On Saturday 14, I put in place a policy with regard to the CV-19 outbreak. Having a duty of care to my customers, I said I believed – as things stood on Saturday – there was relatively little risk in going ahead with practical training, as it is an open air activity, which allows us to maintain ‘social distancing’.
On Tuesday 17, official advice ramped up another notch to avoid ‘non-essential contact’, ‘unnecessary travel’ and to ‘work from home if possible’. The driving test system was still functioning, though I did hear of tests being suspended at some centres. At that point, I decided to suspend ALL face-to-face training on Wednesday 25 March, pending new government advice.
However, as of this morning (Thu 19 March), there have been major new developments. Yesterday, the driving test system was suspended – all tests in all categories were cancelled for Thursday, Friday and Saturday, and a further announcement was due to be made. I anticipate that all tests will be suspended until further notice. Meanwhile, here in London, tube stations are being closed and services reduced on buses and tubes. Schools will be closed tomorrow.
Although not yet told to shut down, it’s hard to see motorcycle training as essential, so I am bringing forward my own shut-down with immediate effect.
Unfortunately, my training is by far and away my main source of revenue, and like a lot of other self-employed people in all kinds of service industries, if this outbreak of CV-19 is as prolonged as the worst case scenario predicts, I will be under significant financial pressure.
If you are in the same position as I am, I sympathise. Should you be in a more fortunate position financially, there are a few things you can do to help out me in this difficult time.
ONE – you can book a course for the rest of this week, over the weekend and up to Wednesday 25 March.
TWO – if you can’t join me for a course in the next few days, you can support me by purchasing a voucher to be used against a course at some future date – something to look forward to in these difficult times. You can do this directly via my Ko-Fi page – anyone contributing there will automatically receive a voucher for the same amount towards training.
THREE – of course, I’ll be continuing to post free-to-read better riding articles and news, so even if you are not in a location that makes it likely you can take a course at a future date, you can always make a donation directly via my Ko-Fi page
FOUR – as many of us, particularly those of us who are of… ahem, more advanced years… are likely to have a lot of time on our hands, I’m going to be launching a series of webcasts and webinars to look at particular riding issues. I intend to make these free to view too, though donations via my Ko-Fi page will be gratefully accepted.
FIVE – you can buy my books online at:
As it’s likely that deliveries of physical goods will also be interrupted, I’ll be making available e-books of all my products in the next couple of days – watch this space.
SIX – I’m working hard setting up the first module of my ‘Performance: BENDS’ e-course. This should be up and running by the end of the week at the latest, and you are all welcome to sign up for this course. I’ll open up the first module free, then subsequent modules will carry a modest charge. Watch this space.
I know we’d all rather be out there on our bikes as we head through spring towards the warmer and sunnier months, but even if we can’t ride, we can still talk bikes and better biking.
To round off, let’s all try to help each other through this difficult time.
Thanks for reading, and if you don’t already, follow me over on Facebook at: