This is the first episode of Kickstand Conversations, and it kicks off the way most of our conversations actually start, which is us catching up on who rode and who didn’t. From there it turns into a real breakdown of the Pennsylvania motorcycle safety course, why it’s such a good deal compared to paying for one, and how differently that experience can go depending on where you take it.
On this episode you’ve got me (Walt), Goofy, Trekkie, and Scott, the four of us who’ll be running this thing regularly. We get into the safety course stuff, why Harley dealerships feel like a completely different animal than power sport shops around here, a whole detour into comms gear headaches, and a quick check in on the CB750F build.
If you want the full hang, including a random detour into who shot J.R. Ewing, watch the full episode above. The post below covers the parts worth reading on their own.
Table of Contents
The Pennsylvania Motorcycle Safety Course Deal Nobody Talks About
Trekkie made the point early on that the Pennsylvania Motorcycle Safety Program is honestly one of the better deals out there. Everyone already pays into it when they get their permit, and you can go back and retake it as often as you want. Just know that the loaner bike only comes with the Beginner course. If you’re doing the Intermediate or Advanced course, you’re expected to bring your own bike. If you’re anywhere near Pennsylvania and thinking about getting licensed, that’s worth knowing before you pay for anything.
I’ve actually taken the Intermediate course myself a few times over the years, and I wrote up my experience taking the Total Control IRC in Norristown if you want the deeper breakdown. I tell myself every year I’m going to take a refresher, but I never quite get around to it, and the advanced course is still on my list.
The state has also spread it out to more locations than it used to be. Goofy mentioned they’re running it at Coventry Mall now, Scott said the same thing about malls in his area, and Trekkie pointed out one near him at a mall that’s mostly closed otherwise. I mentioned that the state seems to be contracting out to different providers depending on where you take it, so you might end up with Total Control or MSF depending on location.
Trekkie actually took the Total Control version at Willow Street Harley Davidson on a Suzuki TU250X, and said it was a decent bike to learn on. The bigger problem for him was that it rained the entire time, which meant buying a full set of rain gear and boot covers just for the course. He ended up paying $150 for boot covers at the Harley shop because he had no other option that day, and only wore them twice after that.
Why Scott’s Wife Is Doing the Paid Course Next Time
Not every free class works out the same way. Scott’s wife took the free MSF course and the instructors barely engaged with her. She was the only woman in the class, and Scott said they weren’t really listening to her or helping her the way they helped everyone else. She didn’t pass. Because of that, they’re planning to pay for the Harley course out in Orwigsburg instead, specifically because it has a female instructor. Neither of us could remember the exact price during the episode, Goofy guessed somewhere around $250, but worth clarifying since we recorded: Schaeffer’s actual licensing classes are free for Pennsylvania residents too, same as everywhere else in the state program. The $150 is for their separate Ready, Set, Ride! class, a two hour, no-license-required session meant to build confidence before you take the real licensing course, not the licensing course itself. Scott was clear that the cost doesn’t matter to him as much as her actually getting a good experience and coming out of it safe.
The pass rates came up too, and they were lower across the board than you’d probably guess. Scott said his own class had twelve riders and only six passed. Mine was similar, twelve people with about eight passing and one person dropping their bike. Trekkie’s Total Control class had a similar spread, with several riders dropping their bikes along the way. None of us expected the numbers to be that close to a coin flip.
Why Harley Dealerships Feel Like a Hangout and Power Sport Shops Don’t
Goofy brought up a good question. Harley dealerships tend to function almost like a lifestyle destination, somewhere people go to hang out and not just to buy parts. Power sport dealerships mostly don’t have that same pull.
I brought up Martin Moto in Boyertown as the exception on the power sport side. They’ve got a display of classic bikes upstairs that’s basically a mini museum, and they run an annual event that pulls in a crowd every year. Scott made the case that BMW dealerships lean the same direction as Harley shops. He pointed to Hermes specifically, where he goes as much for the people as for parts, mentioning Bob Lilly (a long distance rider who’s done the Iron Butt Rally multiple times) and Chris in parts as reasons he keeps showing up even when the price isn’t always the best.
Trekkie and Goofy went back and forth on the local Harley shop landscape too, covering Hannums, the old Brandywine location that got folded into the Westchester store, Keystone up near Scott, and Schaeffer’s, which apparently has a strange history involving a small museum that eventually got shut down. If you ride around southeastern Pennsylvania, the dealership you end up loyal to says a lot about what kind of rider you are.
The timing lines up with something else worth mentioning if you’re in the area. Martin Moto’s Modern Classics Ride is coming up on September 19th, and from what Trekkie described, it’s become an annual pilgrimage for a chunk of the group.
Making Comms and Mics Work On a Motorcycle
This turned into one of the longer tangents of the episode, and for good reason. Goofy admitted flat out that he doesn’t actually know how to turn his Cardo Packtalk
on, past updating the firmware. I’ve had my own issues getting mine to connect. When I updated to Cardo’s newer open mesh system and Pat hadn’t done the same update yet, we spent a half hour messing with it before we finally got it working, on a ride where it should have taken seconds.
Trekkie’s been running into a different problem. He loves his new Shoei RF-1400 helmet, but it’s so tight around the chin bar that there’s nowhere left to mount a microphone. He’s been kicking around the idea of just recording conversations straight off his phone instead, which led to a whole side conversation about mic setups, dual vlog audio, and whether anyone actually has time to deal with the extra syncing and editing that comes with recording multiple riders at once. Goofy’s take was pretty simple: he hates editing, and anything that adds a step is a hard pass for him.
Quick CB750F Update Between Everything Else
Trekkie mentioned he’s genuinely hooked on the CB750F Restoration series, even with how long some of the episodes run, which was good to hear. Progress right now is slow but steady. The frame is power washed and sitting bare, waiting on wire wheeling and some touch up paint where there’s rust, and the front end still needs to go back on. The wheels are the part I’m dreading most, since every spoke needs to come off, get cleaned individually, and then get relaced, which I’ve never done before.
Goofy and Trekkie have both been googling parts along with me as the episodes go, including a part that turned out to be nearly impossible to track down. Small stuff adds up fast on a bike this old too. A rebuild kit for the rear brake caliper, which is just a couple of rubber gaskets, runs $135. I’m hoping to have it done for next year’s Modern Classics Ride instead of this one, since there’s still a lot of cleanup work left before anything goes back together.
Ride With Me
If you want to see the whole thing play out, including the parts that don’t translate to text, subscribe to the WaltInPA YouTube channel for more riding content. Share this post with a friend who rides, and if you want to talk shop with people who actually get it, come hang out in the WaltInPA Discord, where good people talk about riding.
While you’re at it, go check out the other three voices on this episode. Trekkie runs TrekkieMoto, Goofy’s channel is Goofy Bastard, and Scott posts over at Scott’s Moto Adventures. All three are worth a subscribe if you liked this conversation.
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