down not up (on chain driven bikes). The weight is also transfered forwards, but less than using the front brake.
Using just the rear as hard as possible, moves probably 75% of the weight forward, halving rear tyre grip (Cossalter).
The front brake is potentially the most effective, but can easily cause a skid, even with early ABS systems and at high lean angles. It also straightens the steering which can help (or not), and stands the bike up if applied heavily. This requires more room and/or a greater lean angle. Applying the rear brake at the same time makes a rear skid more likely, without ABS, due to weight transfer.
Bear in mind ABS will not necessarily prevent a skid and fall in bends, but ‘cornering ABS’ with lean sensors probably will. ABS will also not prevent the bike ‘standing up’ and running wide.
Rear Brake
It needs to be applied very carefully, as the weight is transferred off the rear tyre onto the front tyre, so has a double negative effect on the level of rear tyre grip.
However, the rear brake increases the ability for the bike to turn. The bike slows, squats and pitches slightly forward, sharpening the steering angle marginally,
The rear tyre is likely to eventually slip sideways, so the rear brake needs to be steadily released as the weight transfers forwards, and more so if the lean angle is increasing. This is an old race bike trick for quicker cornering. This is like ‘oversteer’ in a car or a ‘handbrake turn’.
In theory the rear brake needs to start to be released at 30 degrees of lean, and off by 50 degrees
Worse case the rear loses traction and the rider may fall, but it’s usually a ‘low side’, (unless the rider releases the brake fully after a wide skid, when a ‘high side’ is possible).
But in most cases, the rider will have time to release and reapply the rear brake if it locks – if they don’t panic.
The outcome from a rear wheel skid is probably better than a front wheel skid, as the machine will likely impact first, then the rider, rather than the rider being followed and struck by the machine.
The other alternative of a direct head-on collision with an oncoming vehicle, or stationary hazard, is likely to lead to a worse outcome.
Many police riders trail the rear brake into corners, as it can provide feedback on the level of grip available, particularly in the wet and on urban roads, junctions, roundabouts etc. The rear will slide first, which is usually recoverable when a front end slide is not.
You use the rear brake for low speed maneuvering anyway, so it seems just an extension of this, although unnecessary. It also appears to be sometimes used on high speed corners, which allows a higher entrance speed, and/or speed corrections into or mid corner.
I have no idea if this is part of police training or ‘custom and practice’. Having previously worked with the police, it does seem that their training varies by Force.
It also promotes ‘oversteering’, which can help at the limits of grip, puts more weight on the front tyre, and quickens the steering (covered above), without the risk of locking the front and falling. Too risky for the public.
Front Brake
Riders can ‘pick the bike up’ and brake if there is sufficient room and road width, but this tends to be a ‘last resort’. This is often a brutal panic response. This results from the machine being steered more tightly into the corner, which has the opposite effect from counter-steering. Applying the front brake when banked tends to stand the bike up which can help (or not).
Riders can apply the front brake with great care progressively mid-corner in an emergency, as long as the lean angle is not too extreme. It is potentially more effective than the rear, but the bike will try to run wide, and a skid is more likely. Not recommended.
The harder the rider brakes, the more weight is transferred onto the front tyre, but there is already enough grip for cornering. There is no extra cornering grip but less, as braking uses up more grip than it creates and on a poor surface, applying the front brake can make the bike more likely to skid.
An experienced rider already knows this, as they would avoid applying the front brake on a wet road when banked, more so on mud, gravel, or if there were signs of oil or diesel.
Because the centre of mass is to one side of the front tyre contact patch, the bike will tend to stand up, twist and ‘yaw’, which will make the bike tend to run wide. This requires some run off space, or the bike counter steered and leaned even harder into the corner to counteract this, using up cornering grip.
The greater the lean angle, the greater the effect.
RACERS – Trail Braking
This is what racers do, where the rider deliberately brakes later and enters the bends at higher speeds, with usually the front brake, and sometimes the rear applied, planning to reduce the speed through the corner.
It does not increase cornering grip, but the opposite. There is anyway already far more cornering grip on a good surface than you’ll ever need on the road and enough for the track up to circa 60 degrees of lean. You don’t need more.
Front wheel trail braking also tends to keep the steering straight as you try and counter-steer the bike to turn in, making it more difficult.
However, the tyre contact patch moves inwards as the bike leans, with the braking then tending to keep the wheel turned in slightly, dependent on tyre profile, lean angle etc. At the same, the gyroscopic effect of the wheel turning inwards, is trying to turn the steering in further to bring the bike upright, and the bike is trying to yaw, twist and stand up.
It just allows later braking, reduced lap times, and helps prevent competitors overtaking,
Front Brake
If you trail the front brake into a corner, as opposed to applying it mid corner, you have to tip into the corner already counteracting the tendency for the bike to ‘yaw’. It requires more steering effort as front wheel tries to keep in line with the bike due to the trail on the steering. And the more the rider leans, the more the bike wants to yaw, to which the rider responds by even more counter steering and more lean angle.
The weight comes off the rear wheel, allowing a racer to ‘back it in’, sometimes helped with some rear brake.
If you’re racing, you tip in on full front brake and gradually release it. As above, off at circa 50 degrees.
Completing your braking before the corner is obviously safer, but slower.
