Category: CLUB VIEWS

Pat Coneley

From the Saddle (November 2015)

Posted on | by Pat Coneley

This will be my last column for 2015 and where has the year gone? You may have noticed that the clocks have changed, suddenly it is winter with dark evenings and wet roads covered in leaf litter, as was the case when I conducted a Local Observer Assessment (LOA) for Heather Smith recently. I am delighted to report that Heather not only passed as competent, she produced such a spirited demo ride in awful conditions that on one particular set of bends I was having so much fun I forgot I was doing an Assessment. I am sure there is an IAM ruling about that somewhere…

I am pleased too to report that Jim Bates also successfully completed his LOA with Richard Tickner recently so that will be two new Gold Badges for the Training Team to present soon. I would also like to give a mention to the two Green Team Support riders involved, they were Tony Paz and Andrew Wightman. Having a “real” Associate on an assessment ride is such an asset in that it means the Observer being assessed has some consistent and genuine riding behaviour to observe as opposed to inconsistent, artificial riding as was the case when we used to “stooge” the Associate role.

If you are a Green Team member and looking to do something a bit different or even considering becoming an Observer, this is a great way of keeping your riding  up to standard and even having some  fun!

As a counter to all this excitement Mimi and I recently attended the IAM Conference at Aston University. This is held every October over a weekend, with the car groups on Saturday and bikes on Sunday. The IAM do seem to be raising their game with the appointment of Sarah Sillars as CEO and Ken Kier as Chairman and a much higher media profile.

Sarah who has a long history in the automotive and bike industry speaks with refreshing honesty about the challenges facing the IAM.

She also gave a talk recently at Wey Valley IAM which was very well received so perhaps we should consider this for next year.

Once the presentation slides from the conference are released I will post them on the TVAM website where they can be downloaded. A couple of notable statistics from the conference were that the ratio of IAM bike membership is 20% compared with 80% car and that IAM total membership is increasing and is currently at 92,500 members. TVAM are about 1% of the IAM and the largest group. Another statistic which will come as no surprise is that the average age of membership is 56.

On a very different topic, have you ever wondered what happens to the yellow copy of a TVAM Run Report Form? Probably not but they are all keyed into the TVAM database and the person who enters every single one is Greg Ward’s Mum. If you don’t know Greg, he looks after our Lotus Notes database and the server that it is held on and I recently discovered that his Mum, Vickie, is TVAM’s data entry person. Vickie must have keyed thousands of these over the years so I think a big thank you is in order. I did ask Greg if she would come to St. Crispin’s but Greg feels that it is not her cup of tea so I’ll be visiting her with a bunch of flowers sometime soon. There is a message here to all Observers and Trainee Observers. When you are filling in RRF please give a thought to Greg’s Mum who will eventually have to read it.

Before I sign off for the year I would like a add a heartfelt, personal thanks to all the Observers, Training Team, Committee, Green Team and all who give so freely of their time, tyres and fuel to make this such a great bike club.

Safe Riding

Pat Coneley

Chief Observer

Pat Coneley

From The Saddle (September 2015)

Posted on | by Pat Coneley

Firstly this month, my congratulations go to Clive Marsden and Chris Brownlee, Clive achieved a Masters Pass with Jon Taylor the IAM Staff Examiner and Chris was awarded National Observer status with Craig Gande the new IAM Quality Manager for this region. I look forward to handing these awards out at the next St. Crispin’s so a big cheer please. The IAM Masters award is designed to be the equivalent of a Police Class 1 Standard but at road legal speeds. If you are interested in finding out more have a chat with Clive or Andy Wedge, our two current Masters, or see the IAM website.

You may have noticed at St. Crispin’s recently an increase in the number of newcomers turning up to see what TVAM has to offer. Some of these will have been referred to us from the IAM’s BikeMoments promotion. They will have responded to the IAM’s marketing and their details forwarded to us. As you probably know, most of our membership comes direct to us so it is nice to see the IAM promoting TVAM.

On the subject of newcomers I would also like to highlight the great job done by our Meet and Greet Team. The first visit to St. Crispin’s can be a daunting experience. Newcomers are often surprised by the sheer number of bikes and people who all seem to know each other, let alone the thought of having their riding assessed by one of those scary Observers! Having someone in a red t-shirt or a ‘Friendly Face’ say hello and tell them what we are all about can make or break a newcomer’s first opinion of TVAM and we all know the importance of first impressions! So well done.

My thanks also to Simon Whatley for responding to an invitation from the VMCC (Vintage Motorcycle Club) to visit them at their local meeting and conduct some observed rides. As a result seven of us met at the Englefield Social Club on a damp Tuesday evening and after some brief introductions in the car park I found myself chasing a very sprightly octogenarian on a seventies Honda twin across the Oxfordshire countryside. I had expected to see a range of old British iron but the majority of the bikes present were early Japanese and how nice it was to see them being used as they were intended. It gave me reason to reflect on how much power we really need as I watched an experienced rider on an old 400cc Honda with maybe 30bhp and skinny tyres executing well-timed overtakes on full throttle. It just goes to show as we always say “It’s not what you ride, it’s how you ride it”. The VMCC guys seemed to enjoy the ride-outs and have asked us back next year so maybe an opportunity to drag that classic out from the back of the garage next year?

Finally this month, on behalf of the Committee, I would like to welcome Mimi Carter Jonas to the post of Events Co-ordinator. Mimi brings a wealth of ideas and
enthusiasm to the Committee so watch this space on the social side of TVAM.

Safe Riding

Pat Coneley
Chief Observer

Pat Coneley

From the Saddle (July 2015)

Posted on | by Pat Coneley

Hi everyone,

I would like to start this month with a big thank you to all for dealing with the number of newcomers and Associates wanting an Observed ride at Crispin’s last month. This, again, fell on Father’s Day. which always presents us with a challenge and this year was no exception. I think most of the available Observers, including myself, managed to accommodate two Associates, but apologies go to the few who did not get an Observed ride.

