Hi all, So I’ve recently started the process of becoming a blood biker and thought I’d start a thread to record the process! Hopefully some of you find it interesting or can pass on words of wisdom! So far all I’ve done is register and pay for my advance rider course with the IAM, obviously not a lot is happening on that front but I’ve got in early so I can get cracking when restrictions allow. They’ve put me in touch with my local group who are the Wey Valley Advance Motorists (WVAM) and I’ve chatted to them now so am now sorted to get started when possible. I received my IAM log book through the post today so will start to flick through that when I get a chance and have also ordered a copy of the latest Roadcraft book on WVAM’s recommendation. I’ve also been in touch with SERV to register my interest with them (thanks for your help Crispey). I’ve volunteered as a car driver to begin with as you don’t need advance qualifications to do that and then once I’ve passed () my advance rider course I can volunteer as a rider too. Again unfortunately that has to wait for the time being as they can’t run any of their training programs but I’m on the list ready for when restrictions are eased sufficiently! I’m super excited about going through this process and even more excited about becoming a blood biker. When the pandemic struck I volunteered for the Bike Shed Community Response scheme and found it massively rewarding. And if nothing else an excellent excuse to get out and ride more! Sorry this post is LONG but I’ll try and post updates as and when I have them. If you find it interesting/useful that’s great and if not that’s fine. Any tips or advice would be much appreciated! Cheers chaps! Ride safe (eventually!)
Well done - I have also though about volunteering so keen to learn from you. Also interested in the Way Valley IAM group so will look them up as they are probably the nearest group to me.
Good on ya Matt. My wife and I both rode for SERV out of New Maldon for a few years in the early nineties. Sounds like you need a few more qualifications now so good luck with all that.
Great thread and I too will be interested to hear.how you get on. I started this journey too, about 18 months ago. I went down the RoSPA route for advanced riding. While the tuition and support was excellent, I am unsure if it was "for me". However I intend to try the IAM route and see if that suits me better. Good luck....i look forward to up dates!
Nice one Matt, you'll find it very rewarding. I passed my IAM advanced test last February, just before the first lockdown. Here's your first tip - try and book your test later in the year, I had to ride through floods on my mock test and it snowed for a while on my full test. Registeted with SERVWessex in April but had to wait until September before being accepted and training began due to Covid, so a bit like your own situation. Wessex cover Hampshire, Wiltshire and Dorset so tend to do big miles as opposed to crispey's lot - last month the 3 man night shift had to cover 724 miles one night. I love it and I'm sure you will once you get going. Be prepared to get wet (when on the bike). Big tip would be to carry a towel in your top box or panniers and a spare pair of gloves otherwise you'll spend ages outside a hospital trying to put wet hands into unwilling gloves!
I volunteered for the local Blood Bikes 18 months ago. Suffice to say that although I have completed my RoSPA riding course (and gained a pass at Gold) I haven't got any further due to Covid. I have done a few runs with VRUK via FB but as I live too far away from most of their collections I don't do much!
Certainly the RoSPA or IAM route to advanced riding is well worth while. I went along the RoSPA route in the mid 90's and went onto become a RoSPA approved instructor. I was involved in a Blood Bike group and can confirm that it is very rewarding. The one job I distinctly remember was late on a Christmas eve night I had a shout to take a kidney just over 70 miles from one hospital to another for transplant. What a wonderful Christmas present for someone! Best of luck Matt on your journey!
Thanks for starting the thread. I retire(?) in three or five years time and was looking at doing the same thing (I already hold an on call commitment at the moment so have to wait). Will follow with interest
I've read this thread with great interest and even greater curiosity. I'd love to know what a "blood biker" is along with all the acronyms and various training courses/levels if anyone would be willing to explain. Thanks..... But even though I'm ignorant of the details, Matt, it does seem that wishing you good luck and well done is in order!
Morning Sandi... Blood bikers are volunteers who are on call to take blood and other bits around on short notice. They also take donated breast milk to people who need it. IAM - The Institute of Advanced Motorists RoSPA - Royal Society for the prevention of accidents They’re both just advance training you can complete to become a safer rider. And get a bit of money off your insurance!!! SERV - Service by Emergency Volunteer Rider They’re my local blood biker group so are the guys who run and it and send you out on your runs. There are different groups all over the country. Hope that make sense! Hopefully someone who knows a bit more will be along to correct any mistakes I’ve made!!! I’m just at the beginning of the journey so have a lot to learn! And thanks for all the well wishes everyone!!!!