Some riders feel that trail braking gives them more grip for cornering, but it is an illusion. You already have all the grip you can use without any weight transfer, which runs out at 60 degrees of lean whatever you do.
Using the front brake keeps the steering straight(ish) and fixed, so it feels different.
BUT FOR ROAD RIDERS….
You will be entering the corner faster, so any impact speed will potentially be higher and you’ll be less able to increase your rate of turn.
So you will therefore likely take longer to stop.
You’ll have less weight on the rear tyre which means if you apply the rear brake the bike is more likely to slide.
If you need to brake harder, you will be increasing, not decreasing your braking as planned, which will have a negative effect on the steering, as the bike will try to ‘yaw’ even more. This has the opposite effect to you releasing the front brake as your lean angle increases.
Conclusions
Using the front brake in corners needs very careful training and practice, so is probably best left to professional trainers on a race track, as opposed to trial and error, with training and advice to road riders restricted to just looking where you want to go, avoiding ‘target fixation’, counter-steering and applying the rear brake into or mid-corner in an emergency.
There is an argument that applying the front brake into corners is best, as additional braking is almost instant and so is potentially the ‘best practice’. But the problem is also that riders will likely be encouraged to brake later, harder and deeper as their confidence grows. For racers on the road, it’s frankly difficult to get out of the habit.
There is also the alternative option of trailing the rear brake into corners, but again entry speeds would be higher creating more risk, as well as for a rear skid.
But overall, the official advice is probably best, and gives the greatest overal safety margin.
As always ‘It Depends’.
Additional training in ‘trail braking’ into corners in an emergency could be of benefit to riders, which we cover at The School. But it’s an advanced riding ‘failure to plan ahead’. The bike will probably run wide, for which there might not be the space.
Most racers just use the front brake, but they plan ahead, knowing the bike will understeer and run wide at the limits of adhesion, which is not sensible on the road where you need a safety margin.
Racers consistently trail the front brake into most corners. They gradually release the front brake pressure as their lean angle increases, with the brake being finally released usually just as the throttle is opened at the apex.
This leaves no safety margin. It is totally unsuitable for road riders to use as a routine. But it can be a useful tool to have in an emergency. This allows the rider to brake hard and turn at the same time. This is particularly useful when a rider has misjudged their entry speed to a corner. Or has to avoid a hazard.
The difference between carrying the front brake into a corner and applying the front brake mid-corner needs to be completely understood. It is crucial to distinguish between these two situations.
Re-applying the front brake after you have started to turn, leaves the rider with initially only circa 50% of the weight on the front tyre, which is also doing the steering, making a skid and fall far more likely without great care. And the bike will suddenly try to stand up and run wide.
Again, if in any doubt, it is recommended road riders should just use the rear brake when banked, and only in an emergency as per the official advice.
Cornering on a light throttle leaves all the grip for cornering, wtih none lost through braking.
There seems to be a general misunderstanding that cornering forces add more grip, as used to be incorrectly stated in Roadcraft. It is an illusion. The suspension compresses when the bike is banked, but the cornering forces are always horizontal, not vertical.
Summary
The coefficient of friction, and the mass of the bike and rider determine the grip. The brakes or throttle determine the distribution of this grip between the two tyres. When this is equally distributed, you have the most grip for cornering, which is why at the apex racers are off the brakes and have lightly cracked open the throttle.
Mike Abbott, The British Superbike School. 12.11.25
This report by National Highways was issued in May last year. I have recently been made aware of it via a RoADAR webinar. It’s quite brave considering how critical it is of providers.
‘In short, while there are numerous post-licence motorcycle interventions being offered in Great Britain, little has been evaluated and the evidence for what works and what does not is almost non-existent.‘
The findings were particularly damning regarding the level of public funding, and organisations profiting from ineffective training :-
Effectiveness of Post-Test Training Interventions
‘… there is little evidence for the effectiveness of any of them to improve safety outcomes’.
Our Response
A new Proposal for a focus on ‘Machine Control’ for Post-test and Advanced Training
The proposal is to focus on embedding the key skills of Emergency Braking and Cornering. What we regard as ‘best practice’ is outlined below.
I believe the official advice on emergency braking as contained in the DVSA’s ‘Riding’ and Police Roadcraft need to be reviewed too, and revised to provide the best advice to minimise braking distances.
Official advice as how to best corner safely also needs defining and publishing.
Then both emergency braking and cornering need to be taught more effectively Consideration should be given to include, in particular, emergency braking from higher speeds – 60 mph – within the licence test.
The effect of the training can be measured, in terms of braking distances and lean angles.
Riders should be able to stop from at least 60 mph within Highway Code braking distances, or less (20% less or 0.9g is achievable, compared to the standard 0.7g).
Riders should also be able to lean the machine at 35 degrees or more, which is the equivalent of the standard braking force of 0.7 g.
Both can be measured using datalogging or a simple phone app – which needs designing and implementing, although iAccel is already available on Iphones. The required sensors are already in most mobile phones.
Current ‘Advanced’ Training
‘Advanced’ riding needs to be radically rethought to make it effective. The suggestion is to continue to use Police Roadcraft as a basis, with appropriate changes to emergency braking (close the throttle first and keep the front brake applied as hard as possible until stopped).
