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Car for 6 years, how can I get a bike?

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Krxm
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Joined: 09 Oct 2017
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PostPosted: 19:45 - 09 Oct 2017    Post subject: Car for 6 years, how can I get a bike? Reply with quote

Hey guys,

I'm looking for some advice on licences etc as it's a bit confusing and I'd like to start riding. I had a 50cc moped when I was 16 and then since I turned 17 I've been driving for the last almost 7 years with no bike history. I'd now really like to start riding but I'd want to be on a 200c+ ideally.

Is this possible? Or would I need to do the whole 2 years riding on a 125 first? I'm almost 24 and I don't really want to start out at 125 after driving for so long.

I think I read you can do your A2 license without doing the A1 if you're over 21 - is that right?

Would love to hear some advice,

Cheers,
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RhynoCZ
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PostPosted: 20:19 - 09 Oct 2017    Post subject: Reply with quote

17+7 = 24

Do the full A licence right away.

And yes, you may do the A2 as well, but why would you?

Read here: https://www.gov.uk/ride-motorcycle-moped/bike-categories-ages-and-licence-requirements
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Tracer1234
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PostPosted: 20:26 - 09 Oct 2017    Post subject: Reply with quote

Become 24, then crack on with the full licence.
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Riding: Yamaha MT-09 Tracer Occasionally Riding: 08 Suzuki SV650, Potato: 2011 Yamaha YBR Custom.
Used to ride: 2015 Yamaha MT-09 Tracer (smidsy) 09 Triumph Street Triple (P/X'd) 08 Yamaha YBR (Sold)
CBT 04/14. A: Mod 1 & 2 13/04/15
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Rogerborg
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PostPosted: 20:31 - 09 Oct 2017    Post subject: Reply with quote

Yup, you've good to go to full A as soon as you hit 24.

If you're very close already, what you could do is:

Arrow Do your CBT.
Arrow Do your motorcycle theory https://www.gov.uk/book-theory-test
Arrow Start training on an A2 bike. In practice, it's going to be near as dammit as big and heavy as a full A bike. Some schools run the same bikes as both A and (in restricted form) A2 bikes. Training on the A2 bike will set you up for A. The test content is identical for both.
Arrow Book your module 1 A test for your 24th birthday. Heck, show some confidence, book both A tests for the same day.
Arrow <epic-win.jpg>

But I'd stress doing your CBT first to see how you get on with it. You might be surprised how much there is to get to grips with.
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Tracer1234
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PostPosted: 20:38 - 09 Oct 2017    Post subject: Reply with quote

Rogerborg wrote:

But I'd stress doing your CBT first to see how you get on with it. You might be surprised how much there is to get to grips with.


Word.
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Riding: Yamaha MT-09 Tracer Occasionally Riding: 08 Suzuki SV650, Potato: 2011 Yamaha YBR Custom.
Used to ride: 2015 Yamaha MT-09 Tracer (smidsy) 09 Triumph Street Triple (P/X'd) 08 Yamaha YBR (Sold)
CBT 04/14. A: Mod 1 & 2 13/04/15
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Teflon-Mike
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PostPosted: 05:27 - 10 Oct 2017    Post subject: Reply with quote

First up re calibrate your prejudices!

125's are not 'toys' or 'kiddie bikes'. Most 125's are capable of all UK speed limits, they are just as fast as anything else is legally allowed to go in this country!

They are frequently derided because they are not 'enthusiast' machines with big 'wow' performance capability... they are however very useful devices, and perversely, as low cost, every-day consumer transport far more often they are the 'work-horse', and it is big bikes that far too often, used almost solely as 'leisure implements' that are the 'toys'.

Other than potentially lower running costs, light weights have many possible advantages, and bunting them in and out of parking spaces, finding space in the shed to store them, usually lightweight and easier to DIY maintenance, are just a few among them.

As to being 'exiting'... again, says more about most riders than the bikes... PERSONALLY I find it more exhilarating to take one of the tiddlers out and give it a good thrashing, where its limited performance means that I HAVE to milk it for all its worth; the big bike will pretty much go as fast as I dare, if I crack the taps wide enough, and with performance to 'spare', it doesn't beg much skill or bravery of me... if I am a bit ginger round a corner, I can get it back being a bit more brutal on the straight... on a tiddler, it doesn't have the surfeit to make up any deficit, so you have to keep the speed up, you have to be committed and you have to NOT wast any of the little speed you get from it. To ME that level of involvement, that demand I work that much harder to make the most of what I got, makes it far more 'exiting' far more 'rewarding' to go thrash a tiddler, than jump on the big bike, and get 'on demand' fast, and push button drama of monster acceleration and rubber wall braking, rather like being on a fair ground ride, to actually NOT get anywhere any quicker, and the main heart-racing 'thrill' being whether I've just tripped a GATSO!!

