Best MSF course for a motorcycle skeptic?

[bertocci]

I got my bike at the start of the year. My mom was not happy about this, to say the least. My dad rode in college, but that was 30 years ago. In front of my mom he would make sure to voice his disapproval (not that I blame him for saving his own ass), but between me and him I could tell that he was interested in it. Coming from not even wanting to hear that I was riding, my mom has slowly warmed up to the idea. Recently at a family dinner, I was explaining to them what the MSF course was about, that I had a lot of fun, etc. Admittedly it was after she had a few drinks, but my mom said that she would enjoy taking a course like that, especially to learn what riding a bike was like. My dad would love to get back into riding, or at least taking the MSF and getting his M1 back.

I'm trying to find an MSF course for them to take, and my #1 concern is finding a course my mom will enjoy. If she feels pressured or uncomfortable, this will probably prejudice her against riding for a long time. The two closest would be Mountain View or San Jose. Any opinions on the two? (I did mine in Orange County, so I'm no help.) If there are others in the bay area that would be good, it may be worth an extra drive.

[MackeyStingray]

i'm biased but i would say mountain view. a big part of the curriculum is the S part of the MSF name. safety first, riding second.

but both should be good. there are BARFers that teach at both facilities

[Alan_Hepburn]

I took the course a year ago, at Leigh High School in San Jose - the instructors were excellent, and had a ton of patience for the few of us who had never ridden a motorcycle before. We had one lady who had to do pretty much all of the riding exercises several times to get them down, but when it came time for the final she nailed each step perfectly. Anothey guy had trouble in the figure 8 box during the practice, but when it came time for the test he nailed it perfectly. Then as he came out of the box and headed for the next station, as he came to a stop behind the bike in front of him he forgot to put his foot down, and dropped the bike - an immediate failure. But after we had all finished the full test, the instructors let him retake the test, and he passed.

[HondaFreak]

Originally posted by MackeyStingray
i'm biased but i would say mountain view. a big part of the curriculum is the S part of the MSF name. safety first, riding second.

but both should be good. there are BARFers that teach at both facilities
+1 Mountain View :cool

[CeruleanSkye]

Originally posted by Alan_Hepburn
I took the course a year ago, at Leigh High School in San Jose - the instructors were excellent, and had a ton of patience for the few of us who had never ridden a motorcycle before. We had one lady who had to do pretty much all of the riding exercises several times to get them down, but when it came time for the final she nailed each step perfectly. Anothey guy had trouble in the figure 8 box during the practice, but when it came time for the test he nailed it perfectly. Then as he came out of the box and headed for the next station, as he came to a stop behind the bike in front of him he forgot to put his foot down, and dropped the bike - an immediate failure. But after we had all finished the full test, the instructors let him retake the test, and he passed.

I second Leigh High School MSF. I took it there last summer and the instructors were great.

[WildBlue]

I took the couse in Mountain View last summer and I thought it was pretty good. The instructors are no-nonsense though, they did ask this one girl to leave and come back some other time because she was having a lot of trouble with the clutch and with balance.