- This topic has 17 replies, 11 voices, and was last updated 15 years, 8 months ago by Andrew.
Noticable difference
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August 3, 2008 at 2:54 pm #1838RobbieJParticipant
While taking the MSF class, I was stuck riding the little cruisers they had. I tried a couple of times to get on the little ninjas but, showing up on time and not a 1/2 hour to an hour early left me little choice in the matter. Anyway, I’m starting to work on my figure 8’s and some of the other maneuvering they had us doing on my Ninja 500 and it is a whole new ballgame. I had to ride up on the curb the first attempt, right up into my yard. So, I’m going to have some work cut out for me before I go and try and take my road test for the actual license. I’ll just manage with my permit for a little while.
August 3, 2008 at 4:10 pm #9818CBennettParticipantI guess all the MSF classes are different. When you take it in PA its free, and when you finish it as long as you pass(and almost EVERYONE does) you get your license on the spot….
August 4, 2008 at 8:10 am #9853SaleenDrivaParticipantI guess so…
Here in Hawaii, if you take the class and pass you are given a waiver that exempts you from the DMV driving test. I had to take the written DMV permit test still (and tat was way harder/trickier than it should have been), but other than that and paying to get a new drivers license, you were done.
August 4, 2008 at 1:05 pm #9857RobbieJParticipantUsually, when the MSF course is completed here in Ga, they fill out a waiver for a license. However, because the one I took was Military sponsored, they had too many people going through it in just a short period of time. So, they weren’t giving out the waivers for us. I think the Military wants us to actually take the DMV test. Besides, the instructor said that he’d be filling out paperwork for days if he wrote them up for everybody. I don’t blame him for not wanting to do all that.
August 4, 2008 at 4:51 pm #9869megaspazParticipantSuggestion. If you have to take your DMV’s rider test, take a small bike for it. They do insanely tight turns and circles at uber-slow speeds. A lot of people fail the DMV rider test because of the circle in particular… at least that’s how it is here in california.
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If there’s anything more important than my ego
around, I want it caught and shot now…August 4, 2008 at 5:04 pm #9870AaronMerlotParticipantIt is the same here in Michigan, and the MSF class cost $25
August 4, 2008 at 5:16 pm #9871CBennettParticipantI asked my buddy about the PA one..he did everything in reverse..kinda funny but it worked for him..He decided he wanted a bike..went out and got one(Boulevard i guess is the name of the bike?) he had never ridden a bike so he actually had to have it delivered to his house . got his gear and went out to learn/teach himself to ride. Took a while about 4-5 weeks till he felt good enough to try the test. Took the test and passed..except he forgot to put on his safety goggels/shield and they failed him..he went back 2 weeks later and passed..he said it was relatively easy..said they made him do a figure 8 said it was easy even on the boulevard said he had been practicing in a lot tighter space than they gave him..said the actual space they gave him was a lot bigger.. said they made him stop and go, weave in and out of cones, and then shift up and down once in a straight line and that was about it…he had never ridden before had a medium size cruiser and had taught himself everything to pass the test in about a month and a week give or take..now he is fianlly going to take the safety course .
August 4, 2008 at 6:40 pm #9882ShannonGParticipantThis sounds a little like me. Only I am not taking my skills (low speed) test until I’ve gone to a parking lot and drilled the crap out of some safety cones. I get nervous in test situations, and that’s going to kill me.
August 4, 2008 at 8:39 pm #9892JimParticipantHere in Utah if you take the MSF class (and pass it) the Driver License Division waives the riding skills portion of the test for your M endorsement. You just have to take the written, which is pretty much everything you went over in the class portion of MSF.
August 5, 2008 at 12:44 am #9896megaspazParticipantThe california dmv practical course:
The top circle, you have to negotiate twice, clockwise from the left lane. Put a foot down, fail. Go outside the lane, fail. If the instructor thinks you’ve taken it too fast, you’ll have to do it again. You have to demonstrate a tight uturn between the outsides of lane 1 and lane 2, which is about 14′ and about 10′ less than what you’d have on a 2 lane road, fogline to fogline. Same rules as the circle. Both these parts really screw up a lot of test takers, because you have to take them slower than what you’d do on the street which means you won’t have the momentum to help you keep the bike upright. No figure 8 on the test, but the uturn part, iirc, is a tighter box than the figure 8 box at the msf… ie. it’s tougher. You have to counter balance and taking a huge bike or even a bigger sports bike would put you at a huge disadvantage since the weight and the uberslow speed makes it difficult to keep the bike upright. If you want to get your license fast, get the waiver from the MSF. If you have to take the california dmv test, bring the smallest, lightest motorcycle you can.
Disclaimer: the above information was from a person that failed the DMV motorcycle practical test on an online forum. I can’t vouch for the accuracy of the information since I got the MSF waiver.
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If there’s anything more important than my ego
around, I want it caught and shot now…August 5, 2008 at 1:59 am #9902BuddParticipantBorrow a scooter from someone and take the test on that.
“I am the best there is at what I do, and what I do ain’t nice.”-Wolverine
August 5, 2008 at 2:18 am #9904megaspazParticipantYou can’t do that in California if you want to ride a motorcycle. What you bring in for the practical determines what kind of M license you get. If you bring in a scooter, you’ll get an M2 license, which won’t let you ride a motorcycle.
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If there’s anything more important than my ego
around, I want it caught and shot now…August 5, 2008 at 2:22 am #9907CBennettParticipantwhich is the way is SHOULD be Test on what you ride scooter/or Motorcycle..kinda lame to be able to take a Motorcycle test on a scooter..but I know a LOT of states let you do just that.
August 5, 2008 at 2:26 am #9908AmorylParticipanthow much is it to take the MSF in california? since thats where I’ll be taking it.
and while I understand trying to go smaller and lighter in your test bike, how far off is the test from reality?
I mean the I understand not handicapping yourself unnessisarily, but is the test THAT much out of line with what I may experience on the road? if I can’t pass the test honestly, with the bike I’ll be riding on the road, should I really BE riding on the road? yeah a scooter’ll hug a quarter on a turn, but I won’t be riding that scooter on the road…
August 5, 2008 at 2:40 am #9911megaspazParticipantThe MSF costs $150.00 if under 21 and $250.00 if over 21. Well, I suppose, in the real world, you should be able to control your bike in slow speeds. You’ll be doing slow riding in shopping parking lots and even uturns… except in the real world uturns will be to the left… There, technically, the figure 8 at the msf isn’t really a real world thing either… Aside from the circle/figure8, everything else is about the same between the dmv test and msf brc course, skill wise. The MSF definately seems to be the easier of routes for getting a M1 license.
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If there’s anything more important than my ego
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