Epic fail

Because the theory section of the test is virtually unfailable, people are taught to drive by parents and or instructors who spout bullshit all day long and 21 is plenty old enough to have learned to act like a complete tosspot within and without a motorised vehicle.

I'm currently taking lessons. It's interesting to see what my instructor says about cyclists and thankfully he seems to not be one of these arseholes who think cyclists shouldn't be anywhere near a road.

Good thing. Although I imagine that this isn't always the case.

Because the theory section of the test is virtually unfailable, people are taught to drive by parents and or instructors who spout bullshit all day long and 21 is plenty old enough to have learned to act like a complete tosspot within and without a motorised vehicle.

Im doing the official DSA dvd thing now, and it is the hardest thing I have ever studied. Because there are no patterns or logic in the answers, you really have to memorise everything.

Because the theory section of the test is virtually unfailable, people are taught to drive by parents and or instructors who spout bullshit all day long and 21 is plenty old enough to have learned to act like a complete tosspot within and without a motorised vehicle.

I used to work with someone who filed their theory test 7 times. You can't explain that.

The theory test doesn't really seem to pay enough attention to the issue of cyclists on the road, to be honest you can pass it by learning the structure of the questions and a couple of important numbers like stopping distances, rather than actually learning the highway code. I think when I did it there was only one question on it about cyclists, and that was about them being able to go slowly around the outside of a roundabout and that you should hang back and wait for them to exit. As far as the process of learning to drive and the practical test goes, its all to easy to never come across the issue of what to do when you come up on a cyclist especially if you're learning from parents. I was lucky - taught by a professional and came up on a cyclist a couple of times at which point he absolutely laid down the law that I needed to stay well clear of the cyclist and give them a full lane when passing, and this stuck with me (this was a while before I had taken up cycling again). Its one of the big failings in the system, its all too easy to pass your test and be allowed freely onto the roads without ever having learned how to correctly act when you come up on a cyclist, even if you've been properly taught by a professional.

I agree.

All we need to do is give driving instructor cycle training, so they can pass it along to future generation of drivers.

much easier in the long term.

The thing was though, my instructor definitely knew how to give the right instruction when I did come up on a cyclist, its just that i can't imagine that the situation will actually come up for every learner, of course its much more likely of you're learning in a city, but where I was I only ever came up on 2, and if that hadn't happened then I wouldn't have had a clue until I started cycling again. Really it needs to be something thats specifically tested on the practical test, so that every new driver needs to know what to do in that situation to pass.

The fact of the matter is that it is possible to pass your driving test and be completely unprepared to drive on the roads. When I was learning to drive you had to wait a lot longer to get a date at a test centre where the traffic conditions were considered easier. People from the surrounding area who had failed their test multiple times at harder centres would travel to take the test at an easier one as they knew it was more likely that they would pass.

I actually new a guy who claimed to have travelled from Edinburgh to Forres to take his test as it was supposedly the easiest place in the UK to do so.

my cousin got 'passed' through his test in the RAF after only about 5 hours of lessons prior and having spectacularly fucked it up, he then felt so unprepared to drive on actual roads even though he now had a license that he booked another 10 lessons so he didn't end up killing someone.

I'm pretty sure it's already been said that she's from Norfolk.

I used to tell all my pupils the importance of respecting cyclists, but I was a pretty good instructor. It should be something that much more importance is put upon.

I've punched a driving instructor through his open window before while he was telling the pupil that there was more room on his side. Dick.

I had a driving instructor shout at me to get in the cycle lane, then get out of car at lights and threaten to punch me. This with a pupil in the driving seat on a lesson. Bonkers.

Lol,

I saw an instructor get pulled over by the popo for no insurance in while there was a student in the car.

Must See: Scooter man ends up in big hole after hitting multiple vehicles Funny Lol - YouTube

A 'falling down' moment, one might say

the fail that keeps on giving yields this:

Ashleighljk: Feel sorry for that poor girl who knocked over a cyclist! Bet it was only a bump morons. #emmaway

Original Tweet: http://twitter.com/Ashleighljk/status/336961797204615168

i feel like asking if she is always this thick

I did

Parents+Peers>Education
every time

Fuck, reading Bikeradar is like subscribing to the Daily Mail

http://www.bikeradar.com/forums/viewtopic.php?p=15309529

Ruksack all the way. Partly because it's what I use for weekend riding so why buy an extra piece of kit purely for commuting? But also it's practicle, comfortable etc

Courier bags are just a fad like CX. In 5 years time everyone will wonder why they even existed.

2009

I had to stop using courier bags a few years ago because of shoulder pain, now if I have to ride with something on my back it'll be some kind of backpack, though I prefer to have the bike take the load.

I used to use a courier bag, now I wonder why it even existed

I used to have one.

Now I ride brakeless, without a lock, with a credit card and an Oyster in the pockets of my jeans. A couple of thumbs...