Anything Else I should be doing?

[maccidees2002]

It's a week tomorrow till I come over to the Uk to do my intensive Das course.
I'm well over 21 so aiming for the unrestricted.
I'm starting with my theory and going all the way through( fingers crossed)
I have been using a friends bike on a local carpark to 1) Get used to riding a bike and 2) To get used to the gears and handling.
I was hoping to give myself a little more experience as I had none.
I have bought cones and so far been on the bike for approx 5 hours over the last week.

I have been doing emergency stops and swerves.
Also been doing slow riding , slaloms , figure of 8's and u-turns.

Is there anything else I can be practicing?
I am a little limited in what I can do and would have loved to get out on the road but without any kind of cbt etc and the only bike avaliable to me being a DRZ 400cc the road in a no go area!

Any help or suggestions will be greatly accepted.
Thanks

[Nick__C]

If you haven't yet done theory, keep practicing that..

As far as mod1 I'd say just practice slalom, figure of eight, slow control and u turn.. hopefully if you're doing a DAS course your riding school will have booked the mod1 test pad for you?

I had no geared riding experience other than cbt and a day riding to and from & practicing on the test pad and passed mod1 with 1 minor.. there is no way i could have hoped to have passed the swerve and emergency stop part without the pad time.. if you have this then there is nothing to worry about for mod1.

In regards to mod2 i can't help much as I've got mine booked for march 17th but keep practicing whatever you can, everything should be covered during DAS though.

Sorry if any of that ^ is a tad confusing haha
____________________
'02 GS 500.

[maccidees2002]

Hi Thanks for the reply.
Should have mentioned I have the cd roms and have been doing 2 mock tests a day to practice and have the audio file on my ipod as well.
May seem a tad obsessive but traveling back isn't always easy or cheap so want to do everything I can to get through smoothly and safely.

Thanks For the note on the swerve etc as was worrying me training school has mod 1 pad booked for 2 days at the weekend so hopefully that should be enough.

[Slacker24seve...]

Have you done your CBT yet? If not, stop riding with your mates right now before you pick up any bad habits. You've got the basics of the gears, thats all you really need for the first day.

As for Module 1, watch the DVLA video. I did mine in the actual compound they used in that video so it was extra good for me. Watching that and then visualising exactly what you'll be doing for each manouver will be a big help.

For Module 2, just get on with it and treat the examiner as a satnav in your ear.


____________________
Triumph Daytona 675 track bike + girlfriend's Honda Hornet 600
Selling a hack/winter bike for less than a grand? PM me.
Banger rallies are ace

[maccidees2002]

Thanks Slacker not mates just hubby and its more than anything just to practice the gears and clutch and throttle control so I wasn't arriving completely unexperienced
Due to the fact that I can't go out on the road I am probably just going to be doing theory Practice from now till next week and even on the plane with my ipod....

[Nick__C]

You've got the right idea then (y)
get plenty of theory practice and you should find no problems there.

The majority of mod1 is a breeze, and i feel i would've passed most of it with no practice, but the emergency stop and swerve was a right pain for me and the practice was incredibly useful, as long as they have time booked for you, you should not have any problems at all
We have about 3 hours i think taking turns, the lad i did mod1 with passed with 0 minors, i passed with 1 and I'm not sure about the other lad as he was doing DAS with mod1 another day.

You sound like you've got your head on, and if you've got a grasp of the gears your instructor should be able to guide you and give you all the practice you need. Not much else i can think of you doing apart from getting out there and practicing road riding but as that's an option i wouldn't worry, just try and familiarise yourself with the observation routine i guess?

HTH
____________________
'02 GS 500.

[fiveus]

practice wheeling the bike around as well.. it's part of mod 1

[Nick__C]

^ that


| A | | B |

you could set out some cones to mark out two parking bays and practice riding into a, turning off, getting off, putting on stand etc, then wheel backwards from A in to B?

or just take it for a walk to get to grips with it?
____________________
'02 GS 500.

[Truzo]

You have to have a Valid CBT before you can do DAS. so it may be worth doing that and getting a cheap ass £300-£400 cg125 bike for a month or two and just get a little more road experience and confidence first.
Then if you decide to do your full licence and pass you can always sell the cheap ass bike without making a loss.

I would advise this to everyone.

Good Luck
Truzo.
____________________
Current Bikes: RXS 100, RD 125lc3, RD 350 F2

[maccidees2002]

[Nick__C]

in theory you should be fine and breeze through it.. But in reality it only takes one mistake and all your plans could come crashing down..

Just make sure you're comfortable with the theory test.With two days on the pad, mod1 will be no problem what so ever, it's just whether something happens on the day.

Without any road riding i can't see there being anything else you could do
____________________
'02 GS 500.

[maccidees2002]

ok well after 2 sleepless nights and a day of nausea( I hate exams)
I passed my theory on Friday morning and went straight off to do my cbt.
Got the cert for that and had 1/2 hour on a er5 on friday night.
Yesterday did a 9-3pm on the er5, 2 hours of which were on the mod 1 test site....

