Driving a car might require all your attention, but riding a bike demands your complete commitment. You are much more vulnerable than a car driver, enjoying far less margin for error.
Riding a bike requires constant, accurate input - anything else and you are likely to crash. Perhaps that's why, as a breed, bikers strive for self-improvement far more than their car counterparts: the smarter they ride, the longer they'll be around.
There’s plenty of good advice on technique and skills on this website. Regardless of your current level, what you'll find here will not only accelerate your learning, it can literally save you years of painful trial and error. It's been compiled for bikers by bikers; ones with enough road hours, track time and gravel rash to know what works. But nothing beats doing it for real, which brings us to our first suggestion...
Starting out as a learner, one of the primary attractions of training is to shorten the process between learner, restricted and full licences. Taking an approved course satisfies those criteria and provides useful extra skills.
Whether at basic or advanced stages, riding courses enable you to develop skills you might otherwise never possess. Training improves hazard perception and makes you aware of potentially dangerous traffic situations.
Only you can determine which methods work best for you. Keep in mind that instruction can show you new ways of doing things, but only practice will ensure those skills become automatic, so they’re readily available the instant you need them. That means nothing is a substitute for time on the bike. So, you’d better choose one.
You can find a full, up-to-date list of providers on the New Zealand Transport Agency's website.
