Here's one concrete example of a very valuable strategy that they teach in the MSF class. I use this technique several times a week, generally. You are approaching an intersection where a car coming from the opposite direction is stopped waiting to turn left. You are following an SUV, so it is hard for the stopped car to see you, and there is a moderate chance they will turn quickly right after the SUV clears and take you out. So you take the left wheel-track lane position behind the SUV, a little back of normal position as you approach the intersection. This makes you as visible as possible to the stopped car. Just as you get to the intersection, you pull into the right wheel track and accelerate up closser to the SUV. This uses the SUV as a "blocker" to make it harder for the stopped car to turn too soon and take you out. Finally, you watch the stopped car to see if they are going to mis-time their turn and have a chance of hitting you. If it looks close, you accelerate sharply (see, no Ninja 500) to the right up closer to the SUV, and even alongside the right side if it's that close.
That technique is not something you're going to figure out on your own, probably, so it's great that the MSF has compiled that trick and a bunch of other ones into its class. There is also a set of VERY important tricks and techniques to use when lane splitting, and they only mention a few of them in the MSF class (depends on the instructor). It's good to have an experienced rider as a mentor as you start riding. My son (now 12) has been riding with me on the street for several years, and we talk a lot about different survival strategies. When he gets his license, I plan on putting radios in our helmets, so we can ride together and talk about situations as they come up. Riding is dangerous, but knowledge and practice and skill mitigate the level of danger tremendously, IMO.
http://www.msf-usa.org/
