Many people struggling to pass MOD 2?

[Angel Girl]

OK I've got to ask .... how many people are there who are struggling to pass MOD 2? I've just failed for the 3rd time and although I've rebooked again I really don't know how much of the disappointment I cant take. These were my fail reasons:

1st time: Instructor took me on a tiny road, I didnt see any speed limit signs so assumed 30, but was actually 20.

2nd time: Was doing my "pull away from the kerb after stopping" not far from a roundabout. Instructor was folowing me in a car and parked behind me, blocking the roundabout from my view although I could see far enough up the road to deem it safe to go. after I started to pull out I but continued to check over my shoulder, sure enough a car had come off the roundabout clearly above the speed limit (which the instructor concurred), so I pulled back into the kerb and waited for him to go past before continuing on myself. Failed for it.

3rd time: After joining a dual carriageway safely, he says I didn't accelerate to 70mph quickly enough, even though I was approaching a roundabout and there were wagons not far ahead of me. He claims the wagon behind (well behind) us was starting to catch us up. He marked that as major. And another major he gave me was not using the bus lane when I could have done at that time of the day!

Now ..... the first one I can give him, it's my responsibility to see a road sign. But quite honestly after my 2nd and 3rd fail I'm beginning to feel persecuted! Is anybody else having this much trouble getting through it?

[pinkyfloyd]

Keep at it. If you give up now that'll be £210 wasted in failed tests. Took me the 3rd attempt to nail Mod 2. Each time I was doing it was DAS and it cost me £140 each time. All told my DAS should have cost around £500 and ended up costing over £800 but the pass was worth it in the end.

Keep your chin up.
____________________
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.

[Angel Girl]

Thanks pinkflloyd ...

I'm so disheartened, they might think they're big and clever marking people down so readily but I honestly don't think they have any idea of the tears and upset, the utter disappointment and self doubt they cause. I'm doing it at a different test centre next time, I'm not going back to him.

[pinkyfloyd]

Your just a number to them. They cant get involved personally and have to distance themselves.

When I finally passed it was with a female examiner and I said.... Can I hug you? She looked at me as if it was an alien concept. Instead I hugged Mike, the instructor from the DAS training school. Made his day!

Its heartbreaking when you fail. The ride back from the test centre is probably the hardest ride there is after knowing you didnt make the grade. But dont give up. You get this nailed and you'll never have to do it again.
____________________
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.

[Angel Girl]

I know it'll be worth it when (IF) I eventually pass ...... but when I started out I didn't imagine it being this emotionally difficult just to get a bike licence! The 2nd and 3rd fail I feel they could have been marked as minors if he had a problem with it, I don't believe either of those should have been a fail. It makes you feel utterly shit and useless when actually I rode very very well.

[Rogerborg]

By your own admission, you failed for a bad observation in each test.

In order to improve, you first have to acknowledge that you have a problem, and that the only person responsible for fixing that problem is you.

Or, blame it on the elephant.

https://www.phrases.org.uk/images/elephant.jpg

I know that's not what you want to hear, but I don't think "Oh dear, poor kitten" is going to help you pass your test.
____________________
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

[WannaBeDude]

SOund fucking harsh to me, theres a higher power involved when the test center head wants to make so much money, which involves failing people. Change centers imo.
____________________
Jogging on, destination living.

[Angel Girl]

Rogerborge .... I only said it was my fault in the first test, not seeing the speed sign was my own fault.

The 2nd and 3rd fail was harsh and probably didnt need to be fails, the 2nd shouldnt have been my fault, i didnt cause any other road user to change speed, direction or affect them in any way, I had to alter mine due to another road user, why should I have had to fail? And the 3rd, well, I think he was having a bad day IMHO!

[Angel Girl]

And covdude yes I have changed test centres, nothing to lose really

[Hyaon]

Unlucky.. Can only suggest
1) Find that road again, look for signs. If none up, possibly one of those 'local knowledge' annoying roads.

2) Don't do the stop and pull away before/after junctions, wait for a nice straight road or in side street.

3) 70mph? Didn't know a dual carriageway could be that, thought that's only on motorways. We're not allowed on motorways etc would have thought 60mph is the max? Be a bit more aggressive in future, I recall my examiner saying to me 'I want to struggle to keep up with you' so I revved off [safely] and lost him a few times. He seemed happy with that!

