Like most skills in life, motorcycle riding is a numbers game – the more time you invest in doing it, the better you’re going to be. This doesn’t mean that you can’t enjoy your riding time and not pay any attention to how good (or bad) you are. However, if your intention is to improve and become an accomplished rider, there is really only one mechanism for success: time on the bike.
In today’s fast paced world, business (or school), family, and social commitments all together take up the lion’s share of our time. This means that picking up a new hobby, or tackling a goal of improving on your current skill level in any particular hobby, means significant sacrifice of time and energy. You have to ask yourself: how much time are you willing to give? What is your appetite for sacrifice?
According to Malcolm Gladwell’s best selling book “Outliers”, it takes 10,000 hours of intensive practice to achieve mastery of a complex skill. I think that there is much value in this statement, because it says that time investment is proportional to success – if you sacrifice the time to practicing a skill, improvement is inevitable. However, all things being equal, there is an additional variable that can be added to this equation which will skew the results: a teacher.
By all means, if you’re happy to ride as you are and you’re having fun and enjoying your time on your bike, then that’s all that really matters.
If on the other hand you’re competitive, or simply love the process of improvement, then you are presented with a choice, which is to invest time and begin your journey towards 10 000 hours on your own, or you can invest your time with the guidance of a teacher.
Over and above instructing you on the correct technique, good form and the best methods of achieving these, an expert teacher will help you to avoid common pitfalls in your journey towards improvement, making your learning curve more efficient. Having someone on hand to answer your questions, to point out your errors in real time, and to act as a sounding board for your mental processes while learning new techniques, is invaluable. The trick lies in working smarter, not harder.
At MotoZone, we offer comprehensive coaching services for off-road, enduro and motocross riders of all skills levels. If you’re an absolute beginner and just starting out on your dirt-biking journey, we can help make your experience enjoyable and a lot safer with patient guidance and instruction. We have motorcycles for rental, as well as all the necessary gear.
For the expert rider, and even those of you at a competitive level, we are able to provide professional coaching and training to help you shave those seconds off your lap times and gain the edge on your competition come race day. Refine your race craft with one-on-one track side instruction and take your racing to the next level.
Contact us today to tailor an appropriate solution for your coaching needs.
Yours in motorsport,
Head Coach, MotoZone UAE