Learn to Ride — Standard and Complete Courses
Choose the course that fits your goals. The Standard course includes classroom, motorcycle skills training, and your skills test (MSA/MST). The Complete course includes everything in Standard plus the traffic course.
MSA/MST (Skills Test) is conducted on-site
What you’ll do in the course
- 2 evening classes in our classroom (Barnes H-D in Langford).
- 2 full days (Sat/Sun) of parking-lot skills training at 4000 Seymour Place.
- Skills test included as part of your course.
Classroom + skills training + skills test.
Everything in Standard + traffic course.
Standard or Complete: Which course is right for me?
If you’re unsure whether you need traffic training, feel free to start with the Standard Course and upgrade at any time.
The Traffic Training Add-On is designed for riders who have never ridden on the road before or who want a guided, confidence-building introduction to real traffic conditions. It focuses on safe riding habits, lane positioning, traffic awareness, and progressively riding in real-world situations.
That said, even riders with previous experience often find value in this training, as it also covers ICBC road test habits and common mistakes that cause riders to fail their road test.
If you already feel comfortable riding in traffic and only want help preparing for the road test itself, there is an option to book only the road test session (the Traffic Course includes both the 6 hour intro to street riding AND the road test session). You can book this road-test-focused session on it’s own, which runs approximately 90 minutes and costs $145. If that’s your preference, first book the standard course, and then purchase the road test session from your account dashboard.
Standard Novice (New Rider) Course
Everything you need to get started
Most students start here.
Course highlights
- 16 hours motorcycle skills training (closed parking lot)
- 7 hours classroom instruction (weekday evenings)
- MST assessment on-site with your instructor at course end
- Equipment provided: bike, helmet, gloves, jacket
- 4-hour bike rental available for road test (if needed)
Alumni perk: Come back every weekend and ride the school bikes for free — as often as you like!
After your course is over, your skills can fade and your confidence can wane if you don’t buy a bike right away or have a chance to ride regularly.
All of our past students are invited to join us in the parking lot on Saturday and Sunday mornings from 8:30 to 9:30am for an hour of riding on any of the school bikes as often as they like for a full year after their course.
This ensures that you are comfortable on different styles of bikes and ready to ride when the opportunity to purchase or test ride a bike arises!
Complete Course (with Traffic Training Add-On)
Optional on-the-street experience
You can add this now, or at a later date for the same price ($375).
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What’s included
-
Everything from the Standard Course
- 16 hours motorcycle skills training (closed parking lot)
- 7 hours classroom instruction (weekday evenings)
- MST assessment on-site with your instructor at course end
- Equipment provided: bike, helmet, gloves, jacket
- 4-hour bike rental available for road test (if needed)
- 6 hours supervised on-the-street riding
- On your own motorcycle OR a school bike
- Progresses from quiet roads to real traffic
- Mock road test / road test coaching (Class 6 habits)
- 24-hour bike rental available for road test
What type of bike do you want to ride?
Our training fleet includes 20 bikes from 5 different styles:
IslandRider offers a variety of training bikes and we encourage our students to try them all! If you have never ridden a motorcycle before, how do you know which style of bike feels right for you?
- Honda Groms (lightweight and easy to ride)
- Dual sports (student favorites)
- Adventure bikes (KTM 390, RE Himalayan)
- Sports bikes (Honda CBRs and CBFs)
- Cruisers (Honda Rebel 300)
Many students show up with a desire to ride a specific style of bike. Others have no idea what the differences are. We encourage every student to try the different bikes throughout the weekend of skills training, or on the road rides.
Classroom sessions run over 2 weeknights (usually Wed/Thurs) at Barnes H-D in Langford from 6:15pm to 9:45pm.
Frequently Asked Questions
- Q: Is the MST included?
- A: Yes, if you take our STANDARD ($900) or COMPLETE course, the MSA (same as MST) is included as part of the course. In order to conduct the MSA, a motorcycle school must be a certified class 6/8 testing facility (we are!) and each student must successfully complete a minumum 18 hour course with an ICBC certified curriculum.
- Q: Do I need my own motorcycle?
