Failed RE

[Mybowlcut]

Hey Mitch, sorry to hear. Meh, you'll get it next time. I failed my first go for doing a fat endo in the e-stop. Who knew examiners don't like stunts?

Thanks James. Haha nice. I guess they're so used to conservative riding they can't appreciate it, eh?

Surprised at the technique you described that the examiner used to stop you- both my tests at Midland (Ray and Rod) went thus:
1: Send me off down the street for a ~100m run-up.
2: I accelerate to 50km and maintain.
3: Arm goes up, signaling there is no traffic behind me and it's safe to complete the exercise.
4: Arm goes down, stop ASAP whilst maintaining control.

Hm.. interesting. How do they measure your stopping distance?

[dirt_infected]

I think ray was just guesstimating, rod pointed out to me (after I'd done the exercise) the discreet chalk (or paint, not sure) marks he was using to judge when to drop the arm and where 12m was. They were not visible from more than a couple of meters so there was no way to cheat.

Copped some dirt-bike prejudice from both- they were really surprised a dirty had the brakes to stop (let alone do an endo) in 12m.

[Blazon]

You have to E-stop within 12m.

and yeah its a life saving maneouver.

as I said consult with a instructor......and practice on quiet street

These comments were directed at reddog & Trouble.
sorry for the confusion.


I think I know what youre refering to.

The road I did the e-stop on had parking bays. The assessor used these lines to check the distance. From memory each bay is 5m long. 2 & 1/2 half bays = 12m.

I didnt focus on this though. He just said "when I move my arm start braking".

Dude, just relax & let it go for now!

[Mybowlcut]

I think ray was just guesstimating, rod pointed out to me (after I'd done the exercise) the discreet chalk (or paint, not sure) marks he was using to judge when to drop the arm and where 12m was. They were not visible from more than a couple of meters so there was no way to cheat.

Copped some dirt-bike prejudice from both- they were really surprised a dirty had the brakes to stop (let alone do an endo) in 12m.

Oh ok, so same as mine more or less.

These comments were directed at reddog & Trouble.
sorry for the confusion.

Oh, woops. Sorry.

I think I know what youre refering to.

The road I did the e-stop on had parking bays. The assessor used these lines to check the distance. From memory each bay is 5m long. 2 & 1/2 half bays = 12m.

I didnt focus on this though. He just said "when I move my arm start braking".

Dude, just relax & let it go for now!

I've let it go haha. I was just curious about how other centres were doing it with only a hand signal, but realise now that they all use some form of marker for measurement.

[SIKPUPY]

The road I did the e-stop on had parking bays. The assessor used these lines to check the distance. From memory each bay is 5m long. 2 & 1/2 half bays = 12m.

They dont always use markers on the road. Remember the examiners see you guys every day doing E stops etc. If you do the e stops in the suburbs, a normal house frontage is between 15 and 20 metres. Just because there is lines in the road doesnt mean the examiner uses them as they are. There is a couple of test areas that have stuff painted on the kerb etc etc and the examiners know that you know where they are so they might hold out and put their hand up after you are 5 metres past the 0 mark do the maths.... they put the hand up at 5 metres, they expect you to stop by the 17 metre mark.

[drifter]

I guess the bad part of that is that if it was a real life situation, you could have been injured if you stuffed it up the first time... but there's something really crappy about failing haha. I felt disappointed for the rest of the day.

for me it was that my instructor was making me stop when i got level with them, but the assessor did the hand drop thing. so i had practised a different method.

stopping wasn't the issue, it was getting the instructions right.

[Mybowlcut]

They dont always use markers on the road. Remember the examiners see you guys every day doing E stops etc. If you do the e stops in the suburbs, a normal house frontage is between 15 and 20 metres. Just because there is lines in the road doesnt mean the examiner uses them as they are. There is a couple of test areas that have stuff painted on the kerb etc etc and the examiners know that you know where they are so they might hold out and put their hand up after you are 5 metres past the 0 mark do the maths.... they put the hand up at 5 metres, they expect you to stop by the 17 metre mark.

Good point. Hadn't thought of that.

for me it was that my instructor was making me stop when i got level with them, but the assessor did the hand drop thing. so i had practised a different method.

stopping wasn't the issue, it was getting the instructions right.

Exactly my point. Granted that I probably did a shitty (read weak) brake regardless since I was focusing more on what his hand was doing.

[Cone Cat]

After my first fail due to locking the back wheel during e-braking, my instructor upped the ante to 60kmh. After trying a few e-brakes from 60kmh, 50kmh seems easy in comparison.

Wait untill some stupid bitch yapping on her phone in a red toyota corolla pulls out in front of you and you have to e-stop from 70kmh....
You'll be glad you got your e-braking technique down pat when you got your license.

[Mybowlcut]

After my first fail due to locking the back wheel during e-braking, my instructor upped the ante to 60kmh. After trying a few e-brakes from 60kmh, 50kmh seems easy in comparison.

Wait untill some stupid bitch yapping on her phone in a red toyota corolla pulls out in front of you and you have to e-stop from 70kmh....
You'll be glad you got your e-braking technique down pat when you got your license.

Yeah, I thought about trying it at higher speeds when I was practising with my shadow. I'm assuming the assessor didn't increase the distance allowance? Haha.

By the way, I know it's already been covered, but in case anyone wants an actual map of the Midland test route, here it is. Ignore the detour on Hodges road, google maps won't let me go straight across the Toodyay Road intersection along Lloyd.

