Module 1 - members test experiences

Practice

Hi all

Failed my mod 1 for the second time last week, frustrated isn’t the word.

Both times I’ve failed on the hazard avoidance, the LAST exercise aaaaaargh.

Hey Joe, sorry to hear this. It sounds like everything else is in place so you'll get there.

Third might do it. The main reason for plumping for 2nd is you're sure to get it up to the 50km/h. But I've heard that if yes the noise etc is unnerving then 3rd will give you that extra reassurance and the bike should accelerate well enough if you're not going to slow around the curve.

Have you seen this vid by Roadcraft Nottingham? He advises one of his pupils to do just that

For the rest of it, don't overthink it.

The examiner is looking for a deviation out and through the cones, then a second clear direction change to get back on your original line.

So it's a HARD push one way whilst looking at the further blue cone, then a HARD push to get back on line, then focus on your braking to a stop.

Trust me, anything else is overcomplicating it and I don't think will help you.

Know that at that speed the bike isn't going to lose traction on the test pad surface. [mention]mikestrivens[/mention] advice is spot on. Practice so you know it instinctively (especially as it might save your life one day anyway)

Hi all

Failed my mod 1 for the second time last week, frustrated isn’t the word.

Both times I’ve failed on the hazard avoidance, the LAST exercise aaaaaargh.

 

Hey Joe, sorry to hear this. It sounds like everything else is in place so you'll get there.

Third might do it. The main reason for plumping for 2nd is you're sure to get it up to the 50km/h. But I've heard that if yes the noise etc is unnerving then 3rd will give you that extra reassurance and the bike should accelerate well enough if you're not going to slow around the curve.

Have you seen this vid by Roadcraft Nottingham? He advises one of his pupils to do just that

">

For the rest of it, don't overthink it.

The examiner is looking for a deviation out and through the cones, then a second clear direction change to get back on your original line.

So it's a HARD push one way whilst looking at the further blue cone, then a HARD push to get back on line, then focus on your braking to a stop.

Trust me, anything else is overcomplicating it and I don't think will help you.

Know that at that speed the bike isn't going to lose traction on the test pad surface. @mikestrivens advice is spot on. Practice so you know it instinctively (especially as it might save your life one day anyway)

Thanks

Yea I watched that vid, that’s where I got the idea of using third gear.

The most frustrating thing is I know I can do it. I breeze through the rest of the test.

As for practice my instructor doesn’t have any speed measuring device.

Oh well ‘third times a charm’ as they say

Once again thanks.

First attempt

We had a steady drive out to Steeton test centre. Knowing that the test centre has a bit of a camber to it we decided to do some u turns etc before hand. Things weren’t going well unfortunately but I wasn’t too worried.

My test came around I had just about geared myself for it and then I was told I wasn’t able to do it due to incorrect paperwork. (Incorrect date had been written on my CBT cert. 2013 instead of 2018!) unfortunately the assessor was being assessed so wasn’t really able to do anything.

That being said there was a cancellation in the afternoon which I was able to take so we did some riding that morning and I was able to get a new CBT cert with the correct date on this time! Had to change bikes from the gladius which I had done all my training on to a Kawasaki as the gladius was booked in for another lesson. Didn’t bother me too much but it was just another small thing contributing to the day.

So the afternoon comes around. I’ve watched about 6 people fail in a row and it’s my turn. I’m pretty nervous but crack on with it anyway. I entered the slalom a meter or so late and by the time I get to the last cone I’ve run out of space. For f*ck sake was muttered as I put my foot down! Anyway, I decided to carry on with the test for the experience and nailed everything after that - I just didn’t care about it once I knew I had failed. My nerves disappeared and I just got on with it.

Test 2 to follow

Test number 2

So this time we are heading to a different test centre as that’s all that was available. We had a good ride through to Wakefield and I was determined to pass and go in to the test with a different mindset than before.

We did some slow speed stuff in a car park just before and this was all going really well. Once we got to the test centre the wind was pretty strong and it was evident that it could be called off. Anyhow, I started the test this time with a much more confident approach and passed with no rider faults! I was mega chuffed!

The guy after me failed and he had basically talked himself out of doing it before even starting. Similar to me the week before.

Anyway onwards and upwards, just need to pass the mod 2 now!

Tom

Well done, and good luck with your Mod 2!

Well done [mention]Tomspark93[/mention]

Well done [mention]Tomspark93[/mention]

Well done!!

2. Perfect speeds for slow speed stuff might vary slightly depending on what you are riding/you as a person, but I found sticking to these (when I wasnt having wobblers during practice and instead just slowing down and thinking about it!) helped hugely (i did these speeds both on an SV and a Gladius)! Slalom - 5-6mph, figure of 8 about 7mph, slow ride and u turn 4mph. For the faster stuff I stayed in second, and went through the bend at 15-20mph (when I did a quick glance I was at 18 on my test) so it wasnt quite as much of a hammering on the throttle to hit the 32mph speeds right.

This might help you [mention]Joebaxi[/mention] ?

2. Perfect speeds for slow speed stuff might vary slightly depending on what you are riding/you as a person, but I found sticking to these (when I wasnt having wobblers during practice and instead just slowing down and thinking about it!) helped hugely (i did these speeds both on an SV and a Gladius)! Slalom - 5-6mph, figure of 8 about 7mph, slow ride and u turn 4mph. For the faster stuff I stayed in second, and went through the bend at 15-20mph (when I did a quick glance I was at 18 on my test) so it wasnt quite as much of a hammering on the throttle to hit the 32mph speeds right.

