Test Fail - What did I do wrong?

[steveR]

Hard luck, it does sound as if you got an examiner on a bad day! It might be worth getting a refresher from your local training outfit, not to ride the bike so much as "pass the test".

My daughter is learning to drive and her driving skills are awful, really dire, but she is being taught to pass a test and although she failed recently, her teacher thinks she is good enough to pass. You sound a bit the other way, a rider with quite a bit of experience but not ticking the examiners boxes and that is what you have to do....

[Yeti]

Sorry to hear that. Don't take it personally but just learn form it but don't over compensate for your minors just tweak a few things.

After popping the clutch to avoid being arse ended at a set of lights once I always keep the bike in gear. It is your escape route in such a situation. Just a consideration.

This is just my view, but I view vehicle tests in the same way as the assesments I have to do to renew my industrial trade tickets. You have to make the examiner feel confident and comfortable that you are capable very quickly. Anything you do to make them wary will mark your card for the rest of the assesment and promote nit-picking as a technicality.

I think it should be called an assesment anyway and not a test, as it it to asses wether he/she considers you to have the survival skills neccessary and is prepared to let you loose on UK roads knowing how bad they are.

Try and think along the lines of 'if that was my dad following me, would he be happily tootling along behind me glad to see me aware of everything and doing it right, or would he be a bag of nerves and shouting obsenities into his helmet at the prospect of watching you get squashed!'

Just a thought but I can tell you when I am responsible for a new/'still wet behind the ears' abseiler if they don't inspire confidence in the first 2 minutes I am somewhat aprehensive (roughly translated as terrified they will go splat from a great height!) from the minute they go over the edge until their feet are back on the floor!

Hope you have your head in gear for the next one and don't dwell to much on the failing aspect but more on the not giving up.

Good luck and ride safe!

[winxp-master]

Bad luck m8,

I was told after passing my test that i was 1 minor away from failing for not checking my mirrors enough. I checked them at every opportunity and thought i had easy done enough so i guess i was lucky.

My instructor told me to stay in first gear whenever i came to a stop so i would advise that you do that.

Good luck on your next test fella...

[toxster]

Yeah - sounds like there are a few things I need to do to satisfy the tester.

So it seems to summarise as "keep in gear as the norm" and "shut the door when turning".

Many thanks - passedness here I come.

[alpslapper]

Many thanks - passedness here I come.

That's the attitude. Good luck

[Raven]

Many thanks - passedness here I come.

That attitude will go a long way . Good luck.

[Sharribee]

I think the advice about going to a local instructor just to get you into the "test" frame of mind is an excellent one.

I failed 2 times (dropped the bike in the test centre on one of them)

[Wangit]

Hi, I passed first time, but I am talking London 1969. These were the days when the tester was on foot. They used to hide behind ice cream signs and between cars, trying to watch you go by without you knowing. The emergency stop was carried out by the tester jumping out in front of me, and don't forget the front number plates on most bikes back then was like a 3 inch blade running down the center of the front mudguard, and he got very close to getting it between the legs. All I will add is look at the problem about sitting in neutral, you are in fact sitting in the middle of the road on a dead bike, it will not move until you pull the clutch and stick it in gear, and this in it self could be too long an operation. If some **** comes round a corner, taking up more road than they should you may have to get out the way, and quick. In all the years I have been riding, more than a dozen times I have had to avoid other road users when being in a static position. Here is a situation I came up against only the other day. I was sitting at a T junction close to the centre line waiting to turn right out on to a busy main road, a car came along the main road from the left wanting to turn right down the road I was coming out of, they are sitting waiting for the traffic to clear before they could turn. I noticed that I could not see the driver, because he was hidden behind the windscreen pillar, which to my mind, if I can't him, he can't see me. In a hurry to get through the traffic he took a mad dash at crossing between the traffic and cut the corner, he was heading straight for me at an ungodly speed, I had to take a fast left hand turn across the path of the car to my left. In short, if I had been in neutral it would have been big mash up. Always be in a gear and be able to move, it will save your life. Next time just ride as you normally would, don't try an be anything more than your self. If you ride as much as you say, you are good enough. Enjoy going and getting your ticket next time.
Bob

[PanRider]

Hi, I passed first time, but I am talking London 1969. etc....

Good one, thanks for posting, some good advice there,

[toxster]

Ta for that. Indeed I have taken to stopping in gear for that very reason (and have needed to scoot ahead as a car behind decided not to stop at the red light....). The horrible irony is that for that test I thought they'd like me in neutral - like on a car test -Doh!

TA!