Motorbike lessons

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John Bingham
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Re: Motorbike lessons

Post by John Bingham »

explorer wrote: Thu Apr 04, 2019 6:56 pm
ofparadise wrote: Thu Apr 04, 2019 2:18 pm Do any of you have recommendations for a good, intensive motorbike learners class in Phnom Penh.

I don't speak Khmer, and the schools I've enquired with seemed a bit perplexed by my questions... lol. Seems like khmer style bike lessons have the following syllabus - balance, starting and stopping, then you're off to the races.

An absolute beginner here, so I i guess I would need somewhere that has a circuit and teaches basic bike handling, wet, oily surface, accident prevention and correct falling/skidding techniques to stay alive. It would be good if they have a basic maintenance/servicing course so I can keep my machine in working order without relying on shops for everything.

Also want somewhere that teaches highway and offroad techniques so i can eventually move up to a higher cc bike.

any ideas?
Start with a bicycle, and get familiar with the mad drivers here at a low speed, before even considering a motorbike.
That's not bad advice. I learned how to ride a manual motorbike when I was about 15, on open ground with no traffic. I tried instructing a couple of friends in how to ride in the intervening period and they both crashed in seconds. The traffic here is very unpredictable, so I've always been reluctant to ride one here. The very odd time I've taken an automatic down the road in the evening when it's not busy. Otherwise I just cycle, probably 10-15 km every week day for about a decade, mostly early mornings and late afternoon when it's not too hot. I've never had an accident involving another vehicle, just fucked up a couple of times driving through giant puddles that hid large drain holes. And one time when I drank too much with some soldiers near my house. I only had to go about 100 meters but fell on my ass about 10 times. They took the piss about that for months after. :beer1:
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davegorman
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Re: Motorbike lessons

Post by davegorman »

It’s actually worse on a bicycle.
1. People don’t see or hear you
2. They don’t expect you to be going “fast”
3. You’re below a meth head in the grand scheme of things on the road
4. Dogs can actually keep up
5. A Moto can stop quicker at 30kph than a bicycle. As in not skid or do an endo, even with disk brakes
6. Locals laugh at you.
7. Expats and backpackers think you’re a bit mental
8. You get punctures that can’t be fixed properly
9. If you’re in the wrong gear when someone pulls out in front of you it’s hard to get going especially in the middle of an intersection
10. It hurts your butt
11. It hurts your legs
12. It hurts
13. Men on $5k Cannondales in Lycra will scoff at you
14. Bikes are for children and man-child.
15. If you have a bell people nearly fall off/into you looking around to see what made the noise

Moto. Better.
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Kammekor
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Re: Motorbike lessons

Post by Kammekor »

explorer wrote: Thu Apr 04, 2019 6:56 pm
ofparadise wrote: Thu Apr 04, 2019 2:18 pm Do any of you have recommendations for a good, intensive motorbike learners class in Phnom Penh.

I don't speak Khmer, and the schools I've enquired with seemed a bit perplexed by my questions... lol. Seems like khmer style bike lessons have the following syllabus - balance, starting and stopping, then you're off to the races.

An absolute beginner here, so I i guess I would need somewhere that has a circuit and teaches basic bike handling, wet, oily surface, accident prevention and correct falling/skidding techniques to stay alive. It would be good if they have a basic maintenance/servicing course so I can keep my machine in working order without relying on shops for everything.

Also want somewhere that teaches highway and offroad techniques so i can eventually move up to a higher cc bike.

any ideas?
Start with a bicycle, and get familiar with the mad drivers here at a low speed, before even considering a motorbike.
I believe a bicycle, especially an e-bike, will give you a false feeling of safety. You're on a very vulnerable vehicle compared to a motorcycle (15 vs 90 kg?, quality of the brakes), have no obligation to wear a helmet, and you will be considered to be worth less than the ants crossing the road.
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RickyBobby
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Re: Motorbike lessons

Post by RickyBobby »

My licence in my home country was a two day intensive course. For the first half a day we just pushed the bike around. The course was very worthwhile from a safety perspective. I then rode a VF750 Magna for quite a while. The 250 Dream I drive now is pretty basic, and in the city one doesn't need to go that fast. My lady is always asking me to slow down, so speed is definitely an issue.

