I learned so much and became comfortable riding and maneuvering safely. Shout out to excellent, supportive and non-judgmental instructors Eric, Anthony and Kevin. The explanations of each exercise and what we were learning with each exercise made all the pieces come together. We got to do each exercise until it became more natural and habitual. I was learning to ride a scooter for the first time. Special tips wrre given for motorcycles and specific for scooters. So helpful. I passed and can't wait to get my license and my own Vespa. Thank you! read more

Nothing else to say , see for yourself. If they don't have room they won't let you rise and they'll keep your money too. read more

Bay Area Motorcycle Training - Driving Schools Near Me - Alameda, California

This was one of the most frustrating, disorganized, and unprofessional experiences I've had. The process at Bay Area Motorcycle Training is extremely unclear. The website does a poor job explaining basic requirements like the e-rider course, required gear (boots, jeans, etc.), and how the overall process works. Many people show up confused--including me. What makes it worse is that if you don't meet these requirements, you are not allowed to participate and are pushed into standby with no clear explanation. That alone wastes people's time and creates unnecessary confusion. After I missed part of the e-rider (which I take responsibility for), everything became a complete mess. There is no structured system for people who fail or need to retake the test. You are simply told to come back another day or weekend with NO guaranteed spot. I had to show up as early as possible just to try to get in. Even when I arrived at 5:20 AM for a class that starts at 6, someone was already waiting ahead of me. I still didn't get a spot and had to repeat the same process again. This is completely unacceptable, especially for adults with jobs and responsibilities. The biggest issue was the motorcycle I was given. From the start, I told the instructor the throttle felt wrong and the bike was very jerky. I was ignored--twice. Only right before the test did someone finally check it and admit there was a problem. The motorcycle was also overheating. Then they switched my bike at the last minute and expected me to take the test on a completely different motorcycle with different throttle and braking feel. I even asked if I could ride a couple of circles just to understand the new bike and feel the brakes before taking the test, and they refused. So I had to take the test on a motorcycle I had never ridden before--not even for a minute. That is completely unreasonable. After I failed, I explained that the motorcycle issue played a role. I was then told I could come back for the evening session because of their mistake. I waited around thinking I would be able to retake the test that same day. Then, about one hour before the test, they called me just to apologize and tell me the instructor was wrong--and that I would have to pay $450 again to retake it. That was the breaking point. After everything--poor communication, faulty equipment, wasted time, and lack of accountability--they expected me to pay again for their mistakes. I take responsibility for not passing, but this entire experience was careless, disorganized, and completely unprofessional. Equipment should be checked BEFORE giving it to beginners--not right before the test. I even ran out of gas during my first weekend, which says everything about how things are managed. For $450, people deserve clear instructions, properly maintained motorcycles, and a guaranteed opportunity to retake the test--not confusion, long waits, and extra charges after mistakes on their side. Save your time and money unless you're prepared to deal with poor organization, wasted days, and zero accountability. read more

Once you signed up, it just spams you with an automated email. I asked questions to their office@motorcycleschool.com but no one responds. I called their 888.744.2268 number during their stated office hour but no one ever picks up. I almost thought damn my money is gone I need to call my bank and my lawyer. They finally sent another email 4 days prior to the course that it is canceled due to low enrollment, which I replied asking for a refund. At least it is not a complete scam. I indeed got my refund, so I am not going to give the lowest star rating. However, ignoring customers/students, the lack of service, late cancellation, and the feeling of leaving me felt like I got scammed is no good. I completed my course through another training center which I gave full stars. That was my experience and you can decide whether this training school is for you. read more

I successfully completed "1 Day Premier Course" on 6/3/2023. Today is 6/28 and I have still not received the dl-389 dmv certificate. I tried to call the number multiple times. Left numerous messages. Nobody has returned the call. The Contact Us form on the website doesn't work. It says invalid email address and never submits the query. How can I get my certificate? I live in San Jose. Should I drive to Alameda (about 50 miles) to pick up the certificate? Any help available here? read more

