Twenty seven bikers from across British Forces Germany and Shape recently took part in a United kingdom Support Command (UKSC) Motorcycle Safety Project.  Exercise BIKESAFE (BFG) is a course that is designed to make motorcyclists more aware of the dangers on the road and to make them more proficient as a rider.

The exercise is an initiative run by about 30 Police Forces in the UK, and recently seven Officers from the Traffic Department of the Metropolitan Police drove to Rheindahlen to hold the Bikesafe London course, which is financed by Transport for London (TfL).

Police Instructor keeps a watchful eye on a student.

The Met Officers came to Rheindahlen two years ago to run the course for the first time to a wide cross section of experienced and less-experienced riders and were delighted to return again.  The bikers, both military and civilian, were given briefs on general motor bike safety and road craft system dealing with situations such as how to avoid collisions and how to use correct gears.   They then headed out on a trail ride around Mönchengladbach, followed by a rural route  where they covered such things as breaking abilities and road positioning.

WO2  (CSM) Andy Riach, HQ Company MI Bn, organised the course having completed it himself a few years ago and he said that the main aim was to target the 18-25 year olds and introduce them to advanced biking with two initiatives.  He explained “There’s the first step, the Metropolitan Police-led Bikesafe London Initiative and then, if their skills are good, they can move on to the Institute of Advanced Motorists (IAM). 

As it turned out, 17 of the students advanced to this part of the course.  When completed, they were given recognition from the IAM and they also gained a nationally recognised certificate to potentially qualify them for discounted insurance premiums.

Andy added “In Germany there is the perception that you can ride at any speed anywhere, which is wrong.  They’ve been learning how to react to hazards and how to get the most out of their bike.  This course is ideal and we really recommend it to all motorcyclists”.

Instructors and students take to the road.

 
Sergeant Paul Mostyn from the Met Police was one of the Instructors and he put his team together in 2003 and he said that he felt that the military in particular would benefit from the course.  He said “A lot of people return from a sixth month ops tour, buy a motor bike tax free, they may find that they need a bit of thrill and subsequently take to the roads with a vengeance, get involved in an accident, which can sometimes be fatal.  So we decided to do something about it and the Bikesafe London project seemed to fit the bill with what was needed”.

Last year there were 12 deaths in the British Forces attributed to motorbike accidents, which was a 300% increase from the year before.  Paul said “There tend to be three main problems with a lot of bikers; firstly, they’re not in the correct position, secondly, they’re in the wrong gear and thirdly they go too fast. There’s no substitute for experience and many bikers also lack self confidence so I would recommend that all bikers get some formal training to try and better themselves”.

There are 14 bikers taking part on each of the days since there had to be two students per police officer. Inspector Paul Cleevely from the Met Police said “It is a great personal pride to reach this standard.  At the end of the day if they can just take away a little something we’ve passed on to them it could save their lives”.

Lisa Bean from the Travel Office in Brunssum was the only female on the course.  She's been biking on and off for around 6 years and she thought the course was really good.  She said  “I decided to take part because I’d lost my confidence and just wanted to get back into it again. I would definitely recommend it to people.  It's a fantastic course”.

Jamie Cook is also from Brunssum and he said that he thought it was absolutely brilliant. “It's the start of the biking season and your skills are never as good as they were at the end of the previous season so it's a stepping stone. I learnt a lot, and if you've just passed your test then the best thing to do is to get yourself on one of these courses, where you'll learn about your bike from the instructors and how to ride it properly which is always good”.

The Police Officers were also delighted to have the support of the German Police.  Paul Cleevly said  “They are very supportive of what we do.  They realise who we are when we’re out and about on our police bikes and they just wave us on”.

Inspector Paul Cleevly presents a plaque to German Police Chief, Ulrich Ferrer

On the last day the Police Officers met up with the German Police Chief, Ulrich Ferrer, to say thank you.  He said “We have a very similar programme here in Germany where members of Driving Schools and ADAC (Allgemeiner Deutscher Automobil Club) attend  biker meetings and advise motorcyclists how to drive with care.  I think Bikesafe is a great idea “. 

Indeed he was so moved and appreciative to have the Metropolitan Police Officers  visit Germany he handed over his personal hat, saying “I will have retired by the time you visit us again so I would like you to have this in memory of your visit”.

In return, PC Keith Johnson, who is also due to retire in 18 months handed over his hat to the German Police Chief.

There’s a possibility that the Officers could be coming back here to BFG in September to Gutersloh to do a similar course targeting some younger personnel.   Plans are already being set in motion to introduce the Bikesafe London Programme to personnel in Cyprus with the likelihood of it becoming mandatory across the British Force’s.