May 8 to 19, 2006

This was the rainiest school in history!  We had about two full days of sunshine amidst 8 days of solid, pouring rain.  Bill and Steve said they felt really bad for us... as they watched from the comfort of the Middletown PD Mobile Command vehicle!

Seriously, it was an incredible school.  We started out knocking down every cone we looked at and by the end of the school we came to realize Bill and Steve actually knew what they were talking about when they said, "Look at the cone, hit the cone.  Look at the ground, hit the ground."

We spent a lot of time on the low speed exercises in the pouring rain.  We got pretty tired of going in small circles and were anxious to start the high speed stuff when the asphalt dried out.  But that excitement only lasted a few runs because we began hitting every cone again and wished we had stayed on the low speed stuff!  We got an idea we weren't doing very well when Bill made a comment after the high speed cone weave, "That was terrible.  I feel all pukey inside."  We knew that couldn't be good.

We pressed on and everybody passed the practical exam.  Now that we were finally at ease we could enjoy a nice long ride through Newport and begin planning our graduation party at Billy Goode's Restaurant.  Joe Carroll and Greg Belcher joined us for the party.  They graduated from the school a couple years ago.

The turning point in my skill level was keeping in mind that the Road King wants to stay upright and wants to go straight.  Once you realize that power to the rear wheel will keep you from falling down and that you really have to work at turning the handlebars, you can do pretty much anything you want.  This school is a must for every officer who wants to look good and stay safe.

--Sergeant Dan Dvorak, Newport PD