The ‘downside’ of the involvement of police riders needs to be identified, openly discussed and tackled. This is encouraging riders to ignore the Highway Code ‘should nots’, and to make ‘good progress‘, taken from emergency response practices. Riders should never be in a hurry.
Riders should not be expected to take every opportunity to overtake or filter. They should not routinely filter right to the front of traffic queues and race away. Riders should stay out of all cross hatched areas unless this has clear safety benefits, and not overtake by riding straight ahead from RH turn lanes etc. etc.
Proposed Advanced training
This for a new focus on machine control, in addition to just Police Rider Roadcraft. The road positioning advice is good, but new planning advice is needed based on ‘invisibility’. There is also additional advice on ‘buffering’ in the New South Wales motorcycling manual, which is free to download.
1. Emergency braking
2. Cornering
3. Invisibilty.
The Report
Seems to focus on complex behavioural issues and misses the basic ‘nuts and bolts’ of the problem, and machine control.
To be fair to everyone involved, the problem is that our very poor crash reporting system focusses on blame and prosecutions, not root causes. This also needs urgently addressing to confirm assumed root causes.
The hidden problem with motorcycle riders, is that many can’t brake or take bends properly and confidently. This may be 80% of the problem, from a personal sample of 500 road riders and over 2,500 riders trained on-track. Very easy to confirm.
This is incredibly frustrating for me, having presented on Emergency Motorcycle Braking at the IJMS and the RSGB National Road Safety Conference last year, and recently tried again at the Motorcycle Conference this year to raise just Emergency Braking as an issue, with no response from anybody.
The report barely mentions ‘control’. It fails to evaluate any improvement in machine control or any motorcycle training in ‘other environments’ as proposed by the DVSA. 1,000’s of riders every year are trained on-track or off road by many providers, often the major manufacturers, which are likely to lead to positive outcomes in improved machine control, fewer crashes and better outcomes.
Emergency Braking
I now find that the suggested focus on emergency braking for motorcycles was already recommended in this report earlier last year, and has also apparently been completely ignored.
‘With the lack of clear evidence for post-licence motorcycle intervention content, it may be necessary to consider lessons learned from driver training. Historically, advanced driver training focused on teaching complex lower-order skills, such as advanced vehicle control in emergency situations like skidding or braking’.
One of my early trainees was Kashi who had a very bad crash through being unable to brake in time. So we used a local quarry access road. He literally couldn’t brake to save his life. It took 10 mins to nearly halve his braking distance from 60 mph.
I’ve found the same with many riders, and typically they can reduce their braking distances by at least 20% after training.
There is research that confirms riders inability to brake. 50% cannot even meet Highway Code braking distances. We recently confirmed this with advanced riders from our local IAM group (SAM). We’ve also had riders who never use their front brakes, which is like driving a car just using the handbrake.
Crash outcomes are obviously very sensitive to impact speeds, particularly for riders, who are usually thrown from their machines.
Cornering
This is largely ignored in the report, but the problems are included in a quoted paper.
Crundall, D., Stedmon, A. W., Crundall, E., & Saikayasit, R. (2014). The role of experience and advanced training on performance in a motorcycle simulator. Accident Analysis & Prevention, 73, 81-90. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.aap.2014.08.009.
However, any police force will confirm this, as will Youtube.
The only problem is referring to ‘the racing line’ without really understanding what it is. It’s probably the largest available radius through any bend. It’s rarely used in racing, appears in the 1970’s Police Motorcycle Roadcraft, but has since been removed.
There are no proposed cornering lines in any official publication, just positions to get the best view in Roadcraft. So it cannot be a surprise that bends are a major cause of crashes.
Invisibility
Riders need to understand that other road users may not see them. The reasons are complex, and dependent on circumstance, but a rider must never assume that they have been seen.
Hazard awareness has been the long term focus, but we now need to train riders not only to recognise, but how to react to hazards.
This involves closing the throttle, covering the brakes, changes in speed and road position ready for evasive action, and light pressure on the rear brake to warn following vehicles.
What’s missing?
What is very obviously missing is any assessment of the ability of riders to control their machines. Bikes look simple, but are actually extraordinarily complex, difficult to understand, and to ride competently. There has been no attempt to evaluate what level of control is needed, or what the various groups of riders have. Or what ‘experience’ provides to riders, but finds that the level of ‘hazard awareness’ which is currently the main thrust of interventions, varies little from novices to advanced riders.
The Report
The report is a competent comprehensive professional review of all the various ‘legal’ road training initiatives from 20 providers. From Advanced Training from RoSPA, to Street Spirit (Essex). The unlicenced, unapproved post-test road training industry has understandably been missed out, but there is nothing to suggest that this would be any more effective, the methodologies being likely the same.
The ‘Executive Summary’ finds that none of these programmes, many publicly funded, have any measurable positive effect on casualty reduction
‘While there is some evidence of best practice from international literature, this work suggests that either the adaptation of existing resources, or new resources, need to start with a detailed mapping exercise to bring it in line with best practice in other areas of public health.’
The seriousness of the situation is made clear in the report:-
‘In 2022, the fatality rate per billion passenger miles for motorcyclists was 114 across Great Britain. In comparison, for car occupants it was 2, and for pedestrians and cyclists it was 27 and 23 respectively’.
The report mentions GDE from the 1990s, which is described as a ‘pivotal framework’.
