dar1976

Thanks both for your replies.  The ride went well.  I have bits to polish up, as expected.  I’m just waiting to find out if there are any rugged observers for over the winter or whether I wait till the new year to join up.   It was much less stressful than I’d imagined and I think I will enjoy the process.  Stay safe and shiny side up  

Dragging up an old thread maybe, but struggling to find one I can shoehorn myself into.  
 

I’m doing a taster session tomorrow morning in Wiltshire with the local IAM group with a view to taking a course next year.  Hopefully I will iron out enough newbie habits to get me to a point where I can take the test and get a good result.  Unfortunately I’m only at home at the weekends, so practicing between sessions may cause me an issue.   Don’t get me wrong - I’m looking forward to the session, I just don’t know if I’ll have the time needed to improve over the 12 months.   (Though I may have jumped in the deep end a bit as I’m booked on a group ride round the NC500 in July - my first holiday in about 15 years).  
 

On a side note, I looked at joining my local blood bikers group - they said I’d need an advanced qualification to be a rider / driver.  Then I got bogged down by all the politics (that’s me being diplomatic) in my local group whilst training as a controller (sorry dispatcher - they don’t like being ‘controlled’ ) and decided it wasn’t for me.  /rant

Passed my Mod1 last Wednesday. 1st time of asking.  Was so much easier than I’d imagined.  Separate thread on here with details of training and tests.  

Passed.  Separate thread on here.  Well chuffed.

So yesterday I took the plunge, after a bit of mental to and fro, to book my DAS course.  A friend of mine has just started working at a bike shop and the owner runs DAS and CBT.   3 days booked with Costello Training in Poole.   He also has a Transalp 700 ready to sell me when I’m passed.  
 

So I did my CBT at Andover (write up in CBT thread) and was thinking about upgrading to full license with them.  But there’s a few niggles that stopped me.  I haven’t been on a bike since, but (and it seems controversial amongst many) I have decided not to waste money on a 125 and just go straight for the big boys toys.   I wasn’t 100% comfortable on the Benelli due to my size.   I think I will find it much easier on the Honda 650.  Also the local training area will help lots (as opposed to having to travel a fair way to practice if using Andover Training).  
 

Theory Test passed first time last month.  That’s not a new thing (I’ve got car, HGV, PCV categories too). What made me laugh was the CGI people they use for their videos now.   It used to be real people.  How things have changed.  
 

I won’t have long to wait for a date as they have many slots that they switch out.   So just gotta get head in the game and hopefully pass it first time.  
 

Safe Riding. 
Dean 

Have a chat to your instructor.  They may split your learning down to a 4 hour session on PAYG.  Salisbury Motorcycle Training (one of my local schools) does this.   Bear in mind that it may stunt your learning curve.   And tests can generally only be done Monday to Friday and are dependent on instructor availability - often CBTs are done at the weekend.  

1 hour ago, robinj said:

Interested to hear others experience and to guage whether or not I am in the wrong here.  My 16yr old did her CBT yesterday.  She has been riding bikes in our fields/hill for years so perfectly happy with that side of it, but obviously been 16yrs old (to the day) she had never been on the road before. 

 

There was a bit of a cluster when they got to the centre as 2 of the bikes were broken, so they were delayed for an hour or so.  The others on the course were all middle aged (and car drivers).  One of them could barely ride the bike and dropped it twice in the car park.  When they went out to do the road bit they were short of time due to the mix up with bikes and they had to share the bikes, meaning that he took them out 2 at a time and was running quite late.  I suspect he was therefore in a bit of a hurry.  The instructor took them once round an Industrial Estate (with him in front) and then put her in front and promptly went up to a roundabout, followed by traffic lights onto quite a busy road.  She managed ok but was pretty nervous so on a couple of times made a few mistakes.   1hr 30mins later (max, might have even been 15mins shorted than that) they were back at the centre.  She got her certificate but the instructor said she clearly had no road experience and should have a bit of extra road riding training which is fair enough.  HOWEVER, I would have thought that it was entirely obvious that a 16yr old would have no road experience and part of the CBT should have been working on that.  I don't feel that putting her in front right away and straight into hazards etc was a particularly good idea.  The course seems completely geared up to older people who have been driving cars for years and are therefore used to being on the road.  I am being unreasonable in thinking they should have spent a bit more time driving around with the instructor in front and getting her used to being on a big road, OR were we totally unprepared?  The instructor was very insistent that I book her a half day road training session and kept saying I should do it right away (just go round to the office now and book it).  I don't have a problem with that, but I think I am going to book it somewhere else as I don't feel entirely confident in that centre.  Presumably as she actually has her certificate she is perfectly legal to now go on the roads (we live in a very quiet rural area and she can do little rides with her Dad who has 35yr plus experience) and then in a few weeks I might book another session somewhere else to get her a bit more road experience.

I had to sign a disclaimer to say I had enough training and was comfortable to go out on the road.   As said above, it sounds like they were highly disorganised.  She is fortunate to have Dad as backup and she has the bit of paper to say she is allowed out.  Maybe Dad can take her out for some initial sessions before she goes out on her own.  