Both instructors Eric and Anthony were very professional and definitely show that they are well seasoned and expert riders/instructors. I took this class as a refresher and their teaching/training was sub par. I recommend this training course to anyone who wants to start riding or even if you just need a refresher. If you follow the instructions they send you before the class you will be ok. Course ifs big and plenty of space to train. Once again staff was great and if you follow instructions OK you will be OK. read more

Bay Area Motorcycle Training - This is the training course, nice open space with no obstacles. - Driving Schools Near Me - Alameda, California

Bureaucratic horror 0/5 stars if I could. I completed the course in Nov 06, 2020 and they lost the Completion form 389 in the mail. I get it, mailing system is slow right now. But I gave them until January - two full months. Still not a peep until I reached back out and they said "ok well obvi is lost so please fill this replacement form" Jan 25 is the day that they asked me to fill the replacement form, and I did that the same day. I still haven't heard anything - not even a peep about confirming that they received my forms. It's Feb 10 today, about three months since my course completion. I've sent them about 4 emails asking for any kind of confirmation and also left a voicemail. I'm not sure what else I can do besides trying to contact them over multiple channels. I've attached a screenshot of my correspondence with them. Hope I'm the outlier and not the norm. **** 5/5 FOR THE INSTRUCTION! Great experience with the instructors on-site. The course was well designed too. Just... the office can be a bit more responsive about issuing the correct forms. read more

Bay Area Motorcycle Training - Driving Schools Near Me - Alameda, California

You can add me to the list of people who were denied a refund even when due to serious health issues. I have Parkinson's disease. I do not function well in temperatures over 80 degrees. This last labor day temperatures were in the 90's for 3 days straight and forecast to continue on my riding lesson days. I called the office and asked to reschedule to a later date when heat would not likely be a problem. I was told I could not reschedule without paying my class fee of $350. Now, I can see refusing to refund in the case of not completing my online work, tardiness, no show or not being properly dressed to ride safely. These reasons were clearly addressed on their website, but circumstances beyond my control, no fault of my own or serious health and safety issues should not be a reason to not reschedule or refund my money. I get that rescheduling could be a pain in the ass, but you do it because you have some compassion and empathy for the people who are your customers. read more

If you read through reviews, the negative ones are mostly from people who had to cancel/couldn't make it to the class and did not receive a refund. Add me to that list. We're in the middle of a pandemic, guys. Not offering a refund/reschedule policy for people who have COVID is just irresponsible. My choices were to go to the class with COVID (and infect everyone) or to lose $350. I chose to lose the $350, and won't be coming back. read more

Eric and Anthony were so helpful and Professional! learning how to ride in two days is amazing and they're the best at it! Thank you again!!

PLEASE READ BEFORE ATTENDING THIS SCHOOL! This school is very unprofessional and inflexible even under grave circumstances. A family member suffered a heart attack so I am obviously unable to go to the class. I asked to be rescheduled and they only offered to put me as a standby. On top of that you can never get a hold of them when you try to call and they didn't get back to me until the next business day which is too long if they won't answer calls in my opinion. Even now they are saying it will take until Monday for everything to be processed, whatever that means. I wanted to see if I could support a local business but I regret not taking the class at Harley Davidson. Plus their website is very poorly designed. You have to dig deep in the website to find the policy on rescheduling and even then it's not worded clearly. I would steer clear of this school. Update: I finally received email back and they were not kind in the slightest. I clearly understand their policy but people could make exceptions which I was asking for yet they responded to me in a tone that was so condescending. All they literally had to say was unfortunately we still cannot offer rescheduling. Nowhere on the website does it explicitly say NO EXCEPTIONS, which is why I tried my best to get one. It looks like they might have updated their website recently because they now added "even if you have a really good reason". Again this looks like someone rushed and created this website in10 minutes or something. Not professional in the slightest. From the previous reviews I am sure that the instructors are great but if you are unfortunate enough to miss the class due to a real emergency, you will have to deal with invasion of privacy and poor customer service to have the fee waived for stand by. The only person who showed me an ounce of compassion was the receptionist I finally was able to get a hold of. The email correspondence dealt with me as if I was making a horrible event up so I can get out of a stupid class. I guess it's my freaking fault. I should have became psychic so that I would know that my dad would have a heart attack so I could call them a week before and reschedule. AVOID THIS PLACE. read more

