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Penticton  

Motorcycle skills for safety

Chelsea Powrie

A drop-in motorcycle skills class was a success in Penticton on Sunday.

Dave Cramm, with South Okanagan Traffic Services, organized the event.

"The reason we decided to do this was I was looking at the crash picture for motorcycles specifically and it didn’t seem to be so much associated with reckless driving or speeding," Cramm said. "43 per cent of the crashes were steering related."

Over 30 participants attended throughout the day. One of the instructors said the biggest issue he encountered was speed mitigation.

"[Some] don't have the skill set to be able to ride a motorcycle slow and maneuver it, it's one of the biggest issues today," said former ICBC motorcycle instructor and volunteer this weekend, Doug Overholt.

Participant Bill Kelley said he appreciated brushing up on his skills.

"I learned some of the slow-driving skills I was lacking, it’s very important to come out to events like this," Kelley said.

Cramm said he hopes to make the event a yearly function.

"They seem to go away with an understanding of what's causing the crashes, the skills they need to prevent them, and how to practice them," Cramm said. 



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