Good idea to try a different centre though, the bus lane thing being a major sounds like utter bollocks!
____________________
Mod2 Passed 30/03/2011!
CBF125>GSF650 Bandit K8>B-King 2008+R1 2002

[Andy_Pagin]

[Angel Girl]

I did go have a look after and it is clearly marked, I'll admit that. (The reason I didnt see it was because it was a busy box junction and I was concentrating on getting away down the side street safely. Still my own fault I know).

Yes dual carriageway is 70mph but I didn't get near that, probably around 55, I didn't want to close my distance from the wagons in front especially so close to a roundabout. It's not like my road ahead was clear. And yes giving me a major for not using the bus lane is bollocks!

[Andy_Pagin]

[Hyaon]

Always found that iffy, riding along in new area

'oh bus lane! wheres the sign? am I allowed in it? Ah there's the signs between the hours of-.. Ah bugger went past it at 40mph.'

Or

'oh bus lane! where's the times sign? ah theres there's the sign, between the hour-*rear ends car*

I dunno. If it really is blocking the overtaking lane, it should be a minor if there wasn't a queue of cars behind her honking. Besides, what are motorbikes good at? overtaking :p

Btw were the wagons in all lanes? You're right to hold back as can't see shit when one is in front of you but if you could overtake perhaps that's what he wanted. Then again, if you needed to remain in the lane for the roundabout at whatever turn off, you can only go the speed the traffic is currently going.
____________________
Mod2 Passed 30/03/2011!
CBF125>GSF650 Bandit K8>B-King 2008+R1 2002

[Angel Girl]

It was 2 lanes and either was for a different direction, I needed to be in the right lane as the signs instructed me to be for the direction I was going in, the left hand was for going the other way, and there were wagons in mine and theirs. Staying in the correct lane and keeping back made sense I thought

[Livefast123]

Why another 'I didn't pass must blame the examiner' thread. If you've taken 3 attempts so far then either need more training or don't take to test conditions well.

The examiner is there to see that you reach the required standard, if you do then you pass.....simples. Take some photo's of the fail sheets so we can have a look, it's rarely down to one thing.

If your doing 55 Mph on a NSL dual carraigeway then you are going to get failed, thats slower than HGV's travel. You should be looking to make good progress when on your test.

Speeding - fair enough

Pulling out in front of something then back in I guess is down to the examiner, none of us where there so can't really have an opinion.

It may be a bummer but chin up and put all your efforts into passing the next one. It will be the best feeling in the world. Maybe you should get a copy of Roadcraft and use their system of observation as that seems to be your downfall.
____________________
Current ride - Yamaha MT-07

[Angel Girl]

The speed limit is exactly that ..... the maximum limit. If you cannot do the maximum due to traffic ahead then why should you fail?

[multijoy]

It's very unlikely that the examiner is doing it just to spite you.

DAS or restricted?
School bike or own?
Instructed or self-taught?

If it's the former, you really ought to be having this conversation with your instructor - we can't really say what is or isn't fair without knowing how you normally ride, the test route etc.

If it's the latter, I'd spend some money on a lesson or two - ask the instructor to do a mock test and get him to critique you in depth, preferably on an actual test route. You may not enjoy it in the slightest, but it's the quickest way to work out if where it's all going wrong!
____________________
'11 CBF1000A, '99 C90, '98 CB500
silky666: He rode amazingly well considering his bike is the weight of a small van and had slicks on.

[Angel Girl]

I was instructor trained, DAS, using my own bike for the tests, and we go through everything everytime but at each tests there's some new little issue crops up that fails me. Where does it end?

[chris-red]

4th time lucky, it was for me.

I was failed for stupid reasons, Car in-front turning right at a Mini-roundabout I'm going straight over the stops looks and then turns right. I wait behind him then go straight, Examiner fails me for not going up the inside.

Just keep plugging away the feeling when you pass cannot be beaten.
____________________
Well, you know what they say. If you want to save the world, you have to push a few old ladies down the stairs.
Skudd:- Perhaps she just thinks you are a window licker and is being nice just in case she becomes another Jill Dando.
WANTED:- Fujinon (Fuji) M42 (Screw on) lenses, let me know if you have anything.