The report then identified the one single intervention on ‘Basic Vehicle Control’, which was Motorcycle Cornering Advice from RoSPA. Only 4 out of 20 initiatives that had any self evaluation content regarding machine control.
Nothing at all on braking (or any more on cornering). I believe the problem is the lack of understanding of bike control by non-riders, who probably assume motorcycles are just like cars. You just stamp on the brakes if you need to stop, or turn the wheel to corner.
The report doesn’t identify properly what constitutes ‘Basic Vehicle Control’, which is it’s major flaw.
Hazard Awareness
‘Results found that while advanced riders performed better (i.e. reacted quicker at identifying hazards) than experienced riders, they were not significantly better than novice riders’.
‘The evidence for hazard perception training with motorcyclists is limited and paints an unclear picture. Logically hazard perception is a key skill that is likely related to crash risk, but the relationship with experience is not as consistent as with findings from the driving literature. It seems intuitive that some form of hazard awareness training should be beneficial for post-licence riders, whether they are novices, returning riders or simply experienced riders, but the best approach to this has not been demonstrated.’
There are two Road Safety Trust funded projects looking to address hazard awareness due later this year. But we suspect that the issue is rider control and the ability to react appropriately. The problem with standard hazard awareness tests, are that riders just have to push a button on a keyboard or screen.
Effectiveness of Post-Test Training Interventions
‘… there is little evidence for the effectiveness of any of them to improve safety outcomes’.
Four possible reasons are explored:
1. Poor evaluation and reporting.
2. Not all motorcyclists are the same.
3. Interventions are unrelated to crash outcomes.
4. Design of content and/or delivery is not effective.
This report identifies a TRL report undertaken for clients which was not published, presumably due to the findings:
“In 2019, TRL reviewed a set of four rider training courses (aimed at riders from novice through to experienced) and compared course content with main crash types. The (unpublished) report for the client noted inconsistencies in the ways in which the ridertraining courses introduced and covered these main crash types.”
The truth is no one currently knows exactly how experience makes riders safer, although some things seem obvious.
Riders probably mainly learn either by crashing, or having near misses. Trial and error.
I crashed a dozen times in my first year of riding, but apart from racing, only twice since – both at very low speed on slippery surfaces.
Motorcycle training didn’t exist at the time. My parents generation didn’t even have a licence test.
I learned that scraping the floorboards on my Lambretta lifted the wheels off the ground, more so with a pillion (sorry Graham).
I learned that a car moving over when I was trying to overtake was not necessarily to let me pass (He was ‘swan necking’ and turned right). I got prosecuted for ‘lack of care and attention’ via A&E. (Sorry Andy – pillion).
I learned cars and trucks often didn’t see me, and pulled out it front of me.
I found wet roads had far less grip than dry.
I found out what ‘black ice’ was and where it often formed, and how slippery snow was when compacted, but fresh snow was better.
I found out oil and diesel were also slippery and where you might find them (petrol station forecourts and nearby roundabouts).
I also found mud on the road was particularly slippery too, and where farmers and construction companies often left it. This was a surprise as I’d taught myself, with the help of my sister’s boyfriend Tony Dyer, by riding around waste land next to Southend Airport on an old 98cc James. Mud was better when it was deeper!
(The police and wealthy land owners largely prevent the current generation of youngsters learning how to control a motorbike this way, away from road hazards. Mike Hailwood (who) learned the same way, so did Casey Stoner and many other top riders).
The Notts police have a 12 man team on dirt bikes, a helicopter and patrol cars. You’d think they’d be better deployed elsewhere like city centres tackling anti social riding, the out of control gig economy, private E-Scooters etc etc. No one bothered me, and clearly noise wasn’t an issue, but continually smelling of aircraft fuel was.
I found out tractor drivers couldn’t apparently see or hear, and were generally oblivious.
I found gravel in places, that was also very slippery, but figured out why and where – mostly. I also found out it can be difficult to recognise on some surfaces, again recently.
I discovered white lines were like ice when wet, drain covers were always slippery as was overbanding (thin lines of tarmac on joints)
I found leaves were slippery too in the autumn.
I found out my brakes were better than my bicycle, and I also now didn’t go over the handlebars if I braked as hard as I could.
I found the rear brake worked better than the front, and a rear skid didn’t mean a fall although a front skid did. (Old drum brakes).
I also found that stamping on the rear brake or snatching at the front, often caused a skid.
I found out some of my mates were lunatics. The wheelie on a 50cc Honda along the top of a double brick wall outside Leigh-on Sea Community Centre wasn’t big or clever, was it Phil? Spectacular – I’ll give you that. A helmet might have been a good idea (not compulsory then). Just a broken arm was quite lucky.
I then learned, after my licence test, that my Triumph Tiger 110 could corner far quicker, went twice as fast, but that the throttle could jam wide open. But I never dropped it.
I found out I could do a ton-up fly past of the Blinking Owl on the A127. And by following another rider, if you got it wrong coming through Raleigh Cutting just before the cafe, and went over a sequence of drain covers, you could end up running wide, across the Esso station forecourt, and through a nice white fence.
I saw a few riders panic and crash on rural bends when I was following them, or they were following me, but I didn’t. I just leaned the bike further.
Interestingly, when I returned to riding 15 years later, I learned quickly to cope with more than twice the power, a bike capable of 140 mph that would both wheelspin, wheelie and do stoppies, but didn’t seem to like corners (Kawasaki GPZ1100 A3).
