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http://www.sportrider.com/news/146_1012_kevin_schwantz_school_to_conduct_military_training_riding_schools/index.htmlKevin Schwantz to conduct military training
Kevin Schwantz to conduct military training Schwantz School to host condensed version of curriculum at several military bases for armed forces personnel December 01, 2010 By Henny Ray Abrams
Kevin Schwantz has taught thousands of students how to safely ride a motorcycle, but the next class will be different.
In the middle of December, Schwantz will host a condensed version of the world famous Schwantz School for airmen at an Air Force base in Florida. (He also has a school planned at a base in California in January). Rider safety is becoming an increasingly urgent concern to the armed forces. A recent report showed that motorcycle accidents becoming increasingly lethal among active duty personnel.
The report, in the March 2010 Medical Surveillance Monthly Report, a publication of the Armed Forces Health Surveillance Center, which covered motor vehicle accidents from January 1, 1998 through September 30, 2009, noted that “the most striking finding, however, is the sharp increase in the proportion of all MVA-related deaths that are due to motorcycles accidents. In 2008, 38% of all U.S. service members in active service (and 40% of all active component members) who were killed in motor vehicle accidents were riding motorcycles; in 2001, only 14% of all MVA-related deaths of service members were due to motorcycle accidents. The recent sharp increase in motorcycle-related deaths has been noted and aggressively countered by the Services.”
The report went on to say that the safety had been increased in a number of ways, with “Service and local safety centers highlight vehicle safety in publications, messages, educational, and training materials; installations require training and proficiency testing before issuing permits for on-post motorcycle use; and some installations provide controlled, supervised venues for high performance uses of motorcycles and other vehicles. The effects of such efforts should be closely tracked; effective interventions should be identified and documented.” Enter Kevin Schwantz.
The 1993 500cc World Champion the school in May 2001, first at Road Atlanta and for the past two years at Barber Motorsports Park. For the military school, the Texan has created a condensed, one-day curriculum with an emphasis on teaching the soldiers how to control their everyday rides.
“We’ll probably let them take their own,” he said. “We’ll take a truck, a small van, something like that, put three or four bikes in it so that me and some of the instructors can show them what it is we’re talking about, ride with them a little bit. Try to condense it down. Take it from a two-day program like we do to a one-day program. No computer, no classroom needed. Flipchart type stuff. Here it is, here it is, and we can get it done in six hours, an hour for lunch.”
Regardless of whether the soldiers show up on a scooter or a Gold Wing, “I think all the fundamentals still apply. Absolutely.
“We have a DN-01, one of those big Honda scooters. We’ve got a sport-touring bike (V-Strom) that we ride and I rode those on occasion just to make sure of the things we talk about and the way we’re trying to teach them to people. ‘OK, your feet are in front of you on this. You can’t really weight those pegs to be able to help the thing turn.’ But positional awareness, body position. And I’m still convinced the visual aspect of it is what you’ve got to get before you can do any of the stuff. And I think with enough reinforcement from the instructors, from myself, I think we can still get that point across, whatever they ride.”
Schwantz and his instructors load up a trailer at their base at Barber Motorsports Park for the annual schools prior to the Red Bull Indianapolis Grand Prix. The military schools may evolve into a similar situation, if a deal can be reached with a manufacturer.
“Whether we start bringing bikes, whether we start bringing safety equipment instead of just talking about it…it’s one of those things where you’re going to need a pretty significant commitment from a manufacturer too,” he began, “because to do it there has to be transportation to and from the site. We do it once a year going to Indy, and that’s quite a big act in itself.”
One of the attractions of the RBIGP schools is that the students get to ride on the same road course that days later will be attacked by Rossi, Stoner, Hayden, Spies, et al. The classes at the military bases will be taught on a course that Schwantz has designed that mimics real world conditions.
“We’ve come up with a size and a range that we need to be able to get some decent speed in them, increasing radius, decreasing radius, all the intricacies that people find,” he said. “The military does research on every accident that there is and where it happened and why it happened and what was the cause; a lot of times it’s decreasing radius corners. We’ve got to really focus on that, and I think a little bit needs to be spent in trying to educate how important safety is, safety equipment, the proper gear. You wouldn’t sling a rifle over your shoulder and go into combat in shorts and a t-shirt and flop sandals. So a little bit more there.
“And I think it’s a little bit of a lifestyle choice too. I think the guys and girls go over and go, ‘I just survived war, what’s a motorcycle?’ You’ve got to realize that that thing’s almost as lethal as that weapon you carry when you’re out fighting.”
Schwantz secured the contract through competitive bidding and hopes to expand the schools. He said that “the military realized they’ve got a certain number of soldiers that they still need to get educated as far as motorcycles go. You’ve got to break the ice, you’ve got to get your program into place and show them how it works and then they can say, ‘Yeah, OK, we want to use you for this meeting and them for that meeting. It’s just kind of a bid process. And I feel that once we get our foot in the door there and once they see what the program’s like and what it’s all about, things will come a little easier. But it’s government.
“I think if we can get in place and show what we’ve got and what we can offer and then from here start building on it.”