Bay Area Motorcycle Training - condescending email from the office - Driving Schools Near Me - Alameda, California

I hate leaving yelp reviews but I just wanna let other people know. They canceled the class cause of low enrollment and said they'd give me a refund if I wanted. So I contacted them and asked for a refund. They said they issued the refund but after about 2 weeks I still hadn't gotten my money back. Tried calling, tried emailing. Now I am getting my bank involved. Seems like other people are having issues too. Don't work with these guys. read more

The lessons proceeded with ease. However, the paperwork process to get my license has been ongoing for 3 months now. I've had to follow up on every email. I've called. And yet no one has submitted my information to the state of California. AVOID using them if you want things done in a timely manner. read more

I recently just finished the beginner course. I had read the reviews and felt discouraged. The bad reviews were mostly people that couldn't make it on time due to personal reasons. I followed the basic instructions, complete erider, show up on time and be prepared. Anthony and Eric was our instructors for the course. They explained rules and expectations. They are very educated instructors. I have never felt more comfortable riding my motorcycle. I totally recommend bay area motorcycle training to anyone that is interested in riding. Anthony and Eric explains everything clearly and answers all of your questions. Please give these guys a raise!!!!! read more

Signed up for BAMT beginner motorcycle class. The erider online training was very helpful, well constructed, lots of good examples, self-paced, and the ability to revisit sections along the way. End result was passing with an A on the online test. Went to the two day in-person skills training. The skills training is well structured, in a foundational approach, starting with simple, basic skills, and advancing to new skills that are based upon the prior skills. Training was well paced, and thorough. By the end of day two, we did the skills test. The entire class started as beginners with no motorcycle experience. Skills growth by the riders was evident as we progressed. When it came to the skills test, the entire class passed. Watching everyone have grown their skills so quickly, and so well, then obviously be successful at the skills test was impressive. It is worth noting, that our skills test was held when it was raining heavily, and was very windy, with gusts. Carl's teaching, coaching, guidance, and positive support throughout, had everyone successfully complete their skills test in challenging, real world conditions. Talk about full experience learning. That was excellent. Carl was our instructor. He is a natural born teacher, with an almost 6th sense ability to notice what a rider is doing, or not doing, and then with positive, constructive, specific advice, help the rider understand, and successfully incorporate his advice. Carl's feedback was clear, concise, very well presented, and always specific to the rider. Carl worked well with the group, as well as individually, with constant feedback and guidance through every exercise, carefully ensuring that everyone, in the entire class, attained the necessary skill level before proceeding. At the end of the day, each rider was given a 1:1 debrief by Carl. His ability to understand the person, their capabilities, skills, and any worries, concerns, or fears, is truly amazing. I will definitely be signing up for ERT1 or ERT2 follow-on training when offered. I will likely get private training from Carl, to advance my skills. Then, after enough real world experience, will do the intermediate class. Thank you BAMT, and Carl. Your training was worth every penny. read more

I highly recommend this class! Karl and Barb are amazing instructors. You learn so much. All at once you get the fear of God put in you regarding safety, and you have lots of fun learning to ride. The way it should be done. I look forward to future classes here. read more