Much of this was written whilst on holiday in France with twelve other TVAM friends enjoying the roads and hospitality that are typical of rural France. The time away gave me an opportunity to reflect on how the biking scene has changed. Of the 13 bikes on the trip only 2 were Japanese. All the rest were European and the UK was well represented with 4 Triumphs – 3 Explorers and a Sprint present. A few years ago it would have been all Fireblades and GSX-R’s. Have we all fallen out love with sports bikes or can some of us no longer fit on them? I think it is likely that more of us are touring these days and need the luggage capacity.

If you have never taken your bike abroad then do consider joining one of the trips advertised in Slipstream but, be warned, it can become expensively addictive!

The contrast with riding in the UK is also noticeable with most French drivers seeming to be more bike aware, often moving over to the extent that they will place two wheels in the grass in their haste to let us pass. Occasionally this happens in the most inappropriate places such as on blind bends and the drivers involved seem surprised when we don’t take the opportunity to overtake!

On the subject of overtakes, the scarcity of traffic on most French roads did tempt me to start overtaking from too far behind. It is important not to make the overtake decision until you have caught up with the target vehicle, assessed its speed, along with all the other information about the road ahead before moving into an overtake position.

I was reminded of this when I had to abort an overtake at the last second, giving the ABS more exercise than I would have liked. This was simply because I had been drawn in to the overtake as soon as I saw the vehicle. I was reminded of the sage advice on 3-stage overtakes offered on page 74 of ‘How to be a Better Rider’. The Police BikeSafe trainers also have a catchy expression for 3-stage overtakes which is self-explanatory. They call it, Catch, Match and Dispatch.

With great weather and the biking season in full swing the DfT Road Casualty Statistics for 2014 were released last month showing an increase in fatalities of 4% (1775) compared with 2013.

Motorcyclists made up 19% (339) of the these which, given that we represent only 2% of the total traffic, is a salutary reminder of what TVAM is all about and the inherent risks involved in this passion that we share.

Safe Riding
Pat Coneley
Chief Observer

Pat Coneley

From the Saddle (May 2015)

Posted on | by Pat Coneley

Hello All

This is my first column as Chief Observer so I just wanted to thank everyone who voted at the AGM for giving me the opportunity. There have been some changes to the committee with David Jacobi now elected as Chair. I am looking forward to working with him as well as getting to know more of our members. I continue to be amazed at the levels of commitment and professionalism shown by everyone. We are without doubt the best bike club bar none. We are also the largest IAM group, car or bike with 870 members, something we can all be proud of.

The training Team have just held another successful Core Skills Day (formerly known as the TOb Induction) at Marlow Fire Station. This is proving to be a great environment for the training as although the station is uncrewed (I was going to say unmanned but this is frowned upon by the PC Police!) they always manage to arrange the dispatch of a Fire Appliance at some point during the day. Our thanks go to Keith Wheeler of Bucks Fire and Rescue for the use of this facility.
We had 11 TObs and Potential TObs complete the day and begin the new TOb training process. They will be assigned Mentors and will continue their Observer Training under the guidance of an experienced Observer as opposed to the previous system where we all had to flog through the infamous “yellow card”.

Just as new Associates continue to be the life blood of TVAM, new Observers are equally essential. Becoming an Observer is a challenging but hugely rewarding way of sharing what we all love best – riding bikes and riding them well. If you are thinking that observing might be for you, then have a chat with one of the Training Team.

Plans for the Observer Training Weekend in Llandrindod Wells are well under way and this year there will be change of emphasis from coaching skills to riding skills so if you are an Observer or TOb clear your diary for the 5th – 7th June and book your place.

Sadly, I will miss the May St.Crispin’s having previously arranged to be in Northern Ireland for the NW200 so my thanks go to David for standing in with the announcements and Guy Lipscomb for doing the allocations.

Keep it shiny side up

Pat Coneley
Chief Observer

…and it’s goodbye from him! (From The Saddle: Slipstream March 2015)

Posted on | by Andy Wedge

It was April 2010 when I first stood up, slightly nervous, in front of the assembled masses as Chief Observer. Shortly after that first month I received a text message from Chris Caswell that said, “1 down, 59 to go!” At the time, it seemed way off in the distance, but now I am not quite sure where the time went. As I write this with that 59th approaching fast, I thought it would be a good opportunity for a quick review of some of the changes that have taken place over the last five years.

The Club had been talking about a new website for a while and we finally delivered this on the 1st March 2012, complete with a new logo and branding. Soon after, we added the Forum and the web shop.

The relationship between the Full Members (Green Team) and the Observer side of TVAM has improved immensely with Full Members now taking more opportunities to keep their riding skills up with Enhanced Advanced sessions, volunteering for additional observed rides to assist with Trainee Observer (TOb) development as well as introducing our Pillion Rider Course. I’d like to thank Dawn Armstrong as leader of the Green Team and all the volunteers who run the desks at St. Crispin’s and form the Meet & Greet Team for their support in this.

Our Observer Training process was updated, and then updated again with the introduction of the IMI Local and National Observer Framework, much of which was based upon the TVAM process anyway. We now have growing numbers of National Observers and I expect to see our first Local Observers validated very soon. To support these processes and better align our coaching with the IAM test we also introduced new Associate and TOb Run Report forms.

The recession did take its toll a little, not only on membership numbers but also on the number of test passes we achieved each year. Membership numbers are recovering though and I expect the number of test passes each year to increase also. We started recognising the F1RST grade last year too. The IAM’s expectation is that around 5% of tests will result in a F1RST grade and we achieved that last year. This year though, we are already ahead of the curve, a tribute to the great coaching skills of our Observers. To complement the riding side, we also introduced our classroom based theory courses, BikeCraft and more recently, the Class of Better Biking.

As a charity, we always need to keep an eye on costs and one cost- saving measure we introduced was the electronic version of Slipstream. Over half of our members now get a monthly email and a link to download a PDF version of our magazine. This has certainly saved some money on postage and we could save even more if more people switched to the download version. We are looking at alternatives to PDF documents too so maybe a different format will persuade you if you have not switched yet.

