MOTORCYCLE TRAINING

as the pace of modern war speeds up the motorcyclist becomes of more and more vital importance not only for the carrying of messages but pelléas arm and reconnaissance work the highly mechanized Canadian army was quick to recognize the importance of well-trained riders but good motorcyclists cannot be trained by poor instructors and so future instructors are given special courses at a Canadian training school in England training begins in the classroom cutaway models reveal the secrets of the internal combustion engine while blackboard diagrams explain complicated electrical systems each man is assigned a motorcycle soon after his arrival at the school from then on he is responsible for it as for his rifle off in his personal kit on it he must lavished the care of the last war cavalry man for his horse in the course of normal maintenance the hall is overhauled once a week in this way the student learned how to care for the machine on which his life may one day depend the trek to the easy starting is in the throttle and spark controls when they're set white the bike starts at the first kick well sometimes to get the feel of their bikes and gain confidence in handling them the students first ride is round and runs beric squares by braking accelerating and changing gears they keep a regular interval and learn to balance and control their machines even at this early stage the instructors can usually tell who will make the best riders they can also tell those who have little chance of finishing the course these are soon weeded out [Music] the open highway is the next step for student riders the valuable part of this experience is the frequent use of gears the result of going at higher speeds the various hand signals and other rules of the road are all apart of Highway training the machine must not be steered corners are taken by swinging the weight of the body to one side of the other life becomes more complicated as the students learn the art of bushwhacking the trick in cross country work is to stand up on the footrests letting the knees take the shocks of uneven ground in training dispatch riders especially is this type of cross country riding vital for in wartime roads become targets for artillery and province and well known to every motorcyclist is the trick of tying a strong cable across the road riding a series of small ridges without leaving the ground teaches control of acceleration on the upgrades the riders lean well back to get traction on the way down they use the valve lifter to prevent compression in the cylinder water obstacles are all in the day as work streams up to a foot and a half deep and be safely ported as long as the throttle is wide open speed being controlled by the clutch if the engine stalls the machine must be pushed clear before restarting [Music] luis and is one of the most difficult surfaces for motorcycle riding even with skilled riders skids and spills are frequent so in these canadian army riders can negotiate successfully the ups and downs of the Sandhills they are ready to return to their units highly trained men possessing the confidence of sure knowledge [Music] [Music] [Music] the Train dispatch rider is now ready to do his job a job of vital importance but one of great danger and bodily strength an isolated infantry platoon has been ordered to attack at Oh 600 hours but aerial reconnaissance has shown that the troops will advance into a trap they must be warned they must delay the attack until artillery fire is brought to bear they have no wireless set a runner wouldn't make it in time the only way to reach them is by motorcycle the message must get through and the darkness sets out to get it through through hell and high water [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Music] [Music] journey's end and a blessed moment of rest arrest well earned by a job well done [Music]