h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

As I may have mentioned, I thought I'd draft up a Guide Entry on doing your motorbike test. OK, it's necessarily a bit UKish, but a lot of it is more widely applicable.

Before I submit it to Peer Review, could you experts cast an eye over it and see if there's anything missing?

Ta muchly

http://www.bbc.co.uk/dna/h2g2/brunel/A24286737

Hey that looks good Beatrice. Pretty much decribed my test and that was over 10 years ago!

The only things I would mention is that manoevres should be: manoeuvres (according to my spellchecker) it's one of those words that always looks wrong to me, no matter how it is spelled!

The other one is a missing letter in one of the last paragraphs under the Manoeuvres:
"Direct Access. In the UK (but not NI), if you are over 21 with a car drivers licence you can take an acelerated route into riding big bikes _y doing a Direct Access course."

Apart from that - well done!

Thank you Jemstone

I'll also add a rider about the test requirements changing - here in NI they're due to get tougher from this Autumn.

The only thing I found other than already mentioned that stood out was taking a bike off the main stand.

Not sure how you can do this whilst holding the front brake and though it was part of my training it wasn't part of the test, unless you meant the side stand....

you can if you straddle the bike and bounce it off the stand. 'course, you have to be a lanky wotsit like me to do that on many bikes!

And to do that would be completely against the way we were taught as it could quite easily damage the bike if done too often.

I've seen it done that way many a time and the thought of a little crack in the frame down there isn't a pleasant one unless you like being overtaken by your back wheel.

depends how gentle you are, and whether you have one of these modern made out of 2 bits of balsa wood bikes, or a proper one

Funniest one I recall seeing was in Ashby-de-la-Zouch highstreet which is quite steep. Bloke had parked his bike nose in to the kerb pointing down hill. Only a short bloke and the bike was a GT750 or something of that sort. Took him about 5 mins to wheel it out and get it on the side stand. Then he put his lid a leathers one. Checked the fuel tap, sat on the bike, turned the kill switch to on..


and pressed the horn

I nearly spat me ciggy out! Poor bloke, I mean I did have some sympathy. But it was funny

There's nothing like making yourself look like an ametuer to get other laughing...

That idiot hides in all of us just waiting for the moment to strike

oh yes - that's half of what makes it funny, the relief at seeing someone else do it as well!