A safety course for three-wheelers, down the road?

Three-wheelers are registered as motorcycles in California, but even though they have a third wheel and different handling characteristics, an official safety class for three-wheelers doesn’t exist.

The state-administered safety classes are designed for motorcycles -- the Basic RiderCourse (for new riders) and the Experienced RiderCourse, both of which are offered through the California Motorcyclist Safety Program.

In the future, there may be a third offering: a three-wheeled Basic RiderCourse, or 3BRC, that will teach the fundamentals of three-wheeling, regardless of whether the two wheels are at the front of the vehicle (such as a Can-Am Spyder) or back (a Lehman trike).

“The exercises used in the course and the safety message are appropriate for either wheel configuration,” said Ray Ochs, director of Rider Training Systems for the Motorcycle Safety Foundation, or MSF, the organization that develops research-based curricula for government-administered motorcycle safety programs nationwide. “The fundamental controls are the same,” Ochs added, referring to three-wheelers’ no-lean operation and direct steering.

However, riders of three-wheeled scooters that have twinned front wheels that lean, such as the Piaggio MP3s or Vectrix V3, Ochs said, should take the regular motorcycle safety courses because their handling is more similar to a motorcycle.

The MSF started developing a three-wheeler curriculum in 2007 because trikes have become so popular, particularly among older riders. The MSF was fielding phone calls from departments of motor vehicles across the country asking for a course. Then, in 2007, the Spyder hit the market. The 3BRC was born.

The major safety issues for three-wheelers are the same as they are for motorcycles, Ochs said. “It’s how well you use your eyes and your mind. The typical things we’re concerned with, besides fundamental operational control, are intersections and cornering.”

The 12-hour course is divided into two parts -- four hours of classroom instruction that address, among other things, the basics of three-wheeled vehicles and how to mix safely with traffic, and eight hours of riding that teach motor skills, such as low-speed handling, braking and cornering.

The MSF’s 3BRC is in the final stages of certification and will likely be available within the first quarter of 2008. In California, the program would be administered through the California Motorcyclist Safety Program, which will decide whether to implement the program based, in part, on demand.