There followed a selection of sports bikes of ever increasing speed and power, until commonsence finally prevailed after 3 weeks riding an adventure bike around New Zealand. I bought a KTM 950SM in 2007 which I still have. (I still do trackdays on classic bikes).
I seemed to have learned not to panic somehow, and to instinctively brake or swerve before I’ve realised what is happening. I found out that this is called ‘muscle memory’ but it isn’t, it’s learned instinctive reactions without conscious thought.
And how to brake really hard and steer consciously in what seems to be what I call ‘slow time’ to avoid a collision. I guess it’s the effect of adrenaline?
I’ve dropped it twice at zero miles/hr, on an oil slick on the roundabout over the M1 Junction 29, and last year on gravel in a car park whilst putting it on the side stand.
I’ve had some crashes racing. Two bad ones. I locked the front going into Sears at Snetterton on an unfamiliar bike with better brakes, and had a corker when my TZ350 seized flat out going into the Esses at Mallory (before the chicane was put in and the tyre wall moved back).
Not all learn by trial and error, some mates and other riders continue to have the same collisions. Some only have one crash. If they survive, many don’t ride again.
Some continue to generally crash regularly.
But most simply seem to ride more carefully.
Research shows that the chances of a crash diminish by 40% every time experience doubles, in the early years.
Research has also found ‘advanced’ post-test training is ineffective, riders just go faster, ride more, and have different types of crashes. They are also more likely to blame others, which is unhelpful. It’s all far too late and far too ‘clever’, (as a RoSPA instructor).
The problem is also that crash reporting systems are so poor, despite ‘black boxes’ in many new vehicles. So root causes of crashes are guessed.
The current system is performed by the police, who appear to focus on blame and prosecutions rather than prevention.
BikeSafe is, I believe, mainly a PR exercise as they say it’s ‘not training’. I could explain why but it would take too long and doesn’t make any sense. Any biker likes a ride out – even better if you’re getting paid and on a company bike. But go anyway, you’ve nothing to lose and it’s cheap, and you will learn some good stuff from receiving something that’s ‘not training’. (It is really). And you’ll find police riders are generally a great bunch in this setting.
Back to crashes. We don’t know how experienced riders were, only how old, so we can’t match the type of crashes with experience.
We don’t even know if they had a licence or any training. This is a factor in over a third of fatal crashes in Sweden, and even higher in the US where this factor is reported.
40% of young rider fatalities in the UK are underage. Many others won’t have a licence. So no training is probably 50% of the problem, but could be up to 80%? (Pareto’s Principle).
This is where we all really need to focus, learners, young and newly qualified riders, but everyone needs to be critically aware of the child protection issues from both sides.
A worn rear shock can be quite dangerous as the bike can bounce and the rear tyre leave the ground. Not great in a corner.
Springs can also sag over time allowing the forks to bottom out which can cause a skid on braking.
You can check the ‘static’ and ‘laden’ sag both ends with the help of a friend. Sometimes you can adjust the spring preload to compensate. Advice is widely available on how to do it.
You can check the rear shock damping simply by pushing the back of the bike down and then releasing it. It should gently come back up without overshooting. If you’ve got adjustable damping, add a couple of clicks to adjust it if you need to.
However, this all does mean your suspension has worn, so consider replacing it. Avoid cheap imports which could make it even worse.
Take a deep breath and buy a decent aftermarket shock or get yours serviced by 9ne of the established companies – not someone you’ve never heard of.
We’ve used KTech, Kais, WP (White Power – how did they get away with that!) and Maxton in the past, and there’s always Ohlins if you’re minted.
Any major established European brand should be OK.
Consider also checking your head, swinging arm and wheel bearings while your in your overalls.
There are an extraordinary number of internet posts on tyres and tyre wear, particularly on track bikes.
And very varied and often contradictory diagnostic advice on make, suspension setting, tyre pressures etc.
Tyre Type
You can use road tyres on track days, but avoid using track tyres on the road.
They have very little grip when they are cold, and are very unlikely to reach their operating temperature on the road.
You can get ‘cold tears’ in the rubber if you don’t warm them up properly.
We have constant issues at The School with riders failing to warm up their tyres, and falling on the first lap. You need two full laps at a gradually increasing pace to be safe.
This applies to road tyres too, although 1 lap should be enough, dependent on type.
Generally speaking, the more tread, then the quicker they heat up due to tyre flex.
Tyres have a relatively narrow range of temperature at which they are designed to work.
Slicks in particular need great care to warm properly. Even with tyre warmers, after you’ve waited in the collecting area for a couple of minutes, the tyre would have lost much of its temperature.
‘Wets’ are usually only needed when there is standing water on the track. Otherwise, intermediate or sports tyres are usually better. Wets wear very quickly if the track dries, and can become very slippery.
Tyre Pressures
Consider using the manufacturer’s suggested tyre pressures, but reduce the cold pressures by 2 psi front and back on trackdays.
This to compensate for the increases temperature and pressure.
Running with lower pressures may sometimes give marginally more grip, but causes very high wear rates.
Tyre Wear Patterns
This is a typical early tyre wear pattern on a track bike with rubber building up just behind the grooves.
‘Graining’ has just started, with rubber being worn off the surface of the tyre and getting stuck back onto the edge or the carcass.
