Few problems with CBT

Hi all

I posted a few days ago about braking when riding a bike and have just had an attempt at my CBT, although he said I wasn't the worst they I have had i feel I was pretty close. Overall I told him I didn't feel comfortable for the whole road ride required and asked if we could stop for the day so I'm finishing it off tomorrow.

I let him know where I was struggling and also wondered if anyone on here had any tips.

Firstly is setting off, although I don't stall it I always seem to shoot out when setting off which isn't good as it makes me go wide on corners, especially on my left turns. How do I stop this?

Secondly is pulling up to junctions, I always seem to pull up short and end up having to put my foot down for balance then scoot along in first until I reach the turn, how do I stop on the line rather than 6 foot away? Is it practice?

My final struggle is similar to my first in which I always go wide when turning out from a junction, especially when there is no traffic and I can do so in 2nd gear without stopping, my instructor was telling me to "let the clutch slip " and I never understood what he meant, so i was pulling it in slightly around the corner but it didn't feel right. How should I corner at junctions in 2nd gear? Should I have the clutch fully out?

Thanks all and sorry for the long post

It comes with practice.

Clutchslip will help .

Its where you slowly release the clutch so that the bike begins to move and you then alter that position gently to still have movement and control coupled with the throttle . It may seem like your revving the bike but it gives you more balance and slow control.

Try in straight lines to pull off slipping the clutch and getting your feet on the pegs but keep slow and steady . Ask them for a demonstration .

Normal corners you shouldnt need clutch slip but junctions and roundabouts you may .dont release the clutch quickly on setting off

Dont tense up its hard we all know that .

Left hand bends are tricky for a beginner especially those that require steering input by the bars as your right arm is twisting tbe throttle in effect pulling the bar backwards and to turn left your fighting that .

It really does just come with practice. If you can get the CBT signed off on the second attempt, get a bike and take yourself off​ somewhere quiet where you can practice in your own time. It's good that you're not pressuring yourself to rush, but don't be concerned about not taking to it instantly. We were all novices at some point!

Also, there's no reason you can't ask for further lessons after the CBT if you feel you need more instruction. And if you're not convinced that you're clicking with your instructor (although you haven't actually said that's the issue here) then plenty of people have switched instructors/schools and made better progress afterwards.

First off I'm very new to this.

Second, try to relax, don't worry if it takes you a little longer to get the hang of it, if you feel really unsettled at stopping and clutch control ask if you can have another session practicing in the training area or pay for one, sounds like a lot of your problems are related to underestimating your stopping ability and slow control and slipping the clutch, this will all improve with practice, I'm still hopeless with u turns lol.

I'm probably the least experienced rider on this forum but have taken a CBT twice in the last month so it's still fresh in my mind so maybe some of my thoughts will help:

Do you drive (cars)? Car & bike clutch use seems to me to be completely opposite; in cars you're taught to use the clutch for short periods of time just for changing gear (ie press clutch, raise revs, release clutch, carry on, repeat) but on bikes the slow maneuvering is all done with the clutch partially operated. You can cruise around at slow speeds on a bike with the clutch half-pressed without damaging it (where as in a car you'd be smelling smoke in no time).

When moving around slowly we were taught (at the good school at least) to keep your revs steady with middle amount of throttle & use the clutch to speed up (gently release) or slow down (squeeze a bit more). It sounds to me like you are releasing the clutch too quickly & so shooting off on the pull aways - maybe try releasing the clutch much more slowly when you pull away, you don't need to fully release it at all if you're just going around the training area slowly, there's no need to be going fast.

With the braking it does just sound like a practice thing & you're maybe using too much front brake at the slow speeds. We were told to use both when slowing down from the higher speeds but if you're already going slow (ie practicing your fake junctions in the training ground) then you don't really need to use the front brake at all (as they're so sharp), just gently using the back brake once you're down to slow speed (for your slow-clunk-stop) lets you just roll up slowly to the line - there's no rush.

This could all be rubbish & actual experienced riders can tell you better but as a fellow learner thinking along these lines helped me feel confident on the bike & pass my CBT.

I'm probably the least experienced rider on this forum but have taken a CBT twice in the last month so it's still fresh in my mind so maybe some of my thoughts will help:

Do you drive (cars)? Car & bike clutch use seems to me to be completely opposite; in cars you're taught to use the clutch for short periods of time just for changing gear (ie press clutch, raise revs, release clutch, carry on, repeat) but on bikes the slow maneuvering is all done with the clutch partially operated. You can cruise around at slow speeds on a bike with the clutch half-pressed without damaging it (where as in a car you'd be smelling smoke in no time).

When moving around slowly we were taught (at the good school at least) to keep your revs steady with middle amount of throttle & use the clutch to speed up (gently release) or slow down (squeeze a bit more). It sounds to me like you are releasing the clutch too quickly & so shooting off on the pull aways - maybe try releasing the clutch much more slowly when you pull away, you don't need to fully release it at all if you're just going around the training area slowly, there's no need to be going fast.

With the braking it does just sound like a practice thing & you're maybe using too much front brake at the slow speeds. We were told to use both when slowing down from the higher speeds but if you're already going slow (ie practicing your fake junctions in the training ground) then you don't really need to use the front brake at all (as they're so sharp), just gently using the back brake once you're down to slow speed (for your slow-clunk-stop) lets you just roll up slowly to the line - there's no rush.

This could all be rubbish & actual experienced riders can tell you better but as a fellow learner thinking along these lines helped me feel confident on the bike & pass my CBT.

Your not wrong with the clutch .

A car uses a dry clutch whilst a bike uses a wet clutch . So yep trying slipping clutch in car gives that unmistakable odour

I used to go to wide on corners, part of the problem was not looking in the right place.

You will have been told to look where you want to go, so when turning into a side street I would look right down it, which would mean on a left turn going wide into the centre, or on a right turn crossing the oncoming lane to turn right into the centre of it.

You have to be more specific with where you look, and so look into the centre of the lane you are going to use, not just the centre of the road.

I do not know if that applies to you, but it was one of the things I wish i was told.

Otherwise it just sounds like you need to practice your clutch control and balance. The former is probably causing the the latter.

At slow speeds the throttle is just too crude to control them, a tiny movement will make too big a difference. And as you are using your hand for balance and steering it is too easy to make little movements inadvertently. So instead you keep the throttle open to keep the revs up, then hold it there and instead slip the clutch as everyone else has described to control the speed.

Each bike it different to the exact position you need to hold the clutch to reach the biting point (which is also called the friction zone by Americans), so you just need to learn this by feel. But if you are gentle with your action this is not something you need to worry about too much yet, it just adds a tiny delay before setting off. Then when using clutch control you only pull the lever as much as needed to drop the speed.

So to avoid shooting off to quickly from a start, just let the clutch out more slowly. (And that way if you mess up your gears changes so find yourself accidentally setting off in second you should still be able to do so without stalling.)

It is better to stop too short of a line than beyond it, but if you feel that happening just come off the brake and use the clutch with a little throttle to keep the bike crawling forwards. Even speed up a little if you have to. But you will feel more confident about your balance if you have the engine revving away and using the clutch to control your speed than if it is struggling with low revs and you are worrying it will stall.

On normal right-angled junctions in town though it is not unusual to need to slip the clutch a little, but at this stage you are probably going around corners pretty slowly that you definitely will need to. In second gear the throttle is even more crude at slow speeds than in first, so if you try to use it alone you will risk going too fast and wide or stalling.