U Ride Motorcycle Training

Hey! First off Greg, who does the classroom instruction, is the owner of the school. He doesn’t mention that. Hey! he teaches the classroom portion and uses Yogi Berra quotes constantly to keep the class engaged. He also begins every sentence with… wait for it… Hey! I’ll qualify my review by saying that I DID NOT pass the riding portion of the course. In fact, I fell pretty hard during one of the exercises.
I wasn’t injured except for a gnarly scrape on my right elbow. It’s obvious that people dump the bikes on a regular basis considering the condition of the bikes (they’re all pretty beat up), as well as the number of replacement parts they keep on hand. Having said that, it might be a good idea to also keep a decent first aide kit onsite as well. Kip gave me some Neosporin that expired in 2013. Not that it’s their fault, but I did get a pretty bad infection, probably from the pieces of asphalt in the wound.
So about the riding portion… I’ve never ridden a bike before. Just as I was getting comfortable with an exercise, they end it and move on. I remember being pretty anxious the entire time. Positive reinforcement is apparently off limits. Instead, you only hear from them when you are not doing something correctly. JJ and Kip: Please stay off your cell phone when people are riding… not cool.
If you are new to riding, take the course, but don’t expect to pass because they really rush through the exercises and a lot of people do not pass their first time. You’ll get these extremely under powered bikes into 3^rd gear if your lucky, but definitely won’t get over 20 MPH since the area is very limited. Regardless of my fall, I had a so-​so experience. My advice is this… spend the $, don’t have any expectations, get a bike but practice, practice, practice get your permit (which allows you to ride just not at night, with passengers, or on the freeway) then take the test at the DMV which from what I’ve seen is easier anyway.
This was my experience, coming from a car driver that has NEVER had an accident or ticket and who is in excellent physical shape (that has nothing to do with anything, but I’ve got a big ego)

Great Course! The instructors may not look professional, but they train you like professionals. The classroom instruction is good; the timing is about right, not too long/​boring, but long enough to hit the major topics and information. The course instruction and training is well done. They offer enough practice time to accomplish a skill, then quickly move on to the next skill.
I have never rode a motorcycle before. I was taking the class to help determine if a motorcycle is something I wanted to invest into. I paid over $ 250, but it was well worth the money (yes, I was willing to spend a couple hundred bucks before investing into thousands for a motorcycle). During the first class, I actually had reservations about getting a motorcycle, but after the first day riding, I felt much more confident in riding.
Greg, Kip and J.J. were all professional, courteous and encouraging. They always kept the pacing at a good tempo, stressed safety and kept the mood light/​positive at all times. Personally, as a teacher, I was highly impressed with their instruction methods and skills.

The U-​Ride MTC experience is an excellent course! The instructors are very knowledgeable as well as entertaining (seriously, you won’t fall asleep)! You will learn much and laugh all day long. The classroom presentation grasps your full attention and the riding portion keeps you well engaged on top of two wheels! Very attentive professionals who will guide you in becoming proficient and safe riders, because they truly care! Get some!!!

The course is unsafe for new riders. The bikes are old, the brakes grind and squeak. They allow you to ride in the rain without any training for unsafe conditions. They need to repaint the lines and not yell at students when we can’t see the lines when the grounds are wet and standing water everywhere. Please do not take this course the grounds are unsafe as well as the motorcycles. Thank you

I’m very satisfied with the whole experience. The staff I worked with was very knowledgeable, helpful and clear. The lecture room at the vagabond was great, easy to access. The bikes were great bikes to learn on and the location at OCC was also very convenient.

I’m 5’0 in height and I’m super petite, so I was kinda nervous to take this class because I was scared I wouldn’t fit any bike. BUT the class has motorcycles for short people! So if you’re short and feel intimated, don’t be. This was my first time riding, let alone touching a motorcycle. I got my permit, so I wanted to take this class to get my license since I’m already 21. Anyway, I’m very new to the bikes, but my instructors were amazing! they taught me the basics on how to get on, hold the bike up, start it, and ride. For those of you who are new to the scene, I understand how nervous you might be, but don’t worry, the instructors will guide you to success.
The course itself is broken up into two type of class session. the first class is indoors where one of the instructors will teach you the basics: hand signs, how to check for traffic, what gears to wear when you ride, etc. The second class is the riding course; here you will learn the basics of riding: how to properly gear up, start the bike, ride the bike, turn, u-​turn, quick-​stop, etc. If you have any questions, ask them. They’ll help you perfect your riding by telling you what you’re doing wrong. To be honest, I dropped the bike once, so one of the instructors told me what I did wrong and than I learned from it and perfected it.
For someone who is new at riding, I was able to pass this class and get my license. There are two retakes, so if you fail the first one, don’t stress about it because you can take it again. There is a quick test in class about what you learn (it’s pretty easy cause it’s practically common sense…). Call to book a class and to pay for the course.