Tyres ‘slip’ on cornering, moving sideways as they rotate, which can cause strange wear pattens on treaded tyres.
This is my R6 front tyre from Donnington a couple of years ago. It has started to melt, due we think to the tyre being just 1 psi lower than was recommended.
Different makes and models of tyres can weather very differently.
Tyre Compound
On track days, you could change to an optimum compound of tyre to suit the conditions, but you’d have to be on race pace to make this worthwhile.
If you’re not, the tyre may not get to temperature and you’ll end up with worse grip.
The Theory
If you want to know how tyres (and suspension) work, look at ‘Motorcycle Dynamics’ by Vitorre Cossalter, which covers this in great detail and is based on lab tests, not opinion.
You’ll need degree level maths to fully understand it all, but even without, you can see the factors involved.
The relationship between suspension settings and tyre wear is very complex. As tyres, riding speeds, riding styles, and bikes vary considerably, be aware of suggestions based on tyre wear patterns alone.
Inform children and parents of the risks of riding E-Scooters. Explain the dangers of riding any PTW when underage or without a licence, and without proper training.
Ban E-Scooters. Require any powered vehicle, wherever used, in public or on private land, to meet Highway Code stopping distances (0.7g) Include hoverboards, ball boards, unicycles etc.
Encourage the use of E-Cycles for 14 years and above.
Make ABS (anti-lock) brakes mandatory for all A1 (125cc) motorcycles
Require riders to retake a CBT when upgrading from a moped to a 125c A1 motorbike.
The Problems
40%, probably more, young motorcycle rider fatalities up to 18 years were riding illegally without any training.
50% of KSIs up to 18 years were underage for the motorcycle they were riding.
This seems to be a well kept secret. You can confirm this if you use the government’s freely available accident database. We don’t know how many of the others didn’t have a licence. They probably received no training. Maybe another 10% or more? More thanhalf the problem?
In 2022 there was only a single 16 year old rider fatality who was riding legally – (Probably).
Young rider Fatalities 2022 in detail
YOUNG RIDER FATALITIES 2014-2023
Over the past 10 years, we have seen an average of 1 death/year of a rider below 16 years. But the situation appears to be worsening.
There are an average of 3 deaths/year for riders aged 16. They were probably mostly riding illegally.
There are also 7 deaths/year for riders each year from 17 up to 20 years old, nearly 300 in total. There is no information available as to how many did not have a proper licence.
2014
2015
2016
2017
2018
2019
2020
2021
2022
2023
< 16
0
0
2
1
0
0
0
1
3
2
16
1
5
3
3
2
1
2
3
6
2
17-20
33
38
26
26
28
24
18
29
36
35
50cc A1 mopeds aren’t the major issue, but 125 cc A1 motorbikes are. They don’t need to have anti-lock brakes that larger capacity bikes now have to – which makes no sense.
Young riders are mainly a risk to themselves. They are simply demonized by The Press as ‘anti-social’. This view is taken rather than seeing them as children at serious risk.
Young Rider KSI’s 2018 and 2022
Many young riders at 17 move from a 50cc 28 mph twist and go, to a geared 125cc motorbike. They can now easily ride at 60 mph with no extra training. Out they go onto A roads and the countryside at considerable personal risk. KSI’s now more than double.
The number of KSIs of underage riders, 16 and younger, is nearly static. In contrast, overall KSIs for this age group has declined by 25% over the last 4 years. But the underage problem appears to be unaffected.
E-Scooters
In 2022, 440 E-Scooter riders were seriously injured. The highest frequency was in the 10-19 years age group. Estimates suggest that about 150 young riders sustained serious injuries. These account for approximately one-third of all injuries. (Government E-Scooter Fact Sheet).
E-Scooters look to have increased 16 years and younger young rider fatalities by >50%, and KSI’s by 400%.
E-Scooters apparently look set to be legalised.
The average E-Scooter rider age is 16 years, youngest 11 years or less.
There are probably now 1.5 million E-Scooters in the UK.
To date, 50 E-Scooter riders and 1 pedestrian have been killed. An unknown number, but probably at least 500/year seriously injured.
TRL research confirmed the poor braking on E-Scooters. The kerb height they can negotiate has had to be reduced. It has been lowered from the standard 10 cm to 3 cm. This puts riders at risk. And that they are unstable, generally poorly maintained needing constant brake adjustment, had steering faults and underinflated tyres.
For local Government rentals, the Dft doubled the braking distance standard for E-scooters. When all other vehicles would have stopped from 15 mph, an E-Scooter would still be doing 11 mph. Speed related fatalities start at 9 mph.
You can buy an E-Scooter capable of close to 50 mph. Others are easy to tamper with to de-restrict. >40 mph is possible.
The obvious alternatives are E-Cycles. They are legal at 14 years and can stop to Highway Code standards. E-Cycles can also negotiate standard kerbs and use less energy. You have to pedal, which also helps fitness.
See government reports. They are unnecessary, and the most hazardous form of urban travel by a margin, average age of rider is 16 years. E-Cycles are at least 3 times safer, have a smaller carbon footprint, and can carry shopping safely in panniers.
12 riders died in 2022, at least 400 serious injuries accepted as probably significantly understated.
