IAM "Skill for Life" course...recommended?

[Grahamm]

You're assuming I need more practice and experience.

Well, yes, because I don't (or didn't) know how much riding you've done etc.

There's a section on my commute that involves overtaking into oncoming traffic. I don't many many bikes do. No amount of training in the world is going to make me put myself in that position. So will I never pass an 'advanced' test due to lack of progress.

Err, now you're making assumptions!

Just because other bikers do it, doesn't mean that it's sensible (eg treating the gap between two lines of traffic as a "bikes only" lane!)

"Making progress" isn't necessarily a simple matter of "do this, don't do that" because it's very dependant on the situation at the time and the flip-side is "riding with due restraint", ie knowing when it's better to hold back.

If there's on-coming traffic, holding back may be the best thing to do. If, on the other hand, there's nothing coming, there's no side turnings, places where pedestrians could suddenly appear from etc and you stay sitting in the traffic instead of using the ability of a bike to move up the traffic, you might get marked down for not making progress.

The best thing, of course, is actually to go out there with an Observer and get their comments.