Ottawa Safety Council Review

Will not recommend OSC. They were very nice and polite prior to payment. During the weekend training, I was shouted down to and in general was not taken seriously as the negative attitude of the shouter seemed to have infected the rest who felt really comfortable making snide remarks to me thereafter. I did not realize how bad all of this was looking until other students came to me and commented about what they noticed. I studied the parts of a bike and spent a lot of time trying to learn online in advance since I never had seat time before and did not own a bike. One instructor found I was too detailed in the way I spoke when I attempted to recount what I was doing to try and identify what I was not doing right. Yes, I am fluent in English but it appears my accent was off-putting? The day of my test, my bike that I had been practicing on all along was gone. I had to take my test on a different one?!! Overall, I failed and just was relieved not to have to withstand the negativity from the instructors. Shameless, was this a money grab?

Thanks to Ottawa Safety Council, I feel much better that my baby is safe in his car seat. Kristine went out of her way to help me ensure my car seat was installed correctly! Thank you so much!!!!

Had a blast! Not only were the instructors informative and knowledgeable, they made the course super fun. Passed my M2 and learned alot over the weekend thanks to the the wonderful staff.

To anyone taking the M1 exit test: Remember that you will be graded on technique and speed in the test. The teachers wont tell you that you will be graded on speed but that is the most important criteria. For each part of the test, your performance will be measured using a stop watch and points will be dinged for little slow, slow and very slow (1, 3 and 5 resp.). If you are dinged 12 points you will fail the test.

I highly recommend the M1 exit course for both beginners and those who have riding experience. Although I had >10 years of motocross riding experience I was amazed at how much knowledge I absorbed over the weekend course. All of the OCS instructors were very professional and since they are volunteers you know they are genuinely interested in your safety and success. Huge shoutout to my instructors Holly and Liz, who kept a smile on their face all weekend even through the cold and wet weather. 10/10 would recommend to anyone looking to get their first bike or refresh their skills.

we thought we knew it all, but Andy and Brent with there patience, knowledge and experience have taught us how to ride safely and cautiously . They made it easy" like a ride in the park" ! I'm sure Brent enjoyed the fumes from our bikes!

A special thanks from Amer and Sammy ( father and son)!

The carseat safety clinics are so helpful, we learned things we would have never considered on our own and things even other parents we know weren't aware of. They were super helpful in recommending carseats that fit our needs.

Wonderful, caring and patient instructors. Having never ridden a motorcycle before, I learned a lot over the course of a weekend. Definitely an exhausting experience and a lot of material to absorb, but well worth it in my mind.

A couple things I should mention. They do have bikes in various sizes, but if you are shorter in stature (~5 ft), you will not find a bike where you can put your feet down flat when you sit on it. My practice bike was a Sym Wolf 150cc. and I was able to touch the ground with my toes. Not a deal breaker, but something to be aware of. Also, I think it helps if you spent some time riding (at least in a parking lot) before doing this course, and you should have some knowledge of basic bike operation although they do try to introduce new skills slowly.

My one and only experience with OSC was about eight years ago, after I bought my first bike, and had already ridden it on my M1 license well over 3000 kms in the previous two months going on charity rides and trips to the Toronto area and back.

On the first day driving on their parking lot course things didn t start out very well. I ended up having to change the bike they provided three times throughout the day. Their equipment was not properly cared for.

They had just brought in two new instructors that were so badly trained, that with the crew of student bikers assigned to them for the day, most of the time we were given one set of instructions at one end of the parking lot, and contradicting instructions at the other end by the 2nd instructor, making all of us very confused.

When one of them started yelling at me because I didn t do what he said, I got angry and told him that he and the other instructor needed to me get their act together. He didn t like that.

That vindictive douchebag ended up being my tester for my road exam the next day. I rode the test flawlessly. The whole crew I was with that weekend all passed their test except me.

I left feeling like I just wasted my money and an entire weekend.

I got lucky with one of the area Ontario drive exam locations and got an appointment the very next week. Not only did I pass the road text, I was given a perfect score, something the examiner there said was rare, but considering the distances I had driven just previously to the test, it wasn t surprising.

A year and a half later, I took the M2 course with RTI. The instructors there really knew their stuff and were excellent teachers. They were on a completely different spectrum than the really bad OSC instructors. I had no problem moving up into my full M.

I d never, ever recommend OSC to anyone getting a M license. They re very unprofessional. They treat their students like they re teaching them a hobbie, or something. which I think makes them dangerous.

If you need a great M1, or M2 course, go to RTI, or Agonquin College. They have far better teachers there. They also have courses running out of Goodtime Centre.

Took the motorcycle training M1 exit course. Would recommend.

Loved this course! The instructors were informative, helpful and they made the experience a lot of fun. Lots of laughing, even in all the rain. I highly recommend the M1 Exit course with these guys, learned some great points, leaving this course with more knowledge comfort. Big thanks to the instructors for an awesome weekend.

Very professional and friendly staff! Would recommend to everyone!! Lots of learning! Thanks a lot OSC!!

Disorganised, money grab, unsafe..do not waste your time or money.

Well organized, safety is truly their goal and made the course fun. These guys are amazing.