This time of year there is a lot of talk about New Year’s resolutions. People resolve to lose weight, spend more time with family and friends, get organized, and do a litany of other stuff that sounds like a great idea. Getting into shape and taking care of your health, in general, is a pretty common, and smart, resolution. 

 

My doctor tells me that I need to strengthen my core, and that’s exactly what is going to happen in 2022. We are going to strengthen our core… our instructor corps that is.

 

The last couple of years has been, well, you know how they’ve been. A global pandemic impacts everything. Throughout the COVID crisis, there have been worldwide supply chain issues. Much of this is related to having enough people in the workforce. Rider education across the country has been dealing with instructor shortages for years, and it has gotten worse with the coronavirus situation.

 

Training and certifying instructors to conduct classes is an extensive process. The precautions and restrictions of 2020 canceled the Instructor Preparation Course (IP) scheduled for that year. 

 

Fortunately, we were able to welcome 12 instructor candidates (IC) to an IP in the spring of 2021. 10 of those ICs passed the course and several of them jumped in immediately, and frequently, to fill in the gaps at training sites across the state.

 

We have an IP planned for March of 2022 and while it is mostly full, there is a possibility that we may be able to squeeze a couple of candidates in. 

 

We’ve shared previously just how rewarding it is to work in rider dedication and give back to motorcycling. If you have serious interest in getting more involved, contact the ABATE of Indiana state office to learn more and complete an instructor application.

 

Ride Safe,

Ride Free,

Jay Jackson