Just arranged to start my DAS

You may find they won't accept a return on a helmet, if it looks like you've worn it.

After all, it's a safety item.
 
EVH said:
You may find they won't accept a return on a helmet, if it looks like you've worn it.

After all, it's a safety item.
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Sportsbikeshop are great with returns and that includes tried on helmets.

I've always bought my stuff online (as long as the returns are free) . it's not completely necessary to go into a store but it can help. Generally a store won't have everything you want stocked though which is what puts me off.
 
Freeman said:
Sportsbikeshop are great with returns and that includes tried on helmets.

I've always bought my stuff online (as long as the returns are free) . it's not completely necessary to go into a store but it can help. Generally a store won't have everything you want stocked though which is what puts me off.
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Definitely, but if you want a HJC or Shoei helmet then it doesn’t hurt to try on one in a shop then order online if they don’t have the colour you like.

Ordering 2 different sizes because the fit is wrong is wasteful. Not to mention the fact that in store you can compare sizes, whereas at home you’d be left to make a decision on which you remembered being the better fit... unless you ordered 2 sizes and sent 1 back :p
 
They have accepted my return and have posted out a new helmet, they’ve been brilliant. They didn’t have the one I ordered in a larger size so after having a look they suggested a Shark 900S ltd edition Matt black from there clearance section and have refunded me the difference.

It’s still a brand new helmet so hopefully it’ll fit!
 
Good helmet that, saved my life.

IMG_20170529_212840.jpg
 
So Mrs HB and I went to the local place today for our free assessment, now I hasten to add:

It was pouring with rain
I had just got back from Frankfurt on business, so was knackered
I was wearing a brand new pair of Cat boots, with only an hours use

In summary, Mrs HB was great, I was not ...

I was really struggling. The assessment lasted an hour and was purely on their course, I seemed to be looking down a lot, not looking where I was going despite him shouting at me "Look at me, Look at the magic tree, look at this, that and the other" - The throttle on the Yamaha 125 seemed almost on and off and I veered off towards a hedge where I was getting annoyed with myself and making mistakes. I kept tensing up and was pulling back on the throttle, I was trying to lean the bike which apparently I wasn't supposed to and I was either almost stalling so felt very unstable or too much gas, luckily I didn't crash and always remembered to pull the clutch in. At one point I used the front brake too hard, I did about 3~4 good laps and got praise then he started shouted other instructions at me and I lost it again and veered off and almost hit a cone.

Really angry at myself. It was my first time ever on a motorbike though which Mrs HB keeps reminding me, she had done a CBT successfully 12 years ago so she had some experience and perhaps knew what to expect, unlike me.

So, he suggested I forget about the DAS for a while and concentrate on my CBT but he thinks I need a 4 hour pre-CBT so that's booked in for 7th of December with the CBT booked in for the 17th of December. Mrs HB is doing the pre-CBT with me as she needs practice with the gears, all in this is costing me £420 for 2 people to do pre-CBT and CBT. Mrs HB, very excited having done so well asked to go to JS Accessories in Maidstone to get some gear - lovely guys and we ended up spending £350 on a new jacket, helmet and some boots. (Boots for me, rest for her) - Got chatting with some guys (Everyone knew each other) and their wives, one was an advanced instructor, really, REALLY nice people and put me at ease that I shouldn't be beating myself up so much.

I'm really gutted that I did so badly, the instructor said to me that if I can sort out my vision and where I'm looking and relax a bit, I'll be OK - He reckons I was over thinking everything. To be fair to me, I said that was my job!!

I think I was my own worse enemy, I'd built it up in my mind as to what it would be like, having done many track days (With cars) and loving motorsport, I thought "How much different can it be?" It turns out VERY different. I'm also kicking myself for wearing such big boots for only an hour before getting on the bike, I couldn't feel any of the pegs or back brake at all.

Hopefully I can have a much better session on the 7th, but time will tell.
 
What you said sounds a little familiar to how my CBT went. Felt good with stability on the bike but struggled at first to get my head around the clutch, then had a few issues with the gears and like yourself the instructor told me I was simply over thinking it all and looking down far too often. He said look up and relax and you'll be fine, as simple as those words were it really did make a huge difference. Even out on the road following the car park stuff I was nervous then, stalled it at least two/three times at the lights but he was really good and patient with me, we spent a bit more time on the road after a chat and it was all happy days after that. I passed first time thankfully but there were times during the on the road riding where I thought I'd messed it up and really let it get to me which itself was doing me absolutely no favours at all.

Just remember on the day of the CBT to just relax as much as possible and I'm sure you'll be fine. Best of luck :)
 
I appreciate everyone is different, but I had zero bike experience when I jumped on the bike for the CBT.

