Yesterday was my 30th birthday and my driver’s license was expiring. I decided to go ahead and take the motorcycle license test, too.
I got my motorcycle permit a year ago and it was still good, so I didn’t have to retake the motorcycle written test. I handed in my car written test that they mail to you with your renewal information and did the vision test and so on.
After I was done with that, they gave me a 1970s flyer that had been photocopied 15 times, giving it that blotchy-ink look that made all the words slightly unreadable. It showed the course and the manuevers I would have to do:
- Straight-line driving at slow speed
- Cone weave
- Stop at a specific spot
- High-speed stop
Travis, the examiner, told me that stopping on the course without being instructed was an automatic failure.
Straight-line driving at slow speed
The goal of this test: drive down the narrow lane without touching the lines at a slow speed. It should take at least 15 seconds to cover the distance (which I estimate to be 50 feet). Anything faster and you get docked. Anything slower makes it more difficult.
My results: I took 32 seconds and touched the line once. Travis laughed and said I didn’t need to go THAT slow, so the line-touch was understandable at that speed and he’d take that into account.
He told me some stories about Harley riders zipping down the lane in 3 or 4 seconds and having to do it over and over and over. He also said that he normally walks along with the rider and tells them to slow down if they’re going too fast, so push the envelope.
Cone weave
Starting from the bottom of the course now, weave around the cones. Pick the speed you’re comfortable with.
My results: Pretty easy on a scooter! I didn’t have any problems with this one and it led right into…
Stop at a specific spot
Now we’re back at the top of the course. The objective is to come down the side (opposite the cones) and stop with your front wheel in the box at the end of the course. You’re suppose to get up to reasonable speed, 15 mph or so.
My results: Again, the scooter makes this one easy. I don’t think he cared about the speed so much, plus he actually strung the weave and this test together by having my loop around at the top of the course.
High-speed stop
After the controlled stop, I was asked to circle back up to the top of the course. The point of this test was to get up to 15 mph (again, I think he just wanted whatever acceleration the scooter could achieve) and do an emergency stop. Using both front and rear brakes was required.
A lone cone marked the spot where the emergency stop would begin and he stood at that spot to measure and observe.
My results: I got up to about 20 and ended up locking the back wheel up and leaving quite a nice trail of rubber. I didn’t lock up the front wheel, so I had a controlled skid to a stop. Looking back, I thought I went a lot further than I should have, but when I took pictures later I realized it wasn’t that far to stop from 20 mph. I felt good about it.
The examiner told me about a doctor with a new Vespa that did a big loop around the parking lot, got up to about 35, then locked up the back wheel and leaned over and laid it down. He was fine, but pretty upset about it.
Conclusion
If you’ve ridden at all (I’m at about 1700 miles) then you’ll have no problems with this. Make sure you understand what the examiner is saying. I found myself repeating it back to him for clarification to make sure that I was on the same page as him.
Other info:
My motorcycle license was $12.50 for six years. The test was $3. They only offer it at the Mission location (in Johnson County, at least) and it can’t be raining. They don’t start tests after 5, so get there in time to stand in line and still be ready by 5.
If you have any comments or questions, please drop a line below.