TVAM’s relationship with IAM Head Office at Chiswick has been a source of contention for many over the years. I do believe that this has improved too though. It was partly because of this improvement that TVAM was asked to help develop a new framework for Observers wishing to use Bike-to-Bike radios. As the largest IAM group in the country and with the most radio Observers, we were in a prime position to do this. That framework was released and is now being rolled out, although not as quickly as I initially hoped. TVAM is now also providing support for other IAM groups as they look to increase their radio use.

In my time as Chief Observer, I’ve had the opportunity to work alongside three different Chairs. Phil Pawley sadly had to step down for health reasons. Richard Tickner then stepped into the breach before Charon then took over two years ago. It’s been a pleasure working alongside each of them and I thank them for their support.

Finally, I’d like to thank everyone for giving me the opportunity to be Chief Observer of such a great club. It has been challenging at times, very busy and also very enjoyable. I’ve had the opportunity to get to know many of you a lot better than I did before, especially Committee members past and present, as well as getting to meet plenty of people from the IAM and other IAM groups.

There are still changes and challenges ahead and I am sure that with new members on the Committee, they will be handled with the best interests of TVAM at heart. They will have my full support.

A number of people have asked me what I will do with all my free time now. Perhaps I’ll do more Observing!
Regards

Andy Wedge
Chief Observer (for just a few more hours!)

Pat Coneley

From the Pillion (Slipstream February 2015)

Posted on | by Pat Coneley

Hi everyone,

It’s been a busy month at TVAM. The Training Team rolled out a new Trainee Observer (TOb) process at the Core Skills Day on Saturday 7th February. The new process mirrors the Observer/Associate relationship whereby each TOb is assigned an experienced Observer as a Mentor who will guide them through their entire training. This new format is more time efficient and less arduous than the old yellow card (see page 6).

The event was held at Marlow Fire Station, kindly loaned to us for the day by Keith Wheeler of Bucks Fire and Rescue. Since national cutbacks in Police funding, Fire and Rescue have taken a lead in Road Safety and this is a relationship that we hope to build on.

Our Committee, especially Secretary Peter Dowlen, has been compiling the Annual Report and preparing for the AGM on March 15th. The AGM, held after the monthly St. Crispin’s meeting, is your opportunity to have a say in how your club is run so please make an effort to attend.

There will be a packed agenda this year as in addition to the formal business of the elections we have the discussion of Andy Slater’s Task Force Report on our relationship with the IAM.

After shadowing Andy Wedge for several months as Deputy Chief Observer I will be standing for the post of Chief Observer when he steps down for a well-earned rest after 5 years.

Thanks to Andy’s support I now have a much better insight as to what is involved in the role and if elected I am sure the learning will continue.

We also have a vacancy for Chair as Charon Willis will be standing down due to the demands of work and family making it impossible for her to continue in this role.

Currently we have no nominations for this position and would welcome interest from TVAM Full Members. If this is of interest to you please come and have an informal chat with any of the Committee.

It seems to be a long cold winter but the green shoots of a new biking year are beginning to show with social rides in the TVAM Calendar, TVAM Track Days at Castle Combe and 7Ws filling up fast, so get along to your local team meetings and give them your support.

Safe Riding

Pat Coneley

Deputy Chief Observer

 

From the Saddle (November 2014)

Posted on | by Andy Wedge

Hi everyone, this is the last bit from me this year (no Slipstream in December) so I’ll keep it brief.

Charon, Pat and I spent the day at Aston University in Birmingham on Sunday 2nd November representing TVAM at the IAM National Conference. This was a well organised and well attended event, and a good chance to catch up with Chairs, Chief Observers and the like from many other IAM groups across country. We each attended a number of workshops covering a range of topics from IAM Strategy to Riding Standards. Some confirmed what we already knew and some of it was new information. We’ll be issuing a write-up shortly with our own views on each of the topics.

It seems the long summer days are well and truly behind us. Colder mornings and dark evenings are the order of the day at the moment. The sun being low in the sky low brings its own problems with reduced visibility. If you’re commuting towards London in the morning and back again in the evening you will know exactly what I’m talking about. Of course, low sun brings long shadows that can leave patches of the road we ride on wetter or icier than the surrounding area. Roadcraft refers to these as Micro Climates. The section in How to be a better rider starting on page 100 also has some excellent advice on riding in tricky conditions. If you haven’t read those sections yet then I recommend you do.

If you have read them, a refresh never hurts.

An Advanced Rider is always one step ahead of the game, always anticipating and preparing to act if necessary. Remember the three questions you should ask yourself as you ride and that form the basis of your riding plan;

  • What can I see?
  • What can’t I see?
  • What can I reasonably expect to happen?

Always travel at a speed that is applicable for the prevailing conditions and stay safe.

This month we wave goodbye to our Membership Secretary, Steve Watson, as he moves to Devon to be surrounded by running ducks (I kid you not). On behalf of TVAM, I’d just like to say thanks to Steve for all of his hard work over the past few years, and for the home-made biscuits and cakes that kept us going in our Committee meetings. We wish you all the best and I’m sure you’ll be seeing some of us down your way soon.

Andy Wedge
Chief Observer

 

From the Chair (Slipstream October 2014)

Posted on | by Charon Willis

Hi everyone,

So we’ve had fabulous weather for biking. Now what are you going to do? Are you going to ride less because it’s wetter, colder and darker?

  • Read your Roadcraft, or better still get someone else to provide salient points – if this sounds like a good idea go on a BikeCraft course.
  • Go on our new course that shows you how to use TYRE to plan a route, then step up and volunteer to lead a ride in 2015.
  • Apply for a new job? The IAM is recruiting for a new Chief Executive to replace Simon Best, who has just left this position.
  • Go to the Motorcycle Live. 22nd-30th November at the NEC Birmingham.
  • Carry on riding?