Hope you are all having a great weekend.  

Since Christmas, I have taken my CBT on a nearly new Benelli BN125.  Nice enough bike but felt quite cramped - I'm 6ft4 and eaten too many Minced Pies (if you get my drift).  I was successful in gaining my CBT, although it took another 4 hours over 2 sessions to be successful.  Being 45, I think it just took me a bit of time to get my head around it all.  Once I got it - I got it.

I also took my Theory test a couple of weeks ago and Passed 1st time.  Get in!!

So, to the point of this post - I have 4 training schools in the area.  The school I took my CBT with use Suzuki SV650s.  Other schools use Kawasaki ER6-Ns.  

Is there any light that any of you can shed on which I might find better for getting through my DAS course? 

There is obviously the factor of staying with the same school as they know me and know how I respond best.  They don't split the Mod1/2 up though.  Other schools split the Mods - which makes a little more sense for my bank balance.

I'm just trying to get an overall perspective of how people view the best route to go and if there is any major difference to the 2 models of bike in question.

Oh just one more consideration - the school I took my CBT with have a fairly compact car park space to practice in and are a fair distance from any of the test centres.  He said they have access to the actual test site at the weekends to practice Mod1.  Other schools use School Playgrounds and larger areas onsite, so plenty of Mod1 practice space.

Decisions, Decisions.......

Thanks for any input.  

Dean

On 11/02/2022 at 12:41, dar1976 said:

 

 

So today was my second session with Stuart.  I've come away buzzing.  Have spent 2 hours in the yard cracking out U-Turns, Fig-of-8's and Slow Speed Exercises.   Wobbly start, but half an hour in and I was a lot more confident.   Then we went and did gear changes up the access road.  Got up to second and third gear and back down without too much drama.  Then back down the yard to do simulated junctions.  Slow Speed stuff had sunk in and was passable.  It's all starting to get through my thick head.   He is pleased with my progress (as am I) and says we can go out on the road and potentially sign me off next Thursday.  I am so much more upbeat today than last session.  Looking forward to it.  Then save my pennies for the 'big bike' course.  Thanks to all for your words of encouragement.  Keep up the good work and good luck to all that are doing their CBT between now and next Thursday.

 

Dean

So I’m just back from a 2 hour ride around Andover and pleased to say I’ve made the grade.   The learning begins here.   But my DL196 is in my possession and it’s a step in the right direction.  Onwards and Upwards.   
 

Cramp started to set in after about 45 minutes of riding the Benelli at 6ft4.  So I’m glad we got to stop at around that point and go over how I felt the ride was going.  
 

Thanks to Stuart at Andover Rider Training.  Highly Recommended if you are over this part of the country.  
 

Good Luck to all who are training.  
Dean 

On 30/01/2022 at 14:26, dar1976 said:

My CBT Experience.

 

I turned up for 0830 ready for a 9am start.  Temperature was -1.  By the time I had my full gear on, I barely noticed the chill.  I had previously had a few email conversations with Stuart of Andover Rider Training so we followed up on various concerns in person whilst we waited for the other trainee to arrive.

 

I had already mentioned my desire to move on to bigger geared bikes in the Summer and so I thought I should aim for a geared 125 bike today.  The other chap was there for his second CBT and has motocross experience.  So the session had it’s challenges for both of us.  He felt he had to knock some of his bad habits away and I had to conquer my fears of never having ridden a motorbike. 

 

We were shown the controls for the bikes – 2021 Binelli 125s – and all happy with that.  Then we wheeled the bikes over to the pad.  Manual handling was all good.  No issues there. 

 

Started up the bikes and the other guy goes first.  Showing how to ride in a straight line from one end to the other.  No pressure then.  He does this 2 or 3 times end to end, round the end cones and back again.

 

Then it’s my turn.  I mount the bike, start it up and try and find the footpegs with the lack of downwards peripheral vision inside a helmet.  Took me a while to get the hang of that.  6ft4 with long legs wasn’t doing me any favours.  Anyway, I get a run up and down the yard a few times – stalling from dropping revs too much or forgetting to pull in the clutch when I come to a stop.  Not exactly foreign as I have been driving manual vehicles for 20 years.  Just struggling to convert foot actions into hand actions.  By the third time he left me to do it on my own as he could see I was stressing myself out.  That bit finally clicked.  I was getting quite good at slow control in a straight line and paddling round the corners with my feet.  

 

Meanwhile the other chap had moved on to slow control exercises – U-Turns and Figure of 8.  I could see he had much more confidence and was getting through the session much faster than myself.

 

I will give Stuart credit, he was very patient with me and gave me plenty of opportunities to get the hang of it. It was around this point that (after 2.5hrs) Stuart said we really need to be getting moving and pushing on.  Fair enough.  SO I was given the option of a 50cc Automatic or go home, lick my wounds and come back another day for some geared bike lessons.   For all I was kicking myself, I knew I was holding up the other trainee and Sturt only had so much patience. 