I'm happy with what I'm doing on the course and knowing what to do but not so confident with the regularity in the speeds I'm hitting.
Sometimes late 40's sometimes early 50's but nothing regular.

Killed a couple of cones on the first times doing my swerves......

and for some reason which is pissing me off something chronic is that I did 4 or 5 perfect emergency stops in a row and then went on to do 4-or 5 completely disasterous ones.... I mean leaving a lovely 10 foot s shaped skid on the tarmac......... not good!

I know its cause I'm pressing down too much on the back brake but I really cant seem to shift it now I have started.

anyway off out in 30 for another day and another few hours on the site.

any advice would be great ( besides stop pressing the back brake to hard as I know I need to do this lol)
Just though with the mass knowledge of BCF there may be a few useful tips!!

[Nick__C]

i had the same problem as you.. I was putting too much on the back brake and pulling in the clutch too early.. The only way to resolve is is practice practice practice! And get it into your head, less back brake!!
____________________
'02 GS 500.

[waffles]

When you do the swerve/emergency brake, come off the throttle once you have gone through the speed trap. If you screw it up you are allowed another try as long as your front wheel is in the blue cones. If you aren't sure of what you have been asked to do get the examiner to repeat it.

BREATHE!
____________________
Theory test - 19/8/09, CBT - 11/10/09, MOD 1 - 16/8/10, MOD 2 - 27/10/10
Past rides Yamaha XT125X, Triumph TT600, Honda XR250
Current rides Suzuki GSXR 600, Honda MSX125

[pinkyfloyd]

When doing the stop DONT put any force on the back brake. Just rest your foot on the pedal, when you pull the front brake in your momentum will shift and you will put weight onto the rear brake. Turns out that the weight transfer is enough to push the brake down without a skid.
____________________
illuminateTHEmind wrote: I am just more evolved than most of you guys... this allows me to pick of things quickly which would have normally taken the common man years to master
Hockeystorm65:.well there are childish arguments...there are very childish arguments.....there are really stupid childish arguments and now there are......Pinkfloyd arguments!
Teflon-Mike:I think I agree with just about all Pinky has said.

[maccidees2002]

cool thanks for the replies.
Today went a little better but still nervous.
Test is tomorrow morning just dont wanna do something stupid!!

[Rogerborg]

What floyd said. Don't press the rear brake at all. You can stop comfortably using just the front. Cover the rear to make it look like you're using it, but otherwise forget about it during the Mod 1 - the examiner can't tell. You can figure out the limits of your rear brake after you've got your pass.

On the speed tests, every mph you can carry round the bend is one you don't have to accelerate through on the straight. Stay in 2nd, pin it as soon as you hit the straight, don't change up, don't let up until you're right at the speed gate, and don't even think about checking your speed - it won't make you go any faster, it'll just distract you.

Trust me, if my Chinese 125 can do the Mod 1, your ER-5 can breeze it with plenty to spare.
____________________
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

[maccidees2002]

Same nerves and nausea came to visit this morning as for the theory test ... but

Happy Happy Happy I sit here now with my Mod1 certificate and my clean sheet no minors or anything...... so chuffed

[Nick__C]

gratz! Nicely done

way faster than mine but i was on a 125

got training and test thursday ;D

good luck!
____________________
'02 GS 500.

[maccidees2002]

Thanks Nick

good luck on Thursday.

[Jodie]

ooOOoo Get you Maccidees, well done Mrs.

Come on now only 1 more to do, good luck


Good luck to Nick too

[waffles]

Congratulations! Mod 2 is a breeze.
____________________
Theory test - 19/8/09, CBT - 11/10/09, MOD 1 - 16/8/10, MOD 2 - 27/10/10
Past rides Yamaha XT125X, Triumph TT600, Honda XR250
Current rides Suzuki GSXR 600, Honda MSX125

[gg]

Oh congrats! you've made it sound so easy, wish i was as good as that. may well have to give this das thing a try again.

[blurredman]

Congratulations, and good luck. I did 50 and 53 kmph on my mod1
____________________
CBT: 12/06/10, Theory: 22/09/10, Module 1: 09/11/10, Module 2: 19/01/11
Past: 1991 Honda CG125BR-J, 1992 (1980) Honda XL125S, 1996 Kawasaki GPZ500S, 1979 MZ TS150.
Current: 1973 MZ ES250/2 - 18k, 1979 Suzuki TS185ER - 10k, 1981 Honda CX500B - 91k, 1987 MZ ETZ250 (295cc) - 40k, 1989 MZ ETZ251 - 51k.

[SweenyT]

Well done and good luck on Friday maccidees2002 and same to you for Thursday Nick_C.

I was on a 125 and hit 55kph each time and got told 'at least I'm consistent'

As someone in one of the posts once said for Mod2 'just use the examiner as a human sat-nav'.

All the best.
____________________
Current ride - 2005 Suzuki GSX-R600 K4 - 2x 2014 Honda NC750s long term courtesy bikes - 2003 Fazer FZ6 written off as idiot reversed into me - 2009 YBR125 - still have from new