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View Full Version : MSF course cost going up to $180 soon


Tourmeister
06-23-2003, 05:00 PM
Howdy,

:tab I just got off the phone with several of the regional MSF centers. I was told that the cost of the basic course will be going up from the current $155 to $180 in the not too distant future. Beth and I paid $100 about 4-1/2 years ago.

:tab I am a little concerned about this. It is not that I don't think the course is worth the money. But that is because I have already taken the course. For someone considering the course, I think the price is reaching the point where many people are going to walk away. $180 is starting to get into the funds for protective gear!

:tab I have to admit that if the cost had been this high when we took the class, there is a good chance that we would not have taken it at all. I'm curious as to why the cost is going up? Is is really just a cost of operations or is that someone is starting to see this as a real money making scheme? Remember how cheap Defenisve Driving used to be? Twenty bucks for the class and a ten to fifteen dollar administrative court fee. But then somewhere along the line someone, including the courts, realized there is serious cash to be made here because people really want to keep the tickets off their record. Now the cost of the DDC and court fees can often be as high or higher than the cost of just paying the ticket. I wonder if the same kind of the thing is happening to the MSF course now?

:tab I also wonder why the big insurance companies are not more involved with pushing the MSF courses and other riding schools? It would seem to me that they would benefit from getting more riders better trained to reduce the number of accidents. Or maybe they figure that even with training the risk is still just too high so they offer policies with huge premiums to discourage all but the most determined riders from getting insurance.

:tab Hmm...?

squid killer
08-02-2003, 06:05 AM
I can answer that question. When we get motorcycle licences in Texas, as with most other states, that money goes into a fund that helps cover the cost of having a MSF class. Now the lawmakers in Austin are taking that money and spending it on other things so each site that has an MSF class was allowed to raise the fee to cover the costs. A big chunk of that money goes to pay the high insurance cost of the class.

New Yorkers pay up to $450 for the same class.

elliott_p
08-04-2003, 09:28 AM
I agree with you, Scott. People who are getting into motorcycling, especially if it's for "cheap transportation" might start looking at the cost of the class as prohibitive. I mean, if it came down to MSF or a Helmet......which one would you choose? I'd go with a helmet and just take my chances. It's a **** shame that the legislature is redirecting funds elsewhere but I suppose we are a pretty small segment of the population, overall. I had noticed the price increases as well but attributed them to the increasing demand for the classes. I know the people who run them certainly aren't getting rich off of them and all of the MSF instructors I know seem far more interested in actually helping folks than they are in making money. I remember sitting in my MSF class looking at all of the total newbies who had never been on a bike before and wondering what kind of insurance burden the class administrators face. I would imagine it to be significant.

It's too bad but still, it seems the classes are usually full, which is a good thing!

Thermalser
08-04-2003, 09:30 AM
S-K

Are you currently an MSF Instructor and if so, where?

bluedogok
08-17-2003, 07:15 PM
It looks like the A+ Rider Course has dropped Austin. On their website it says no longer offered at this location. Looks like we have to go to Round Rock or Hutto now.

Shortline
08-17-2003, 08:34 PM
A+ Rider course? Never heard of that one, is it an MSF course, or a similar one from a different organization? I have had the MSF ERC, and am going to take it again, just cause...unless the A+ would be more appropriate???
TR
El Centro CA
(hey, ya can ALWAYS learn something new)

bluedogok
08-17-2003, 09:10 PM
A+ Rider course? Never heard of that one, is it an MSF course, or a similar one from a different organization? I have had the MSF ERC, and am going to take it again, just cause...unless the A+ would be more appropriate???
TR
El Centro CA
(hey, ya can ALWAYS learn something new)

It is a company that does the MSF course in many Texas cities. Standard Basic, ERC, Dirt Courses etc.

A+ Rider Course http://www.aplusrider.com/

Total Rider Improvement Course-Hutto http://www.totalrider.com/

Moto Fun Rider Improvement-Round Rock http://www.motofun.net/

Those are some of the ones in this area.