So, i'm going in to take the test to get my endorsement on tuesday, what should I expect? What would I need to practice that you wouldnt get from normal everday riding? I live in illinois if that makes any difference.

 

well in NY you have to do a figure 8 (in a parking lot)
then the instructer follows you in a car to make a few turns on public roads...
Dont know if its the same there but here a licensed rider has to ride your bike there and you follow in a car then you switch after you get there....who ever goes with you drives the instructor around behind you
If you ride there and they see you YOU FAIL even though you have a permit and its all legal to ride

 

the u-turn man it's fixed, I took mine in IL. also and the book says you have 24ft. to make the turn(so when I set up my practice course this is what I used) but when you get to the lot the marks are only 21ft. apart I made them measure it after I missed the first try, I was right but they gave me a mark anyway[sm=boosign.gif] I still passed though, and they made me do the stop three times because they said I stopped too fast(brakes didnt lock) hahaha I guess they're used to harley riders. Good Luck

 

It's kind of like your driving test. That u-turn/figure 8 thing is kind of hard on our sportbikes, but just use clutch and throttle control and you should be fine. Other than that, it's a breeze.

I took my MSF course through the RidersEdge course. (which is a Harley-Davidson program).........EXCELLENT CLASS! It's a five day class......3 days for classroom instruction for a couple hours......then 2 full days on the course. They teach you on Buell Blasts (which are actually pretty fun to ride), and you use their helmets (which are actually Full-faced.....which surprised me being a Harley-based class, lol.)....or you can use your own.

Yeah, many people dislike Harley riders, but the teachers of the class I took were some of the coolest people I've ever met, and they even wear all their gear.

Great class, highly recommend it if you still want to learn a thing or two about riding.

 

I wasnt saying anything bad about harley RIDERS, I personally think the bikes are junk but I like most people who ride period just by default, I was just stating that they are slower to stop due to thier increased weight and such.

 

No, no, no. I wasn't commenting about anything you posted......(in fact, I didn't read any of the posts on this thread).

Appologies if it came off like that.

 

In ohio it is just about the same but we have some stopping tests as well. Also in Ohio you are allowed to drive your bike there because you have to have your temps which allow you to ride your bike, but not on the highways, at night, or with passengers.

 

the illinois test is pretty easy except for the weaving around the cones part. i had my permit for 2-3 weeks before i took the test. look up illinois dmv on google and u can find out all the parts of the test on the site. there are a few 90 degree turns u have to do, they test ur ability to stop from 15mph, there is the u-turn part, there is a part where u need to go about 10mph then break left or right around a cone in front of you. the hardest part is where there are about 6 cones spaced closely that u have to weave around left, right, left, right.

you can have so many points and still pass the test.......good luck

 

Yeah, i failed my first time thru, but i hear just about everyonewho takes it here in illinois does=X. That weaving around the cones was a bitch, after thatI was done. The test is unreasonably hard because when are you going to be goingthat slow and need to move like that? I can make the 90 turns that they have set. Whats the trick to making it around those cones tho?