Two months ago I signed up for the course. The online portion is really great and goes over all the needed details. My issue is with the lack of clarity in instruction- Sue speaks clearly and loudly, sometimes too much so when you're on your bike and she screams something at you when you're nerves are already on edge and you're trying to do your best. Ricky was very condescending in tone when I made a mistake- I am NEW and this is what it is about, no? Tell me what to do right, show me, but don't talk to me like I'm an idiot. He failed to show me twice what I was doing wrong on the cone portion- he said when your front tire gets to the cone brake quickly to prepare for an emergency situation. At first I let off the throttle and he said I braked too early- That's called deceleration, not braking Ricky So, I did the maneuver again; my front tire got to the cone and I braked fast- as we're suppose to do, he told me to go back in formation. Later as he was telling me I failed, he said I braked too soon- again, which I specifically did not! He was in front of me and could see my hands were not on the brakes until the cone.- Set a better line or something- I braked well, and on time, that I know. Teaching beginners is not an easy task- but c'mon, you're here. Be better! All in all- they have TWO days to give people the basics. They need more uniform communication and much better way to set expectations for what's on the test. Lastly, we def did not do a total of 10 hours of riding. First day we mounted up and got in about 4 and a bit, second day was less than 4. I went to BAMT to learn safe riding for a scooter, I wouldn't say that was well communicated overall. They should go through the test course once beforehand. I will practice more and ride a Revel around town. I don't mind that I failed I know I could use more practice so I take some blame, but I see lotsa room for improvement at BAMT. read more

Honestly 5 stars is not enough for this awesome course. The staff from the office to the instructors are great and very knowledgeable. This course is perfect for any riding experience and very confidence building. I was lucky enough to have Eric and Anthony as my instructors. They both were extremely knowledgeable, experienced, and had a passion for helping/teaching everyone. I highly recommend this course. Thank you again Bay Area Motorcycle Training read more

Took the motorcycle training course here and had a pretty positive experience. Instructors are great and did their best to provide quality coaching. Coming in with zero experience riding motorcycles or even with working manual transmissions, I actually did not end up passing the first time around. That being said I did learn quite a lot in terms of motorcycle basics and maneuvers. I came back the following week for more individualized coaching and a retest (which I passed) with Sue and I have nothing but praise for her teaching ability. I found the staff I interacted with to be genuinely interested in creating safe, knowledgeable riders, and after a quick visit to the DMV I am officially licensed! read more

Excellent course for beginners looking to get their M1 motorcycle license. I had almost no experience with motorcycles and the course was well laid out for me as a new rider. First we are sent instructions to login to eRider online learning and complete the first two of six lessons. Each lesson takes about an hour and is well produced; learners are shown videos with 'how-to's" then are given simple quizzes. If you pay attention and learn, then it's an easy class. My report card was emailed to me and I used that to present to the instructor to be granted access to the riding part of the session. I registered for the weekend morning classes in Alameda: 6:30am (prompt) to 12:00pm. Plenty of parking right near the USS Hornet, easy to see them setting up the bikes upon arrival. They do have helmets to borrow but due to Covid I brought my own helmet. Be sure to read the requirements, they are very strict! You must have the proper equipment to ride for your own safety; one person did not have the correct over-the-ankle leather boots and had to leave. Long pants that are durable and cover the ankle; long sleeve shirt/coat and leather gloves are all required (they do have a few pair of gloves to loan.) Oh, and wear your mask. Bring food and water; you will have several breaks during the class to return to your car to eat. They have a chemical toilet and hand sanitizer. There is a section of the paved parking area that is coned off for the course. Then the instructors move the inside cones to create different courses for you to follow to learn turning, weaving, swerving, braking, etc. The bikes they supply are sufficient, a mix of bikes like: Suzuki DR200, Kawasaki 200 street bike, Sym Wolf 150, Suzuki 150 street bike, and others. There are many with low step over height, great for short riders. None of the bike are outrageously powerful, and none are heavy, all can be easily picked up by anybody, so don't worry, you won't go careening off the pier or get crushed by some heavy bike. They are all easy to handle. The lesson starts so easy, they teach us about the throttle, brakes, clutch, gear shifting, etc. Then we start the bike, try rolling it, letting out the clutch very easily then riding around only in first gear, then after about 2 hours, we shift into second gear, hurray! We practiced shifting a lot, most of the remainder of the class was in 2nd gear. They didn't rush us, we all took our time and they helped those that needed extra help. There were 11 in our class. At the end of the class we all met with the instructors one-on-one to get feedback to prepare for the next class. After Saturday class we were given the code to access online lessons #3 and #4. These need to be completed before you arrive Sunday morning; each class is 1 hour, so plan accordingly. On Sunday be sure to arrive on time with all your gear, water and snacks. Sunday class is more challenging with slow speed maneuvers, leaning while turning, hard braking, managing intersections and more. But it's fun, and I enjoyed meeting my classmates, everybody is there to start a new adventure of riding so we are all happy to be there! The last 90 minutes is dedicated to a riding test for all; you need to complete the course in a reasonable time, not hit any cones; maneuver properly and stop in a reasonable distance in order to pass. At the end of Sunday's session we had another one-on-one and received our grade (pass/fail). I passed, hurray! But it appeared others may not have (I didn't stick around). It's important that new riders are skilled enough to control the bikes on the street for their safety and others. During the class one person dropped the bike 4 times; others hit cones during the test and were not able to demostrate adequate skills. I believe they did not pass, they may need more lessons and definitely need more time riding before they are ready. I know I need lots more time riding before I feel comfortable navigating busy streets and the highway. In conclusion, both the eRider online course and the riding course are excellent for new riders. The two instructors were professional, courteous and friendly, I thank them for a wonderful experience. And now off to the DMV, buy a bike and begin my riding adventure. Happy riding! read more

