rew632

Cool, with this better weather starting to show I hope to do as many ride outs as I can

Ahh I didn't know about that place. Thanks for replying

Is anyone free tomorrow for a little ride out? its to be nice weather and it would be nice to know a few bikers from Scotland. I'm not sure what to do in a meet but I'm up for giving one a go Please reply if you are free and are up for meeting tomorrow. Thanks, Kevin

Hey I'm new to the forum, and now that the weather is getting better I was wondering when the next meet will be? (Glasgow area)

Hey everyone, the last time I posted on here I was talking about my CBT and passing my MOD1 well I'm happy to say I passed my test about a year ago now. I still have my little Suzuki EN-125 and have just done a little road trip with the other half on the back lol we done just over 250 miles in total around Scotland, the little 125 did show its limits with the huge hills and trying to pull us both up them but we both had an amazing time and the bike done amazingly well. I have now got myself a CX500 (hold the plastic magnet comments) its an odd choice for a 23YO I will agree but I just love everything about it mostly how the engine looks, sounds and goes. The fact its got a drive shaft and IMO is one smooth bike to ride means it ticks all the boxes for me. I know these bikes have a history of cam chain problems and well one HUGE never ending list of problems but I'm not afraid to get my hands dirty and the guy that had it before me was a mechanic and has done the "triple bypass" work on it. I have started to paint and tidy her up for the better weather however as I didn't do my DAS and still have 1 year to go before my restriction is removed. I have been asking about and some people have said the bike being 33 years old and having 50,000 miles means its probably already about 33BHP. My MOT guy said "just ride the fu*king thing and dont worry about it" lol. But I do worry .....a lot, is my only option spending £100 on a restrictor kit? Could I make a kit myself? any input would be much appreciated as I want to get it ready for the start of summer so now is the time to do the work. I become unrestricted on the 12/10/2014. Thanks again

WOW thank you everyone, amazing community I will be doing my mod2 asap however I think this could take a few goes lol. I have been working like mad the past few days to help pay for the training and the test. I just hope to pass before everything gets changed in Jan. I will post with any updates. Thanks everyone

Hey guys so the last time I was on the forum I just got my CBT and was asking what kit I should get well.... I bought myself a nice little Suzuki EN125-2 (blue) I have been riding around on it for about 6 months now, I have learned a lot about the rules of the road lol some the hard way. At the start I didn't seem to look out for sings / road markings so would often be in the wrong lane and would panic / get lost. I thought I would try the mod1 test without getting lessons as it was only £15.50 (£60 for a 1hr lesson) and the one good thing I seem to have is good balance and slow control so I didn't have much to lose by giving it a go. I did practice on a dead end road that had no traffic with some bottles but other than that I was relying on the 6 months riding to help me out. I had no sleep at all last night but I got up nice and early, (6:30am) got ready and gave my bike a little once over. I'm not sure if this would be a little tip for people doing the mod1 but giving the bike a good check really helped me as my rear tyre was rather low and that would probably not help with handling (I now seem to do checks every ride or every 2nd). Anyway I planned the route to the test centre using Google Maps then the day before my test I went out to find the test centre, this way I knew what to expect. I arrived at the test centre around 7:35ish and it wasn't open yet lol so I thought this would be a good time to practice some slow control as the road it was on is dead at that time. I put my bike in the parking bay once the gates opened and waited outside as it was raining a bit and I didn't want a wet seat lol the examiner then pulled up on his bike about 8ish, I got off my bike and said "hello" however he very quickly replayed with "turn your bike around (so its facing out) unless you plan on driving over the test centre" and walked away I was a little shocked but I could see his point at the same time (I never did get a hello back lol) from that point on I couldn't help but think this guy hates me and I haven't even done the test yet lol nice one Kevin. Once we went inside he seemed like a different guy.... he was VERY kind and helpful and gave me tips. I showed him my bike and then the test started. Everything was going very good and I was shocked at myself and how well I was doing. It then got to the emergency stop.... and I FU*KED up big time as I hit 52km/h and went to stop but my rear wheel locked up in the rain however I regained full control (the look on his face was priceless as was mines probably) and the bike was good again. I have been reading if you lock up any wheel then you fail and other people say you don't so at this point I was thinking I failed but I did keep trying my best. I was slow on my avoidance but I got a 2nd go and got 49km/h (I thought the min was 50km/h ?) and he said you just made it by 1km/h. I then parked up my bike and we went inside, I started to think if I passed he would told me by now...... how wrong I was lol once we got in the room he said congrats you have passed mod1 (I was in shock) I did say "but I locked up my rear wheel" (I'm a very honest person... sometimes that's not a good thing) I thought I would fail for that, his reply was "you handled that perfectly and regained full control of the bike so you have passed". So that's my super long update, I hope everyone wont mind me posting this really long story lol I don't know any bikers so when I have some exciting bike news I like to come to TMBF and tell my little or sometimes huge story. *sorry*

