Had my CBT on saturday

[Deadonkey]

Well had my CBT on saturday, rode a ybr 125.

Just thought id put a quick post to let anyone who is thinking of starting their training know what its like.

Like I was expecting the classroom bit I knew most of it, types of helmet leather vs textiles etc. all information that people interested in motorcycling are likely to have read on forums themselves.

Then they took us onto a small yard and explained one thing at a time, such as emergency stops, then everyone had a go, then turning right then everyone had a go.

Then a quick lunch which was about 10 minuites.

Then out on the road 2 pupils to 1 instructor, I was unfortunatly put with a 16 year old so I was in effect limited to 25mph which was a shame.

They took us around villages and then into the city, Regular stops to explain things like how to use roundabouts or to brush up technique if one of us did something wrong.

I was expecting to struggle at each aspect for like 10 mins then get the hang of it, Which is how it seemed to work for some of my fellow pupils. But my learning was far more progressive I wasnt terrible but then I wasnt brilliant at the end of it. I was very average !
Which I found at the time a bit frustrating, I wanted to be better than I was. Looking back I suppose its just how it goes, you get better with practice.

I found being a car driver held me back at certain aspects like forgetting to cancel indicators and I was finding myself positioning myself on the road very much like I would in the car and not thinking I was on a bike.
All will come with time and practice.

The instructor I had was a retired police motorcyclist, Nice Bloke and very patient. The School, Peter Cairns Motorcycle Training in Carlisle Cumbria.

It took me about 4 years to pick up the phone and book the start of my training so If your reading this save yourself the time and just book it.
It really was an enjoyable day trying something new, even if you dont take it any further.
It certainly wont take me that long to book for a DAS, I intend to do that tomorrow morning!

[Rogerborg]

[Deadonkey]

How a motorcycle works? Maintenance checks?


Yeah they did that, again I knew most of it by my own research so was a bit of a waste of time, A bit strange how they teach you to check the oil, I dont remember that on my car lessons

[Pjay]

[andyscooter]

Part of the show me tell me bit on car test
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gilera runner vxr200 (chavped)
if its spelt wrong its my fat fingers and daft auto correct on my tablet

[Kentol750]

It's never been about teaching people 'how' to ride...It's about making people safe enough to 'learn' how to ride.
That includes; what the law says you need to do/wear, what's good to wear, how to keep bike somewhat road legal and once you get on...how to not potato!
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Some bikes.

[grr666]

What they should say in CBT is that you need a peaked MX helmet, tracksuit bottoms and trainers and must ride with 1
foot an inch from the floor on one side while fruitlessly revving your hairdryer trying to convince others (and yourself)
that your POS has gears and some performance. Oh and you must remove one or ideally both mirrors, this can be be
achieved by crashing the bike on either side. (Quicker than spanners innit...) At least then it would look like the 16 and
17 year old candidates were doing as they were trained when out alone on the road.

CBT is a waste of time really, for those who are older and take it seriously it's usually not long until they
pass a test of some sort. Leaving the 'give biking a try with this lovely new chinese 125-ers', the 'I'm a
girl and can do anything -ers and my 500 mile old bike will be up for sale the first time I have a little scare' and the 'twoc baklaff-ers' who won't
be buying insurance or tax any time soon and are just casing the place so they can go back after dark
and rob the scoots. The people who go on to be actual bikers aren't the problem here, they're trained at least
and have demonstrated competence at least the once. The rest, not so much.
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Currently enjoying products from Ford, Mazda and Yamaha
Ste wrote: Avatars are fine, it's signatures that need turning off.

[M.C]

[rpsmith79]

Nice to hear someone elses thoughts on this as i am in a similar position to the OP

I am yet to book my CBT, but have already bought a bike (CG 125) that was in need of some work, so currently sorting the bike out (nearly there) and will be booking my CBT shortly

But being in my late 30's and having driven a car since i was 18, i too fear i will have picked up some bad habbits and possible struggle to pick up the correct habits for riding a bike, but it's good to hear someone elses views on this

[Evil Hans]

[rpsmith79]

Alright calm down, i did say a similar situation, as in older generation, already driven a car for some time, worried i would not transfer skills so well from car to bike

The reason i have not booked my CBT yet as i didn't want to do it, then be waiting weeks/months before purchasing a bike, then forgetting what i was taught

I figured the best way (for me anyway) was to wait till i got the right sort of bike at the right sort of price, then do my CBT and be able to get straight on with some riding/practicing in preparation for a full bike test

[bamt]

Really, it's fine. You'll stall it due to having some mechanical sympathy and not wanting to rev it high enough to get any power out of the tiny engine. Your road position will be wrong as you'll likely be riding towards the gutter. You'll forget to cancel the indicators.

But really all you need to do is gain some muscle memory so actions like giving it some revs and releasing the clutch using your hands rather than your feet becomes automatic. And that's why you are doing a CBT and getting some training - because these things aren't natural and everyone messes up initially.

[rpsmith79]

[Rogerborg]