Now, ironically, for me as an old duffer, the insurance 'loading' put on 125 Learner-Legals, by so many being crashed by nit-wits without a licence, does mean that mine s actually more expensive to insure than my 750, whilst the lower annual road tax and potentially higher MPG really does little to offset any of that! BUT for most, and particularly younger riders, and especially any without NCB or years riding experience, that situation is often turned about, so 125's are often as much fun as you can get for your money..

Either way, though; the mere 'idea' that they are something to be demeaned and ridicules, is wrong.

Next.. where on EARTH do you get this idea that you might 'have' to spend 2 years on a tiddler?

Taking a guess, first one is that's the length of time a CBT cert is valid. CBT isn't a licence, its a learners permit. Intent is to let you go learn to take tests, not piss about dodging tests! Next guess is some muddled idea based on the 'old' licence laws that sad if you passed tests on a 125, you got a 'resticted' licence for it. Didn't restrict you to a 125, it restricted you to 33bhp, you could still ride any capacity bike as long as it didn't make more power, and that 'restriction' lasted for two years. OR the current 3DL 'rules' that say that a 17-19 year old is only eligible for an A1, 125 licence; so again, cant legally ride anything larger for two years

But either which way, no one makes any-one ride a motorbike, and there's no 'rules' that say you HAVE to spend any time on one, let alone a 125.

Now, back to the prejudices.. you have a CAR licence.. fantastic... WHY do you think that 'some-how' the years you have done that should make any odds to doing anything different?

I have had a car licence thirty years.... Hmm.. I want t learn to fly... why should I have to start with a little Sesna thing! Why cant I have a Tornado Jet! It got wings hasn't it? I got a car licence, planes got a steering wheel, what the difference....... Do you 'sort' of see the principle here? Just because I can drive a car, to the pretty mediocre standards demanded by the car test, does NOT translate very well to flying a fast fighter, does it? Its a completely different deal, and If I wanted to learn to fly, whatever experience I may have, whatever qualifications I might have gained for driving cars, trucks, motorbikes or snow-mobiles makes little odds.. I HAVEN'T learned to ruddy fly.. so start at the beginning!

There 'may' be some transferable skills from driving a car to riding a motorbike, like high way code, and traffic awareness, BUT there are probably as many from anything else, such as say Skiing, where balence and co-ordinaton may be useful, or stacking shelves in a warehouse where co-ordination and recogniton count.... would you suggest that any one who has got a holiday ski certificate, or a couple of years shelf stacking experience should some-how be given a motorbike licence for it for 'free', just because they may have some common sense and a few right ideas?

Other side of the coin is that, car driver habits will be as much of a drawback to learning to ride a motorbike and pass bikes tests as they are an advantage.

Teaching CBT, I had many non driving students struggle with the basics of getting a bike started, the clutch bite point and simple slow speed control, that car driving students seemed to take to like a duck to water... THEN I have had one more mature car driving pupil, get on on the real road, and instantly revert, and I mean within 100 yards! The normal street scenary encountered he reverted to car driver habbits and at the first give way line, pulled up, reached down for the hand-brake and toppled over, completely forgetting to put hs foot down!

Recal your prejudices... if you want to learn to ride a motorbike, you is a LEARNER! Sod what you may or may have done on a moped umpety years ago, or have done in a car for however long since.

You need to go LEARN and pass tests.

Whatever way you choose to go from there, a repeat CBT will almost certanly be required to validate your learner-lcence again.

If you WANT you ca go piss about pretending to be a learner on a 125 and L-Plates for a couple of years; and break as many speed limits as any-one else along the way on one.... and have as much fun or frustration as YOU choose to make it... and ejoy or decry low 125 runnng costs and high mpg along the way.....