Do what you can to enjoy your time on the bike, and but please keep on applying all your skills to aid smooth riding, and apply good planning to avoid accidents. Why would I ask this of you? Well, of course it will reduce heartache, pain etc. plus it will help statistics. The knock on impact of this is it reduces reasons for groups like those communities in Wales, governments, DFT bodies such as Vulnerable Road Users and councils to consider reducing limits and reducing the places where national limits are currently applied. If you don’t need four wheels for work, then stay on two – reduce congestion and use fewer parking spaces. Apparently the Federation of European Motorcyclists Association says it is saves you money!

Charon Willis
Chair

 

From the Pillion (Slipstream September 2014)

Posted on | by Pat Coneley

Hi everyone,

Having agreed to write something as Deputy Chief Observer, the first challenge was the title. Charon does “From the Chair”, Andy does “From the Saddle”, so this is going to be “From the Pillion”. A few months ago I accepted the role of Deputy Chief Observer, and will shadow Andy until the AGM next year. I will then stand for election and, if elected, will become the next Chief Observer. Under the club rules Andy has to step down after five years and he deserves a break!

I have attended several TVAM Committee meetings, and am starting to get a feel for what is involved in running this great club of ours. When I joined TVAM back in 1998 as an Associate, I never imagined that I would still be involved today, and am both honoured and awed at the prospect of becoming Chief Observer.

Over that sixteen year period there have been four CO’s, all different and each a hard act to follow. I have been reflecting on TVAM’s success and how we might build on that for the future. If you asked our 900 plus members to define what we are, I suspect you would get at least 900 different answers, and they would all be correct, and would include:

  • A Bike Club
  • A Road Safety Charity
  • A Training Organisation affiliated to the IAM
  • A Limited Company

The aims of all of these are broadly in line, although there are many differing opinions about how those aims are best achieved, as demonstrated by our current debate over our relationship with the IAM. The questions raised by Andy Slater at the AGM, and debated at the Observer Weekend, have now been distributed to the Team Leaders, who will hopefully give some focus on this. If you have not had a chance to voice your opinion, please try to attend your local team meeting.

Road Safety is becoming the subject of increasing government and media attention, and we motorcyclists are often portrayed negatively. In a time of improving road safety statistics, motorcycle fatalities remain stubbornly high, and TVAM has an opportunity to contribute in changing this, but we will achieve little in isolation.

The IAM in turn are subject to changes introduced by the Institute of the Motor Industry (IMI), which is the body the IAM have chosen to help maintain and improve their own standards. The introduction of the National and Local Observer qualification is as a result of this. There will be changes and challenges for us all over the coming year, but is that a bad thing?

Finally, I have been asked about how I see the role of Chief Observer, and what it means to me. I have a simple answer – it’s about the Riding Standard. I believe that TVAM’s success has encouraged us to become a little complacent. We are good, but are we as good as we could be?

Safe Riding

 

Pat Coneley

Deputy Chief Observer

 

From the Chair (Slipstream August 2014)

Posted on | by Charon Willis

From-the-Chair-571x480

Hi everyone

Leading a ride?

With the help of Charlie Nelson, we have updated the Run Leaders’ pack available in the website library under the ‘TVAM General’ file. A plea; Please share your runs and have them  published in the Slipstream diary. Social runs are an essential part of what we do, and we would prefer that you proactively volunteer your run  leadership skills so that others can benefit from the runs. To have them listed in Slipstream and in the web calendar email details to socialruns@tvam.org

The local teams have had a few opportunities to attend events for marketing purposes.  These are key to allow us to meet other bikers and offer the services and camaraderie of our club. The use of the H Café as a destination for the BikeSafe days has worked well, and the Oxford IAM group have started coming along too. The GNATs have also attended an open weekend at Brian Gray Powerbiking, High Wycombe with some very positive feedback. On Saturday 6th September we have the opportunity to help Blade Motorcycles, Reading, with their main theme of promoting safety and supporting local charities. This is their first open day of this nature and they have invited TVAM to ‘Promote Advanced Riding Skills’. If you want to get involved contact Jim or Rita on reading.social@tvam.org.

Please look out for further opportunities of attendance at promising events. Pick up a handful of the newly printed business cards at St Crispin’s and hand them out to motorcyclists you meet. Obviously you can still cut out or print off vouchers from Slipstream. An IAM price increase may persuade some people to purchase their membership early – Skills for Life cost will be increasing to £149 on 1st October 2014.

We recently had an interesting challenge from one group of young bikers who wanted coaching on how to ride in a group when they are out with their mates. What other coaching aspects could we consider for our club?

Do we have a meeting of minds between MAG and the IAM?

As many of you know, MAG publish the Network magazine that is diligently shared by Nick Vale. This month MAG has brought to our attention the launch of a new website on Motorcycle Guidelines, www.motorcycleguidelines.org.uk, compiled by the Institute of Highways Engineers (IHE). The objective is to raise awareness amongst transportation professionals of the specific safety requirements for motorcyclists. IHE’s Motorcycling Guidelines are a step in that direction. MAG are suggesting that you may use the documents to influence councils etc. over issues such as parking or the use of bus lanes. Of particular interest to note is that the update of these documents was supported by the IAM.

Charon Willis
Chair

 

From the Saddle (Slipstream July 2014)

Posted on | by Andy Wedge

Hi everyone.

This month I am pleased to announce that TVAM has a new Run Report Form (RRF). The old form had been around for quite a number of years and had received only minor updates over that period. Also, it did not accurately reflect the same marking categories or grades seen on the IAM Examiner’s Test Report. So, with that in mind, it has been overhauled while still maintaining the general look and feel that you are all familiar with. Let’s look at what has changed:

CO Jul-14 pic1The first thing you will notice is the old rating of A–E has been replaced by grades 1-5. We’ve also added a description to explain what each number means, with 1 meaning Excellent and 2 meaning Good etc.


