THREE THINGS I LEARNED…
1 Reading the road like a book
I can be guilty of failing to progress my vision at the same speed as the ride and, on occasions, have found myself looking only into the middle distance, and catching up with my focal point before I know it. Ryan’s dynamic approach, and the metaphor with which he uses to teach it, was invaluable. “Your vision has got to be early, it’s got to be thorough and detailed, it’s got to be continuous,” he explained. “Like reading a book; once you’ve got to the bottom of the page, what do you do next? You flip over the page and start on the next one.”
2 Have some restraint
Overtakes are essential for making progress on a motorcycle. While I have previously been guilty of hideous flip-flop manoeuvres, Ryan has taught me to plan, hang back, have patience and break them down. “Treat it like an airplane flight,” he said of the three-stage pass. “With a take-off, the flight, and the landing. And always have a crash-landing spot.” For momentum overtakes, I learned to consider my passing speed, and not be afraid to hang on the wrong side of the road if visibility allows.
3 Going to the extremes
Fundamental to the Rapid concept is using the whole lane, or carriageway where appropriate, in order to maximise your vision and keep the bike as upright, and stable, as possible. While my automatic inclination was previously to ride well within the comfort of my strip of tarmac, the Rapid Training course has opened my eyes to a wide variety of road positions I didn’t realise were available.