[gongzee]

I'm surprised they didn't give you another go. One of the tests I did at City west was sort of similar. The examiner was terrible though. Told me to stop when he put his arm up in front of him. First go he put his arm up so slowly to 90 degrees, I had no idea at which point he wanted me to stop (when he started to move his arm, or when the arm was finally extended in front of him), and the mind went blank and I forgot what I was even looking for. Ended up way past the 12m mark by the time I realised I missed my cue. He did give me a second chance though. And when he gave my assessment sheet back he told me I locked the back wheel, which was funny because I didn't use any rear brake for the test in the fear of locking it. Dodgy fucking examiner.

[jed00]

I found the examiner that took me at city west was good, when it come to the E-stop he said when you reach the back wheel off my bike apply brakes got it first pop.
If your unsure ask its not hard, its better to ask a silly question than asume you know what they ae after.

[joff]

I'm surprised they didn't give you another go. One of the tests I did at City west was sort of similar. The examiner was terrible though. Told me to stop when he put his arm up in front of him. First go he put his arm up so slowly to 90 degrees, I had no idea at which point he wanted me to stop (when he started to move his arm, or when the arm was finally extended in front of him), and the mind went blank and I forgot what I was even looking for. Ended up way past the 12m mark by the time I realised I missed my cue. He did give me a second chance though. And when he gave my assessment sheet back he told me I locked the back wheel, which was funny because I didn't use any rear brake for the test in the fear of locking it. Dodgy fucking examiner.

was his name Todd?

Gaining a quick rep having now been 'reassigned' to Willagee.

My instructor is taking him to the State Ombudsman. Setting up students to fail..

Arse..

[Mybowlcut]

Had a ride with my shadow today to practice slow turns and braking... my slow turns are horrible after the confidence drop of failing. I'm always putting my foot down and it seems I have to really try to go slowly. I was doing them fine before...

[malenko]

Had a ride with my shadow today to practice slow turns and braking... my slow turns are horrible after the confidence drop of failing. I'm always putting my foot down and it seems I have to really try to go slowly. I was doing them fine before...

I know what you mean dude, failed my first r class test because I was ridden around till I failed basically, 25-30 min test it was, longest I have had including my car, 250 and truck license's combined.

[Ryven]

If you need a hand some time, I can ride your bike to a car park for you.

[gongzee]

was his name Todd?

Gaining a quick rep having now been 'reassigned' to Willagee.

My instructor is taking him to the State Ombudsman. Setting up students to fail..

Arse..

Not sure, I've chucked out the assessment sheet since then. I just remember he was a pretty old guy maybe in his 50's?

[Mybowlcut]

I know what you mean dude, failed my first r class test because I was ridden around till I failed basically, 25-30 min test it was, longest I have had including my car, 250 and truck license's combined.

That sucks.

If you need a hand some time, I can ride your bike to a car park for you.

Haha cheers mate.

[Leddster]

The raising of the arm thing is not used all the time, but is starting to come in more and more.

Steve from Sixth Sense told me that it might be used in my R class (forgotten whether it was or not). The thing Steve emphasised, and what gets a lot of people unstuck, is the panic reaction caused by the 'not knowing' where/when to stop. This is actually pretty good practice, as emergency stops are always a surprise.

I will repeat what I was told back when I did my test, and hopefully some of it might help you. If you have been told something different, and it’s working for you, disregard any of the below.

1) Don't panic, very important. On a bike with decent brakes (almost all assessor bikes would be in this category) you have plenty of time to stop within the allowed braking distance without jamming on the brakes too hard. So remember, all you need to do is a controlled quickish stop, that's what they're looking for. Believe it or not, it helps thinking about it as a ‘controlled quick stop’ rather than an ‘EMERGENCY BRAKE OMGWTFBBQ’.

2) Don't go too hard on the back brake. Depending on who your assessor is, a rear wheel chirp could land you a fail, or they could ask you to do another one. 2 rear wheel locks is usually a fail. Not to create paranoia, but remember, as you decelerate, your weight moves onto your feet, and more pressure will be transferred to your brake as a consequence.

3) Prepare for your brake early. Preparation should include:
- straighten your arms (this limits the downward force on the accelerator from a rapid deceleration.
- Cover your brake and your clutch, be ready to apply a smooth, controlled brake.
- KEEP YOUR HEAD UP AND YOUR EYES ON THE HORIZON. I cannot stress this enough. If this is the only thing you remember, remember this. It helps, enormously.
- Be in a steady 3rd or 4th gear, depending on what bike you’re on. What I mean is don’t coast at 50Km/h in 5th/6th gear. Try and hold a medium amount of revs in 3rd or 4th rather than sitting at a gurgling amount of revs.
- Don’t pull in the clutch right away. I know this is a strange concept and there are differing opinions of this one, but again, I am repeating what I was told by someone who I have the utmost confidence in, and also what worked for me. The basic idea is that this helps you NOT lock up your back wheel, by keeping some drive to the back wheel during your braking maneuver. Pull in your clutch lever when you’re almost at a dead stop. The difference it makes is quite significant, and really helps you not lock up your back wheel. There are other forces in motion that help you stop quicker, but they are not important at this stage.
If back wheel locking up is not a concern for you, keep doing what you’re doing and forget about anything above. The biggest thing to remember is to do everything in a smooth controlled way. There should be no jerkiness in your actions.

I hope this helps, even a little bit Good luck man, don’t get despondent, you’ll be out there in no time.


I recommend giving Steve at Sixth Sense a call (I have nothing to gain by plugging him) but he is seriously worth his weight in gold, can probably give you a quicker assessment time (he organizes it all for you, and hence can swap your time with another one of his students if he thinks you're more ready than they are) and insists on a lesson directly before your test.

Thanks for the tips. Going for my licence very soon and the info you gave helps a lot. Cheers!