 

This might help you @Joebaxi ?

Thanks Elizabeth

To be fair I’m not doing too bad on the slow stuff touch wood. I’m learning on the Gladius as well and have been told to stay in second and get the revs to 5000 for the e stop and swerve. Yes I think your bang on when you say carry the speed around the curve which I know I’m not because a quick glance at the speedo on my last attempt had me at 12mph which meant fully opening the throttle on the approach causing me to lose my bottle, in fact I’m pretty sure the front wheel left the tarmac which didn’t help my nerves lol. Anyway onwards and upwards,keep up the good fight etc etc

Once again thank you

Hi all

Third mod1 attempt today and success at long last.

It’s been 6 week since my last attempt so I was really ropey on the ride to the test centre and had told myself that this was the last try and if I failed again I’d be buying a 125.

Anyway on my first 2 attempts I didn’t pick up a single minor but failed both times on the swerve exercise through lack of speed. Today was a different matter though. I was stalling the bike and forgetting shoulder checks picking up 4 minors, one of them on the swerve because I only managed 48kph through the speed trap, so I only just scraped through, but a pass is a pass as they say.

I never wanna see another cone for as long as I live lol.

Well done [mention]Joebaxi[/mention], you're right that a pass is a pass (not sure if you've seen how I scraped a pass). Never look at a cone again but aim to keep those slow manoeuvring skills sharp

Well done [mention]Joebaxi[/mention] onwards and upwards

Well done [mention]Joebaxi[/mention] it is good to see the back of the cones

Well done @Joebaxi, you're right that a pass is a pass (not sure if you've seen how I scraped a pass). Never look at a cone again but aim to keep those slow manoeuvring skills sharp

Thanks buddy. Have just read your mod1 experience. Loved how you said let’s get the hell outta here before someday says owt . I do understand the importance of the slow stuff but at least I can now practice that stuff at my own leisure, it’s a huge pressure off the shoulders.

Well done @Joebaxi onwards and upwards

Thanks Mike

Well done @Joebaxi it is good to see the back of the cones

Thanks Bender. It sure is mate

Congratulations, feels good ay

Congratulations, feels good ay

Thanks. It certainly does mate

well done [mention]Tomspark93[/mention] and [mention]Joebaxi[/mention]!

Would deffo prefer to repeat MOD 2 over and over than do MOD 1 again, in fact id probably rather have dental work without anaesthetic! it feels weird to be in a confined space on a motorbike and having to dodge cones. Plus the rules on a minor/fail/pass are much more black and white so you know when you've flunked it!

My issue with cones was and still is that they're just not realistic enough for me. Before I went out with my IAM advanced observer for the first time we spoke on the phone and I said slow riding was something I wanted to continue to work on.

After our first ride he fed back that he was amazed I thought that as my slow riding + clutch control around junctions, in traffic and whilst filtering was very good. But as I said to him, that's real life and when there's a manoeuvre like that my brain will quite happy work it all out. Doing a figure of 8 around cones is an important test of skill (which does genuinely equate to the real world) but I think my brain needs two Smart cars or something to go around to make it easier for me

Plus if I'm filtering and I dab a foot for a bit of confidence the world doesn't explode and I'm told I'm a massive joke of a failure

well done @Tomspark93 and @Joebaxi!

Would deffo prefer to repeat MOD 2 over and over than do MOD 1 again, in fact id probably rather have dental work without anaesthetic! it feels weird to be in a confined space on a motorbike and having to dodge cones. Plus the rules on a minor/fail/pass are much more black and white so you know when you've flunked it!

Thanks Elizabeth. Lol I actually told my workmates I was going to the dentist because my plan is not to tell anybody I’m doing my test, it takes the pressure off but yea the dentist is a walk in the park compared to mod1. I think there should b at least a cushion where you are aloud maybe one foot down or clip one cone during the test. That way you could at least start off confidently instead of knowing that you have to nail every exercise. Having said that I’m not ignoring the importance of the exercises.

My issue with cones was and still is that they're just not realistic enough for me. Before I went out with my IAM advanced observer for the first time we spoke on the phone and I said slow riding was something I wanted to continue to work on.

After our first ride he fed back that he was amazed I thought that as my slow riding + clutch control around junctions, in traffic and whilst filtering was very good. But as I said to him, that's real life and when there's a manoeuvre like that my brain will quite happy work it all out. Doing a figure of 8 around cones is an important test of skill (which does genuinely equate to the real world) but I think my brain needs two Smart cars or something to go around to make it easier for me

Plus if I'm filtering and I dab a foot for a bit of confidence the world doesn't explode and I'm told I'm a massive joke of a failure

Absolutely bang on. I think a dab of the foot for balance purposes should b acceptable. As long as you don’t end up in a heap. After all if you do a u turn in real life you’re not gonna be thinking I better not put my foot down here. The purpose should b to get the bike turned round in as safe a way as possible.

After all if you do a u turn in real life you’re not gonna be thinking I better not put my foot down here. The purpose should b to get the bike turned round in as safe a way as possible.

If I'm doing a uturn in real life I put both feet down and paddle