camera56
Well-known member
Recently I had the opportunity to interview Bret Tkacs, super-guy, super teacher, and owner of Puget Sound Safety, one of the biggest providers of motorcycle training in the country. He's also an ace FJR pilot.
I did the interview for a couple of reasons. One, I was particularly interested in his views on "mid-life" riders and riding. The other is that I wanted to draw attention to one of the many people who support our hobby through advocacy, training, teaching, and leadership. We need guys like Bret (kind of like a few good men) standing on the wall. He's got lots to say. The interview is quit long and is at https://midliferider.com/blog/2008/02/15/co...der-motor-head/. Following is a snip
How would you describe your involvement with motorcycling now?
I currently operate Puget Sound Safety Inc. with my wife Chrisie. We founded it together in 1996.
We are now one of the largest motorcycle schools in country. In 2007 year alone, we trained over 4000 riders. We are expecting grow another 50% for 2008.
My philosophy about teaching is that “we ride motorcycles to have fun, so improving our riding should be fun too”.
As far as courses I teach I am a chief Total Control Advanced Riding Clinic instructor, Washington Motorcycle Safety Program and Motorcycle Safety Foundation (WMSP & MSF) instructor, and a certified MSF DirtBike School Rider/Coach.
I am also the Chief instructor and curriculum developer for the Advanced Street Skills program that we host at Pacific Raceways a few times each year, and I have written and instruct a Motorcycle Care and Maintenance course taught at our school.
In addition to teaching I also guest speak at rallies and events offering clinics on riding techniques and suspension theory. I have been chatting with Dave Hough for some time and figure at some point I will put out a few books. For now I am fine with just writing articles for local and on-line motorcycle magazines.
I have tinkered in the legal arena working as an expert witness but don’t have a lot of time for it. I have found it a challenging but often disappointing experience. I am always gung ho to support the motorcyclist but more times that not find that it is more the fault of the rider that the auto driver. This is one of the driving ideas behind the development of our exclusive Advanced Street Skills program.
The A.S.S. is designed to address many of those critical skills that I have found missing in accident-involved riders. Make no mistake, this is not the MSF Experienced Rider Course (now called Intermediate Rider Training). It is a full-blown, real-world speed clinic for street riders to master their judgment and cornering skills. For 2009 we are working on a 2-day camp for riders looking into the Adventure bike scene.
I try to be involved at the legislative level but have been limited by my schedule. Mostly I testify at hearings and hold memberships and support organizations like the American Motorcyclist Association and Washington Road Riders. I also seldom miss a meeting with the Washington Motorcycle Safety Advisory Committee, which is a DOL watchdog group and is open to the public to attend.
If you get a chance to read the rest of the interview, I'd be interested in your thoughts.
I did the interview for a couple of reasons. One, I was particularly interested in his views on "mid-life" riders and riding. The other is that I wanted to draw attention to one of the many people who support our hobby through advocacy, training, teaching, and leadership. We need guys like Bret (kind of like a few good men) standing on the wall. He's got lots to say. The interview is quit long and is at https://midliferider.com/blog/2008/02/15/co...der-motor-head/. Following is a snip
How would you describe your involvement with motorcycling now?
I currently operate Puget Sound Safety Inc. with my wife Chrisie. We founded it together in 1996.
We are now one of the largest motorcycle schools in country. In 2007 year alone, we trained over 4000 riders. We are expecting grow another 50% for 2008.
My philosophy about teaching is that “we ride motorcycles to have fun, so improving our riding should be fun too”.
As far as courses I teach I am a chief Total Control Advanced Riding Clinic instructor, Washington Motorcycle Safety Program and Motorcycle Safety Foundation (WMSP & MSF) instructor, and a certified MSF DirtBike School Rider/Coach.
I am also the Chief instructor and curriculum developer for the Advanced Street Skills program that we host at Pacific Raceways a few times each year, and I have written and instruct a Motorcycle Care and Maintenance course taught at our school.
In addition to teaching I also guest speak at rallies and events offering clinics on riding techniques and suspension theory. I have been chatting with Dave Hough for some time and figure at some point I will put out a few books. For now I am fine with just writing articles for local and on-line motorcycle magazines.
I have tinkered in the legal arena working as an expert witness but don’t have a lot of time for it. I have found it a challenging but often disappointing experience. I am always gung ho to support the motorcyclist but more times that not find that it is more the fault of the rider that the auto driver. This is one of the driving ideas behind the development of our exclusive Advanced Street Skills program.
The A.S.S. is designed to address many of those critical skills that I have found missing in accident-involved riders. Make no mistake, this is not the MSF Experienced Rider Course (now called Intermediate Rider Training). It is a full-blown, real-world speed clinic for street riders to master their judgment and cornering skills. For 2009 we are working on a 2-day camp for riders looking into the Adventure bike scene.
I try to be involved at the legislative level but have been limited by my schedule. Mostly I testify at hearings and hold memberships and support organizations like the American Motorcyclist Association and Washington Road Riders. I also seldom miss a meeting with the Washington Motorcycle Safety Advisory Committee, which is a DOL watchdog group and is open to the public to attend.
If you get a chance to read the rest of the interview, I'd be interested in your thoughts.
