Basic Control and Handling Skills
Basic control questions test whether you understand what the motorcycle is doing at low and at normal speed - clutch, brakes, lean, and where your eyes are. Most are situational: 'You are entering a turn too fast; you should...'
Slow-speed control
At walking pace the bike stays upright through the friction zone, light throttle, and rear brake, with the clutch slipping and your head and eyes up. Turning the bars, dragging the rear brake, and looking through the turn keeps the bike stable; grabbing the front brake at walking speed drops it.
Cornering: slow, look, press, roll
Slow to your entry speed before the corner, look through to the exit, press the grip on the inside of the turn, and roll on the throttle smoothly once you are leaned. Above roughly 12–15 mph you countersteer: press forward on the left grip to go left, the right grip to go right. If you are wide in a curve, the answer is more lean and more look - not grabbing the brakes, which stands the bike up and sends you wider still.
Braking
Use both brakes together, with the front providing most of the stopping power. Squeeze progressively rather than grabbing, keep the bars straight, and finish braking before turn-in. In a curve, straighten the bike first, then brake hard.
Swerving versus braking
Braking and swerving do not mix: hard braking uses the traction a swerve needs. Brake first, release, then swerve. A swerve is a quick, firm press on one grip followed by a press on the other to straighten out.
Worked example
You enter a right-hander and realize the arc tightens. The correct response: keep the throttle steady, look farther through the curve toward the exit, and press more on the right grip to add lean. Chopping the throttle or braking mid-corner stands the machine up and pushes you across the centerline - the classic wide-corner crash.
Traps that cost marks
- Pulling the clutch in through a corner, which removes drive and stability.
- Covering the front brake during slow-speed turns.
- Looking at the front wheel or the ground instead of the exit.
- Trying to brake and swerve at the same time.