One thing I would recommend you learn is how to push your steering on the opposite side of the direction you wish to turn so that you can induce the lean of the bike.

Also, braking. Use more of your rear brake as it drags you to a stop, and the front brake could slide your front wheel and cause a wipe out.

The course teaches defensive driving and how to anticipate the stupidity of the other drivers on the road.

And, they teach you that its not if you wipe out, but when.

What is good about the Dream and the smaller bikes is the maneuverability of them. A sport bike (crotch rocket) riding posture is in my opinion not conducive to the safer riding in stop and go traffic.

Good Luck.
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pczz
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Re: Motorbike lessons

Post by pczz »

RickyBobby wrote: Thu Apr 04, 2019 10:18 pm
One thing I would recommend you learn is how to push your steering on the opposite side of the direction you wish to turn so that you can induce the lean of the bike.
Bloody hell you are giving away your age. Used to teach counter steering in the 70's whne bikes were tall, top heavy and had skinny tyres. Not someothing for the novice to play with theough vertickla to 45degrees ban in the time it takes to blink. Was the only was to get my gs1000 round corners. Oh for the days they made real bikes with no abs, linked breaking, traction control, launch control, slipper clutches, multi-option engine settings blah blah. meme were men and drove bikes, not piloting a glorified xbox.
Put an averag emodern biker on a z1 or kwacker kh500 and they would shit themselves and fall off in 100 yards
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RickyBobby
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Re: Motorbike lessons

Post by RickyBobby »

pczz wrote: Fri Apr 05, 2019 3:29 am
RickyBobby wrote: Thu Apr 04, 2019 10:18 pm
One thing I would recommend you learn is how to push your steering on the opposite side of the direction you wish to turn so that you can induce the lean of the bike.
Bloody hell you are giving away your age. Used to teach counter steering in the 70's whne bikes were tall, top heavy and had skinny tyres. Not someothing for the novice to play with theough vertickla to 45degrees ban in the time it takes to blink. Was the only was to get my gs1000 round corners. Oh for the days they made real bikes with no abs, linked breaking, traction control, launch control, slipper clutches, multi-option engine settings blah blah. meme were men and drove bikes, not piloting a glorified xbox.
Put an averag emodern biker on a z1 or kwacker kh500 and they would shit themselves and fall off in 100 yards
I used to ride this bad boy. A 4 cylinder 750 cc sport bike engine in a cruiser style configuration. I always wanted a HD Fatboy though. I loved how this bike had dual pipes on each side, which I thought looked cool. I traded out the stock seat for a Mustang, which was studded and had some tassels and looked more saddle like.

Image

p.s. I am 56.
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explorer
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Re: Motorbike lessons

Post by explorer »

RickyBobby wrote: Thu Apr 04, 2019 10:18 pm They teach you that its not if you wipe out, but when.
Cambodia has traps like mud holes and uneven surfaces. You will come off more often than you would in a place with good roads like Australia.

If you come off a bicycle at low speed, you are much less likely to have serious injuries.
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Ravensnest
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Re: Motorbike lessons

Post by Ravensnest »

PP is the absolute wrong place for first timers to ride. The local kids ride on a Moto straight out of the womb here in ouns arms. Meaning their whole lives are spent on it going anywhere. So when the time comes for the to be the captain it's an easy transition for them.
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Re: Motorbike lessons

Post by explorer »

Ravensnest wrote: Fri Apr 05, 2019 6:48 am PP is the absolute wrong place for first timers to ride.
If you dont go with the bicycle option, go to a really quiet place with very little traffic.
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The Whisperer
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Re: Motorbike lessons

Post by The Whisperer »

I drove for 10 years in Thailand and had one small accident. Moved to Cambodia six years ago. In first five weeks had three accidents. Maybe it has something to do with the Thais driving on the 'correct' side of the road.
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