MotoScotland is delighted to announce, for the first time in the UK, that their off road training has been recognised by motorbike insurance specialist, Devitt Insurance Services Limited as advanced rider training.

Further to the shift in perception of this type of training, Devitt has been the first company to announce an insurance premium discount for riders who complete MotoScotland’s Level 2 course. Having insurance discounts for people who complete their training is another UK first for MotoScotland - Scotland’s only off road motorbike training centre.

Managing Director for Devitt, William Hughes said: “We’re delighted to be working with MotoScotland and offer a discount on our motorcycle insurance to recognise the benefits of off road training. We want our customers to be as safe as possible on public roads and we believe that this type of training can help bikers to stay in control of their motorcycle on potentially hazardous surfaces.”

Uniquely, MotoScotland train their off road skills in a way that not only helps riders stay in control of their bike in off road conditions, but also helps riders use these skills to dramatically improve their road safety.

MotoScotland recognises that there are a whole host of “potentially dangerous riding surfaces” on the public highways, including loose gravel, diesel, wet mud, tar over banding, smooth surfaces, moss, grass, metal, leaves, etc.. For some riders, understandably, the thought of riding their bike in these conditions causes a feeling of dread, fear, etc..

With a clear focus and interest in rider road safety, MotoScotland identified these legitimate concerns and for over two years have been helping riders overcome these feelings by training the skills needed to safely and competently steer / stop and control a motorbike in these slippy conditions.

Some of the key safety benefits that riders can learn include: 

· How to steer a motorbike (e.g. in tight circles) at walking speeds without dropping the bike – invaluable skills for safe U-turns on the public highways.

· How to gain additional grip through tyres on slippy surfaces, e.g. gravel, leaves, mud, diesel, etc. – critical skills when a rider encounters these surfaces unexpectedly, e.g. when cornering!

· How to ride safely on slippy surfaces – subjects like bike angles, throttling and braking are summarised for control on surfaces like painted lines, wet metal surfaces, e.g. manhole covers, etc..

· How to safely arrive to and set off from junctions – badly planned junction arrivals can lead to a bike being dropped; unplanned junction set offs can lead to the bike going wide, potentially into oncoming traffic!

· Managing bike controls better – so that the rider is more pro-active than re-active.

· How to achieve better balance whilst anticipating changing conditions – one of the most fundamental riding skills that can be learned.

· Which brake to use on which slippy surface and how to stop safely, under control – critical safety skills to avoid running into other vehicles, etc..

· How to identify an over-braked front wheel, recover it and avoid falling off – an absolute must for road safety.

· How to identify an over-braked rear wheel, recover it and avoid falling off – an absolute must for road safety.

The Department For Transport latest accident statistics reveal a 4% rise in road deaths (1775) in 2014 compared to 2013. The number of motorcyclists seriously injured rose 9% to 5628. Overall motorcyclist casualty numbers also rose by 9% to 20,366 (source BDN 13/7/15). MotoScotland believes that their specific style of training could help reduce accidents and improve road safety.

MotoScotland Chief Instructor/Centre Manager, Clive Rumbold is an advocate for all motorbike riders to take advanced rider training, e.g. IAM, Bike Safe, RoSPA, etc., to have the right skills to stay in control. He also believes that riders need to keep refreshing these skills to avoid bad habits developing which could lead to danger.

Anyone trained in off roading can confirm the benefits to their improved control of a road motorbike. With MotoScotland’s training now being recognised by Devitt as “advanced rider training”, an important and significant gap in rider training has now formally been bridged.

Riders can now be better informed on the choices of training they can undertake to improve their riding skills and safety. This includes new riders who have a CBT licence for a 125cc motorbike or a higher motorbike license.