If you have any sense though, you will plan on gettng a full licence ASAP. And if you are budget mindd the 125 can be very helpful here, you ca still take tests for the A1 12 only 'full' licence on one, self booked ad pretty much self trained; you will need a new Theory/Hazard test, for a motorcycle, your car one wont count; then the Mod 1 & Mod 2 practicals, that all in only cost about £120.. and if you pass, you got a full licence.... and if cheaps the deal, it dont come much cheaper, and as said, about as much fu as you can get for your money.

If you MUST have a bigger bike... first be warned that they don't do much tiddlers cant, except cost.. thy use more fuel, they wear out more expensive tyres, and they can rack up speeding fines very very quickly.... If y can afford it though, what the heck... how much can your ego afford?

First ig cost s that to get a licence for a bigger bike usually begs a course, because you cant ride a big bike unsupervised.

At 23 you are just too young to do a course for an unrestricted 'A' ride what you like licence; you may only test for an A2 45bhp 'restrcted' one.... same course, same test, probably the same bike TBH, just with a power limiting black box plugged in....

These courses tend to be expensive.. and beg a week off work to do them.. and if you want a RWYL licence for it, you 'might' train and test for A2 then in a couple of years time, retest 'self booked' on a 'de-restricted' A2 bike, which may make it a little cheaper than doing two courses..... But what the heck... if you have the money to 'waste' massaging the ego o big bikes, matters little surely?

OR you could look at those 125's again.... do CBT get a 125, go learn, maybe even take some lessons, n which you can learn stuff, and go home and practice on your 125 to your hearts.. and get the A1 licence for real 'cheaps'.... and with tests done and dusted, and knowing you can pass them, re-take on an A2 standard bike later, if you must, or later still for RWYL 'A', possibly just paying for little more than a familiarsation on a school bike, and the test lesson to go to test on it.

BUT, here and now is that your are advertise your ignorance, yet clinging to it, NOT wanting to start from the bottom, or to 'demean' yourself on a bike any 17 year old could ride..... this is not a licence question, this is an ego issue, I am afraid.

Forget the car driving, means little or nothing. You want to learn to ride a bike, ANY bike, start fro scratch, recognize you are a learner, and work through LEARNING.... to get that licence.

If you are on a restrictive budget 125 ca be great. As sad its a heck of a lot of biking for your money, both cheap utility transport or pure 'fun'.. also a lot to offer actually gettig you ahead IF you want to do licences for bigger bikes later....

A-N-D... after six years in a box... when you could have been on two wheels if you had the enthusiasm... and by now had a RWYL 'A' licence, whats the 'rush'?

If money no object? Well a course would do it all in a oner to get you a licence... if you must rush, your age means you can only test for an A2... but what the heck, if money no object.. take the hit.

In between... cost of courses can dent the budget for what bike you might have after, and failing DAS tests can get very expensive very quickly...

Now being a 'BIT' strategc, there may be a lot of merit in the otion of doing the 125 'thing' keeping costs bite-size; dong CBT, getting some miles under your belt and wasting the 14 onths or so until you are eligible to test for a RWYL 'A' in one, working towards an A1 125 licence on your own ike, self booked, maybe with some ad-hoc lessons chucked in along the way.

That would get you on the road, fastest, cheapest, and out ad about getting places and having fun, soonest.. and possibly saving money towards the bigger bike ad the tests and training to ride it, and dong A1 full licence is investment towards the higher RWQYL'A' later, when all you 'need' is to turn up to re-do tests you have already doe, and passed, on a bigger bike... practically you will probably still want to go through a school, BUT, with a full bike licence already and recetly in your pocket, they shouldn't wast too much of your time teahing you to suck eggs, ad your pass chances are infiitely higher, so its likely least cost ad least risk way to THAT licence, IF thats what you really want...

Meanwhile, you have transport, you have fun; you clock up at least a years NCB towards a bigger bike when yo can have one, its ALL good stuff....

BUT, begs you take a dent in the ego to NOT try jumping straight in, ridiculing 125's 'cos any 17 year old can have one, ad your self image convinces you you are so much older and wiser ad ore skilled! But your call...

IF you want a bike licence, you'll go get one.... eventually.... and you will spend as much as you have to to get it, and learn as much or a little as you need along the way.....

BUT that's my advice... start by taking a step back and wiping your prejudices off the white-board and start learning, from scratch, without presumptions or preconceptions...
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arry
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PostPosted: 06:16 - 10 Oct 2017    Post subject: Reply with quote

Teflon-Mike wrote:
First up re calibrate your prejudices!