I got my motorcycle license! It was an amazingly fun and incredibly informative course; I want to go back and learn even more. Greg taught classroom. His awesome because he answered all my questions respectfully. I had Kip and JJ for the riding part. Kip is entertaining and he makes sure your riding safely while having fun. JJ is tough because she just mainly wants you to be safe and I respect that. One of my friends took the class with me and she didn’t know anything, but she had no trouble learning and she passed: D I recommended taking Uride. You learn so much more than you paid for; it’s way worth it. Ride safely!

I must say I didn’t have high expectations for myself as it was my first time ever riding a motorcycle. Although it was a little scary and I failed the first riding skills test. I passed the second one (one free re-​test for anyone who fails) and am really happy with how the class went. The instructors were so busy with all the students so it’s really just a jump all in or leave kinda thing. Not a lot of individual attention from instructors. Be balzy for real. Can’t wait to get my first motorcycle!

Awesome experience. The classroom and bike time was awesome. I have had my permit for 2 years but I still learned a ton and got real comfortable maneuvering the bike. Greg taught the classroom. Cool guy. Kip and JJ taught the motorcycle course portions. They were awesome. I would recommend that you know the basics of operating a clutch and starting a bike. It was hard for a girl to do anything after the first hour of the day because she had never operated a clutch before. But they still let her come back to try another day. The written test was not hard if you have common sense and pay attention. The manipulative test was a little tricky, but you practice all those skills before the test, So it was okay. I would definitely recommend U ride!

The reviews looked good so I decided to call. Website says they open at 10:00am but I’ve been getting a busy signal now it’s 12:37 and I’m still getting busy signals. Is this facility still in operation? I’m looking forward to revising review to match the other positive comments I’ve read rather than this one of uncertainty that I’m leaving now.

These guys are incredible! Greg, Kip and Ted were my coaches and got me much more confident on my bike. It’s a laid back vibe but at the same time they set up a real safe environment to have fun and really learn. The state has rules about what needs to be covered so don’t be late even one minute to class. If you are still deciding on which course just call them now!

I cannot say enough about how great this outfit is, you learn so much about motorcycle safety during your classroom sessions and riding sessions. Greg is very professional and friendly, and Ted, Kip, and Rani are all class acts. These people will prepare you for basic training and riding, and if it isn’t for you, the indication comes early. It is better to be safe than to be overconfident and dangerous to other. The team at U-​Ride is the best choice! Also, don’t expect to pass, I did, but your expectations should be none other than taking what you learned and using the skills acquired to do your best through the evaluation. It’s all worth it!

An amazing experience and what a professional group of instructors!
Took the beginning riding class, and was really impressed. I had ridden dirt bikes when I was a kid, but, not in the last 45 years.
The classroom instruction was very thorough, and riding on the course made me realize that practice, safety, and complete understanding of motorcycling is a lifelong commitment. All of the time I’ve spent was very well worth my time and understanding!
This school, and the organization is great! Well worth it!

This company puts on a very good course. They are very thorough. The practice that the make you perform is best done before you need to know how to do it. Especially for new riders.
I highly recommend them.
Be forewarned that the class is in a dumpy hotel meeting room, and you will need to put up with a lot of corny jokes. Some of the instructors are a bit over-​the-​top with their need for control. But all in all, this is a very worth while class.