The 125 I rode was snatchy, the clutch seemed like it had a bite point as narrow as a nat's **** and the practice yard wasn't big enough to comfortably get up to 2nd gear without having to worry about turning.

Your experience sounds a bit like mine.. stressing that you're not doing as well and making yourself worse. It's a downward spiral that is hard to get out of which you know that if you "fail" it'll cost you £90 etc. However, I found things clicked when we got out on the road.. perhaps the slow speed stuff is what knocked you for confidence because I didn't properly nail slow speed control until MOD1, but I was decent enough that I could do the basics.

What annoyed me about my experience is that there were 3 others with me and all of them were sub 20 year old. 2 of which were on the twist-n-go scooters and the other guy on a bike had clearly been riding off-road / illegally as he was just doing the CBT for the tick in a box. This made it worse for me as 3 of the group were off and circling the yard in seconds and I was stood there learning to ride like a n00b.
 
I was in the very fortunate position of learning to ride when I was about 12 on a friend's TS50. That said, I have a knack for operating stuff, I also learned to fly RC helicopters in an afternoon (the old school proper ones, not these £20 gimmick jobbies). I used to think that everyone could learn easily until I saw a guy on our CBT day drop his poor CG125 about 50 times, guy had no concept of balance, feathering a clutch or throttle.

One tip I'll always give people is to ride a bicycle for a bit before hand to make sure you've got the balance right, and practice the old rub-tummy-pat-belly routine until you've got it down, that'll help immensely.

The biggest difference I've seen is between drivers and non drivers. Non drivers seem to struggle considerably more than drivers.
 
EVH said:
I appreciate everyone is different, but I had zero bike experience when I jumped on the bike for the CBT.
[...]
Your experience sounds a bit like mine.. stressing that you're not doing as well and making yourself worse. It's a downward spiral that is hard to get out of which you know that if you "fail" it'll cost you £90 etc. However, I found things clicked when we got out on the road.. perhaps the slow speed stuff is what knocked you for confidence because I didn't properly nail slow speed control until MOD1, but I was decent enough that I could do the basics.
[...]
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Same for me too. I didn't even bother with a 'learning day' mostly due to the training centre not actually offering them but also as the CBT itself is a good intro to riding and if they don't feel you're safe / good enough then they'll stop your CBT and get you to book in some training...but all done very nicely.

I wasn't confident in the training centre area and initially out on the road I was nervous but quickly got comfortable. I was lucky with my CBT that in the morning it was just myself and one other with the instructor, then someone else joined at mid day but so did a second instructor and I ended up with a 1 on 1 ride out whilst the other two went with the morning's instructor as they'd got previous bike experience and I had none.

The training centre for @HoneyBadger doesn't seem all that great to me. The instructors shouldn't be shouting at you and should understand some people are slower on the uptake than others so spend more time ensuring you're confident and safe with what you're doing, getting you to repeat stuff until you are confident.
 
Thanks guys for the re-assurance. At least I know I’m not alone! The place has very good feedback, when I say he was shouting, it wasn’t abusive or angry, he was just doing it I think trying to get me to focus.

I couldn’t believe how different it was, and I wasn’t impressed by the 125’s throttle! I’ve already said to mrs HB that I’ll be using the bike she excelled on!

Her and I have a 4 hour pre-CBT (just the two of us) on December 7th and our CBT has been booked in for December 17th. I don’t think it helps that I’m 38, so getting stuck in my ways!

I’ve said to mrs HB that if I can’t grasp it on the pre-CBT, I’m giving it up but realistically, I need to keep at it because I’m desperate want to use a bike to commute and would prefer not having to use a Piaggio MP3 using my car license.
 
You're being robbed, I paid £120 for a cbt spot with as much training as needed to get the certificate. Loads of places offer guaranteed "pass" cbts for around that price no need to pay over £200 each.

As everyone else has said don't worry about it going in while knackered and wearing brand new boots is definitely going to have had a massive effect. Once it clicks and it will you'll wonder how you ever struggled
 
A CBT isn't a test as such really, it's just some training to ensure you're safe enough to ride on the road, hence it's name Compulsory Basic Training. There is no reason why you should be doing a taster day and then a training day prior to the CBT then the CBT itself. I get that you may not be all that confident on a bike so could do with some extra training but I can't see how you're that unsafe to be unable to get a CBT certificate.

When it comes to mod 1 and mod 2 then yes, training days before each one are certainly required.

E: I paid £125 for my CBT and that's one of the more expensive ones in my area as far as I'm aware...£400+ just on a CBT...
 
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