Nature or nurture? Mikko Nieminen, Editor

How did we get so good at riding bikes?

It’s rare to find two riders who agree on the best bike or the best road, but one universal truth that all of us bikers tend to subscribe to is that we are, by and large, much better than car drivers. The argument may not be 100 per cent accurate, but I would happily agree that yes, in traffic, motorcyclists tend to be more courteous, more skilled, and more aware of what’s around us than the people in cars, buses and lorries. Sure, some of that is to do with us being exposed to the elements more than drivers. We hear sounds that don’t penetrate windscreens; we feel bumps that fourwheeled suspension glides over much smoother; we smell things that take a while to go through air filters before they get in the car; and we can see all around us, over the tops of most cars, with nothing blocking our view. In many ways, it’s just easier to be aware of your surroundings on a bike.

Other reasons for bikers being top-notch road users stem from being more vulnerable on the roads compared to drivers. You often see motorcycles giving more space to cyclists when overtaking them; stopping to let pedestrians cross the road; and paying more attention to changing traffic conditions. I would argue that a lot of that is because we appreciate what it’s like to be the underdog in the world ruled by cars, buses and lorries, but it’s probably also because riding motorcycles puts us in a happy mood, and we’re more likely to be nice to others.

The vulnerability of riders, combined with the dangers embedded in the nature of our machines being capable of – frankly rather silly – speeds without any real protective features, also makes bikers pay more attention to their surroundings. Is that car going to turn in front of me? Does that corner have any grip or has it been polished by HGVs? How long until I can’t feel my fingers anymore if it starts to snow now? The better you want your chances of getting home in one piece to be, the more you need to concentrate on all aspects of your riding. It’s skill, but it’s also survival instinct.

So, to a degree, us bikers are a product of our environment, and we get good at what we do by doing it for a long time. But surely there is a nature/ nurture divide there, too. How much can you learn to become a better rider, and how much is just down to experience? Is it possible to speed up that learning process or even learn more than you would through experience alone?

I have recently been on a couple of very different riding courses to improve my chances of keeping the shiny side up. One was road-based, the other off-road. Both were excellent learning experiences, and opened my eyes to just how much I could improve my riding in a very short period of time. I’m convinced that training is the way forward to get better quicker.

But what about you? I know from letters, emails and chats with our readers that many of you are experienced riders, but it would be really interesting to know if you have done rider training, what kind it was, and whether you reaped the benefits? If you could drop me a line about your experience to msleditor@ mortons.co.uk that would be most appreciated.

Happy riding!