Traffic unit officer describes motorcycle training, monthly practice and mentorship

Greta Taylor, a traffic unit officer who grew up near Peachtree City, said she learned to ride and operate a police motorcycle through a formal training regimen that included two weeks of motor school (80 hours) and monthly practice sessions at the Henry County airport.

Taylor said she had never ridden a motorcycle before joining the unit and credited fellow officers Jason McKinnon and Steve Wolgamott with teaching her the basics and mentoring her through the training. “They literally taught me how to ride the motorcycle,” she said.

She described motor school as intensive: “It is very thorough, very, very, very difficult training. You go through cone courses. You go through speeding exercises,” Taylor said, adding that officers also complete braking exercises and other drills used to build judgment and control. The unit also conducts monthly training with Henry County at the airport, she said.

Taylor said the mental demands were as important as the physical skills. “It’s probably the hardest mental training that you can do as a police officer. Once you set your mind to it, you can do anything,” she said, and urged persistence: “Just don't give up. Expect the unexpected.”

Taylor noted she has been on the traffic unit for almost three years and described motorcycle patrol as “a super fun and cool way of doing my job” and another tool for serving the community.