Study guide
A motorcycle rewards smooth, deliberate control and punishes sloppiness, because the rider's body position, brake use, and placement in the lane all directly shape stability and visibility. This chapter covers the physical technique of riding, the three lane positions, and the space-management rules, especially the two-second following distance, that the knowledge test returns to again and again.
Posture, Shifting, and the Art of Turning
Good control starts with good body position. Sit so you can use your arms to steer rather than to hold yourself up, keeping your back straight and your arms slightly bent. Hold the handgrips firmly with your wrists flat, which helps you avoid accidentally rolling on too much throttle. Keep both feet on the footpegs, near the controls, so you can react instantly, and keep your knees against the gas tank, which helps you stay balanced and lets the motorcycle move with you in turns. Point your head and eyes where you want to go, because a motorcycle tends to follow the rider's gaze. Shifting should be smooth and matched to road speed: downshift through the gears as you slow or stop, and be sure you are in a low enough gear, usually first, when you come to a stop so you can accelerate quickly if needed. Rough, abrupt shifts, especially downshifts at too high a speed, can cause the rear wheel to lose traction. Turning is where new riders most often get into trouble, so the test emphasizes a four-step method: slow, look, press, and roll. First, slow to an appropriate entry speed before the turn by rolling off the throttle and braking as needed. Second, look through the turn to where you want to end up, turning your head rather than just your eyes, and keeping your eyes level with the horizon. Third, press on the handgrip on the inside of the turn, press left to lean left, press right to lean right; at normal speeds a motorcycle must lean to turn, and this pressure is what makes it lean. Fourth, roll on the throttle gently and steadily through the turn to stabilize the motorcycle. In normal turns, lean with the motorcycle; in slow, tight turns such as a parking-lot U-turn, keep your body upright while the motorcycle leans beneath you.
Braking: Both Brakes, Every Time
A motorcycle has two brakes, and the knowledge test wants you to use both of them every time you slow or stop. The front brake is the more powerful of the two: because weight transfers forward as you brake, the front brake provides roughly three-quarters of the motorcycle's total stopping power. Riders who avoid the front brake out of fear are giving up most of their ability to stop; used with a smooth, progressive squeeze rather than a grab, the front brake is safe and essential. Apply both brakes at the same time, squeezing the front lever and pressing the rear pedal, and practice until braking with both becomes automatic, because in an emergency you will do what you have rehearsed. Using both brakes even for normal, unhurried stops builds exactly that habit. Braking in a curve deserves special care. Traction is a budget: some of it is spent holding the motorcycle through the lean, which leaves less available for braking. If you must stop while leaned over in a curve, the best approach when conditions allow is to straighten the motorcycle upright and square the handlebars first, then brake hard, since an upright bike can use maximum braking. If the curve is too tight or traffic prevents straightening, apply both brakes gradually and gently while leaned, then increase brake pressure as the motorcycle straightens in the final moments of the stop. Imagine a rider named Dana entering a downhill curve and finding a stopped delivery truck mid-corner: her practiced response, straighten what she can, brake smoothly with both brakes, and increase pressure as lean decreases, is the difference between a firm stop and a slide.
The Three Lane Positions
A motorcycle's small size is a curse for visibility but a gift for positioning: within a single lane a rider can choose among three positions, and choosing well is a core tested skill. Position 1 is the left third of the lane, position 2 is the center, and position 3 is the right third. There is no single always-correct position; the right choice is the one that lets you be seen, keeps a space cushion around you, avoids surface hazards and other drivers' blind spots, and protects your lane from being invaded. The left position is often a strong default on a two-lane road because it places you near the center of the view of the driver ahead, discourages oncoming or following drivers from squeezing past, and gives you room to maneuver away from hazards on either side. The center of the lane carries the oily strip that drips from cars; that center strip usually still offers adequate traction when dry, but avoid it when it is wet or where oil and grease have visibly built up, such as at busy intersections and toll booths. The right position is useful when hazards or oncoming traffic press in from the left, or when you want to be visible to drivers entering from the right side. Adjust position constantly as conditions change: move away from a row of parked cars to stay out of the door zone, shift so a truck's mirrors can show your face, and pick the portion of the lane with the best pavement. Think of a rider named Owen passing parked cars: he slides to the left portion of his lane, watches for front wheels turned outward and brake lights, and covers his brakes, treating every parked door as one that might open.