I only have good things to say about BAMT. Clear and complete explanations of everything a new rider needs to know in order to get started in motorcycling. And plenty of practice to get ready for the test at the end of Day 2 where, if you pass, the DMV will waive the need to take the in-person driving test (you still have to pass the DMV's written motorcyle-specific test). Huge shout out to Eric, Anthony and Sue of BAMT for their patience, knowledge and good nature! I'm grateful for the education and would wholeheartedly recommend you. read more

This is not a SCHOOL, it is a way for riders to avoid the DMV test. YOU will not be taught how to ride, but will be evaluated on the skills you have. So if you want to learn how to ride and develop the skills you need to ride safely, but have no prior experience DO NOT waste your money here. This is an unkind, unscrupulous establishment. They do not care if you learn or not. If you don't get it in the first go, they will not allow you to complete the course. You have just lost $350. Of course, they will say they only care about SAFETY, so they can't let you out to endanger others, but they make sure the only way to learn is to come back again and again to sold out classes, hoping you might get a standby place. The instructors are such poor educators. This one just had you watch her ride around the oval. Bye, bye hard earned money!!!! read more

Very disorganized and unresponsive. I signed up for a course and never received my email confirmation to access the online course. Therefore could not take the physical course. The company didn't acknowledge my phone calls or emails regarding needing to access my course before the class. They offer no support on weekends if u have questions before a Monday physical class. A lady finally returned my call on what was suppose to be my second physical day of class. She didn't address ANY of my concerns regarding not being able to take the physical course as I wasn't sent the eRider course. The first email I received from them, was the eRider course access on supposedly second day of my class which at that point didn't benefit me. I emailed and called them back for the past 3 months to discuss a plan for standby class, no acknowledgment or return reply of either. At this point I wouldn't even deal with this unresponsive company. I know they were in the wrong for not sending me the online course info in time for my class. And now does not want to take any accountability! Very unprofessional. read more

Great experience! Great instructors! Eric, Earl and Sue were great coaches and super patient. Would highly recommend taking this class if you are new to motorcycles. read more

I have attended the advance riding academy level 1 and I found it an extremely well done class, I enjoyed the instructors and the material, to the point I have purchased the Total Control book. The class provides the base for safer riding, particularly effective for me was the section related to the body positioning, I feel now so much more confident approaching turns at whatever speed, being able to dive right in with previously unknown confidence. The bike is composed, the lines are tight, and everything works just like you would expect them to do! Highly recommended to be a better, safer motorcycle rider. read more

The instructors and class were great, but the customer service by the company could not have been worse. I sent them a picture of my California DL and I was told that was ok since I only physically had my out of state DL. When I went to finally pick up my certificate after passing the class I was told I could not get my certificate until I had a physical copy of my California DL. This took several weeks and during that time communication with the company was nearly impossible. I would email, text, and call to no response and was unsure if I had spent hundreds of dollars for nothing. When I finally got my physical CA DL I was told they would mail it to me, but never received it. Then I was told that I could pick it up in person, but never was told a location or time to do so. When I finally got a hold of someone they seemed surprised that I hadn't received my certificate yet despite me trying almost every avenue to do so. This whole process took almost three months after I had completed the class. Quite stressful and time consuming. I'd personally recommend another class that has better customer service since the company seems to be run by a skeleton crew on the back end. If any issues arise around paperwork or something outside of the class itself then you should be ready for a nightmare! read more

