I intend to take my road test soon.

Are there any common errors to avoid?

Also, can someone describe the process you go through when stopping (i.e. at a red light). I'm not clear - should I be in gear or not when stopped at a light? Should my right foot be on the brake?

I've been told I need to have my foot on the brake or the ground and to be in neutral. However, what then is the process to get going when the light turns green - it would seem to me you need to juggle your footing to get your left up and click it into gear?

Oh, and I'm wondering what you SHOULD do (as in SGI's expectations), not what you DO do.

When I did my road test, the lady testing me did'nt give any instructions other than if you get seperated by a traffic light, pull over and wait. When we went through her notes after the test, she was big on lane position when turning, shoulder checking and lane blocking. She also took me through a school zone that I did not know was there until I saw the school. The traffic at that time was fairly heavy so I was within the limit. Good Luck, Brian.

SGI wants you to have both feet planted on the ground and your hands off the controls to indicate you are in neutral when stopped. This is fairly controversial though, since most riders believe that it's safer to be ready to go if someone was to come up behind you out of control etc. But, for the test, feet on the ground, hands off the controls and you'll be fine in SGI's mind.

The major thing they look for is - like Dom said - is lane positioning/proper blocking. They also want you to avoid obstructions in the roadway - such as potholes.

Good luck!

ok, great. I feel good about my lane positioning/etc - was just confused about red-light behaviour - different people suggesting different things.

My instincts, while I ride, seem to be having my right foot on the break and the bike in gear ready to go. I guess I should book my test soon before I form any other bad habbits.

Another tip is that if you are moving the bike your feet must be on the pegs. For example when you stop at a stop sign we all know you must stop with your vehicle behind the sign, but of course you can't see the intersection from here. When you move up so you can see your feet must be on the pegs even if you are just creeping ahead. If you are paddling you lose 2 points each time a foot touches the ground.I didn't know this when I first tried for my licence and it cost me.

thanks man! I do tend to leave my feet out a little much.. your comment made me realize something else: regular old rules of the road apply.. I better start making an effort to come to a complete stop at all stop signs, etc.. I've got a lot of bad habbits already.

I called SGI, but I guess a guy cannot just book an apointment. I need to go purchase the road test from an SGI broker, then call back to book an appointment with my reciept in hand. Road tests start May 1.

if you ware a full faced helmate remmember to keep your visor down at all times they give you an automatic fail if you have it open

I got caught not shoulder checking when turning a right corner. Was in the blocking position but didn't shoulder check the right track to ensure a bicyclist wasn't coming up behind me. 2pts 3x

To follow up on this, I am now indeed licensed to drive.

It took two outings.. the first time I got caught on the same thing as you Constance - that is they want you to shoulder check anytime you change positions, even within a lane. I wouldn't have failed, but she also didn't think I check a couple of blind intersections and had some opinions about a left turn I did..

My second time out I aced it.. I think the key difference was I treated it like I was on a road test Just a matter of being in the right mindset.

In both cases, the comments received actually had nothing to do with motorcycles and was basically just making sure I was minding the rules of the road as they apply to any vehicle (i.e. I stop too far ahead of crosswalks/stop-lines when turning right, etc).

Congrats. No more turning into a pumpkin at sundown.

congrats Mork! They are sticklers for some stuff but glad to hear you got the M