CO Jul-14 pic2
The marking for each category has also changed to match the Examiner’s Test Report with the old Plus / Ave / Minus being replaced by scores of 1 to 5.


CO Jul-14 pic3Safety, as always, is the number one priority so this section stays at the top of the new form. You can see that grades 1 and 2 are shaded for each item, and indicate the scores you should be aiming for prior to taking your test.


CO Jul-14 pic4The old sections called Progress and Speed have been replaced with a new section called Riding Style. It contains most of the items from the two old sections but also includes many of the items from the Examiner’s Test Report that were not mentioned before, such as Slow Riding and Eco-Riding.


The sections for Bends, Overtakes and Junctions have all been retained although they have been placed in a different sequence.

 

Safe riding everyone.

Andy Wedge
Chief Observer

 

From the Chair (Slipstream May 2014)

Posted on | by Charon Willis

From-the-Chair-571x480

Hi everyone

Andy Wedge and I represented TVAM in the IAM Region 2 meeting last month. There was an in-depth presentation of 92 slides, which will be in our documents folder on the TVAM website for those of you who would like full details.

Here are some of the highlights:

  • Sales of Skills for Life in our region are up by 6% year on year. The IAM have set a target to increase to 8%. Seems like a big ask, but the general public, bikers and TVAM will all benefit if we too can support this.
  • Our region takes 175 days to get associates who have been through enrolment to test, and 250 days including enrolment through to registering test completion (all car and bike). This is longer than all other regions. The quickest region does this in 150 days.
  • Information like this will be put on the IAM website to allow people to choose the group that meets their needs.
  • They are ramping up their effort to say thank you to members, including adding details onto your IAM membership card such as a F1RST pass.
  • There is a concerted effort to understand reasons for not renewing IAM membership. The slides give you more information, including reasons such as personal income versus perceived benefits (as you will know, we also have a project within TVAM on a similar vein to review and consider every benefit and cost to all types of our own club members).
  • Progressing with the new modules; members will be able to buy; New quiz/assessment module, Urban riding. I understand existing full members will be allowed to check it out later for free.
  • They are actively progressing merging of groups – this will not apply to TVAM as we already have our regional sub-teams.
  • There is a plan to change IAM communication, under the banner ‘group engagement’; which actually means increasing numbers of emails to committee members. Yay!
  • Our regional manager, Mark Trimmer, has categorised groups in his region as Red (i.e. poor sales of Skills for Life, and low test passes), Amber, and Green (doing well and above average). He has focussed his activity in Red and Green groups, and helping merge groups.
  • There was further talk about the database (DTE) that the IAM like groups to use. This is very helpful for other groups that don’t have their own, as TVAM do.

Please do carry on enjoying the club and making the effort by joining in on the courses, enjoying banter and riding.

Shiny side up

Charon Willis
Chair

 

From the Saddle (Slipstream April 2014)

Posted on | by Andy Wedge

From-the-Saddle-574x480

Hi everyone.

First off, I’d like to thank all those who attended this year’s AGM, and for giving me the opportunity to remain as Chief Observer for another 12 months, which look to be as busy and challenging as ever. This will be my 5th year as Chief Observer and under current club rules, it will be my last. I hope to make it a good one.

Last year provided us with some interesting challenges as we got to grips with changes in the Observing qualifications through the introduction of the IMI (the Institute of Motor Industry) programme. The National Observer qualification is reasonably well established now and, to date, we have 13 Observers who have passed that test. Recently though, the IAM confirmed that the Local Observer programme has been suspended following an initial review of the process and feedback received. A further review is due to be completed by June 2014, so hopefully we will get another update after that. In the meantime, we will continue to validate new TVAM Observers along the same lines as before.

On the subject of new Observers, we held another successful induction day recently. This course has been completely revamped over the past year or so, with a new style, new content and better alignment with the National Observer programme. Jon Taylor and Amanda Smith also attended and I’d like to thank them for their assistance with some of the practical exercises, and their feedback at the end of the day. In order to emphasise the change in focus for this day, we have renamed it the Core Skills Day. I would encourage all Observers to get to know the latest Trainee Observer guidance and coaching information as soon as possible. TVAM has always tried to have the highest standards for its Observers and I think that recent changes have taken this to a new level. Particular thanks go to Iain James and Howie Pyett, who both spent countless hours putting the final touches to the material in the days leading up to the course.

IAM Price Increases!
The IAM have confirmed that from the 1st October this year, the Skills for Life package price will be increased from £139 to £149. Some of the reasons given for this are: the expenses paid to the Examiners are being increased (the first time in 15 years) and removal of qualification fees for things like the National Observer test. Additionally, the IAM membership fee is being increased by £1 for those that do not pay by direct debit. It will be interesting to see how the Skills for Life price increase affects take-up and we will be monitoring this closely.

Observer Weekend
This year’s Observer Weekend will again be held at the Metropole Hotel in Llandrindod Wells on the 7th and 8th June. All Observers and Trainee Observers are invited and places are filling up fast. This is a great opportunity to get to meet Observers from different local teams over a beer and enjoy riding with them on some great Welsh roads – all with guaranteed sunshine of course! If you haven’t booked your place yet, you can do so online via the web shop in the members’ area of the website.

Safe riding everyone.

Andy Wedge
Chief Observer

 

From the Chair (Slipstream March 2014)

Posted on | by Charon Willis

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Welcome to March!

Hopefully we’ve finished with the flooding, and you and yours haven’t suffered too much. Now we can get on with a fun-packed year of events from Slipstream, and your local group’s activities.

The Motorcycle Action Group (MAG) campaigns to protect and promote motorcycling and the interests and rights of all riders, illustrated last year by helping to stop the introduction of the ‘Super MOT’. However, like many organisations, MAG needs income, and to increase public awareness. One easy and quick way to help is to support one of their latest promotional initiatives.

In April, a song by Nikki Murray – who refers to it as ‘An anthem for MAG’ – should be released, and MAG gets half the proceeds. So log on to www.stranger-music.com, and for the princely sum of 79p you will be able to download it. They are suggesting you also get 3 friends to do this, in the same week, in an attempt to get a chart hit and therefore huge publicity. Admittedly not as exciting as riding your bikes, but potentially supports our freedom to ride.

