Learner Rider

This afternoon I started as usual with a few ’round-the-block excursions to check I was comfortable on the bike before I hit traffic.  This time the boredom of this small circuit arose immediately, telling me it was time to ride further afield…

Of course, the whole immediate aim of all this practice of course was to pass my MOST (P’s test) in one go, when it finally came around in about 2 months.  I’d booked my test immediately after passing my L’s but rather than go for the soonest possible test, I decided to give myself time to hopefully feel really confident doing the test, not to just scrape through…

So, the next point of call was a large, mainly empty carpark I’d identified not far from my place.  Here I planned to chalk up all the dimensions of the tasks in the MOST test so I could practice regularly. In the end I decided just to fit the tasks into the lines already painted for the car spots, which turned out to be 2.5 metres wide and 5 metres long.  This meant that if I could do a u-turn in the width of two spots (5m), then I’d easily pass the 6.1m MOST u-turn.  Also the cone-weave and other tasks could be basically fitted into car-park spots, if not exactly, then with slightly smaller dimensions to really make sure I got my skills way up there for the test!

Today I set about doing  u-turns and cone-weaves (between the crossed lines of every second spot or about 5m distance to begin with).  This went ok, but there’s lots of work to do.  Long cone-weaves were ok, but the 4m MOST spacing seemed impossible.  As for the u-turns, my foot wanted to touch-down almost every time.  Regardless, I felt good about starting practice with plenty of time to spare, so it was time for a further excursion.

Time to hit the beach!

With my indicator-cancelling, clutch and throttle control getting much better already, I set off on as-yet unridden roads to Maroubra beach.  THIS is one of THE reasons to ride in Sydney.  Easy riding to the beach and once you’re there, easy parking too!  And what a thrill it is to ride down along a coast road and pull up at a spot overlooking the surf, take off your helmet and smell that ocean air.

What better motivation could you need than a ride to the beach.  Bike touring holidays beckon immediately.

For now, though, this first trip past the home-block has taught me some really valuable things.  Above all, the careful foray into traffic and more distant roads has improved my skills tremendously.  There’s nothing like many, many traffic lights to practice the throttle-clutch control on take-off, not to mention up and down gear changes. A few more kilometres and a few more cars than the familiar block has done wonders for these skills already.  Of course, this is still only day 4.  Lots to learn yet.  Come to think of it, I haven’t even had to park within traffic yet.  Should make it for a ride to a cafe soon to give me an excuse to practice that one.  mmmm.  lovin’ it.  cya!