- A: NO: IslandRider provides motorcycles for all parts of the training course.
- Q: Do I need to purchase my own helmet and riding gear prior to taking a course?
- A: NO. While we recommend that each student purchases their own helmet before taking the course, it is not mandatory. IslandRider will provide used helmets in various sizes (from XS to XXL) at no cost, as well as motorcycle gloves and motorcycle jackets (sizes XS to XL). Please note that we have limited gear available in sizes larger than XL.
- Q: Can I get my full license without having my own motorcycle?
- A: It Depends. Our STANDARD course includes theory and skills training, as well as the MST. Street lessons and road test lessons can be added on for an additional fee, or our COMPLETE course includes a traffic class, a motorcycle rental for practice on your own time, a motorcycle road test lesson, and the use of a school bike for your road test. Many of our COMPLETE course students have been successful in passing their road tests using only school bikes for all trainiing and testing.
- Q: Does your course include classroom/theory lessons?
- A: YES, the classroom is a mandatory part of any certified curriculum course. Our classroom is held on two consecutive weeknights from 6pm to 10pm in the classroom on the second floor of Barnes H-D, just off Westshore Parkway near Hwy 1 in Langford.
- Q: What happens if I don’t pass the MSA, or if I can’t learn enough in two days to feel safe on the road?
- A: Most of our students pass the MSA on the first attempt, however if you don’t pass the test (two attempts are permitted on the same day), then there are two options for you. If you were simply nervous, and failed the MSA due to this reason, you may return on any subsequent weekend for 2 hours of MSA practice and a retest, at no additional cost. If however, you failed the MSA due to a lack of skill, or if you decide not to take the test because you and/or your instructor feel that you are not ready to ride safely on the street, then we offer a second weekend of training at a cost of just $400.
- Q: Is IslandRider the same company as Urban Rider?
- A: Urban Rider is the parent organization, holding the ICBC school licence and authoring the ICBC-approved training program that allows the MSA (MST) to be built directly into our courses. Urban Rider delivers training in Victoria, Langley, and Burnaby. IslandRider is Urban Rider’s Vancouver Island identity. It is owned and managed by John and Tais, the original founders of Urban Rider. That means students at IslandRider are taught using the very same Urban Rider curriculum and ICBC-approved course structure. The only difference is in the name: IslandRider represents the Victoria branch, where John and Tais themselves do the teaching, while Langley and Burnaby locations are operated by partner schools. In short: IslandRider is the Vancouver Island branch of Urban Rider, personally overseen by its founders.
Photo Gallery of Skills Training at Seymour Place
Training Locations:
- Classroom and traffic classes meet at Barnes H-D just off Westshore Parkway in Langford.
- Skills training and MST classes are held in the parking lot at 4001 Seymour Place, Victoria (Open Map View)
- Motorcycle rentals and traffic classes, as well as road test lessons meet at 2903 Sooke Lake Rd, Langford.
Other Services
MST Bike Rental
Motorcycles can be delivered to your MST at the Langford testing center (979 Dunford) at a cost of $120, or they can be picked up (truck or supervisor required) at 2903 Sooke Lake Rd, Langford at a cost of $80. Advance reservation required.
Learn More →Skills Refresher / Skills Upgrade Class
Looking for information on our intermediate and advanced motorcycle classes? These courses are designed for licensed riders who want to sharpen their skills, build confidence, and improve real-world riding technique beyond the basics.
Advanced Motorcycle Skills Training →Road Test Training
Road test instruction is extremely specific and highly personalized. My experience in successfully training over 1,700 riders through the Class 6/8 road test over the past decade has shown that effective road test training is best conducted one-to-one. The effectiveness is further increased when a video recording of the lesson is provided to the student for review.
Road test training is currently available only to students who have completed our Novice course and can be booked directly from the student’s account dashboard.
IslandRider Motorcycle Training is a motorcycle training program on Vancouver Island by Urban Rider Motorcycle School Ltd. Urban Rider is a motorcycle driver training school licensed through ICBC with a corporate address of 2840 Sooke Lake Rd. Langford, BC V9B 4R3
