So, You Wanna Learn To Ride A Motorcycle | Driving

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countersteering3B — Photo by Costa Mouzouris

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If you’re currently planning on buying your first motorcycle, there’s an important step you absolutely must do first: you need to learn to ride it.

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YouTube will supply enough evidence of people learning to ride motorcycles the wrong way. But you really shouldn’t need to see footage of people popping clutches into parked cars to understand that riding a motorcycle is neither easy nor without trepidation. Motorcycling requires coordination, dexterity, and balance – and that’s just to get the darned thing moving.

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A motorcycle rider training course is essential

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A rider training course is designed to give you the basics of riding a motorcycle while also raising your skill level so that you have some basic skills and experience before you venture out into traffic. In most provinces, a rider training course is mandatory to gain a motorcycle endorsement on your license. Even if it’s not, you should nonetheless enroll in a certified training course if you’re a new rider – a long riding career depends on it.

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Even if you’ve never even slung a leg over a stationary motorcycle, a proper riding course will get you rolling on two wheels within a couple of hours. As a long-time certified riding instructor I can almost guarantee this. But that still doesn’t mean you’re ready to hit the road; it will take lots of practice to program your brain to perform the multi-tasking needed to safely control a motorcycle in and amongst four-wheeled traffic.

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When someone rides a motorcycle for the first time, all of their focus is on operating the motorcycle – twisting the throttle with the right hand while also operating the front brake with the same fingers; applying the rear brake with the right foot; learning how to manage a sequential gearbox with the left foot. Said co-ordination is not without its pitfalls; new riders often look at their left hand, rather than the direction of travel, when releasing the clutch. And all of these myriad skills don’t include things like operating turn signals, horns, mirrors, and of course balance.

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Learn how to ride a motorcycle Photo by Costa Mouzouris

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To ride safely, focus must move from the motorcycle to the riding environment. Only practice will enable this. Experience will eventually make managing the various controls instinctive, thus freeing up brain power for the important task of maintaining situational awareness. Because of the vulnerability of riding a motorcycle, you need to look where you’re going, and be aware of what’s going on around you. It is only when a riding instructor sees this transition of focus that a student will be deemed ready for the road. It’s also what an evaluator looks for during the testing required to progress through the various levels of graduated licensing.

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Motorcycle graduated licensing and restrictions

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All provinces use a graduated licensing system, which gradually lifts riding restrictions as time passes and experience increases. The number of graduated licensing levels varies by province, each of which apply restrictions that may include access to limited speed highways, curfews, preventing newbies from carrying passengers, reducing the number of demerit points allowed, and crucially, zero tolerance for the consumption of any alcohol or drugs. This last point is something you should practice even when you’re fully licensed, since your skills and reaction time need to be as sharp as possible – a minor mishap in a car might mean a trip to the body shop; on a bike it could be a ride to the hospital.

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The minimum age for getting a motorcycle driver’s license is 16 across the country, though some provinces include caveats: PEI, for example, requires 16-year olds to have had accumulated 275 days of driver’s education. The best resource for inquiring about rider training by province is the Motorcycle and Moped Industry Council, which includes links to each province’s page regarding licensing requirements. Testing also varies between provinces, but most will have a visual test, a written knowledge test, and practical tests either on a closed course, on the road, or both.

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Motorcycle instruction Photo by Costa Mouzouris

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Your first step to riding is to visit your province’s licensing page (through the MMIC), where you can download or buy a rider training handbook. Some provinces offer it for free, some ask for a fee. The knowledge test is based on the information within this manual, so study it well. After you’ve passed your vision and knowledge tests, sign up at a certified rider training school, found either through the provincial websites, or through the Canada Safety Council.

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How to make the most of your motorcycle training course

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Once you begin your training, there are a few things you should be aware of. Feel free to share your existing riding experience with your instructors, as it will help them assess your skill before the courses begin. However, don’t exaggerate your experience, as it takes a skilled instructor about 15 seconds to determine if a student has the experience they boast. If you do have experience – such as from riding dirt bikes – be patient. Training begins at the most basic level, which may include being pushed on a bike with the engine off. This exercise reveals one’s level of balance.

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Don’t try to impress the instructors or other students with your skills. Your instructors will have seen it all before, and being cocky has been known to lead to embarrassing encounters with pavement in front of impressionable new motorcycle riders with phone cameras and popular social media accounts. If you do want to impress those who will be grading your progress, stick to performing the required exercises as perfectly as possible.

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Approach rider training with an open mind, and understand that not everyone learns at the same pace. Don’t compare your skill level with that of others around you – it’s irrelevant. Everyone is there to learn to ride, and even experienced riders will learn something. If you drop a bike, chances are you will be unscathed physically, since most closed-course tip-overs happen as the bike comes to a stop. Just get back on and continue to practice. Dwelling on an error only makes progressing up the skill ladder more difficult.

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Don’t overlook the basics

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And, if you’ve never ridden any two wheeler, you will have to start with the very basics. So, before even registering for a riding course, get a bicycle and learn how to balance. Without this fundamental skill, learning to ride a motorcycle – even the relatively low-powered versions used in riding schools – will be very difficult. If you really have never ridden a bicycle, perhaps you might consider some private lessons which are often offered on a one-to-one basis.

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Certified rider training will give you the tools you need to make motorcycling both fun and safe. Never just learn riding from a friend, regardless of their riding background. Doing so might teach you bad habits like never using the front brake – by far the more powerful of a motorcycle’s two brakes; the ancient art of “laying her down” to avoid a collision, or any number of stupid riding myths, all of which would be dangerous to a new rider. Seriously, this is one arena where you don’t want to become YouTube’s next viral sensation.

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Costa Mouzouris
At 14 years old, Costa bought a moped with money he earned stocking grocery-store shelves. A couple of years later he traded up to a Jawa CZ250 Scrambler dirt bike. So much time was spent repairing that Czech-made calamity that it led him to a career as a motorcycle mechanic. Costa eventually traded his toolbox for a keyboard and began writing about motorcycles and cars. He hasn’t lost his affinity to tinker, though. When he isn’t in front of a computer, Costa can be found in his workshop fixing bikes, cars, and even wristwatches.Learn more about AuthorShare this article in your social network
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