Part 1 motorcycle test.

[chopster125]

My first queiry is that if anyone has done it please share what it is like. 
second is the swerve test i have heard many different opinions some say it is dangerous and some say its fine? 
disuss 

[kaychanc]

the test is a peice of piss... passed with no probs.. (not really...) the swerve is dead easy though... come  round the bend in 2nd gear and rec the bollocks off the bike down to the speed trap... lean gentley to the right or left depending on which way the examiner sends you round and brake as soon as you clear the swerve bringing the bike to a gentle stop inside the blue cones...

it's best to do it in london with north london motorcycle training... they have access to the enfield test center for practice runs..

[chopster125]

awesome because my dad and i are both doing it. we both have very good road sense so the part 2 shouldnt be a problem.
Hes doing on a big boys bike though haha.

[templar]

It's only likely to be dangerous in the wet, or so I've been told (I deliberately got my license before DLD2 came in), and when it is assumed to be too wet, they bin the swerve altogether (I read in a magazine recently - MCM or Ride I think).

[kaychanc]

make sure you do you observations! you could do a flawless test but if you fail to do road observations the examiner will fail you!!

[chopster125]

oh dont i know about observations lol
i have my Driving test next tuesday and observations are key so they have been drilled into my brain 
yes i read that article too its banned if its wet or icy so fingers crossed eh? 
 
I dont think ill have a problem 
then its two years till big bike  and ill be going to EVERY meet up 

[kaychanc]

It's only likely to be dangerous in the wet, or so I've been told (I deliberately got my license before DLD2 came in), and when it is assumed to be too wet, they bin the swerve altogether (I read in a magazine recently - MCM or Ride I think).

they sometimes will still make you do the swerve... i was there on a wet day and they still made me do the swerve and the E stop.... that's why i nearly failed as i waited till i cleared a puddle before applying the brakes and doing a stoppie! the guy with me failed as he didn't have the courage to swerve and hit the cones.....

[chopster125]

so is it best to do it in their bike then?
(if you have that option)

[kaychanc]

yes always use the training school bikes...  you have no fear on them as they aren't yours... i was on a brand new kawasaki er-6 provided by the training school.... yet i wouldn't mind dropping it cause it wasn't mine!

[bigdave]

Also the training school tend to select bikes with what you need to do with them in mind. When I did my test (back when everything was done on the public road) their was one person who insisted on doing the A2 on their Honda CBR125. Full lock on the steering was no where near the full lock of the schools CG125s so when asked to do the turn in the road they did more of a r turn than a U turn.

[kaychanc]

couldn't have done it on my rs125! the blasted thing has no steering lock! plus it is a 2 stroke so the powerband would have kicked in just as i hit the swerve and that would have spun me out!

[DastardlyDick]

Also the training school tend to select bikes with what you need to do with them in mind. When I did my test (back when everything was done on the public road) their was one person who insisted on doing the A2 on their Honda CBR125. Full lock on the steering was no where near the full lock of the schools CG125s so when asked to do the turn in the road they did more of a r turn than a U turn.

I did a DAS course and I was very happy to get off the School's 125 (a Chinese copy of a CB125!) as my knees were the steering lock 

[woodstock521]

Again everyones different. My housemate failed his swerve because he changed into 3rd instead of revving the nuts off his virago, making him 1mph too slow. He struggled to do anything on a training school CG because he was so uncomfortable with the position compared to the virago, and postponed his test till his own bike. I would say its best to use your bike, presuming you have one to ride on plates, because you know how it rides, how it handles, its capabilities etc....

[Wiggarella]

if you do test on 125 then you are restricted for two years. Most schools make you do direct access on their bikes. If your doing 125 restricted, then you can use your own bike...
I did my test over the winter, the weather was terrible but they didn t scrap the swerve, i failed. resitting in the next few months when the weather is better!

[kaychanc]

if you do test on 125 then you are restricted for two years. Most schools make you do direct access on their bikes. If your doing 125 restricted, then you can use your own bike...
I did my test over the winter, the weather was terrible but they didn t scrap the swerve, i failed. resitting in the next few months when the weather is better!

wiggarella as i said to choppster head on to north london motorcycle training as they have acess to the enfield test grounds.... if you take the DAS with them they'll let you do it on a 06-09 ER-6 with abs so you won't skid in shit weather.... ( i didn't use an abs bike so i stoppied on the e-stop)

[nicoxj900]

To be honest, this test is a downgraded version of the one we have had for decades in France, and that I passed ... errrr ... 19 years ago.

I even had the opportunity to try it with my bike, but the slow circuit is too narrow for it and I cannot turn (got a Duc SuperSport). I tried with a 'standard' bike, and even 19 years later I can still pass it without any problem (well, one: with my bike I am too quick on the 30mph track and would fail it for that!)

I think this test is good ...

[kaychanc]

To be honest, this test is a downgraded version of the one we have had for decades in France, and that I passed ... errrr ... 19 years ago.

I even had the opportunity to try it with my bike, but the slow circuit is too narrow for it and I cannot turn (got a Duc SuperSport). I tried with a 'standard' bike, and even 19 years later I can still pass it without any problem (well, one: with my bike I am too quick on the 30mph track and would fail it for that!)

I think this test is good ...

the test is the dumbest thing i have ever seen... if there were more test centres and a standard between test centers then the test will be good.. but as it is it is a total unmitigated disaster!

[jimc]

the test is the dumbest thing i have ever seen... if there were more test centres and a standard between test centers then the test will be good.. but as it is it is a total unmitigated disaster!

I absolutely agree.

So a learner in wales in winter has to do over 100 miles on dangerous roads (don't comment unless you have ridden in Wales in winter) and on arrival, shivering cold, has to do this 'chimp test' then ride home?

A complete day taken up for both learner and trainer for a 10 quid test that frankly could be done on most school playgrounds, and is actually easier psychologically than the old 'U-turn'?

No wonder trainers are giving up, no wonder fewer folk are taking DAS A or restricted A2 tests.

However, for those who live within a few miles of the test centres, my personal (not MAG) POV is that it is actually a good test.

It's the lack of test centres that is the real problem, and the difficulty in finding set-out practice areas that exacerbates it.

[DastardlyDick]

One of the reasons that all the new Test Centres had to be constructed (at a cost of f*** knows how many millions) is that somebody in Whitehall didn't read the Legislation properly and so didn't notice that it procsribed the swerve and e-stop being done at 50kph (or 31mph)! Now, since most of the roads used in the 'old' test are in 30mph limits, they can hardly ask someone to break the Law to pass the test can they?
They should have asked for a 'derrogation' which would have allowed the UK to set a lower speed for the test.
Typical Whitehall screw up really!

[kaychanc]

I absolutely agree.

So a learner in wales in winter has to do over 100 miles on dangerous roads (don't comment unless you have ridden in Wales in winter) and on arrival, shivering cold, has to do this 'chimp test' then ride home?

A complete day taken up for both learner and trainer for a 10 quid test that frankly could be done on most school playgrounds, and is actually easier psychologically than the old 'U-turn'?

No wonder trainers are giving up, no wonder fewer folk are taking DAS A or restricted A2 tests.

However, for those who live within a few miles of the test centres, my personal (not MAG) POV is that it is actually a good test.

It's the lack of test centres that is the real problem, and the difficulty in finding set-out practice areas that exacerbates it.

Having done the test... i think it is quite a decent test as it can weed out the idiots who really don't deserve to drive... but there must be a standard to follow... too many time an instructor has walked to slowly on the slow ride or not allowed a simple mistake like a wheel lock up where another would... if there was some set standard i would welcome this test but as there isn't..... it can't continue!