MATC puts brakes on motorcycle rider training

Milwaukee Area Technical College has dropped its motorcycle rider training program, at least for now, as fewer students signed up for the classes and there was a delay in getting state funding.

The program, in place for about 30 years, has taught thousands of people basic rider skills through six hours of classroom instruction and 10 hours of riding time on a special course set up in an empty parking lot or other safe area.

In Wisconsin, successful completion of a certified motorcycle safety class allows someone to skip the Division of Motor Vehicles’ road test to get a cycle license, although they still have to take the written test.

Even an experienced rider can learn some things from one of the courses, said Tom Stresins, who taught a basic rider education class at MATC for nearly 30 years.

Unfortunately, “there had not been a lot of people signing up the last few years,” he said.

“That’s what we are dealing with. There’s just not as much interest.”

In 2015, the MATC program received about $14,000 from the state Bureau of Transportation Safety, which is part of the Department of Transportation. That was in addition to students’ tuition money.

There was a delay in getting the state grant for 2016, according to the college, which made it more difficult to offer the training.

The classes might return later this year, and the college is considering partnering with area Harley-Davidson dealerships to offer rider training.

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For now, the college will keep its fleet of 36 training motorcycles.

MATC is taking some time to evaluate the program and decide what’s best for it, said Dorothy Walker, dean of technical and applied sciences at the college.

“There’s a lot more competition out there,” Walker said.

Other schools continue to offer the training.

Waukesha County Technical College says it will offer about 48 basic rider classes this year, between April and September, for roughly 460 students.

In 2016, Waukesha said it scheduled 49 classes and canceled four of them for inadequate enrollment. It graduated 360 of 398 students.

Waukesha received a $28,875 state grant money to help cover expenses for its basic rider course last year, said Brian Dorow, an associate dean at the college.

Safety advocates say the classes save lives.

A lack of rider skills, not being familiar with a particular bike or poor judgment is behind many motorcycle crashes.

Many people have been motorcyclists for years without a valid cycle license. In some cases, they never learned the right way to handle something like braking under difficult conditions.

Some insurance companies offer discounts for motorcyclists who have completed an intermediate-skills course, such as one offered at Gateway Technical College in Kenosha, said college spokesman Lee Colony.

About 400 students complete Gateway’s rider training classes every year, Colony said in an email.

A few students wash out of the programs, sometimes because they’re anxious and freeze up on a bike, said Kevin Vosters, the lead motorcycle riding instructor at Fox Valley Technical College in Appleton.

“I have seen students doing very well in the class, and then they get to the test and struggle with that,” Vosters said.

Fox Valley’s rider classes start in late April. The weekend courses, especially, fill up quickly.

This year for the first time, Vosters said, the college will have motor scooters in its fleet of training bikes.

The scooters are for riders who plan to use that type of bike, not a motorcycle, after they graduate.

Years ago, rider safety courses were booked full for months.

“People would say ‘don’t even bother because you’re not going to get in,’” Vosters said.

Now with more classes, it’s not difficult to find one that fits your schedule.

Vosters has logged more than 100,000 miles on motorcycles but still goes through training exercises to keep his skills sharp.

“I rode for many years before I took my first class. And I learned a lot that made me a better and safer rider,” he said.