Hello everyone, sorry its been a few days but I have been a bit busy with work and sorting out 101 things I have chosen my path to take and I think DAS with some extra lessons will be my best choice. I will be buying a little 125CC just to get use to starting / stopping, steering, U turns, FIG 8 and to get me to work and back, this should build up my road confidence. I will be keeping the bike for a few years so I will not be getting it just to practice for the DAS, living in a busy city means I will spend more times sitting at lights than I do driving so a 125 will be more than enough to begin with. I was thinking about getting my dad or brother or sister to drive behind me in the car for the 1st few runs just to make sure I'm doing ok then start on my own and like Karimura said start the test latter on in the year. I think this will give me the best chance as I learn from doing and from my mistakes (bad times). The other plus is it will no longer cost me £5 to get to and from work and I will not need to wait 2 and a half hrs to get home when it will only take me 15 - 30mins on a bike. I have been looking at some kit for my 1st bike: Helmet:Duchinni D801 (Blue) Jacket: Tuzo Cyclone Motorcycle Jacket Black/Blue Bottoms: (Not sure what to look for yet) Bike: Yamaha YBR 125 Or Honda CG 125 (I was told the bikes are about the same?) Gloves: (again not sure what to look for) Shoes / boots (Should I buy a set or will normal boots be ok?) Please let me know what you think about my shopping list, I haven't bought anything yet but Its hard to hold back lol as you can probably see I want to keep a low budget but be safe. All the driving I would be doing is in city so 30mph would usually be a max. Again thank you all for the replies and for helping me out, this is the biggest welcome and amount of support I have ever had so a really BIG thank you

Thanks, I forgot to say I have already passed the theory first time before they changed it all (I think it was changing on the 21st of Jan) I know it was a bit of a odd order theory then CBT but once I found out that was going to change I quickly booked my test in. I will have another think about the DAS and my options. Do you think I should get a 125 for now and practice for a few months then do the DAS because I really need a lot of work just on the basic things like pulling away and stop going wide at some turns ?

Hello I have just done my CBT again today and well things got off to a bad start..... I stalled 5 times and moved about 1m lol but the instructor said this was because of two things 1. The engine was really cold and would take a while to warm up and 2. I was not applying enough revs as I was pulling away. The really annoying part was the battery was completely dead so I had to kick start it all 5 times he went back over the parts I wasn't sure about and we worked on them until I was getting good enough for the main roads. He said something to me that helped a lot about my speed (I was scared at going to 30Mph as I didn't feel safe) "keep your head up and look down the road as far as you can and 30Mph wont feel so bad" well I gave it a shot and yep it worked, I was doing 30Mph and loved every second of it. He then went to a 40Mph road and told me to speed up and aim for 40Mph if I feel I could do it, so with my head up and looking far down the road I was doing 40Mph and at this point I screamed and was laughing a bit (like being on a roller-coaster) because of the amount of fun I was having (Just me that has done that then?) anyway I had a amazing time and for once started to enjoy being on a bike. We pulled over a few times and had a chat about my driving then we went to a nice view point and back to base. I really enjoyed myself and yes I did a few things wrong and one or two really bad things that he shouted about but he only done that for my own safety and he didn't do it in a bad or evil way. I have now gotten to know 3 instructors and found all of them super friendly, all of them will make sure you are safe and having a good time. We went back to the office and the instructor then asked me a few things about what I did wrong and what I should have done to avoid doing the same errors again then I got my CBT YAY!!! I went to BikeRite in Glasgow so I really recommend them as I don't think you can get better people, very helpful and easy going but also keep you safe. If you even phone for a chat about the CBT they are happy to go though everything and make sure you understand it all. I will be sure to go back again and again until I pass my MOD 1/2. Thats my good news now to get my jacket, gloves, helmet, bottoms and a 125cc bike and get some lessons booked. I don't know if this is a good idea but I don't feel the direct access is the best way for me as I'm so new to everything and have never been on the road before until now, so I was thinking tkae it easy and do a bit at a time. What do you guys think ? Thanks again to everyone and I hope anyone that is doing the CBT will get a few tips from myself and others.