Young Motorcycle Riders
40% (2022) of fatalities <16 years are underage. Others probably don’t have a licence. Youngest 11.
They can move from a 50cc automatic limited to 28 mph, at 17, to a 125cc geared bike capable of up to 70 mph, with no extra training. Out they go onto A roads and into the countryside at > twice the speed, where many are killed or injured.
The death toll rises sharply peaking then falling back at 24 years old.
125cc bikes are also not required to have anti-lock brakes, whereas now all larger capacity bikes have. As everyone learns on a 125 this is represents a very high unnecessary risk of falls under braking, which is far more likely when learning.
Motorcycle Training
There is no course to become a motorcycle learner trainer, just a 2-day test. In contrast, it takes around 40 days of training to qualify to teach in Further Education, ‘basket weaving’ etc at night school.
There is however a short one/two week DVSA training course for post test trainers, as well at 4 tests coving riding ability, training ability, hazard awareness and thery.
However, currently there appears to be no law against anyone training motorcyclists commercially on the road without a DVSA trainer’s licence, whereas there is for cars etc.
Consequently some ‘advanced training’ is unqualified, putting riders at risk. (The IAM and RoSPA are charities overseen by the DVSA).
In summary, PTW riders are far more of a risk to themselves than anyone, could be far better trained, with the young and their parents apparently particularly unaware of the risks.
Riders are not often trained and not tested in high speed braking. Consequently 50% can’t meet Highway Code stopping distances from 60 mph, and up to half simply skid and fall in an emergency – from research. This is critical as most speed is lost at the end of braking – it’s a ‘square law’. Probably causes over 100 deaths/year, and over 1,000 serious life changing injuries.
The DVSA advice looks wrong with the brake application in the wrong order – should be rear first as your foot’s already on it.
Early machines were slow and had very poor brakes, sometimes only on the rear, and some had rim brakes like bicycles, which were also used on some lightweight race bikes.
The introduction of drum brakes was a significant step forward, but they were still poor – particularly front drum brakes with single leading brake shoes, bearing in mind at least 60% of braking is done by the front, and up to 100% as the weight transfers forwards.
Aftermarket twin leading shoes became available – John Tickle – and four leading from Fontana. Even 8 leading shoe were used on racers.
The rear brake was key, as the leverage was far higher with the rider standing on the pedal.
The front brake was wholly dependent on how strong your grip was, and lock ups probably very rare.
In the 1970s disc brakes started to appear which were initially poor in the wet, but over the years friction materials, master and slave cylinder designs have improved.
I cannot remember ever locking a front brake on tarmac until 1992, and that was on a race bike with twin AP Lockheed race calipers and cold tyres.
The latest radial brakes are very powerful, requiring only one or two fingers to stand a machine on its nose, or a lock up.
ABS has been around since the 1970s, but was mainly fitted on top end touring bikes until 2016 when they became compulsory for all bikes over 125cc.
There is a now a particular problem with machines from around 2000 onwards which have increasingly powerful brakes capable of locking the front wheel with just one or two fingers, which is probably a significant factor with riders falling in an emergency.
As many riders have more than one bike, there is a real danger of going back to earlier machines without ABS (or traction control, anti tipping or anti wheelie) and skidding and falling.
I agree there are potential opportunities for exploiting psychology and technology to address road safety issues.
However, we are already struggling with the ‘PlayStation Generation’, who are simply used to ‘respawning’, Grand Theft Auto, Rocket League etc.
When I received my advanced riding training 15 years ago, I was initially baffled at what the hurry was, but came to realise it was primarily a game. A to B as quickly as possible without breaking any laws, followed by an instruction to read through the Highway Code again and separate the ‘should nots’, (that I could ignore), and the ‘must nots’, (that I couldn’t). Take every reasonably safe chance to overtake or filter through the traffic. On the plus side, it certainly means you pay proper attention at all times.
It seems to have thankfully changed over the years with less emphasis on ‘making good progress’.
‘For most of this century behavioural psychology has been conspicuously applied to almost every area of our lives’.It has – since the 1970’s when post war production caught up with demand, it has been harnessed by Marketing to make us buy stuff we don’t need, researching and developing the brands we all love – for some unfathomable reason – for a while anyway. (I did my MBA in Marketing in the early 90’s. There were then a number of ‘Buyer Behaviour’ models in use, which probably now run into many 1,000’s).
Psychology clearly has been very effective at helping marketeers manipulate buyer behaviour. I think most people realising how customers are psychologically manipulated, would be horrified. How many times have we all got home with something wondering why you bought it – clothes bought that you’ve never worn.
Does the public know that car adverts in the old glossy newspaper supplements didn’t actually sell cars? They were actually there to address ‘post purchase dissonance’, reassuring buyers that they’d made the right choice and that the brand reflected their values. It’s all about brand loyalty. The cost to the economy must run into £billions every year, which we all pay for by often grossly inflated prices.
Psychology also hasn’t apparently made the world a safer place. The biggest killer of young males is still suicide. Suicides overall in the UK have shown at best a flat trend since 2006, despite I am sure the psychology profession’s best efforts. 6,588 suicides in 2022 against 1,711 road deaths – 350 motorcycle riders.
