~ Auto Buzz ~: IENATSCH TUESDAY: Yuma Marines Calling The GSX-R11 experiment is on hold, for a good reason.

Nick Ienatsch began writing for Cycle World in 1996 and Ienatsch Tuesday started on CW.com half-way through 2015. Here is the second column he wrote, reprised here at the end of the year. Happy New Year to all! Originally posted on March 31, 2015. Eight months ago, three US Marines attended Yamaha Champions Racing School on their own nickel. Two of them had been to every other school more than once. Two days with us blew them away, prompting letters to superiors with a single message: Marine riders need YCRS training. Then, 24 US Marine rider coaches attended YCRS for a one-day school followed by a four-hour meeting. Our simple approach of “Ride the bike the way expert-level test riders designed it to be ridden” hit each of those coaches hard. They saw a simple but precise way of instruction that yielded amazing results.

Instructor Kyle Wyman backs it in. At this pace everything counts, including clutch modulation. The Marine riders know this message because they rely on their weapons training to keep them safe under unimaginably hard conditions. Shooting on a quiet range allows mistakes. Jumping out of a helicopter into a firefight does not. Everything counts. (Photo: TheSBimage.com)

But YCRS revised and refined its usual curriculum for this day and a half because these students are unique: They are warriors. They, like motorcycle racers, accept the risks of their profession and train their asses off to reduce those risks. Much of that training is weapons-based and the curriculum we presented during these 15 hours took aim at that target, pun intended. One of the strongest messages was, “An improperly handled firearm or motorcycle will kill you. Let’s train to the same level with both weapons.”

This rifle and a motorcycle will never hurt anyone unless mishandled by a human. Experts shoot and ride daily with joy and precision and safety and consistency. Marines qualify annually with weapons and understand motorcycle competency because of their weapons training.

This week, YCRS’s Keith Culver and I are at Marine Corps Air Station Yuma in Arizona, working with John Waltman and Major Mark Thompson on REST, Riders Essential Skills Training, the Level Two Marine Corps program constructed with YCRS. We’re joined by these rider coaches: Major Don Williams, Staff Sergeant Andrew Eichelberger and Gunnery Sergeant Tina Kelly, all YCRS graduates. I’ve joined an elite, fit, intelligent, and motivated group.

Setting the REST (Rider Essential Skills training) courses was a ton of fun. Here I’m talking with Keith: “Run it in there and see if that chicane’s second or third gear, but don’t forget the full stop in the next right.” The courses call on all the skills every lap. Photo: Anthony Sansotta, eyeball

All five of these riders have gone through the YCRS program and they believe in it enough to fight the tides of change. “We’re not trying to replace anything,” Marine Traffic Safety’s Waltman states in response to those who dislike change. “REST is meant to run parallel with the Level One beginning-rider programs…a rider takes two days of Level One and the third day is eight hours in the REST program.” The Level One schools take new riders and give them the skills to stop, start, shift, use their eyes correctly…all while working on a relatively small range at speeds up to about 25 mph. REST will then come in and add to the Basic Riders Course, putting a lot more “tools in the rider’s toolbox.” Speeds will come up and solutions to those challenges will be presented. It’s a terrific three-day plan that will give riders a huge leap forward in their understanding and skills.

Wait a minute! That’s not a parking lot! No, but the width of this paved walking trail could be the exact amount of clean asphalt between the gravel and oncoming traffic in your favorite corner next Sunday morning. REST can be laid out anywhere a motorcycle can be ridden. It’s all about bike control.

Back to Yuma Imagine coming into a semi-industrial area with the task of designing a riding course! We had a gas coming up with a layout that would generate highway speeds, challenging corners, different surfaces and enough room to fully train our riders. By the second day we had a terrific course laid out on MCAS Yuma that incorporated the MSF Skills Course and had everything from tight U-turns to gravel traverses and enough spare cones to change trajectories and corners at a moment’s notice. Perfect. We were joined by five great Marine riders who volunteered to help us beta-test on the second and third days: Thanks Jerry, Bryan, Robert, Anthony, Justin and Sean—you were all a great help.

What do you see? A street-legal WR450, a Hyosung 250, a big-twin Harley-Davidson, and a bunch of riders who volunteered to help at the first REST test in Yuma. Any bike, any rider, and a challenging, always-changing course.

On the fourth day, we ran 10 new and slightly experienced Marine riders through the first five hours of REST. We had everything from a Kawasaki Vulcan to a Ninja 300 to a pair of Honda CBR1000RRs. It was a complete home run as the riders began getting their brains around the REST curriculum. The most common question: “When can we do this again?” I’m in the back of a Chevy rental car headed to Camp Pendleton, the big Marine base north of San Diego in California. In two days we should have a course mapped out, possibly using the helicopter landing area. We’ll test it ourselves, put a few rider coaches through it, and then bring in some Marine riders to continue to refine REST. The following week, we will have Williams, Eichelberger, and YCRS graduate/USMC Traffic Safety’s Ed Billings as the coaches. It will be “Marines coaching Marines” with YCRS Champions Habits.

REST begins with “snapping in,” or practicing drills and procedures. But it evolves into challenging situations that require all that practice to come together in the real world. The picture of riders heading downhill is practicing “lighter longer” on the brakes, the prelude to trail-braking. “Snap In” every ride so your skills will be there when really needed.

There are some politics involved that I stay out of. If REST/YCRS is a smart Level Two program for the Marine Corps, let’s do it. Whenever I hear a politically motivated, anti-change comment, I ask one question: My goal is that no Marine riders crash: Is that your goal? I’m on the airplane headed home, leaving the REST team after two intense weeks of curriculum development. We changed the program in large and small ways almost every day, continually tweaking with a single thought: How can we teach more in less time? I’m leaving this exemplary team behind at Camp Pendleton for the final week of “Marines coaching Marines.” Eichelberger, Williams, and Billings will take the reins and guide another five groups of riders, with Waltman, Thompson, and Kelly adding support and continuous brainstorming. REST is an eight-hour program, but it’s a life-changing day.

That’s Major Don Williams in the race leathers leading the discussion on rev-matched downshifting at Camp Pendleton. “Marines coaching Marines” is the goal of REST. An interesting side note: After the first two weeks of teaching REST, Williams set two personal-best lap times on his two race bikes. Coincidence? No. REST is about riding efficiently no matter what the environment.

This man-mountain is Master Sergeant Eichelberger, a Master Gunner for the 4th LAR (Light Armored Reconnaissance Battalion). “Eich” teaches weapons and tactics (he’s a badass). The airlines lost his boots but that didn’t sideline the young man. Eichelberger comes from a desert racing background and YCRS opened his eyes to how the best pavement riders ride, fueling his passion for REST training.

Major Mark Thompson reporting for cone duty, sir! Thompson is a combat-proven officer and rides a Harley-Davidson Fat Boy after growing up on dirt bikes. YCRS made his Fat Boy a whole lot more fun. Don’t look now: Thompson is shopping for a Yamaha R6 track bike because he’s hooked on this sport. Riding faster and safer has a way of creating life-long addicts.