WOW what a amazing response thank you everyone for taking the time to read my post and replying. I will take everything on board. Tomorrow I have my CBT again and the weather is looking poor (lots of ice and snow) but I'm going to walk in hopefully feeling ready and pass this. I might ask if I can do some laps off road just to make sure I understand everything and get a quick recap. I will be sure to let you all know how I get on.

************************ WARNING THIS COULD TAKE SOMETIME TO READ... SORRY************************* Hey everyone I'm new to this forum and have just sat my CBT however my instructor decided not to pass me out of the three in my group. I have never ridden a car or motorbike in my life and I did learn sooo much today, I feel it was almost too much to take in. I started off good however the instructor could see me shaking a little bit and almost being afraid of the bike. I was working the gears just fine and after leaning that the bike will go to the place you look I was turning around corners and starting to open the throttle up a little more. I started to get a little better on the steering and could manage the fig 8 and U turn. I was nervous and was sometimes shaking a bit (I'm a shy / worrying person so that wasn't helping) and the fact it was freezing cold outside and the ground had some ice didn't help. We had some lunch and I was starting to re think about going out on the road. The instructor then went out with the other two bikers and left me reading the highway code as I have never been a road user. About 50mins latter he arrived back and then it was my turn *cue the shaking lol* I went on the bike and pulled away in a very confused manner, I then started to ride the bike and got use to the feel and for a split second I loved it but then the instructor said I was out a little wide on a left hand bend ( I thought you moved to the right position to see round the left bend with parked cars but I got told off for that ) I got back into what I thought was the centre position but the instructor then said I was very close to the parked cars and told me to lifesaver check and move right a bit. It went down hull from that point as the little confidence I did have ran away lol. I was still JUST managing to get along however I was driving around 20 - 25mph and was getting told to speed up as traffic was starting to gather up behind me, I did try to get up to 30 however I found it WAY to fast and did not feel like I had full control or could stop fast if something happened. I wasn't sure if it was normal or not but I could sometimes feel the back wheel kick out a very small amount as I was going round a long bend ? anyway I arrived back and knew I was going to told the bad news but in a way I was happy..... I know when most people fail they like to shout and scream about it but I was happy with being told I'm not good enough yet, if I did get my CBT they wouldn't be a chance in hell I would get back on a bike because I didn't feel ready and I think that's something other people that have failed or passed need to realise, if you walk away with or even without a CBT ask yourself would you feel happy riding a bike on your own? and they are no point fooling yourself saying yes just because you passed a CBT because its really your own life that will be in danger. Sorry about the HUGE post but I just wanted to share how my CBT went and let people know that not getting your CBT 1st time is no big deal and most of all if you feel you need to work on a few things before you go on the road then 100% get some training done and become a better rider and not just one that gets by with everyday being a bonus until you have a accident. My instructor said I wont be charged full price again and that I only need to pay for the bike and insurance (£20) for two hours. Things I feel I need work on: Lifesavers before changing position and turning Knowing what position I should be in when going round bends Understanding how far to be in or out on a roundabout with no markings The best way to stop in a emergency and what to do with the clutch as I seem to keep it out Any tips on how to build my confidence up as I feel that will solve some of the other problems and will make me feel 1000X better. I also think I need to enjoy it more and stop worrying but driving around in Glasgow with a L plate is like a target for most people lol I have already had a van driver over take me on a roundabout and get all mad at me even when I did nothing wrong... lol my instructor wasn't very happy with him and shot up between me and the van driver to make sure I was good and that the driver wasn't going to hit me (awesome instructor who had my back). anyways that's how my CBT went Thanks, Kevin