bike test

esteemed members of u.r.motorcycles,

I'd be very grateful for descriptions of what you had to do on your bike
test. I've been riding for a few months and am wondering about doing a
test next week or the week after. Did you have lessons or just go for
it? I am thinking of a lesson or two just to check I am not awful.
Is the test easy?

I saw on a website that a new element to the test will be bought in in
2005. Is this true? If so would I be best to just get it out the way now?

I have a '97 CG125/BR-T [1] (capable of 100km/hr, just about). From
others' posts I summise this is steed is suitable for the test. But, the
battery is dead. Hence at junctions I have to rev the engine a little
for indicators to flash. Should I get this fixed before the test?

Has anyone used test centres near Birmingham (Kingstanding, Coventry,
Rugby, ...) for their test? I did my car test at Kingstanding and can
vaguely remember the route. Can I expect the bike route to be similar?

Any other tips? I don't really want to throw £50 away

Thanks
Pete

[1] does the sign

 

Will I do?

Probably a good idea. At the very least they'll tell you what to expect on
your test.

Easier than the car test, for my money, because you haven't got an examiner
set next to you occasionally writing things down.

What new element? On my test (which was 9 years ago) I had to do an
emergency stop and a feet-up U-turn. It's hard to see what else they could
add, although I think there's some new-fangled computer hazard awareness
thingy now.

It's suitable for the A or A1 test; the former allows you to ride a bike of
any capacity with up to 33bhp for two years, after which you can ride
anything; the latter limits you to a 125cc bike of no more than 14.5hp until
the end of time.

If it's touch and go whether your bike will do 100kph (which is a
requirement for the A test) then you should make sure your examiner knows
that it will.

Well it will be the same test centre, but they'll have a number of routes
that they use.

Get at least one lesson, it will be worth it and your instructor will be
able to tell you whether you're ready for the test or not.

--
AndrewR, D.Bot (Celeritas)
Kawasaki ZX-6R J1, Audi 100 Avant Quattro
BOTAFOT#2,ITJWTFO#6,UKRMRM#1/13a,MCT#1,DFV#2,SKoGA#0 (and KotL)
BotToS#5,SBS#25,IbW#34, TEAR#3 (and KotL), DS#5, COSOC#9, KotTFSTR#
The speccy Geordie twat.

 

I rode around a few cones one week then a few weeks later rode round the
block a couple of times.

 

I rode around the block a couple of times and did an emergency stop.
I was very careful to take the mirrors *off* my bike, 'cos the examiners
were known to be keen about looking back...

I had the headlight of my RD250 on and the battery died halfway round and
I had to push the stoopid bike to get it going again. After turning the
light off, I resumed my test.

I wonder to this day whether the examiner spotted me

 

Peter Windridge said...

I turned up on a friends KE100, I rode round the block until a bloke
stepped out so I stopped quickly. I saw the same bloke a cople of more
times then he gave me a pass certificte. I rode out of the test centre
on another friend's Honda CB900. Total time, 10 minutes.

 

Lozzo emerged from their own little world to say

What was it like in the war, Grandad?

 

wessie said...

You're so very close to the truth sometimes.

 

Feb 1985, snowed overnight, drizzle during test. Round a single block,
examiner couldn't see me until I returned to front of test station [1] -
passed. He clearly wasn't interested in being outside.

Easiest thing on the planet, but I think they've changed it a little now.

[1] Where he'd stood for what could have only been 2 minutes in total.

 

I rode an ancient BSA 350 single around a couple of blocks in
Chippenham. A bloke with a clipboard jumped out in front of me and I
tried to avoid killing him by chucking a large anchor off the back of
the bike.
He later gave a me a pass certificate.
The bike broke down on the way back to Colerne and I had to get
recovered in a 4 tonner.

--
ColonelTupperware,
spouting bollocks on Usenet since 1997
Usenet FAQ at
http://www.its.caltech.edu/its/services/internetapps/news/news2.shtml
UPCE FAQ at http://upce.org.uk/ UKRM FAQ at http://www.ukrm.net/faq/

 

Yes, it's quite new but see http://tinyurl.com/4s8fr for the
introductory video.

TimP

 

Absolutely. Goddamn Nippon CBT types....

TimP

 

You are well advised to take lessons.

It is if you're well prepared.

It could be all change soon. The test will be in two parts, first of
all the standard test which will allow you to ride a restricted bike,
then after a year there might be another test or an assessment before
you're allowed on to any bike.

No, routes are constantly changing.

Don't crash. It hurts.

 

Was there room for the bike as well?

 

Nah, it was a POS so we put it in a trailer.

--
ColonelTupperware,
spouting bollocks on Usenet since 1997
Usenet FAQ at
http://www.its.caltech.edu/its/services/internetapps/news/news2.shtml
UPCE FAQ at http://upce.org.uk/ UKRM FAQ at http://www.ukrm.net/faq/

 

Colonel Tupperware said...

I sold my Thunderace to a bloke stationed at Colerne with 29(I think)
Sigs Air Support Sqn.

When I rode up to the gates I thought the place looked familiar, so I
called my dad and he said we lived there when I was 8. My memory is
terminally fucked.