Newbie Help Please

[Spy]

Hi all,

I am new on here and a prospective biker.

I am 42 so passed my car driving test many moons ago (I think 1987). I have ridden bikes up to 250cc many, many years ago but have never had a bike licence or ridden a bike in the last 20 years.

I am now looking to getting a bike for commuting but don't want to be limited to 125cc so I have been looking at potentially signing up for either DAS or A2 training/tests but a little confused. I am hoping someone can help.

Essentially, is an A2 just for people under 21 and is exactly the same test as the DAS just on a lower capacity bike or is it an easier test than the DAS ?

Also, based on people's experiences, as a novice should I just sign up for a 6 day course and do the training and tests back to back, pass the test and then buy a bike ?

Thanks for your help

[skylineonfire]

A2 can be done at any age, basically you do your tests on a 125cc bike, and for the first two years of your riding career you are limited to 33bhp I think it is. After the two years is up you can ride anything you want.

DAS is exactly the same tests as A2 but taken on a "big bike" i.e a 650 or something, after passing this there are no restrictions and you can ride anything you like.

Exactly the same tests for both, just different bikes used. I'd argue the DAS is easier if anything due to the bigger bikes handling better than smaller 125's etc..

[Shinigami]

the tests are the same regardless of what you're riding, whether it be a scooter or a beast,

Do your CBT and see how you feel with a bike again then DAS course as you're confident as you've loads of road experience,

Personally Ive ridden for a year on cbt on my 125 as I had zero road experience beforehand, never had a single car or bike lesson before it, had never been on a bike before.
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Current: Honda City Fly CLR125 2003 Honda CB600F Hornet 2008 Yamaha FZ6 S2 + 1991 Kawasaki GPZ500
"Once you realize what a joke everything is, being the Comedian is the only thing that makes sense.

[yaigi]

As others have already explained how it all works, can I just add - do the DAS! Riding a bigger bike is SO much easier than a 125, and it'd be easier to do your Mod 1 too - more stable, easier to get up to the required speeds, quicker to stop
____________________
What would you do in life, if you knew you could not fail?
Currently own - Fazer 600, 2000, Red. (But no riding as baby on board atm)

[Spy]

[Spy]

[johny2bikes]

I was in a similar situation to yourself. Driving for 20 years then decided to I wanted to ride a motorcycle.

On advice from friends I did the CBT and bought a 125 which I rode for a couple of months before then doing my full test (A2). The experience helped greatly and I managed to do the mod 1 and mod 2 virtually on my own saving a fair bit of cash.

However I am restricted now to 33bhp, and with 18 months left it seems like a long time to go. In hindsight I wish I had probably gone Direct Access route and bought bigger bike straight off.

I think with 20+ years driving experience, your brain has less work load, and gives you more time for learning the bike specific elements. Also look at what you intend to use the bike for. I commute daily on mostly dual carriage way, and being only able to get to 60mph is a pain in the back side when stuck behind trucks etc. I could get a 250 I guess, but I am in a situation now where I think I would rather save my pennies for when my remaining 18 months is up. If I was only commuting around town in <40mph limits then the 125 would be fine.

However - I am finding with every day that passes that I am leaning new stuff on my bike, and perhaps staying on a 125 and having to push its limit more will teach me to ride my bike well, rather than being lazy on a bigger bike. I love riding and love learning as much as I can about it. Having to hold back for 18 months is almost giving me that chance to savour the experiance before moving up (Saying that I would still prefer a bigger bike )

Only my point of view and I am still a noob in the bike world but I hope this helps and good luck !!
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Current bikes - CBF-125 / R1250GSA
Old bikes - Triumph Speed Triple R

[yaigi]

[BigJoe78]

Personally I would go for DAS, thats what I did and got on much better with the 650 bike than the 125.

Others will advise against DAS but its all down to how you feel.
Considering you have previous experience on a bike and been on the road for 20 odd years i would see no problem with the DAS route.
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2013 ZX6R 636

[Spy]

Thanks for the feedback guys.

Although I have ridden bikes in the past, that was over 20 years ago and it wasn't for an extended period of time. Saying that, I do ride a bicycle so a not more aware of some of the hazards you need to be careful of on the road.

