It’s been a busy couple of months, starting with the AGM in January at St. Crispin’s. Thank you everyone who either attended in person or handed the Committee your proxy vote and thank you all for your commitment in supporting the Committee.

The Training Team have been busy producing new media for our Core Skills Day (CSD). This day is spent with our prospective Trainee Observers (pTObs) taking them through the process of working with an Associate in order to become a TOb. It’s a day that has been carefully put together, over many years, and helps us to develop new Observers for TVAM and prepare them for their IAM RoadSmart National Observer assessment.

Previously, the CSD used power point images, stills and videos to highlight best practice, Observer positioning and a couple of short videos to enable the pTObs to have a go at Observing and then debriefing the Associate on what they viewed. Four members of the team, aided by Chris Darwen (TVAM Treasurer) and his camera equipment, spent hours filming to capture new footage for the presentation. A huge thank you to Iain James, Nina Bosley-Gray, Will Brooks and Chris Darwen for their work on the day, plus the hours Chris and Iain spent taking the video footage and creating the images for the CSD.

Once our TObs have completed their training, they become a Trainee National Observer and are then put forward for their National Observer Assessment. The IAM carry out reassessments of all Observers every five years and TVAM carry out a mid-term health check around the two-and-a-half-year point. This is just a check to ensure that the Observer is still up to date with their coaching and to offer any support that they may need. If your National Observer Reassessment is coming up, and you wish to have a further health check before meeting your IAM assessor, please contact the training team at trainingteam@tvam.org and we will arrange for a session with you.

Shortly after the AGM, I received my notification that my Five-year reassessment was due and that an IAM assessor would be in touch to arrange a suitable date. A couple of days later I received an email from Pat Coneley to arrange the assessment and to clearly set out the parameters for the session. This was my second reassessment since becoming a National Observer, the first being carried out by Shaun Cronin in 2021, and my first with Pat.

Now I know that some Observers can get a little anxious and focus on ’what do I need to demonstrate’ to the assessor. I decided to flip that and ask myself, ‘what can I learn from this experience?’ If an assessment is worth doing, then it’s worth doing well and to the best of my ability.

Pat’s email clearly set out an element of riding that he required guidance on and the attached Candidate Guidance Document gave timings that were expected for the briefing, riding and debriefing parts of the session. This all enabled me to put together a session plan for myself. One of the biggest changes since my last reassessment was the amount of actual riding time required. This is only 20mins, so my route needed to cover Pat’s requirements and include a suitable
stopping point for the mid-session debrief.

My brief was to cover elements associated with rural riding and given that I live out in the countryside, gave me the opportunity to cover a mix of open, flowing country roads as well as the smaller, tighter connecting roads. I chose to start at Lasham Gliding Club, as they have a café offering all of the facilities that an Associate may want before and after a ride. It’s also large enough that there are quiet spaces to have a discussion before and after the riding elements.
I planned my route, recced it a couple of times both prior and on the day, to ensure that it met the brief and that there were no road closures. I had also had a health check prior to Christmas and therefore felt ready for actual assessment.

When the day itself arrived, I didn’t feel particularly nervous as I knew I had put in the effort to prepare. Pat arrived in good time and from the minute he got off the bike, put me at my ease. Over a coffee, Pat again just went through the basic details of what he wanted and then we set about the task of delivering the
lesson plan that I had put together. Pat was extremely complimentary about my session, my route and even the tractor that I had arranged for authenticity! Having completed the session, we sat and had another drink and a bite to eat and generally chatted about everything motorcycling. The next morning, my
report arrived from Pat which detailed the session perfectly.

So what did I learn from this experience? There is no substitute for planning. I knew my route and what I needed to brief and debrief in advance of the day. Put the Associate at their ease; we all do this for enjoyment and it’s vital that we create an enjoyable atmosphere, as it’ll bring the best out of both parties. Be open to learning from the Assessor. Watching and listening to Pat, I saw how he made me feel at ease and obtained everything he needed just through conversation.

These assessments form an important role in ensuring that IAM RoadSmart Observers are of the highest standard. The details of the reassessment get put onto your training record and show due diligence on the part of both the IAM and TVAM.

Observers, when you agree your date for reassessment please send me an email at chiefobserver@tvam.org and also let me know when you have completed the assessment, as the IAM do not inform TVAM directly.

Whatever you’re planning over the next couple of months, ride safe and have fun.

Barrie Smith
TVAM Chief Observer