Foggy63 said:
Shame so many of you berate the efforts of the IAM and there members - and all for endeavouring to raise the standards of riding on our roads.
Ahhh. well I think the important word there is "endeavouring"
Now I cannot speak for groups in other areas, only those I have had the misfortune to come across...
Every IAM person I have had the misfortune to deal with has been as flexible as an iron rod..
What they say is correct
The methods they use are the ONLY correct ones
The road position they take is the only one to take.
Everyone who is not with them is an idiot who cannot ride and is a danger to both them selves and others...
In fact your words, "Personally I think it or an equivalent should be compulsory after "passing your test" " seems to sum up the general attitude I have found... Quite obviously you consider people who have not done the biz are unsafe.. otherwise why would you make such a suggestion ?
Heres my thoughts..
There is a direct correlation between the amount of reflective material worn and the level riders THINK they have achieved..
After seeing IAM observers making basic and potentially lethal mistakes whilst passing judgement on others, my personal view is that the whole scheme needs scrapping and starting over !
There is a basic problem with the whole idea.. When you are suggesting to a new rider that this or that is the CORRECT thing to do, said new rider will do what is suggested REGARDLESS of the situation as they do not have the road experience to know better..
I appreciate this discussion can go round in circles for ever, but I can give exact anecdotal evidence..
I recently had to go and collect the remains of a 250 wet dream.. Guy had passed his test 4 months earlier and gone straight to an IAM group..
He was following the 'advice' when he hit a car head on coming round a bend.. all he kept saying was 'but I was in the correct position, the car was wrong'.
Yup.. but that fact did not fix his bike or very badly bruised leg and arm !
He he had ridden to the road rather than what he had been told ( cos he was told the safest place to take a left hander was far out towards the crown and he did not have the experience to know better ) the car would have missed him ..
ps. BLACK ONES ARE THE FASTEST[/QUOTE]