I highly recommend taking this course if you have little to no experience riding on two wheels. The three instructors I got were pretty cool and patient Kevin Magee, Erik Guzman and Lisa Billings they were all really informative and eager to teach every single one of us.. it seems like they love what they do and have fun with the students.. do not be intimidated and just give it a try, you'll have a lot of fun with these three.. read more

Please stay away from this school unless you can handle an abusive, hostile and discriminative teaching environment, especially if you are a true "beginner" or a slower learner with no prior experience on a motorized vehicle. (With this said, bad experiences are usually related to certain instructors' behaviors. But considering you can not choose who your instructors might be, please take precaution). As a MSF beginner course, instructors read instructions off of a handbook, and then immediately ask students go into practice. This approach is fine as long as instructors are patient enough to take follow-up questions. However, when your clarifying questions are "basic" or considered "stupid" by the instructors, they gave really harsh and passive aggressive responses that discourage you from asking more. In one exercise, I asked "so just to clarify, all I need to do is x,y,z, right?" Instructor then threatened me harshly and I quote: "What (else) do you think then? I'm gonna cancel you out of the class because I can't believe you are asking me such a basic question"; In another exercise, I made a mistake (it was my fault as I didn't understand the instructions clearly). I was scolded at because of this, so I explained "sorry I misunderstood your instruction as I thought I need to do XYZ..." Instructor responded passive aggressively "What were you thinking??? Does XYZ have cones on them??" This resulted in a vicious cycle: you were discouraged from asking more questions, and eventually you made more mistakes and in return getting more abusive reactions from frustrated instructors. Students were thrown into each practice with fear, nervousness, and utmost confusion. This sentiment was shared across students even those who were performing well and past the test. I do not recommend anyone to sign up for this school. There are other MSF courses in the Bay Area which are highly reviewed with much more attentive instructors who truly care about coaching and teaching. Do not waste your time here. read more

I completed the afternoon course at the Alameda location in June 2022. The instructors were very good. They talk fast, and assume you understand the instructions, and they may even appear to be gruff, but are very accommodating to any questions. So if you don't understand the particular drill, they will repeat it until you understand it. They want you to learn...and avoid an accident. There's a lot of different painted lines on the training ground, and the cones are no longer brightly colored, so it was a little difficult for some, including me, to understand directions. I think there were 14 people in my class. I think about 5 did not pass (mostly they were just too timid...you need to be comfortable going 15mph in order to pass). Those that don't pass are able to repeat the course at no charge. 12 of the 14 motorcycles were brand new BMWs. Most were a forward leaning style, which wasn't comfortable for my hip. They allowed me to switch to a different cycle with a more traditional upright seating. I took the e-rider online course in advance (instead of the classroom course.) The training videos were excellent. It really helped me become hyper aware of all that's around me as i'm riding. It's made me a better auto driver as well. They also offer some other courses for graduates of the first course...these other courses are to improve proficiency. One thing to be aware of is that it can take 10 days to receive your certificate of completion by mail. You can request to pick it up in person, but you have to let them know right away. So if you want to pick it up, look for the email from them right after the course.) If the one they mailed gets lost in the mail, this will cause you grief. (They say they can't replace one that's lost in the mail.) Picking up the cert in person requires scheduling an appointment and going to Treasure Island. The Alameda location is good for the sumertime, as the breeze keeps the temps down. Allow extra time to arrive the first time as your navigational aid might not give you the precisely accurate location. read more

Went into the class having not ridden a motorcycle before. With the help of Carl, Kevin, and John, I was riding before I knew it. They were excellent instructors and you could see the passion they have for motorcycles and that energy transferred over to us students. 100% recommend to anyone thinking of learning to ride a motorcycle. read more