Andy Wedge has kindly collated the feedback received on the IAM presentation to Observers regarding the local and national Observers qualification, and sent it on to Jon Taylor (Staff Examiner) and Amanda Smith (IAM Quality Control Manager).

The AGM is today (Sunday 16th March). Are you here? Then join us to hear the plans and questions that our club members have put forward.

Keep your eyes open for latest amusing surveys from the IAM in your email/forum box. I like the one that 26% of drivers were distracted by back seat drivers – it was a missed opportunity for the IAM to promote motorcycling and Skills for Life, and start a ‘Get a motorcycle’ campaign – and the one that 4 out of 10 drivers are not concentrating. You know what I’m going to say, ‘Get a motorcycle’, then try not concentrating. Ho hum – preaching to the converted, I know.

Have fun

Charon

Andy Wedge

From the Saddle (Slipstream February 2014)

Posted on | by Andy Wedge

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Hi everyone. Where is the time going? Already we are into February and it only seems like yesterday that we were celebrating Christmas and the New Year.

TVAM is a great club, with lots of members covering a large geographical area, so one of the challenges is communication, and ensuring that everyone is aware of what’s going on and how to get involved. We have the website, forum and Yahoo groups, which really help, but sometimes finding out which teams are where and what other opportunities there are within TVAM is not as simple as it could be – until now! This weekend we are releasing the TVAM Passport.
The TVAM Passport lists details of all riding-related activities that are available for TVAM members. From initial Associate rides, through to taking the Advanced Test; social rides and the 7Ws; courses such as Look Lean Roll and BikeCraft; other training opportunities like the Enhanced Advanced, through to becoming an Observer. It’s all in there with space for you to keep your own personal record. Printed on high quality card and supplied with a neat plastic wallet, it’s designed to be easily stored in your tank bag so you can keep it with you. The TVAM Passport will be issued to all new TVAM members from this weekend, and is freely available to all existing members too – just see Steve or Alison on the Membership Desk.
TVAM’s Annual Ball, held on the 26th of January, was a great success, and raised around £1,000 in support of the Thames Valley and Chiltern Air Ambulance. As I write this, we are still totting up the money but hope to have a total figure to announce at St Crispin’s.

We are planning for all Observers who are currently radio validated to be re-assessed under the new IAM guidelines. We have 60+ re-assessments to conduct, so this will not be an overnight task, but I would like to see significant progress on this before the end of year. In addition, we have a growing number of National Observers, so we will soon be in a position to start validating our own Observers under the new Local Observer framework. The Local Observer status and framework is still in pilot stage with the IAM, so we will see how it develops. Amanda Smith and Jon Taylor from the IAM attended an Observer evening in December to discuss the National and Local Observer programmes, and I will provide a summary of all the comments I received to the IAM shortly.

The IAM’s F1RST grade is gaining more recognition within TVAM, and we have a growing number of F1RST passes, which is fantastic news. In my last column I mentioned that I had emailed a list of all our members who had passed their test during the retrospective qualifying period to the IAM to see how many were eligible for F1RST membership. They confirmed one other, but sadly the IAM claim not to be able to find or read 25% (19 in total) of the test reports. I’ll be contacting those concerned to see if they have their own copy of their test report so we can check ourselves.

Thanks Amanda Coneley for all the time and effort she put into the Cross Check position over the previous year, and to Rick Watson for stepping forward and taking this on.

I have held the position of Chief Observer for 4 years now, and it continues to provide interesting, challenging and rewarding times. Subject to my re-election at the AGM in March, I look forward to continuing in this role and working with you all to ensure that TVAM continues to deliver the highest possible standards of coaching for our Associates.

Andy Wedge
Chief Observer

 

From the Chair (Slipstream January 2014)

Posted on | by Charon Willis

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Happy New Year to all our club members.

The majority of club members join TVAM with the aim of learning new skills, gaining confidence and finding some like-minded people to go riding with. Having attained their initial goal, many have stayed on to help others and to join in the fun.
I recently went around the club and asked a variety of people what they liked most about the club. The overwhelming response was that it was the camaraderie, banter and sharing time with their friends. One, in particular, gave special mention to Ken Jeddere-Fisher (who kindly organises runs and trips for all club members) for having brought him and his, now, wife together. Thanks Ken.

Have you made any plans for 2014?

You can rely on TVAM members to provide a few interesting activities and a couple of those ‘I really should do’ courses.
Last year I managed four trips to Wales, one to Spain, helped a few people through riding, coaching and cross-checking and attended a few meetings.

Already I have been blessed that one of my friends has rallied some people with similar riding styles together for a long weekend riding. Yay!

Currently I’m busy route planning my next social ride for the club. The hardest bit is to plot petrol stations and indoor eateries that are appropriate (fast, cheapish, provide tasty food with places to put jackets and helmets) and close-ish to some interesting roads that I have found. The result gives me huge satisfaction when others tell me how much they enjoyed their day out.

How about you? Have you offered to plan a ride or organise a trip yet? Perhaps others are waiting for you….

Perhaps you have got a new gadget to try. Please share your experience on the web forum and in Slipstream.

Some people plan a long way ahead. I know one member enjoyed the Toy Run so much, she has bought her outfit for the next Christmas Toy Run (I am not naming names) – Wow, how fantastic is that?
Paperwork: The annual accounts not only provide the factual report of our club’s state of affairs, we make it much more interesting. So it includes all the leaders’ fun pieces to let you know about some of the key events. By the time you get to read this, the annual report will hopefully be in the library, on the website for all signed up members to download.

Take care, have fun, and start doing those household chores now in order to earn Brownie points for use in nicer weather.

Safe riding

Charon

From the Saddle (Slipstream December 2013)

Posted on | by Andy Wedge

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Hi everyone.

