What a good afternoon was had by us all; 5 lady members joined in with the New Forest at the SAM (Solent Advanced Motorcyclist group) slow ride course on the 9 April. We met up at SH-D and as we were about to leave the heavens opened, “Oh dear this is going to be fun I thought – will they teach us how to aquaplane safely :)) “. All the instructors were helpful and informative. And thanks to Leslie who came along to show us how to do it, she made it look so easy.

We were put in groups and had various tasks all involving cones and going slow. From starting off learning the basic how to stop properly, left and right turns, weaving in and out of cones, U turns and one exercise saw 3 of us at a time following our instructor round in a circle getting smaller and weaving in figures of 8. I thought I would never do it but with their help throughout the afternoon we did it. I did draw the line when he said you could do it one handed if you like, crikey no thanks.

The thing I most got out of the afternoon was gaining more confidence in controlling my bike (1200 Sportster) and felt such an achievement when managed the U turns, the tips and techniques the instructor shared with us made it all seem a lot easier.

Claire on her Softail deluxe said “So glad I did the course as it is always nice to learn new riding techniques. It was a great day amongst fellow lady riders and looking forward to participating in the next level in May. Recommend to anybody to go along, you’re never too old to learn new riding skills.”

Jacqui on her Sportster said “the main thing I got from the afternoon was to regain my confidence and to start putting into practice the advice from the instructor: ‘Look where you want to be’. I will always say these few words when I am doing any manoeuvre from now on.”

Helen on her Road King said “Great experience with great instructors would recommend to everyone to give it a try and you will come away with new techniques.”

Lynn on her Sportster said “I was feeling quite nervous about doing the course as the majority were men who had been riding far longer than me! After a wet ride there the sun came out and the IAM instructors made me feel relaxed. Watching the guys complete the figure of 8 section, I was dreading it but when it was our turn I really enjoyed it! Actually I impressed myself. This course was well worth the money.”