A Day in (Motorcycle) Traffic School
Ed Greenberg
Station Road, I found myself with the option to attend Traffic School.
Although I go the ticket in the car, I chose to register for motorcycle
class, since it promised to be more interesting than the cage version.
I registered with NTSI (the only choice in Santa Clara, and currently
under investigation for assorted mopery and dopery involving the amount
of profit that they are allowed to make -- see the Murky News for
details) and was assigned to today's class at San Jose City College.
The instructor was a retired SJPD Leutenant named Vic. The students
ranged from bored and jaded kids through adults. All but one spoke good
english. One was a Motorcycle Safety instructor (Tim) with the CMSP,
and besides him, I was the only person who admitted to having taken the
MSF course or any rider education other than previous attendance at
Traffic School. Given the jobs that some people claimed, I wouldn't be
surprised to find that one or more of the readers of this article were
in class with me today. There were several people who, by the nature of
their work, have no excuse not to be on the internet :-)
I found the class to be about a 5 on a scale of ten when evaluated as
motorcycle rider education, but about 8 on the same ten scale when
evaluated as a government mandated program for traffic offenders. In
other words, it wasn't as good as the classroom part of an MSF class,
but it was surprisingly better than Traffic School would be expected to
be.
The instructor cleverly wove the mandated material in with anecdotes
from his police days and discussions of how "things" worked in Traffic
Court, the police, DMV, etc.
The point of the class is, of course, attitude adjustment. The key
goals posted are:
"Taking Responsibility for ones values, attitudes and values while
riding."
Aside from the above, here's some of what was covered in class, mostly
in very welcome "digressions":
* How the point system really works between you and dmv as well as you
and your insurance company.
* The breakdown of the fine collected for a typical violation. WHere
the money goes.
* The details of what happens to you in a DUI bust.
* Lots of ways to get a speeding ticket, and some strategies for not
getting them.
* Lots of accident stories, with both the rider mistake and the legal
implications discussed, including one in which the instructor had
testified as an expert witness for the rider/plaintiff.
There was also the usual two hour discussion of alcohol and it's
effects, but after nine years since ANY driver/rider education, I didn't
even mind hearing that.
I was impressed with the way the instructor handled a smartass question
about NTSI's current political problem.
I was also most impressed with the instructor's reaction to finding a
CMSP instructor in class. He was truly respectful to Tim's
expertise. He defered to him on many occasions, encouraging him to deliver
short lectures on various topics including Braking Distance, Emergency
Maneuvers, and the answers to the Motorcycle Quiz, which was lifted
wholesale from the MSF anyway :-) I was glad to hear those topics
discussed from an MSF viewpoint, and was amazed at how much of the
coursework seems to have changed since I last encountered any of it.
Considering the rain, one couldn't really have enjoyed a pleasure ride
today, so all in all, I found it a most refreshing way to avoid a point
on my (otherwise clean) driving record. It was certainly expensive
enough :-(
Anybody who rides, who needs to take Traffic School, should consider a
motorcycle oriented class, whether ticketed in a car or on the bike.
myk melez
> After an untimely encounter with a Sunnyvale PD Radar Unit on Lawrence
> Station Road, I found myself with the option to attend Traffic School.
> Although I go the ticket in the car, I chose to register for motorcycle
> class, since it promised to be more interesting than the cage version.
[snip]
> The point of the class is, of course, attitude adjustment.
[snip]
Ed, it sounds like they succeeded! Would I be correct in believing that
you think you were wrong for having allegedly committed the infraction you
were charged with, and that the government was justified in obligating you
to either attend traffic school or face the possibility of other sanction?
Or are you just saying that it wasn't as bad as it could have been?
myk melez m...@cats.ucsc.edu
"Goodbye," said the fox. "And now here is my secret, a very simple
secret: It is only with the heart that one can see rightly; what is
essential is invisible to the eye."
Jim Sauer
=Although I go the ticket in the car, I chose to register for motorcycle
=class, since it promised to be more interesting than the cage version.
=Anybody who rides, who needs to take Traffic School, should consider a
=motorcycle oriented class, whether ticketed in a car or on the bike.
I'll just chime in with an agreement with Ed. I chose to attend the
"Cheap School" because it was offered within walking distance from my
apartment in Mt. View. I found the class to be an almost complete waste
of time. I found nothing commendable in my instructor ("Bob"). Bob had a
very hazy understanding of California Vehicle Code, had no sense of humor,
and was generally dull. He had an attitude that we were sinners that he
was there to punish (he responded to one comment with "well if you all
would slow down, you wouldn't have to be here").
If I ever have the "opportunity" to attend traffic school again, I'll
spend a few more dollars and go to a less convenient location to attend a
motorcycle or comedy school.
--
- jim // Jim Sauer // /o o\
\\ j...@haas.berkeley.edu \\ \ - /