Essential skills...

[magicmonkey]

Well, so far I've worked on emergency braking, countersteering and swerving, they all need a lot of practice of course but the very basics of those elements are second nature now. So the big question for me at the moment is, what next?

I'll be riding a lot and practicing the skills I've already got but it feels like it's time to add something more to the mix as well, I just have no idea what! any of you charming folks got any suggestions?

[Rosie]

Hill starts?
Smooooth gear changes?
Can you use all the controls (indicators, lights etc) without looking?
Identifying appropriate lines when cornering?

When I was learning, I found it helpful to choose three things to concentrate on each time I went for a ride. They could be little things, like cancelling indicators, or using mirrors frequently, or bigger stuff like improving cornering technique.

[BOGAR]

There are things like low speed weaving for more than a couple of turns, full lock turns one way and then the other(without putting your foot down), breaking in a corner (be very careful where and how you try this one). Not all of your training should focus on the higher speeds. I feel smooth at road speeds but still need to work on my U turns. Good luck though.

[Rodney007]

OPEN EYES ..... practice that

and how on earth you practice emergency braking ... ask people to pull out on you?

[vifferman]

Waving?

Srsly, there's LOTS to learn (waving being a pre-eminent skill, of course ). Try some practice on crap surfaces (gravel, slippery road, grass); getting your lines through corners right on the OpenRode by learning to look for the vanishing point; lane-splitting on one wheel; mirrorectomies; sneezing inside your helmet; early recognition of hazards; parking on hills; use of "body english" on slopes, blah blah blah.
It never ends - there's always stuff to learn. Just get out there and ride.

Oh - and kudos to you for wanting to do this right - that's the first step, and very commendable.

[magicmonkey]

I've managed to get hill starts sorted, which I'm pretty proud of! I think it's a bit easier on my GN than on most bikes though as the low down power and high compression helps a lot; I'll probably have a bit of a shock when it comes to upgrade time

The U-turn idea is something I could probably use some work on though, how large a space to the give you to do it on your test? I can manage a u turn in the width of a normal road without issues but if it's tighter than that I might have to start pushing myself a bit!

I could do with learning how to change gears without the clutch but I've been a bit hesitant about trying it as I really don't want to watch the gear drop onto the road as I fly over the handlebars!

[magicmonkey]

Waving?

Srsly, there's LOTS to learn (waving being a pre-eminent skill, of course ). Try some practice on crap surfaces (gravel, slippery road, grass); getting your lines through corners right on the OpenRode by learning to look for the vanishing point; lane-splitting on one wheel; mirrorectomies; sneezing inside your helmet; early recognition of hazards; parking on hills; use of "body english" on slopes, blah blah blah.
It never ends - there's always stuff to learn. Just get out there and ride.

Oh - and kudos to you for wanting to do this right - that's the first step, and very commendable.

well, you mention one wheel stuff here, I have been thinking that it would be a good idea for me to learn how to handle a wheelie, it's not that I'm interested in actually doing them (I couldn't give 2 shits about the show off stuff) just that I'm sure to launch the front wheel by accident at some point and I'd like to know that I won't panic when that happens, probably something I should leave until I'm a lot more comfortable with the rest of the handling though

[crazyhorse]

Not sure is winter is really over - but there is always snow and ice to practise on too - but you'd be tough to try them out of fun

[White trash]

I'm getting very fucken sick of telling you this. But.

HOW ARE THE WHEELIES COMING ALONG

[Rodney007]

I'm getting very fucken sick of telling you this. But.

HOW ARE THE WHEELIES COMING ALONG

hehe....

[James Deuce]

The most important one. Situational Awareness.

[magicmonkey]

The most important one. Situational Awareness.

Well that one seems to be progressing at the same rate as my getting more comfortable on the bike. The less attention I'm paying to the controls (due to their becoming second nature rather than just not using them) the more attention I'm focusing on my surroundings. At the moment I'm reasonably comfortable with the amount of warning time I'm giving myself, it can always be improved of course but it seems to be improving on it's own while I have to put work into other areas more pro-actively.

[magicmonkey]

Not sure is winter is really over - but there is always snow and ice to practise on too - but you'd be tough to try them out of fun

eurgh, I've tried ice already and I don't plan on going anywhere near the stuff again unless I have no other choice, that's what the car with the heating and the airbags is for

[IdunBrokdItAgin]

Well, so far I've worked on emergency braking, countersteering and swerving, they all need a lot of practice of course but the very basics of those elements are second nature now. So the big question for me at the moment is, what next?

I'll be riding a lot and practicing the skills I've already got but it feels like it's time to add something more to the mix as well, I just have no idea what! any of you charming folks got any suggestions?

Good on you magicmonkey. I think you have come to the same conclusion that I came to when I got into biking. They don't teach you enough in the basic tests.

Sounds like you are on the right track, here are some others that I practised/ am still practising:

• Slow speed manouvres.
• U turns (two side by side car park spaces - in a car park should be what you work towards). Minimum from a test perspective is a normal road width.
• Cornering, lean of bike - getting comfortable with leaning the bike angle over - beyond your original comfort zone, you know when you hit your limit is when bits start touching the ground.
• Cornering, body position - just got a few good tips on this myself in another thread. Best was to attempt to kiss the wing mirror. This negates some of the need to lean the bike on tighter corners.
• Note both cornering practices don't have to be fast (you can do them slowly - 20kph upwards- around corners).
• Learning to adjust your line mid corner (for possible hazards).
• Keeping to the outside (left of lane) line and not crossing your lane on right handers (maximum visibility).
• Keeping to the inside (right of lane) line and not crossing your lane on left handers (again maximum visibility).
• People might have issue with the last two but they are good to practise even if you apex corners usually.

Best bit of non required training I've had was from Roadsmart run by Andrew Templeton. The advanced course. This teahces you slow speed manouvres and braking techniques. Well worth the investment.

Have fun practising - it never stops but it's fun!

[IdunBrokdItAgin]

Just thought of something else.

Ask around for a mentor (possibly someone on this site but don't get a crazy racer who only wants to show you how to wheelie). I had a mate mentor me (he has 15 years plus bike experience). Generally you want someone experienced trailing you and then able to point out what you need to work on.

Also just read your post about being advised not to go on the advanced rider course until you get your experience up. Shows that there is a gap in the market for follow on BHS training which is not being catered for.