I would hope that I know enough about the road signs and road etiquette to concentrate on handling the bike but even so you still have to exaggerate certain movements during the test.

If the test is the same between the A2 and DAS I don't see much point in doing the A2. My initial plan was to do the CBT, get a 125cc and do the DAS later.

But I have some time on my hands at the moment and hence was thinking I could do the DAS during weekdays and not waste money on a 125cc in the meantime.

Out of interest, on average how quickly do Mod1 and Mod2 tests take to come through from the DVLA ?

[Andy_Pagin]

Getting bookings for tests is a pig at the moment as all the youngsters are desperate to get them done before the new rules come in in January. I had to wait about a month back in May ie. got the tests mid June.
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They're coming to take me away, ho-ho, hee-hee, ha-haaa, hey-hey,
the men in white coats are coming to take me away.
Yamaha Vity -> YBR125 -> FZS600 Fazer -> FZ1-S Fazer

[yaigi]

[Spy]

OK, thanks guys

[Teflon-Mike]

[Rogerborg]

Do DAS before all the training schools go out of business.
____________________
Biking is 1/20th as dangerous as horse riding.
GONE: HN125-8, LF-250B, GPz 305, GPZ 500S, Burgman 400 // RIDING: F650GS (800 twin), Royal Enfield Bullet Electra 500 AVL, Ninja 250R because racebike

[Spy]

I have to admit, the advice is a little confusing. How will the change next year affect someone like me who is over 40 (just !). Will the DAS test change to become harder ?

Separately, if I was to go down the Teflon-Mike route, which would be a good 125cc bike. I see Mike recommends the Yamaha YBR and the Honda CBF. Are these the best to consider ?

[Rogerborg]

As of next year, your direct route to a full license won't change. Pay a training school £500 or so on top of the test fees, sit your test(s) on their bike, job done.

The differences are:

NOW: do 2 tests on a 35kW+ bike (e.g. ER-5 or CB500).

THEN: do 2 tests - or maybe 1 test containing all the same elements - on a 595cc++ 40kW bike (e.g. ER-6 or CBF600).

There won't be any significant change in what you have to do while on test, but IMO, the 3rd Directive changes are going to hit training schools hard, so don't assume that your local outfit will survive until then.
____________________
Biking is 1/20th as dangerous as horse riding.
GONE: HN125-8, LF-250B, GPz 305, GPZ 500S, Burgman 400 // RIDING: F650GS (800 twin), Royal Enfield Bullet Electra 500 AVL, Ninja 250R because racebike

[Spy]

[Rogerborg]

Purely from your perspective:

The 3rd Directive will require training schools to maintain 3 fleets of bikes, not 2. And it will initially result in a drop in people paying for training, which may push some of them over the edge.

However, the test(s) that you sit won't change. Your only consideration is finding a training school who will give you access to an appropriate bike for training and test.

If you want to know more, then the meat is in The Motor Vehicles (Driving Licences) (Amendment) Regulations 2012. There's only so much synopsising that we can do.
____________________
Biking is 1/20th as dangerous as horse riding.
GONE: HN125-8, LF-250B, GPz 305, GPZ 500S, Burgman 400 // RIDING: F650GS (800 twin), Royal Enfield Bullet Electra 500 AVL, Ninja 250R because racebike

[Englishman]

[Billo63]

[Polarbear]

DAS. You have the roadcraft already and you have ridden bikes before. 125's are horrible to ride, you will find it so much easier on a 500.
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[Spy]

Thanks guys. Although I was tempted into doing the CBT and getting a 125 CBF/YBR to practice on before doing teh DAS later I think I will jump feet first into teh DAS now.

I spoke to my local trainer yesterday and he has offered a good deal and quick Mod1/2 test booking. As tend to impatient, I would prefer to try and get the DAS out of the way, get a full licence and then have the flexibility to get what I want, assuming I pass !

He said I should book my theory first and then call him back once I know the date.

I have tried out the two theory tests on the DVLA site and got 48 and 49 out of 50 so should be straight forward.

[Spy]

My only worry is the Hazard Perception Test as I have not seen this before. Is there any way to practice this online ?