Safe riding and hazard perception
This domain tests hazard perception: how fast things happen on two wheels, what you can actually see, and how much room you need to stop. Questions put you inside a developing situation and ask what should have happened before it became critical.
Stopping distance is calculated, not memorised
- Reaction distance = speed × reaction time. At 50 km/h (13.9 m/s) with one second of reaction, that is about 14 m before the brakes bite.
- Braking distance grows with the square of speed: roughly 12 m at 50 km/h on dry asphalt, about 32 m at 80 km/h, and about 28 m at 60 km/h in rain.
- On a 125 you have two small contact patches, and the front brake does roughly 70 % of the stopping.
Reading the road
Scan far ahead, look through the bend to where you will be in four seconds, and position yourself where drivers will see you in their mirrors rather than in a blind spot. Brake upright and before the corner, then hold a steady throttle through it: braking while leaned uses the same grip you need for turning.
Hazards that punish riders
Gravel and sand on bends, diesel spilled at junctions, wet paint and manhole covers, tram rails, cattle grids, and the first rain after a dry spell. Cross rails and grids as upright as possible at a steady speed, without braking. Watch for moose and deer, especially at dawn and dusk where the warning sign stands - wildlife usually crosses at a run.
Worked example
A moose warning sign on a wet 60 km/h road. Reaction: 16.7 m/s × 1 s ≈ 17 m. Wet braking at μ ≈ 0.5: 16.7² / (2 × 0.5 × 9.81) ≈ 28 m. Total ≈ 45 m, which is more than the visible distance to the treeline in many bends. Easing to 50 km/h cuts it to roughly 34 m - which is why the correct answer is to reduce speed before the hazard, not at it.
Traps
Trusting dry-road grip on wet markings; braking mid-corner; fixating on the hazard instead of the escape route; following at two seconds at 80 km/h.