‘….technological advancements in vehicle safety have made great strides in reducing the UK’s stubbornly high road traffic collision statistics’. Very true, but there has been no significant improvement in reported road fatalities since 2009 despite the replacement of older vehicles with new, complete with ABS, airbags, stability control, automatic braking etc.etc. should result in steady improvements. The root causes probably have remained firmly embedded and unchanged, or maybe getting worse.
The focus on the dangers of speeding for the 5 years from 2003 seems to have worked – then nothing.
I’d just responded on LinkedIn to a post on ‘Automated Behavior’ as follows, which seems to apply here as well:-
‘Psychology rapidly gets too complex and convoluted. Maslow is probably the simplest and most useful model. The primary human motivation is for safety, we just need to constantly remind road users how unsafe the roads really are, and how easy it is to kill or maim yourself, family and others’.
We’ve used Transactional Analysis in our training, and more recently ‘The Chimp Paradox’, the idea actually came from Professor Peters witnessing a road rage incident. Make friends with your chimp – mine’s called Kevin. Might work for some with anger management issues which can cause unsafe behaviour. Worth pursuing to tackle the emotional behavioural issues which are already known?
This article states reasonably that ‘People need a rational reason to change their behaviour and a clear instruction on what they can do to change’. The primary base human motivation is theoretically for safety, so whilever road users feel safe, their risky behaviour will likely continue.
Everyone needs to appreciate how hazardous driving and riding is. If we started from scratch we’d never design roads where vehicles passed each other at 60 mph in opposite directions. If ‘Pub Darts’ had been invented last week, it would have immediately been banned as ludicrously dangerous – throwing darts with 2 inch sharp points across a room of semi-intoxicated people?
But we are where we are, and everyone needs to be aware and constantly reminded of the danger. Road users also need to be trained more thoroughly, rather than learning by trial and error, and well aware of the likely consequences of inattention or lack of care.
They used to put wrecked cars on public display in the past as a warning. Haven’t seen one for many years, probably found to be too upsetting. We’re letting road users drive and ride around in ‘cloud cuckoo land’:-
More than 130,000 people were injured on the roads in 2022, with 30,000 killed or seriously injured.
You and your passenger may survive a frontal 30 mph impact, providing it isn’t a tree, truck or tractor, but probably not one at 40 mph.
A 20 mph side impact will likely kill you all – so be very careful emerging from junctions.
Every second you fail to react through inattention, potentially increases your impact speed by 20 mph.
If you hit an oncoming vehicle, the impact is the addition of the speed of both vehicles. 60 mph + 60 mph = 120 mph. You’ll both be dead and not looking good either.
I note the reference to Apps and mobile technology. ‘It’s undeniable that mobile technology serves as a powerful engagement tool in today’s digital age’. I agree, I have an old ‘Road Angel’ which warns me of speed cameras and accident black spots. Build this into Satnavs advising road users of previous serious collisions points as they approach them. Again more details will make them more impactful I think. Some already have warnings of collisions, or road blockages, or breakdowns.
Suggested Strategy
By all means use psychology – self preservation – not killing yourself, family, friends, or strangers. It needs to be hard hitting if it is to work. The need to control your ‘chimp’, or act on the roads at all times as an ‘adult’, not a ‘critical parent’ or ‘child’.
Only one life – no respawning – no second chance.
Make drivers aware of the ‘illusion of safety’ in a padded steel box, and particularly on two wheels.
Speed awareness courses to focus on ‘due care and attention’ – the failure of the driver or rider to see a bright yellow speed camera and warning signs. And the result of not reacting quickly, which is potentially far more serious than a few mph over the limit. 1 sec delay = +20 mph impact. 2 seconds potentially fatal. Fatalities start at just 9 mph.
Brutal publicity campaign stressing the importance of taking care and paying attention as above. Depict real life tragedies. I’ve been working my way through detailed reports on 39 fatal motorcycle accidents in Northern Ireland. It’s really depressing.
Put up signs where there have been fatal collisions maybe with the number and ages of those killed – names would probably be even more effective with relative’s approval, replacing wreaths and floral tributes. And whether they were pedestrians, or driving or riding a cycle, or motorbike. Make it real.
Encourage road users to look at the local on-line crash map to see where collisions occur.
Provide warnings of accident blackspots via Satnavs.
——————————————————————————————————————————————
There’s a current problem with motorcyclists being unable to brake properly, as circa 50% just skid and fall in an emergency, and half cannot achieve Highway Code stopping distances. Many riders simply won’t practise braking probably due to the fear of skidding and falling, or maybe finding out they can’t stop quickly. I’ve asked that high speed braking be added to the licence test and included in all post-test or advanced training.
I’ve used a free App called iAccel Lite which allows riders to quickly and easily brake test themselves. Not aware of many takers. I’m currently looking at a German data logging system so we can evaluate our training more objectively.
The poor lack of response to the problem of motorcycle braking and lack of enthusiasm says it all. All’s well in ‘cloud cuckoo land’. I guess a psychologist would define this as ‘denial’? This despite many knowing the risk on a PTW is 66 times higher than car driving.
An article on Transactional Analysis I had published with the journalist John Westlake in BIKE created more interest than all the others on bike riding, so maybe we’re potentially at a stage where attitudes are beginning to change which in theory is followed by changes in behaviour. Wishful thinking?
I still think it’s the simple but fatal illusion of safety in vehicles that needs addressing, and that accidents only happen to others – until they don’t.
British Superbike School 