SALEM Bikers in leather vests and jackets curse and yell in the front yard of a house on Harry Minto Court. Four police officers try to break up the gang, but the bikers manage to split up the cops, and a full-blown ruckus ensues.

Training coordinators interrupt the scene. Gathering the officers in a circle, the bikers are mostly retired officers, and the cops are rookies from across Oregon.

The experts offer advice: Dont be afraid to handcuff the bikers. Sit them down. Dont let them separate you from one another.

And then Take Two begins. This time, the officers speak with authority. They sit the bikers down. They show theyre in control.

Though populated by only a few dozen people, the quaint streets of Oregon Public Safety Academys scenario village are home to a constant parade of gang violence, drunken drivers and pipe bombs.

This village is crime-ridden by design. Its a fake town much like a Hollywood set, complete with a grocery store and jail cell. Here, officers attend training and prepare for real-world situations.

More than a dozen venues dot the 160-acre grassy landscape. There is a railroad track, train and school bus. One building can be set on fire again and again. Streets are named after fallen public safety workers.

Since the village opened in July 2006 as part of the $77 million public safety academy, it has been spruced up with furniture and items from companies, schools and private donors.

Previously, officers trained at Western Oregon Universitys campus at Monmouth and had to travel to different locations, such as an abandoned runway in Corvallis, just for shooting practice.

Oregon is an example of where training academies are going, according to Curtis Clarke, director of the Alberta Solicitor General Staff College in Canada. Clarke chaired an international police conference in Alberta in June where Campbell spoke. Clarkes new training facility will be modeled after Oregons.

At scenario village, small groups take part in situations such as drug busts or domestic violence. Volunteers, mostly retired cops, act as the criminals or troublemakers. Afterward, actors and officers gather in a circle for a debriefing.

The officers begin going to the village after six weeks of classes. Training is 16 weeks long. Officers spend Week 16, patrol week, acting like on-duty cops for the village.

The academy aims to make the village seem realistic. Guns can be shot with simmunition, capsules filled with colored soap. To enter, everyone must pass through a security check to make sure they do not have weapons that could be accidentally confused for fake ones.

Cmdr. Cameron Campbell, director of training, says officers used to be trained like robots. As a result, they would often freeze up or follow formulaic steps. Now, the academy pushes a different approach, urging officers to learn techniques but also to be creative if necessary to resolve problems. The guideline, he says, is to act in a way that is tactically sound and legally defensible.

Officer Chris Gryphon, of Portland, says he sees the value of hands-on learning and is surprised by how real the situations seem. The scenarios we do down here are my favorite part of the academy, he says. All the training flows together. I honestly cant imagine what itd be like to just have the classroom.