California Superbike School - Level One.
Let me be upfront about something. Before I did this, I thought I knew how to ride a motorcycle. Thirty years behind the bars will do that to you. Turns out, I didn't know nearly as much as I thought.
It doesn't matter what level of rider you are when you show up to California Superbike School. Everyone starts at Level One. Everyone. My first reaction was a quiet, slightly defensive come on, I've been riding for thirty years. My second reaction, about ten minutes into the first track session, was oh, OK, now I understand.
Because California Superbike School doesn't just teach you to go faster. They break your riding down to its foundations and rebuild it. Throttle control, what you are doing on the bike, what the bike is doing underneath you.
Five classroom sessions, five track sessions and five coaching debriefs with each one building on the last.
So there I am, sitting in a classroom in full leathers, pen and notebook in hand, feeling very much like the kid at the back of the class who hasn't done his homework. There is nothing quite like the sound of a room full of grown adults squeaking around on plastic chairs in leather riding gear to make you wonder how your life got to this point. Except this time, I actually wanted to be there.
But the thing I found most surprising? It's actually fun being in a classroom when you're genuinely interested in the topic. I'm 52. I haven't sat in a classroom for a long, long time, and the thought of it honestly gave me a bit of a ah, really? feeling. But when the subject matter is something you love? You hang on every word.
Damo: The Man at the Front of the Room
The classroom sessions were run by a kiwi named Damo. I don't use the word gun lightly, but Damo is a gun rider. I know this firsthand, I've shared a pit with him when he was testing an upspec'd Panigale V4S and a BMW S1000RR M Sport back to back at Sydney Motorsport Park. Trust me when I say, watching Damo on a bike is equal parts inspiring and humbling.
But what makes a great rider doesn't automatically make a great teacher, and Damo is both. He was engaging, clear, and created an environment where no question was a dumb question. When you're learning something that directly affects your safety on a bike, that matters enormously.
Everything covered in the classroom went straight onto the track. Theory into practice, session by session. Each one building on the next.
The first track session had a rule that made me raise an eyebrow: no brakes. Not try not to use the brakes. No brakes. Turns out, I didn't need them.
The drill wasn't really about avoiding brakes for the sake of it. It was about learning to control your speed entirely through the throttle. Smooth, consistent, deliberate. The brakes were there if you needed them, but the whole point was to develop enough throttle control so that you didn't. And when it starts to click, when you're carrying speed into a corner and managing it purely through how you feed the throttle, it just clicks, and when it does, it's one of those moments on a motorcycle that you don't forget.
The throttle isn't just for going fast. It's for control. How you manage that throttle sets up your entire lap. It makes you feel like a good rider, because suddenly you are one.
Dave and the Chicken Arms
After each track session, you debrief with your rider coach. And this is where California Superbike School really separates itself from some of the other track based training I have done and also from a standard track day. You have the same coach for the entire day. The coach-to-rider ratio is excellent, I was lucky enough to share my coach with just one other rider, and the rider / coach ratio is capped at 3 riders to one coach. Out on track, the coach follows you, then you follow them as they point out good lines and reinforce whatever skill you'd just worked on in the classroom.
My coach was Dave, and at one point he demonstrated the importance of being relaxed on the bike by flapping his arms like a chicken, while holding a perfect line through a corner at speed. It looked absolutely hilarious, but also made the point better than any amount of talking could have. Anyone who can do that while riding at pace genuinely knows what they're doing on a motorcycle.
Any Bike. Seriously, Any Bike.
One of the things I hear from mates is some version of: "I can't do track days or courses like the California Superbike School because I don't have the right bike."
Absolute rubbish.
At our session, yes there were the usual collection of Gixxers, R1s, S1000RRs & Panigales. But there was also a bloke on a Harley and another on a R1300 GSA, BMW's new big beast, an absolutely massive adventure bike and he looked like he was having the time of his life and I imagine learning a fair bit in the process.
If you can ride it on the road, you can ride it on track. The right bike is the one you have. Don't let the idea of not having the "right" machine stop you from doing something that could genuinely change how you ride.
What I Took Away
By the end of the day I was riding faster and safer than I probably ever have. The F900R that BMW had kindly supplied for the day deserves its own mention, it's a seriously capable motorcycle that most people walk straight past in the showroom. Their loss.
The skills learned aren't just for the track, that's something I want to be clear about, because I've heard people say "oh, I don't ride on track, so it's not for me." Everything you learn at California Superbike School translates directly to the road. Spotting an apex. Vision. Throttle control. Relaxing on the bike. These are road skills as much as they are track skills.
And if you're nervous about turning up...don't be. The whole environment is genuinely friendly and encouraging. Nobody is there to show off or make you feel slow. Everyone is just there to ride and get better.
Some of what I learned confirmed things I was already doing right. Thirty years of riding experience does count for something. But the little things, the things I knew but quietly forgotten over the years, having those reinforced in a structured, deliberate way made a real difference.
Would I Do It Again?
Already planning Level Two. In the meantime, I'll be doing more track days to keep working on what I practiced, and carrying those habits onto the road every time I ride.
I learned more in one day at California Superbike School than I reckon I have in three decades of riding. That's not a knock on thirty years of experience. It's a testament to how good this program is.
If you ride on the road, do the California Superbike School.
If you ride on the track, do the California Superbike School.
If you've been riding for thirty years and think you know everything, definitely do the California Superbike School.
If you ride a BMW, a Ducati, a Yamaha, an Indian or a Royal Enfield, do the California Superbike School.
And if you ride a Harley…well maybe reassess your life choices first…and then do the California Superbike School. You won't regret it.
California Superbike School Australia: superbikeschool.com.au
Riding shots on track by www.sdpics.com