New style bike test - scrapped

[MisterTommyH]

The 'swerve' is not a problem, in the wet or the dry. It's not even really a swerve it's an avoidence, and there is plenty of room to brake after you have completed the avoidence. The hard part is actually achieving the required speed.

It teaches you how to change direction fairly quickly rather than to keep going in a straight line. It helped me anyway.

If there is any problem with the test it is the speed requirement. It being in KM, it being at a speed over the legal limit that the scenario is trying to imitate (30mph)

Originally Posted by Stig

Stuff

+1. More important to learn not to panic, than learn how to steer the bike. The government are either trying to solve the wrong problem, or they are going about it in the wrong way. Better to have done the swerve test than not IMO, as it's one extra physical skill that the rider has before hitting the road, but it won't stop many newbies from crashing as it is not lack of that physical skill that causes most of them to crash, it's lack of mental skill.

[timwilky]

why not get rid of the "old" test and go back to the proper test and conditions. 250 on L plates and 4 times round the block looking for the fat wheezy guy who will step out hoping you can do your emergency stop

Originally Posted by timwilky

why not get rid of the "old" test and go back to the proper test and conditions. 250 on L plates and 4 times round the block looking for the fat wheezy guy who will step out hoping you can do your emergency stop

Worked for me.

[yorkie_chris]

Originally Posted by timwilky

why not get rid of the "old" test and go back to the proper test and conditions. 250 on L plates and 4 times round the block looking for the fat wheezy guy who will step out hoping you can do your emergency stop

Fact is as soon as you have license you will go through the exact same learning curve as you would have done with the old test.

Having come off the test bike during my MOD1 and learning from it, I'm all for it staying! The reason I came off was because I approached the wrong set of cones instead of the speed trap set, upon realising I made the common newbie mistake of braking whilst turning fairly sharply. That's the only problem I have with the new test, it's like a sea of cones and I got confused, the examiner said that it happens often but most stop when they realise lol.

Yeah it cost me £130 (100mile trip and hire of the bike) and a sprained wrist/black toe, but it was a lesson well learnt and in a safe enviroment.

A few points as a guy who did Mod 1 and Mod 2:

1. CBT where I did it was a joke. A guy and his gal were CBT'ing on the same day as me, and the girl stacked it on a right hand turn from a junction coming out onto a narrow road. Poor clutch control, was looking at the pavement in front not looking where she was going, and panicked, broke/hit the curb, fell on her butt. She didn't have much confidence to ride after that but oh hold on...she paid so she was entitled to her CBT right?! Well she got it...madness. I take YC's point about 16/17 yrs olds needing easy transport, but if that doesn't fail a CBT, what does? They'd probably even nail your CBT certificate on your coffin if you die in the process.

2. This mod1 beef always seems to go back to the swerve test. I found it very fun, and the cones were put even closer at our test centre so come exam time it was a doddle. Not naieve enough to think a swerve test will give you much experience in avoiding calamities, as that comes with experience and learning not to panic. But why not learn an extra skill as oppose to not? Being expected to swerve around a bunch of well spaced cones at 30+mph is not an unrealistic expectation, and the media seems to love hyping up all these people that came off and got injured doing it.

3. Most tests in most aspects of life are always naturally limited by the time frame involved and lack of experience. I mean take a guy who does DAS in 5 days having never ridden or driven before and passes first time - what has he proven? That he control a bike and not fall into certain error categories in a 45 minute assessment. The limitations of tests is just one of those facts of life, just like a last minute exam crammer who will forget everything after a couple of weeks. I don't see what this over meddling with tests is really going to achieve anyway.

[yorkie_chris]

Originally Posted by Jordy

Yeah it cost me £130 (100mile trip and hire of the bike) and a sprained wrist/black toe, but it was a lesson well learnt and in a safe enviroment.

You will learn more falling off 13 times on a 125 and it will be cheaper

Originally Posted by Viney

Fair enough, but what they should do is introduce a compuslary bike test for ALL bikes/scooters/3 wheelers and even Harly riders. Not a CBT, or any of that nonsense a proper full on bike test from the outset, like cars.

I think that would result in even more illegal riders on the road.

Whatever gets the most bums on bikes is the best route, imho.