Choosing a training company? Is quality important to you?
Ask these questions:
What size are the training ranges? Are they large or standard ranges
in closed off, secluded parking lots or small ranges in cramped mall
parking lots or busy intersections?
Ask how the classroom and range riding time are structured. Are the
classrooms at the same location or do you have to travel across town
for classroom and then across town again for range time?
The MSF curriculum sets the standards that are to be followed. ABATE
follows higher standards. We DO NOT push students through the entire
classroom portion in a couple of hours. We believe that the classroom
needs to be done in separate sessions during the course to get the
most benefit. Might you have questions after being out on the range --
things you might want to talk about in the classroom with the instructors
and other students? Would you want to take your written test AFTER you
have learned everything you could about how to be a safe rider,
not the first evening BEFORE you have ever even been on a bike?
Does the company schedule multiple classes on a single training area on
the same days, or does the company schedule a single class, allowing for
a more relaxed pace and remediation (if appropriate)? ABATE of Colorado
never schedules more than one basic rider courses on the same training
range on the same days! We value our customers (and our instructors)
too much!
What is the maximum number of students assigned to each instructor?
We think it is obvious that fewer students per instructor serves the
student better. ABATE allows a maximum of six students per instructor.
Some other companies try to schedule more in order to make more profit.
They actually claim that this ratio is better for the student! Ridiculous!
Are the owners of the company marketing experts and profiteers who are
not particularly concerned with motorcycling and safety, or are they avid
motorcycle riders whose primary concern is that safety increases among
all riders? LEARN from MOTORCYCLISTS! ABATE has been training
students to ride safely for more than 25 years. We have a core group of
very experienced instructors - several of our instructors have been
routinely recognized as MSF Instructors of the Year.
Does the company own their own training motorcycles, or are they on loan?
ABATE owns approximately 200 training motorcycles, and we have the
pride of ownership which shows in the condition of which they are kept
and maintained.
ABATE of Colorado trains (and updates) our own instructors in-house. We
have our own Instructor Training Specialist, who is certified by the
Motorcycle Safety Foundation as a Rider Coach Trainer, and by the
Colorado Department of Transportation. When we train instructors, we
use TWO instructor training specialists on each class, not one, like other
companies. Quality and safety are our priorities, and it shows in
the way we conduct our business. It costs more to run our
business this way, but we are not in it for profit!