Mrs Hogtrumpet has asked what I want for my birthday this year.
I was thinking about a new helmet, or maybe a hire-a-Harley weekend.
A mate suggested going to wheelie school.
I’m nominally interested- would rather not use my own bike though (because of the inevitable drop risk).
Is it worth doing?
I’m probably more interested in the ‘bike control’ element of it than I am in showing off (no really).
Go large with that on an off road day 
How about a knee down day or track day.
Off roading might be fun.
I don’t think I’m ready for a track day yet- I only started riding last December.
You don’t do wheelie school on your own bike, you do it on their fazer 600’s with natty gizmos that hang off the back end and cut the power if you go too far. You also start on modified quads to learn the clutch up technique. Joby on here has done it I think, and Baron Von Grumble did it and stuck a video up, so if you check is channel you should find it.
personally I wouldn’t spend my own cash on it, but as a present ,all over it, sounds like a right laugh.
If you want extra bike skills, spend your money on good advanced training.
Good to know, cheers.
Yeah I’d probably never have considered it before- I think I’ll do an off road day before the wheelie school.
Off road I think you’ll get more fr your money… Different type of riding and if you do it on a MX style track like at Golding Barn you’ll have fun on jumps as well…
The wheelie schools are crap value for money, it’s not exactly hard to learn to wheelie a bike properly and not something you need to spend half a day and £200 on. I know a couple of people who went on them and learnt in about 10 mins and spent the rest of the day bored. The better one is the one they offer after you do the first one which teaches you stand up wheelies. 
I think a Track day or Race school is much better value for money, I also reckon the Off road day would be serious fun too.
Thanks chaps- off-roading it is.
Ok then… which off-road school is best?
I’m an intermediate rider- I ride every day but mostly commuting with weekend blasts.
did you get onto the MCI off road day? you could see if they have any places left, unlikely by now though.
link at the bottom of the page
http://londonbikers.com/articles/25741/our-review-of-the-mci-off-road-day-2013
I learned to wheelie on off roaders long before I was old enough for road bikes … So an offroad day should kill 2 birds with one stone .
I’m booked on the off road day that KTMD has posted above, gets very good reviews and £25 for 3-4 hours sounds good to me!
Other then that if there are no spaces, both Yamaha off road day and Golding barn are very good!
Don’t pay to learn how to wheelie - it’s easy and someone can show you for free!
I’ve done wheelie school and the Yamaha off road experience. The were both pretty much £200. So from my experience…
Wheelie School:
When I went it was great in the morning as it was dry and we were all progressing and getting really excited about it. Then in the afternoon it p1ssed it down and everyone except for Rob (who is a forum member) lost confidence so that was un fortunate. At the end of the day you get the opportunity to try on your own bike but Rob was the only one who did and hosted a few as well as spinning up the rear. It was a good day but it is severely influenced by the weather. Having said that we met some great people form Essex and had some good banter. Definitely bring some lunch or you’ll starve. The outcome of that day skill wise is I can now hoist them about a foot high on my bike. I’m still not pulling 3rd gear mingers but that could be to do with the amount of Honda plastic on my bike. It does take the edge off when the front comes up under power though.
Yamaha Off road school:
End to end this was a total and absolute RIOT. We started off getting kitted out like the terminator and then got motoring on a short flat circuit. From there we quickly progressed to the main track as the sessions progressed they opened more and more of the track. The bikes were great to learn on then towards the end of the day there as an opportunity to ride a 450 which was amazing. I had a go on that while everyone else was riding 250s and I became Rossi for a few laps leaving everyone in my dust. There was also a 250 stroker that you could have a go on. A big highlight of the off roading is that you get air. Seriously big air over and over again. Most of the LBers went sky high at some point during the day. There is also the opportunity to race. Although you are not racing, it’s practice you see but you can over take and it all get’s a bit competitive. The outcome of that day skills wise is that you get comfortable with the bike sliding around so when you hit a patch of gravel or lose the back end under power you are more comfortable with it. You still might end up in a hedge but you’ll be more graceful as you leave the road.
On balance I think the off-road school was probably better value because I think we did more and learned more. Getting kitted up I their kit you really do feel the part also. Motocross boots are something that have to be experienced to be believed. Also there is a professional photographer who makes you look good.
With respect to photos. Don’t write off spending £40 for the whole set. That actually represents pretty good value. They sell something like one for £10, and 4 for £20, £40 buys the lot. But the lot is something like 75 photographs covering you on every part of the track so definitely worth considering.
100% go for the off-road riding.
Wheelie school:
Initial briefing H&S and all that. Started off on quads and then after a 5 or so laps it was onto the Bandits. If you really really really want to learn to wheelie, then it’s a good idea, because it’s in a save environment and they teach you the correct technique. Problem is, by the time you’re getting the hang of it, it’s time to go home - and most people don’t want to be wheeliing on public roads do they, so it’s not like they teach you something that will be used in the real world. I also got a bit fed up having to ‘wait my turn’ and watch other people go around. I wouldn’t go back 
Off-road:
Done this a few times with off-the-kerb-riding (based in Dorking).
The off-road school was one of the best things I’ve ever done, so much so that I went out and got a bike for green-laning. You start off getting your kit sorted out, then you get to mess about on some farm land for a while - this is where you instantly feel alive with the bike sliding around under you.
Then after a couple of hours you’re out into the lanes. Generally these are pretty quiet - you do get the odd horse rider about which you have to stop for, but not a problem. The lanes around surrey are awesome - you will get muddy, wet, you might fall off (I actually hit a tree the last time out and ended up with a buggered wrist 
), but you will have the biggest grin ever at the end of it. You also get a nice pub lunch included in the price, DO IT!
+2 with KTMD for extra training
For Wheelie days contact Terry Moto.
For Off Road days contact Jetstream.
For Cornering day contact Mian.
For Bike maintenance days contact R1Frank.
:laugh::laugh::laugh::laugh::laugh:
Hog - I am looking to book the Yamaha Off road day at Golding barn on 26th July (day after my birthday) if your interested in waiting that long!
WAAAAAAIT a minute here! I smell something fishy! 
Last time I rode with mian, he crashed twice and the second time he fell over into a ditch at 10mph on the straightest road in the world. 
Was a proper lol moment :laugh:
i went to jimmy fire blade’s wheelie school and had an awesome time. Never got the hang of it on my road bike and got it within a few seasons. Pounded up and down the runway all day, learnt how to change gear whilst doing them and the trip tech at the back stops things getting messy.
Keen to the do the off-road stuff too, but just saying the opinions on here are not everyone’s experience…
^^I might fancy trying Jimmy Fireblades school after that right up. I didn’t get to change gear on my wheelie school.