Following Distance and the Space Cushion
Distance is a motorcyclist's currency: it buys time to see, decide, and act. The baseline rule is a following distance of at least two seconds behind the vehicle ahead in ideal conditions. To measure it, pick a fixed marker such as a signpost or pavement seam; when the vehicle ahead passes it, count one-thousand-one, one-thousand-two, and if you reach the marker before finishing the count, you are following too closely. Two seconds is a minimum, not a target. Open the gap to three or more seconds whenever conditions degrade: on wet or slippery pavement, when the driver behind is following you too closely, when your view ahead is blocked by a large vehicle, in heavy traffic where drivers may brake abruptly, or any time you are unsure of the road or of yourself. A larger cushion behind a big truck also moves you out of its blind spot and lets you see the road surface in front of it. The space cushion is not just ahead of you; manage all four sides. If a tailgater latches on, the tested response is not to speed up, which just yields a tailgater at higher speed, but to increase your own following distance so you can brake gradually and give the tailgater room to react, and when possible to change lanes or let them pass. Beside you, avoid riding in another driver's blind spot: either drop back or, better, pass through the blind spot and move ahead of it briskly. When you stop in traffic behind another vehicle, leave enough room to pull around it if needed, and watch your mirror for drivers approaching from behind who may not see you stopped.
Passing, Being Passed, and Why Lanes Are Not Shared
Passing on a motorcycle follows the same legal rules as passing in a car, with extra attention to being seen. To pass, ride in the left portion of your lane to gain sight distance, signal, and check your mirrors and blind spot with a head check before moving out. Accelerate through the pass, and remember that the speed limit still applies while passing in most states; passing is not a legal excuse to speed. Return to your lane only after you can see the passed vehicle's headlights in your rearview mirror, signal your return, and cancel the signal. Never pass by staying within the other vehicle's lane; even though a motorcycle fits, you need the full adjacent lane to pass safely and legally. When you are the one being passed, the tested response is calm and boring: maintain your speed and lane position, and stay in the center portion of your lane, which keeps the maximum distance between you and the passing vehicle without inviting it back over too early; avoid moving toward the passing vehicle or toward the far edge, where extended mirrors, thrown debris, or wind blast can reach you. Finally, understand the rule against lane sharing. Cars and motorcycles each need a full lane to operate safely, so never let a driver share your lane, and discourage sharing by riding in the portion of the lane that makes squeezing alongside impossible, such as the center when riding past rows of slow traffic. Riding between lanes of moving or stopped cars, often called lane splitting, is illegal in most states; a small number of states permit it or a restricted form called lane filtering, but the national knowledge test treats a full lane as yours and expects you to keep it.
Key terms
- Slow, look, press, roll
- — The four-step turning method: slow to a proper entry speed, look through the turn, press the inside handgrip to lean, and roll on the throttle steadily through the turn.
- Countersteering
- — Pressing on the handgrip in the direction of the turn (press left, lean left) to make the motorcycle lean; the way motorcycles are steered at normal road speeds.
- Front brake
- — The brake operated by the right-hand lever; it supplies about three-quarters of total stopping power because weight shifts forward during braking.
- Lane positions 1, 2, 3
- — The left, center, and right thirds of a traffic lane; riders choose among them to maximize visibility, avoid hazards, and protect their space.
- Center strip
- — The oily, greasy band in the middle of a lane left by drippings from cars; usually rideable when dry but slippery when wet or heavily coated.
- Two-second rule
- — The minimum following distance in good conditions, measured by counting the time between the vehicle ahead passing a fixed object and your arrival at it.
- Space cushion
- — The margin of open space a rider maintains on all sides of the motorcycle to allow time to see hazards and room to react.
- Head check
- — Turning the head to look over the shoulder into the blind spot before changing lanes or merging; mirrors alone are never enough.
- Lane sharing
- — Two vehicles occupying one lane side by side; unsafe for motorcycles, and riders should position themselves to discourage drivers from attempting it.
- Lane splitting
- — Riding between lanes or rows of traffic; illegal in most states, with only a few states permitting it or a limited version called lane filtering.
- Tailgater response
- — The correct reaction to a tailgater: increase your own following distance and let them pass when possible, rather than speeding up.
- Blind spot
- — The area near a vehicle that its driver cannot see in mirrors; riders should avoid lingering there and pass through it quickly.
Exam tips
- Any question about how much stopping power the front brake provides is looking for about three-quarters (roughly 70 to 75 percent), and the correct technique is always to use both brakes together.
- For stopping in a curve, the best answer straightens the motorcycle upright first when possible, then brakes; if you cannot straighten, brake gradually while leaned and add pressure as the bike straightens.
- The minimum following distance in good conditions is two seconds, increased to three or more for wet roads, blocked views, tailgaters, or heavy traffic. Watch for questions testing the 'increase it when' conditions.
- When another vehicle passes you, the tested lane position is the center portion of your lane, maintaining speed.
- Remember there is no one best lane position; the correct answer is the position that maximizes being seen and keeps a space cushion, adjusted as conditions change.