A1 license - Reasons for youngsters to do it…

[onesea]

Please correct me if I am wrong.

 

My Nephew has just completed his CBT, today was his first ride on his new to him bike, he rode about 100 miles mixed riding and did quite well IMO.

 

He stuck to speed limits give or take and was fairly confident,  the biggest thing I noticed was the attitude of the drivers.

 

If I was leading he had a car constantly on his back wheel, if he was leading I did not.  
 

I rode the bike home for him the day before mixed riding some motorway. Following the speed limit I cannot think of one a occasion was I pushed even in the second lane on motorway and weaving my way through unknown roads in heavy traffic. It showed to me that most drivers cannot tell the difference.

 

As I understand it to get A1 licence and loose L plate he needs to:

 

Weekdays.
Theory test	£23
Module 1 motorcycle test (off-road)	£15.50
Module 2 motorcycle test (on-road)	£75
	£113.50

 

For which he doesn’t need any professional instruction, he can turn up at test center and “have a go”.

 

He can then ride a 125 as long as he likes with no retests, another  CBT around here wil be £140.

he also has the ability to go on motorways, and carry pillions not that he will want to for long journeys.
 

However like myself brining his bike home to him the other option was several hours longer. I can travel most of the uk without using a motorway however there are afew stretches where it’s just easier and quicker the M271 into Southampton being a good example.

 

Obviously there would be some coaching and allot of practice, probably the odd professional lesson.  
 

I would not be suggesting it but as people struggle most with the MOD1 and that’s only £15 it’s not to expensive to resit.  The MOD 2 is probably where a couple of lessons would be advantageous.

 

Its also further training.

 

The other advantage showed today, I had to fill up first as tank started at 1/2 empty and finished 1/2 empty that was £30.  His tank got filled at end of day, so he knew how to do it £7.

 

I showed him how to tighten his chain.  It’s ok for now but thought I should check replacement cost (he’s 17 and doing this all out of his hard earned wages) £20-30 compared with my £130 the same goes for tyres.  
 

My thought is he may well progress to a car but if his 125cc bike is still an affordable toy, he can go forward when he wishes.

 

Forum wisdom required….

 

Edited September 6, 2021 by onesea

[dynax]

Totally agree, I would prefer though that A1 category could be done via a school and that they should be able to sign you off for the full licence.

[Blackholesun]

It's worth that money just to not have L plates!

[Fozzie]

If he wants to get into biking long term, I would suggest holding out until he's 19 and doing the A2 license, as you can progress to the unrestricted A license at 21 then. If he did the A1, he would still have to do the A2 at 19 to then progress to the full A. 

 

So see how he does for a few months and what he wants... Maybe see how he deals with winter riding, as that usually pushes a lot into a car instead. 

 

But I do agree not having L-plates makes a huge difference in the way people treat you on the road. There is a small part of riding style that plays a part, but the plates are like a siren call to the belligerent motorist to drive inconsiderately.

[Tiggie]

34 minutes ago, Fozzie said:

But I do agree not having L-plates makes a huge difference in the way people treat you on the road. There is a small part of riding style that plays a part, but the plates are like a siren call to the belligerent motorist to drive inconsiderately.

 

I remember getting overtook once when I had L plates even though I was already going 10mph over the speed limit for that road!! 

[Fozzie]

2 hours ago, Tiggie said:

 

I remember getting overtook once when I had L plates even though I was already going 10mph over the speed limit for that road!! 

 

I had nearly the same thing every time I borrowed my old house mates CBR125. It genuinely seemed to irritate some drivers. You'd ride above the speed limit and you'd have a bumper kissing your back wheel.

Swap back to the CBR600 and ride at the speed limit... No problem... Take the CBR125 with L-plates and ride a bit quicker... Now people are driving alongside me in my own lane 

There really was a big noticeable difference each time I made the switch.

[keith1200rs]

Not my experience. I remember being overtaken in a 30mph limit by a landrover when I was doing the speed limit on my K1200RS.  I always had panniers on and made sure I took up the whole lane but the speed limit wasn't fast enough for him.

[bonio]

I ride from time to time with L plates and I've not had any hassle.

It's a different country out here. 

[SometimesSansEngine]

This is why the A1 is a shambles. The CBT isn't enough for most people, in my opinion. Surely we want more training for riders, especially younger ones. But then they chuck that in front of them, with the 'sales pitch' that in a few years they'll need to do it again for their A2 and then again for their full A.

 

When I rode with a CBT for a couple of months before doing more training I frequently had other drivers driving aggressively around me. But to be fair I'm occasionally overtaken on 30mph roads when I'm doing the speed limit, probably because people are getting frustrated they're stuck behind a bike and "bikes aren't meant to do the speed limit" ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

[S-Westerly]

I've had the same thing going through villages with 30 or 20 mph limits. Get some twit sitting on your back wheel or overtaking you even. Then you get on the NSL outside the village and he's pissing about doing 45 or 50 mph. Pillock.

[James in Brum]

If I was that age I would have done that/would advise that to younger me.

[Fozzie]

16 hours ago, keith1200rs said:

Not my experience. I remember being overtaken in a 30mph limit by a landrover when I was doing the speed limit on my K1200RS.  I always had panniers on and made sure I took up the whole lane but the speed limit wasn't fast enough for him.

 

You still get the usual nobbers on the road, regardless of what you are riding/driving. It's just that generally, the L-plates seem to give a free pass to those who otherwise wouldn't bother you to suddenly be a bit of a bully. And this difference is really noticeable switching machines.

I would guess being stuck behind slow learner drivers has caused an association with the L-plate that then carries when they see a bike with one. 

 

On topic, I think the license is a shambles, A2 can progress to A at cost, but A1 does nothing? Surely A1 should auto progress to A2 after 2 years, which then you pay to get the full A license. Seems more common sense as an approach as the old 33BHP restriction I was on did this.

They are just trying to deter new bikers, but with the average age of bikers killed being in their 30s... They restricted the wrong type of rider if that was their aim.

[ttxela]

Well I'm still on L plates so don't have any non L plate experience to compare but I've definitely noticed car drivers seem to hate them! I've had folk overtake me in 30mph and 40mph zones when I'm doing the limit, and at the most inappropriate times too often into oncoming traffic, on bends etc. Before I did my CBT I spent some time riding a moped on my old car licence without L plates and didn't experience this to the same extent despite being limited to 30mph max.

 

So I'd say it's definitely an L plate thing.......