Officials Give Motorcyclists Chance To Test Skills

FALCON HEIGHTS (AP) - Officials with the Minnesota Department of Public Safety are giving motorcyclists a chance to test their rider skills, and be evaluated by a certified instructor.

Officials will have the Motorcycle Safety Center's SMARTrainer at the Vintage Motorcycle Show on Friday and Saturday at the Minnesota State Fairgrounds.

The trainer has standard controls found on a real motorcycle and a virtual environment to practice riding.

Preliminary reports for this year show that 12 riders have lost their lives on Minnesota roads. A total of 55 rider deaths were reported in all of 2012.

Motorcycle ridership is at record-high levels in Minnesota. There are over 237,000 registered motorcycles and 405,000 licensed operators in the state.