San Francisco Motor Cops Can Chase You Up Stairs + Video
Let’s get one thing out of the way: trying to evade the police is dumb. One way or another you’re going to lose. And if you’re thinking of evading a San Francisco motor cop, or a law enforcement officer trained by them, by heading off the beaten path or up a flight of stairs, think again. Armed with dual-sport motorcycles, stairs are hardly an obstacle.
The SFPD’s Honda unit (otherwise known as the dirt bike unit) has an intense two-week training course to teach its own officers, and sometimes those in other agencies, the ins and outs of tactical riding in off-road, trail-like conditions — an area a typical police bike, or worse yet, a Crown Victoria, can’t reach. Apart from the dirt, however, the training also places a heavy emphasis on stairs training.
Starting with your standard cones course, the students learn the basics of motorcycle maneuvering, ramping up the intensity progressively over time. When ready, the training moves to the streets and trails of San Francisco, including Golden Gate Park, where stairs are then introduced.
“We come across situations where…we might have to pursue or go into terrain that requires us to go up stairs,” says Peter Richardson, an officer of the SFPD Honda Unit. “These bikes are capable of doing it, but at the same time we need to be able to do it in a safe manner. That’s what we emphasize in the training.”
What does the training look like? Check the video below to find out. Courtesy of KTVU.com.
Troy's been riding motorcycles and writing about them since 2006, getting his start at Rider Magazine. From there, he moved to Sport Rider Magazine before finally landing at Motorcycle.com in 2011. A lifelong gearhead who didn't fully immerse himself in motorcycles until his teenage years, Troy's interests have always been in technology, performance, and going fast. Naturally, racing was the perfect avenue to combine all three. Troy has been racing nearly as long as he's been riding and has competed at the AMA national level. He's also won multiple club races throughout the country, culminating in a Utah Sport Bike Association championship in 2011. He has been invited as a guest instructor for the Yamaha Champions Riding School, and when he's not out riding, he's either wrenching on bikes or watching MotoGP.
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