 

I had a 5 minute chill and decided to go back another day.  I would have been cheating myself to scrape through on a ped.  Also I am 23 stone.  That ped would have screamed for mercy

 

So all in all, I take away a  couple of positive things.  He said my knowledge was good (Thanks YouTube) and he could see I was making progress – just not at the rate that either of us were comfortable with.  I am 45 so it’s taking a bit more to sink in.  I was also doing shoulder checks naturally (my HGV training rubbing off)

 

So I am going back for a few 1-1 lessons on the geared bike.  He’s certain I will be fine.  Just a bit slower to pick things up than others.

 

Oh and I didn’t drop it.  So I can’t be that bad

So today was my second session with Stuart.  I've come away buzzing.  Have spent 2 hours in the yard cracking out U-Turns, Fig-of-8's and Slow Speed Exercises.   Wobbly start, but half an hour in and I was a lot more confident.   Then we went and did gear changes up the access road.  Got up to second and third gear and back down without too much drama.  Then back down the yard to do simulated junctions.  Slow Speed stuff had sunk in and was passable.  It's all starting to get through my thick head.   He is pleased with my progress (as am I) and says we can go out on the road and potentially sign me off next Thursday.  I am so much more upbeat today than last session.  Looking forward to it.  Then save my pennies for the 'big bike' course.  Thanks to all for your words of encouragement.  Keep up the good work and good luck to all that are doing their CBT between now and next Thursday.

Dean

My CBT Experience.

I turned up for 0830 ready for a 9am start.  Temperature was -1.  By the time I had my full gear on, I barely noticed the chill.  I had previously had a few email conversations with Stuart of Andover Rider Training so we followed up on various concerns in person whilst we waited for the other trainee to arrive.

I had already mentioned my desire to move on to bigger geared bikes in the Summer and so I thought I should aim for a geared 125 bike today.  The other chap was there for his second CBT and has motocross experience.  So the session had it’s challenges for both of us.  He felt he had to knock some of his bad habits away and I had to conquer my fears of never having ridden a motorbike. 

We were shown the controls for the bikes – 2021 Binelli 125s – and all happy with that.  Then we wheeled the bikes over to the pad.  Manual handling was all good.  No issues there. 

Started up the bikes and the other guy goes first.  Showing how to ride in a straight line from one end to the other.  No pressure then.  He does this 2 or 3 times end to end, round the end cones and back again.

Then it’s my turn.  I mount the bike, start it up and try and find the footpegs with the lack of downwards peripheral vision inside a helmet.  Took me a while to get the hang of that.  6ft4 with long legs wasn’t doing me any favours.  Anyway, I get a run up and down the yard a few times – stalling from dropping revs too much or forgetting to pull in the clutch when I come to a stop.  Not exactly foreign as I have been driving manual vehicles for 20 years.  Just struggling to convert foot actions into hand actions.  By the third time he left me to do it on my own as he could see I was stressing myself out.  That bit finally clicked.  I was getting quite good at slow control in a straight line and paddling round the corners with my feet.  

Meanwhile the other chap had moved on to slow control exercises – U-Turns and Figure of 8.  I could see he had much more confidence and was getting through the session much faster than myself.

I will give Stuart credit, he was very patient with me and gave me plenty of opportunities to get the hang of it. It was around this point that (after 2.5hrs) Stuart said we really need to be getting moving and pushing on.  Fair enough.  SO I was given the option of a 50cc Automatic or go home, lick my wounds and come back another day for some geared bike lessons.   For all I was kicking myself, I knew I was holding up the other trainee and Sturt only had so much patience. 

I had a 5 minute chill and decided to go back another day.  I would have been cheating myself to scrape through on a ped.  Also I am 23 stone.  That ped would have screamed for mercy

So all in all, I take away a  couple of positive things.  He said my knowledge was good (Thanks YouTube) and he could see I was making progress – just not at the rate that either of us were comfortable with.  I am 45 so it’s taking a bit more to sink in.  I was also doing shoulder checks naturally (my HGV training rubbing off)

So I am going back for a few 1-1 lessons on the geared bike.  He’s certain I will be fine.  Just a bit slower to pick things up than others.

Oh and I didn’t drop it.  So I can’t be that bad

I’m glad this topic has been posted.  I’m 6ft4 and 23st.  I’m going for my CBT after Christmas.  I have approached the instructors by email and been clear of my concerns in riding a bike not capable enough for my size.  They assure me I’ll be fine.  It’s good to know I’m not the only one with these concerns.  

Hi all.  
 

So after 25 years of driving cars and 10 years of driving articulated lorries and coaches as a commercial driver, I’ve bitten the bullet and booked myself onto a course in Andover at the end of January.  Very popular right now so that was the first one available or I’d have got on one sooner.   
 

Been watching YouTube videos on what to expect.  I’ve asked for a 125 Manual as I plan to go on to do the DAS if everything goes to plan.  I’m really hoping I can get my head round squeezing the lever for clutch and brake having spent lots of years doing it with my feet.  
 

Anyway, as a newbie to the forum - thanks all for posting your experiences.  It’s great to read through and get an idea of how things are.  
 

Hopefully I can give a good post next year after the event.  
 

Dean.