125's are not 'toys' or 'kiddie bikes'. Most 125's are capable of all UK speed limits, they are just as fast as anything else is legally allowed to go in this country!.


OP you got Wall-o-Teffed; sorry about that.

Mike honestly you're on a planetoid all on your own. Jesus H Christ. Nobody 24 years old is comma choose a 125 because it's as fast as you can legally go over here, don't you know.
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Evil Hans
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PostPosted: 10:32 - 10 Oct 2017    Post subject: Reply with quote

Get your CBT sorted, that's a prerequisite whatever you decide, and see if you can snag a go on a 'real' bike while you are there.

Once you are 24 you can go straight to a full A test without arsing around with tiddlers and inbetweeners.

Good luck! Thumbs Up
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Last edited by Evil Hans on 12:27 - 10 Oct 2017; edited 1 time in total
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Tracer1234
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PostPosted: 11:35 - 10 Oct 2017    Post subject: Reply with quote

In this case, I would say that the teffing was actually uncalled for. Place nice Tef.
____________________
Riding: Yamaha MT-09 Tracer Occasionally Riding: 08 Suzuki SV650, Potato: 2011 Yamaha YBR Custom.
Used to ride: 2015 Yamaha MT-09 Tracer (smidsy) 09 Triumph Street Triple (P/X'd) 08 Yamaha YBR (Sold)
CBT 04/14. A: Mod 1 & 2 13/04/15
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DrSnoosnoo
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PostPosted: 11:52 - 10 Oct 2017    Post subject: Reply with quote

If you're nearly 24, do as the Rog says;

Do CBT
Do Theory Both are needed for any test anyway
Do training on A2, tell school you'll wait til you're 24 for big boy test
Birthday - smash both tests.

I'd reckon the school would train you on the definitely A2 bike and put you for the A test on the same bike that's definitely derestricted and thus an A bike.
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thx1138
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PostPosted: 11:54 - 10 Oct 2017    Post subject: Reply with quote

Quote:
how can I get a bike?


Buy one is the most popular option. Thumbs Up

You can also be given one or win one. Clapping Praying

Other option, though very frowned upon steal one. Police Tut Tut

I suppose you could design and build one from scratch. Thinking
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Rogerborg
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PostPosted: 17:50 - 10 Oct 2017    Post subject: Reply with quote

Tracer1234 wrote:
In this case, I would say that the teffing was actually uncalled for.

As opposed to?

From what I glanced at while scrolling past for 2 minutes, it's just his standard "Your an IDIOT, give up nowe" spite-rant. For someone who claims to want to help bikey bruvs out he has a very peculiar way of showing it.
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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
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AshWebster
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PostPosted: 18:06 - 10 Oct 2017    Post subject: Reply with quote

By the time you have your CBT and Theory booked and completed , you should be 24 and ready to go for DAS.

Though from experience i would try to get as much time as you can on a 125, try to use it for everything you can. Get a cheap (125) bike you can easily re-sell, because once you have your full license i doubt youll even look at the 125 again.

If you perfect the basic slow manouvres on a 125, they transfer to the 600 quite nicely.
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Krxm
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PostPosted: 18:34 - 10 Oct 2017    Post subject: Reply with quote

Thanks for the advice guys, looks like I'll do my CBT and theory etc and then A2 in the new year.

No thanks to 'Tef' though Smile
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Evil Hans
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PostPosted: 19:21 - 10 Oct 2017    Post subject: Reply with quote

Krxm wrote:
Thanks for the advice guys, looks like I'll do my CBT and theory etc and then A2 in the new year


... said none of the advice above!

Forget A2. No point if you're nearly 24.
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mauzo
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PostPosted: 19:29 - 10 Oct 2017    Post subject: Reply with quote

AshWebster wrote:
If you perfect the basic slow manouvres on a 125, they transfer to the 600 quite nicely.


This. It's much easier to pick up a 125 when you drop it, too.
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Krxm
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PostPosted: 20:15 - 10 Oct 2017    Post subject: Reply with quote

Evil Hans wrote:
Krxm wrote:
Thanks for the advice guys, looks like I'll do my CBT and theory etc and then A2 in the new year


... said none of the advice above!

Forget A2. No point if you're nearly 24.


Sorry I meant A, I've have A2 in my mind from the start haha
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