TEAM Arizona Riding Tip: The Competence Confidence Loop

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Last Updated: February 6th, 2021

When we first start riding a motorcycle, we may feel anxious; confidence is at a premium.  How do we gain confidence on two wheels as beginners?  Why is understanding the Competence-Confidence Loop important to our growth as experienced riders?  We explore these questions in this month’s TEAM Arizona Riding Tip.

THE COMPETENCE-CONFIDENCE LOOP

Overcome obstacle motorcycle
Your obstacle to overcome might not be as large and obvious as this rider’s challenge; however, it may feel like it to you. That’s where training can help.

When we first start riding, we use a lot of our brain’s processing power to manage our motorcycle’s controls.  Getting the clutch, throttle, and brakes to work in harmony takes practice to move from gross operation to a more refined operation.  If we look discretely at the activity of practice, we see that it is actually composed of several key elements.  These elements combine into what we call the Competence-Confidence Loop. The elements are:

  • Define objective
  • Perform action
  • Receive feedback
  • Acquire competence
  • Behave with confidence

Let’s look at a real world situation.  Let’s say you’re a person who has never ever seen a motorcycle, let alone fired one up.  You don’t even know that motorcycles have fuel valves, ignition switches, or engine cut-off switches.

In the Basic RiderCourse, we develop the habit of starting the motorcycle in a very particular way.  First we define the objective (This is how we want you to start your motorcycle every time).  We use the FINE-C method of starting the motorcycle (FUEL-IGNITION-NEUTRAL-ENGINECUTOFF-CHOKE/CLUTCH).  Next, we have participants locate the controls and try the FINE-C method several times.  We provide feedback or the motorcycles provide feedback (failing to start, honking horn instead of turning on engine cut-off switch, etc) to the participants.  Several attempts later and the participants begin reciting the acronym to themselves, thus demonstrating competence.  Within an exercise or two, participants are swiftly and confidently firing up their motorcycles.  We’ve gone from I don’t know how to do this to I CAN DO THIS!

Eventually, we become so competent at starting our motorcycle that we allocate very little mental bandwidth to the process.

EXPERIENCED RIDERS SEEKING CONFIDENCE IN CURVES- APPLY HERE!

Motorcycle Turn Point
Identifying the turn point is the first step. To give your brain certainty, it needs another point. How about the apex?

We perform rider training for participants of varying skill levels.  One skill that needs developed more finely by EVERY rider revolves around their vision when cornering at higher speeds.  How can we apply the Competence-Confidence loop to increase our cornering success?

  • DEFINE OBJECTIVE:  Using our central vision, locate the turn point, apex, and exit points of a chosen curve.
  • PERFORM ACTION:  At a TEAM Arizona Advanced Riding Course, on a private road course (track), or an empty stretch of road with a curve that allows for repetition, negotiate the curve at a consistent rate of speed.  Work on identifying the three key vision points.
  • RECEIVE FEEDBACK:  This is where rider training really shines.  There is nothing better than having professional, trained motorcyclists provide immediate feedback.  Otherwise, take notes.  Are you able to locate all three points every time?  What is the bike doing with each pass?  How is your body feeling?  Compare your comfort level from the first time you negotiate the curve to the last time within a single practice session.
  • ACQUIRE COMPETENCE:  Note how you are more quickly, accurately, and consistently able to locate the three points of interest.
  • BEHAVE WITH CONFIDENCE:  Using your vision to corner with confidence has several positive side effects.  Giving our brain the three key points and allowing it to play “connect-the-dots” means we are creating certainty and the brain rewards us.  Ask yourself these questions.  Are you feeling more relaxed on the motorcycle?  Are you gripping the handlebars less tightly?  Are you breathing deeper, more steadily?  Are you using fewer handlebar inputs (goal is to have one, single, definite handlebar input when cornering at higher speeds)?  Is the line you scribe through the corner smooth and have fewer adjustments (fifty-pencing)?  Do you feel more confident?

Becoming a skilled motorcyclist doesn’t happen overnight.  Acquiring skills, no matter how much saddle time we’ve enjoyed, requires us to engage the Competence-Confidence Loop.  When we are faced with a plateau of riding skill or a riding obstacle that we can’t seem to overcome, we should consider looking at the Competence-Confidence Loop to see where we are lacking.  The bright side is we’re sure it will include more riding.

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Bill Seltzer TEAM ArizonaBill Seltzer has been a Motorcycle Safety Foundation RiderCoach since 2003 and a Total Control Advanced Riding Instructor since 2011.  He currently serves as the Marketing Director for TEAM Arizona.  Have questions or comments about the article?  Email him: Bill@MotorcycleTraining.com