Hi Sandi, Both IAM and ROSPA are charities which run advanced motorcycle training courses. I took the IAM route where you are assessed by an advanced instructor (mine had 35 years experience and was head of Hong Kong's police motorcycle unit for 12 years) - no pressure then! After that you are assigned an observer who takes you on 2 to 3 hour rides and further assess your skills or lack of them and then tells you how to improve. I was doing a weekend run every two weeks from November until January - and then when he's satisfied with your progress you are put forward for a mock test with an examiner. If he's happy with your standard of riding, you go on for your main test, which is about 90 minutes long and covers all types of riding situations. The course basically uses the system for training police motorcyclists (except for the rapid pursuit bit!). Incidentally, The System was devised in 1937 by racing driver Mark Everard Pepys, 6th Earl of Cottenham, to reduce accidents in police pursuits. Blood bikes run in the United Kingdom and Ireland, and are a network of largely independent registered charities, whose members are all unpaid volunteers, and who provide blood bike courier services in collaboration with their local healthcare authorities. Most are represented through the Nationwide Association of Blood Bikes and are used to courier urgent and emergency medical items including blood, X-rays, samples, drugs, and documentation between hospitals and other healthcare facilities. We also supply regular blood deliveries to the local Air Ambulance (every 24 or 48 hours). It's normal to do a 12 hour shift from 7.00 until 7.00 day or night time - I'm currently on a day shift (it's 08.02 am here at the moment) but have no calls yet. Daytime runs at the moment are likely to be medication deliveries for patients shielding from Covid so I will probably be called down to the main Portsmouth hospital to pick up around 4 or 5 packages from their pharmacy to deliver to individual addresses. I usually cover about 120 miles on average. We have marked bikes and cars but most riders use their own and pay for their own fuel. Hope that helps!
Great idea for a thread and an ongoing story line. Good luck with the formalities and keep the updates coming!!
Welcome to the BB world Matt! Been doing it a few years now and it is very rewarding. Been interesting over the Covid period too seeing how the work has changed in response to it. My group in Nottinghamshire supply the bikes, although I know some groups don't. We also don't do any blue light training as it isn't necessary where we are, but again I know some do. You'll love it DS
SERV Wessex don't use blue lights as it is essentially an urgent service not an emergency one. Blue lights may be used if you are trained ie. ex police rider or ambulance driver, but rarley. Our new bikes won't have them fitted anymore - not sure if all groups will be the same though.
Thanks to you both, @MattGaydon and @steve lovatt, for the informative and detailed posts. I appreciate you taking the time to clarify the organizations, services, and acronyms for me. Yes, I continue to learn something new pretty much every time I log in to this forum.
Well done Matt. Hopefully there’ll be virtual inductions soon then once the rule of 6 comes in we’ll be able to do familiarisation and assessment rides again. ive had a busy start to the week this week. Sunday night on shift as rider had 2 call outs, 21:00 an urgent one with platelets to a central london hospital 04:30 another urgent platelets to a hospital out in Surrey. Got back home 10 mins before my daytime controlling shift started at 06:00, these are fairly quiet as we only do milk, air ambulance restocks and link ups with other groups. We don’t service the hospitals weekdays. Had a call from another group asking us to help relay an urgent sample coming from Merseyside to a london lab, we were the last relay that involved 4 groups! I then got another call from a group asking the same but for great ormond st hospital, the country’s main children’s hospital, this involved 3 seperate groups. Because of the timings I didn’t have a spare rider so got another controller to cover the end of my shift and went out myself, getting home at 19:45. Today I’m collecting donated milk for a neonnatal unit in central london then will start my 18:00 to 06:00 controlling shift tonight. This shows how rewarding it is as I’m the laziest bugger around and if I’m willing to do all this I must be getting something out of it!!
Bugger riding in and out of London - I had a nice ride down to Bournemouth in the sunshine to pick up one sample and deliver it to Southampton General.
I do not mind you asking - alas I do no know the differences between them. It sounds like others may know though... My reason for stopping RoSPA (but wouldn't say "no" to returning) was quite personal - in the sense personal to me, and not a reflection at all or in any way on the excellent training they provide. I just wasn't sure if the way I was expected to ride was how I wanted to ride. And, with that in mind I wonder(ed) if the IAM route may be different or suit me better. (I am happy to elaborate - it wasn't personal like that - just keeping it brief )