[Angel Girl]

Thank you Chris!

[R4GE]

I think you have just been unlucky. Trick is, don't give up! it is worth it.

I passed my mod 1 and 2 first time. No faults on the mod1 and 3 minor faults on the mod2.

I thought I did ok on the mod1, thought I had failed on the mod2 due to not checking road signs properly, wasn't sure of the speed limit of a road I entered so I stuck to 30. I got lucky.

Can't imagine how you are feeling right now, just keep trying, you'll get through!

[angryjonny]

The first time I did my test (no mod1/mod2 in those days) I failed due to my bad observation within about half a mile of getting back to the test centre. I knew I'd failed there and then, and it had gone so well up to that point. The examiner seemed as disappointed as I was and basically congratulated me on a good ride and apologised for not being able to pass me. "Gutted" didn't begin to cover it.

I dwelt on it for a day or two before realising that if it hadn't been for one stupid mistake on my part I would have easily passed. So all I had to do was go back out there, do the same again and not make that mistake. So I went in proper confident two weeks later (to a different test centre as it happens) and aced it - not a single minor. Failure is disappointing - an "almost-pass" all the more so. But use that to illustrate to yourself that you *can* do it.

Incidentally - if you're changing test centres (like I did) then you may be unfamiliar with the local roads. Get some practice there. What we did was turn up at the test centre a few hours before the test, find a local instructor waiting for a student out on a test and get him to tell us where the local trouble-spots were (awkward junctions, funny bends, weird speed limits etc) and go out and practice them for a few hours. Worked a treat.

[snikks]

I'm also struggling with the tests - I passed Mod 1 on my 125 first go, then started attempting Mod 2 tests. The first one I failed for poor rear obs, I braked for a red light and the examiner nearly hit me from behind, said I should've decided he was too close and carried on going. Can't help but feel he should've been further back in that case, but ce la vie, took it on the chin.

The second mod 2 I failed for picking the wrong lane on a roundabout, then being dangerous moving out to get to my exit. The roundabout was totally clear, but ok, fair cop, moving over 2 lanes is a bit of a nono.

Third Mod 2 I had no minors, right before arriving back at the test centre I was so busy thinking "this time I think I've done it" that I cut a roundabout gap a little too close and a woman had to brake for me.. fail with one serious *sigh*.

Then I decided some training would be a good idea since I was clearly struggling to pass on my own so I did a DAS course as it wasn't much more expensive than the day or two's training I wanted, took my DAS tests today (both booked same day) and failed Mod 1. The training centre I was with took only 3 500's over to the centre, with the instructor on one and two other pupils on the others, so I was stuck on a ancient CG held together with duct tape on the way over. Then upon arrival I was given a 500 to take my actual test on, but the back brake had been significantly lowered for some reason, completely different from the bike I trained on or my own bike. Doing the controlled stop, slowing down I missed the back brake because of the new position and coasted merrily through the box of cones... great. I then knocked a cone over on the swerve just to put the icing on the cake, but I aready knew I'd failed and had stopped really caring.

So the TLDR version is, I know exactly how you feel, and it IS very easy to feel that someone at the DSA must've put a black mark on your name, or that they're just a bunch of thieving nobs, out to fail you to make more cash.

Unfortunately the only way to legally ride a bike fully licenced is to meet their standards =/ so the only thing to do, regardless of whether the above is true or not (and it isn't really, much as it may feel like it) is to keep trying, or give up that dream.
____________________
- CBT: 02/01/11 Theory: 26/04/11 Mod 1: 19/05/11 Mod 2: 19/08/11
- 2007 Honda XL125V Varadero (Sold), 1999 Yamaha FZS600 Fazer (Sold), 2001 CBR600F

[Angel Girl]

Thanks for all the input, it's genuinely helped a bit it's helps to realise the bigger picture, that I'm not alone in this situation and I'm not a singled out failure, many people are in the same boat as me and we'll just have to keep plugging away at it.

I will keep trying, biking is in my blood really so I'm not prepared to let them beat me, I will do it, and I'll do it well. I'll keep you posted as to when my next test is and if I pass or not.

Thanks x