At a recent St. Crispin’s Sunday, I talked about the IAM’s F1RST grade and the standard required to achieve that.

The F1RST was introduced in March 2011, and there was a retrospective qualifying period of 2 years. That means that anyone who had ridden at the required standard on a test from March 2009 on was entitled to be included on the F1RST register. Typically, the IAM did not feel it was necessary to go back and check their records to see who had qualified in that period. When I asked them to check which TVAM members may have qualified, they refused on the grounds that they would have too many records to check. So last week, to make it easier for them, I emailed them a list of 109 of our current members who passed their test between March 2009 and March 2011. We’ll see what response we get this time, and what support they are prepared to offer their members, some of whom are potentially entitled to a F1RST.

If you have your test report from that period and feel you should be included on the F1RST register, please let me know.
Those of you who have a F1RST may wish to consider the Masters test, the replacement for the old Special Assessment. It’s a separate offering from the IAM, described as the ‘ultimate recognition for a civilian driver or rider’. The grading for this test is measured against the Police Response Riding standard – the pass mark is 70%+, with a distinction achieved at 80%+. Our local Staff Examiner, Jon Taylor, tells me he has only ever graded a small number of riders at 80%+, so the Distinction level is a tough nut to crack. This special test comes with special prices and special mentors, and is not something that TVAM Observers are in a position to help you achieve at this time.

More details on the Masters can be found on the IAM site at www.iam.org.uk/masters. Sadly, the concept of proof reading does not seem to have reached some areas of Chiswick, and the Masters Standards document that you can download from there contains a number of errors.
Changing tack a little, Amanda Coneley has done a great job this year coordinating all our Cross Check rides, as well as making cakes for the Bike Maintenance course. Our Cross Check rides are a final quality check before going forward to take the Advanced Test, and coordinating these is an important part of the TVAM process. Other commitments now mean that Amanda will not be able to continue in this role next year, so we’re looking for another volunteer to step forward. In recent years, this role has been filled by an Observer, but it doesn’t have to be the case. If you think you may be able to help, please see Amanda or me and we can explain the role in more detail.

We already have an Observer Evening lined up on 5th December where IAM representatives are coming to give us their view on the Local and National Observer programmes. Also being arranged for early next year is a ‘Meet the Examiner’ evening, and the guys from Rapid Training will be along to talk to our Observers about our Aardvark rides. Look out for announcements very soon on the Forum and e-groups.
This is my last column of 2013 – Charon has the honour of kicking off the New Year in the January Slipstream. If I don’t see you at St Crispin’s, I’d like to take this opportunity to thank you for your support during the year. TVAM is a great club with great people and despite differing opinions at times, we continue to deliver high value coaching to all our Associates while ensuring that the fun side of riding is not forgotten; onwards and upwards in 2014. Have a good Christmas everybody.

Andy Wedge
Chief Observer

 

From the Chair (Slipstream November 2013)

Posted on | by Charon Willis

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Hi everyone, time for our latest update. Our key objective is maintaining our club; listening to all the stories, seeing the testimonials on the website, and looking at the statistics shows that we are doing just fine. But what else is happening?

External awareness and marketing

Whilst personal recommendation from members will always be our most successful method of recruitment it’s important that we embrace other means. The endorsement by the Bikesafe team has proven very successful recently, particularly when TVAM members are on hand to greet the riders at the end of their Bikesafe day to explain what we do – thanks for your support on these.

We have also been focusing on the website in an effort to improve our search engine ratings. An initial draft of the revised home page content is undergoing review. Meanwhile we have a volunteer actively searching for appropriate videos and clips to help explain what we do and refresh our public face. Another volunteer is working to improve contact with one of the local councils with a view to getting websites linked to offer rider training. The IAM regional manager is supporting us with this and has agreed to lobby them directly on behalf of TVAM.

Controlling expenditure

So far, despite the networking, it seems that an alternative, local ‘Look Lean Roll’ site is not possible. We do, however, have a few more ideas, plus the promise from our local IAM manager to try to negotiate a better rate – we are a Charity after all! The digital version of Slipstream has been on offer since February, and thanks to all of you that have signed up, but two-thirds of the Club still receive the paper version, can you reduce this and help costs? All other Club expenses are being reviewed and debated.

Internal support for activities, fun and communication

As you will see from Slipstream and updates on the forums, the local groups have been very active supporting our members through meetings, rides, team days, fun days, socialising and providing bike-related advice. We are also planning to roll out a ‘Passport’ for new Associates to help track their early progress through the opportunities provided in the club. Andy and I will be reporting on the recent IAM Conference on the forum and to eGroups.

Safe riding

Charon

From the Saddle (Slipstream October 2013)

Posted on | by Andy Wedge

From-the-Saddle-574x480Hi everyone, just a short piece from me this time as I’m busy trying to get ready for a trip to Germany and Austria with some of TVAM’s more ‘mature’ members. I like to think of this as my contribution to Care in the Community (good job they won’t get to read this until we’re back at home!).

Work commitments have meant my planning for this trip has resembled a dodgy overtake – all last minute and a bit of a rush – and so I set out this morning to get some new tyres fitted. It was rush hour so there was plenty of opportunity for filtering practice. I was quite enjoying the ride until my route took in the Hogs Back between Farnham and Guildford. For those that don’t know this stretch, it’s on one of the highest pieces of ground around and is known for having its own weather system. Today was no exception, with mist and fog, and visibility down to 50m in places, a sign that autumn is approaching perhaps?

What struck me most was just how few cars had their lights on while driving in fog. Years ago, you may have seen a few without lights but today it was almost everyone. Why is that I wonder? Lights set to come on automatically in the dark? But it wasn’t dark, it was just foggy – outcome – no lights. All those cars traveling so close together in the fog with no lights, there’ll be a big accident one day. Oh wait – a 130 car pile-up in Kent – no surprise there then!