Took this class once in 2006 and passed but took it to just learn to ride, not get my license, so I never went to DMV. Just took it again this week, this time to get my M1 motorcycle license, and passed again. Both times I was very impressed with the quality of the instructors. They are very professional, very knowledgeable, and also very animated which keeps the class fun and not boring in either the classroom session or during the practice portion. But equally important, they are friendly and want to see you learn, have fun, and succeed. The course is very structured but the final practical (riding) exam on the end of the last day is a totally different atmosphere from taking a driving test at DMV.
I do agree the classroom is held at some dumpy feeling motel but it serves the purpose. The bikes, old and not in the best condition, with much of the electronics inoperable (no lights or speedometer working on mine), but they too serve the purpose intended too. If you already have your own bike, assuming certain things like registered and insured, you can ride your own bike instead of theirs.
One thing I will note that if you do not already have the skills to balance or coordination to balance on a bike or operate a hand clutch and throttle together from the start, there is no time to learn here and you may fail and/​or be asked to leave and come back another time within the first few hours of the first class even though they go over things in the smallest of baby steps. Every lesson is fast paced to cover everything that one would require to pass a DMV riding test with up to 12 riders in a short time in a small parking lot so there is little time.
On another note, this is just a very basic motorcycle riding class designed to teach motorcycle riding and safety basics to get you on the road where you have a license to begin the real learning. Additional training is certainly encouraged. Don’t be late to any class or you will lose your spot to someone waiting on standby which is where you will end up on a future class.
I highly recommend this course…

This course is fantastic. The classroom part was very informative and the riding courses weren’t only fun but easy. I have never ridden before but with the help of the coaches I didn’t feel at all intimidated by the motorcycle or whatever maneuver I was asked to try next.
The equipment they have is all first come first serve, bikes included. They have two to three Kawasaki cruiser bikes and the rest are dual-​sport bikes from Yamaha, Honda and Suzuki. There was also two scooters. One was a Honda Ruckus the other I don’t remember. They have plenty of helmets, gloves, long sleeve shirts and eyewear to use for the riding course.
Breaks are given at about every hour for the restroom or to get a snack/​drink which you should consider bringing. Restrooms and vending machines available closely inside the school.
Testing for a pass or fail grade is done at the end of the last day. You are given 20 minutes to practice for U-​turns, coming to a quick stop, swerving and maneuvering through a turn. With that said, all but three people in my class decide to test that day. Surprisingly everyone passed, even those including myself, who really struggled on certain parts of the test. What I’m saying is that the test is easier to pass than you might think, however, you are given only two chances to pass the test. After that, you’ll have to pay and take the entire class again.
Hope this helps you in making the decision to take this course. Good luck and have fun!

I’ve been riding 20+ years, and took the MSF (Motorcycle Safety Foundation) class in 1992 in Pittsburgh, PA. It was better back then — they have since eliminated some of the training, like riding over debris in road, probably for liability reasons. Too bad.
I re-​took the course awhile back to encourage my newbie-​rider friends to take it. It was ok, though some of the instructors have a bit of an attitude. Perhaps this is because dealing with bikers can occasionally be a pain in the butt? I know that we’re not all gems, but this is not an excuse for being a d-​bag. They seemed to be nicer once they are convinced that you are taking the course seriously.
Why two stars? Well, a friend of mine had to cancel his class spot due to a schedule conflict. He did so several weeks in advance. They said «no problem, as long as we can fill your spot, you can resign up later for no extra charge.» They were able to fill his spot no problem. When he tried to sign up again, they said he had to do it stand-​by (aka show up every week hoping a spot was open) or pay an additional $ 150. Come on.
IN SUMMARY:
Not terrible. Pretty standard MSF fare, and I really liked some of the instructors. And I highly recommend an MSF course to anyone who rides a motorcycle. Even this one. But I am definitely disappointed with the management /​ownership here. Short-​sighted re customer relations. I used to link to their website on my high-​traffic motorcycle info site. I’m not sure I will anymore.

What a great experience! Kip, Rannie and Alex were patient and knowledgable instructors. It’s obvious they love riding and teaching others their passion. Safety is always the main goal. I forgot to mention how FUN it was too!

Not sure how this company has any ratings over 1 star, maybe new employees/​owners recently? I used Unilocal when looking to sign up for my motorcycle lessons, I thought this was a slam dunk with all of the great reviews. When I took the in-​class portion, the instructor was very nice and helpful, until I arrived at the actual riding lessons… the Instructors attitude was horrible and it’s to the point of a no-​win situation, I felt like he had something against me personally and was very uncomfortable around him.
I would not recommend this company to anyone and will be taking further action against this company and how I was treated.

The instructors are friendly and helpful. They really make it a good learning environment. You feel comfortable making mistakes and they try to make sure you are still enjoying yourself.
I deduct a star because the bikes are pretty beat. Some of the quirks will make you a better rider most likely but things like the lane change exercise aren’t as effective with broken turn signals and missing mirrors.
Overall if you are looking for an MSF class U Ride is an excellent choice.