Just an extra bit of info that came my way the other day – I’ve been thinking about getting a tracker fitted to my bike. I’m leaning towards the BikeTrac from Road Angel at the moment so I looked up a list of resellers and installers on their website. A couple of local resellers I contacted insisted they also had to fit the unit (for an appropriate charge of course) to ensure the warranty was OK. This did not appear to match what was on the website, so I contacted Road Angel direct. “Not at all” was the reply. So, if you are capable of fitting one yourself, or know someone who is, you can save yourself some cash and order one from Road Angel direct, see www.roadangelgroup.com/biketrac.aspx

Ride safe everyone.

Andy Wedge
Chief Observer

 

TOb Blog #5: The Final Chapter

Posted on | by Steve Dennis

tobtraining1I was happy to be back from my job abroad, with the prospect of improving weather and at least the next six months working in the UK, so it was time to get back in to my Observer training. So far, I’d completed all the key stages and progressed onwards to my first Observed ride with a real (as opposed to stooge) Associate. Previously, the role had been played by a Senior Observer.

Part of every TOb’s mission, as we take on increased responsibilities, involves organising our own training rides. This is no mean feat, as I’ve said before. So, at the risk of making a right nuisance of myself, I started to email all and any of the Observers I knew and many I didn’t in the hope of finding rides with Observers and their more intrepid Associates who were prepared to brave the cold, wet and wind of last spring. They say that the squeakiest wheel gets the most oil, so what had I got to lose?

My first TOb outing of the New Year was with Paul Wassall and his Associate, Stuart Russell. Off we went down to Littlehampton for an Observed ride and a fish and chip lunch. It was a very enjoyable run with such nice people and a great coaching opportunity. I hope Stuart took some useful observations away with him. A couple of weeks later, Di Woodcock, who is also acting as my mentor during Observer training, kindly emailed to suggest an outing with her Associate, Rita Alexander, who needed coaching on her cornering. That sounded like a great opportunity for TOb training, and I hope our run was one of those which helped boost her confidence for her recent IAM test pass. Well done Rita. Bob Harrison’s Associate, Jeremy Weaver, was already a full IAM car member and a trained VIP chauffeur with evasion skills. Thankfully, I’d remembered to ask him about his previous experience during our pre-ride briefing, so it was no surprise when we set off for his Observed ride. That was my ‘Coaching a Progressive Associate’ box ticked then!

With each successive ride, I gained a little more experience and confidence. Meeting new people, observing different riding styles, trying to tailor feedback to suit an Associate’s needs during the run and at the run report form stage, is what it’s all about, and I’m starting to relax a little and enjoy it more.

Every Observer has a slightly different perspective, and their feedback to the TOb is, without exception, invaluable. Taking all the advice on board and finding a happy medium is definitely the way forward. Each TOb Training Report Form (the feedback on how we’ve done) is a snapshot of what we did well and what needs to be improved upon. They build up into a very useful reminder of just how we’re progressing. Just like the Observed rides we’ve all been on, every Observer spots different details in our riding, coaching skills and report form completion that need polish.

Other very handy tips come out in the de-brief conversations. The root cause  will always boil down to IPSGA. An Associate could be having difficulty spotting the Information early enough and, as a result, be in the wrong Position, at the wrong Speed, or in the wrong Gear, or not be using appropriate Acceleration. That’s been drummed into us from the very start, but thanks to Andy Smith for the timely reminder.

Pre-Validation

It seems like it’s been a long and winding road, but finally, with all those rides ridden and all those boxes ticked, I find myself asking for a Senior Observer to be assigned to my Pre-Validation. It’s the last stage before my final validation as a Local Observer for TVAM. I’m back to the ‘stooge’ ride format again and John James had kindly offered to take me out. We met at a very civilised garden centre cafe on the A4 near Wargrave. John’s stooge character was that of an occasional rider who would like to be able to keep up when out riding with his more progressive mates.

The forecast wasn’t too promising and of course it started to rain almost as soon as we set off, but the ride went well, even though we had a thorough soaking on our way round. We de-briefed near Benson and John was kind enough to let me know I’d reached the required standard for validation almost as soon as I’d finished the Associate Run Report Form. So, one last hurdle to overcome.

Validation

Louise Dickinson emailed to say that I should now get in touch with David Jacobi, who was Andy Wedge’s predecessor as Chief Observer and one of just a handful of Validation Observers, to arrange my final validation. I was due to leave for France on a family holiday, so the validation ride was arranged for the end of July. We got home from our travels on the Sunday afternoon before Monday’s ride, and I thought I’d take the bike out for a quick spin to get a bit of practice in for the following morning. As I tried to wheel the bike backwards out of the garage it quickly became clear that all was not well. I had a flat tyre, with the offending self-tapping screw right in the middle of the tread – good job I checked!

I got it fixed (I thought), and made it to my meeting with David the following morning. Just to be sure, I bought another can of sealant and went through my notes one last time while I waited for him to arrive.

We started with an informal chat, talked about TVAM and TObbing, and then moved on to the validation proper. David’s stooge character was a born-again biker who spends his working life driving a car all over the country visiting clients. He says he’s had his bike for around a year and ridden about 800 miles. Working my way through the briefing, I remember all the key questions. As we headed out I could see that the tyre was well on its way down again, so it was time for a full can of sealant!

The ride went well. It poured with rain, but I made mental notes of the key points I wanted to bring up when we stopped. I was keen to let David know what I’d spotted, but found out at the de-brief that I’d laboured the points a bit too much here and there – we want our Associates to come back! Just at the point where I’d convinced myself I had failed and the suspense was getting too much, David held his hand out and said ‘Congratulations, you’ve passed’. I’m in no doubt at all that it was by the skin of my teeth and that I will always have a huge amount to learn, but a pass is a pass!

Why did I do it? Because I’m proud to be a TVAM member and try to offer what I can in return for the support and friendship of the many great people I feel lucky to have met and ridden with.  Thank you to everyone – Observers and Associates who let me out with them. You all make our club what it is.

John Rodda (Observer) – August 2013 (first published in Slipstream September 2013)