Motorbike/Scooter driving Lessons!

[Yabusaki]

Greetings,

I'm not ready to die but wants little more excitement in life! I never rode a motorbike/scooter before, only rode 15 speed bikes! Initially, I wanted to purchase a new trike but in Pattaya, you have to be certified handicapped by a doctor before applying for license! So, now I'm interested in purchasing Honda Forza 150/300.

But, I want to take several lessons in defensive driving, carrying passenger and driving in the city traffic. Any recommendations to a top notch school in Pattaya?

[Garzan]

23 minutes ago, Yabusaki said:

So, now I'm interested in purchasing Honda Forza 150/300.

I don't know of a top-notch school, but I do own a 300 Forza. My recommendation would be to rent a small scooter for a few months before getting a scooter of your own, especially a big scooter. In my opinion, while the Forza is very comfortable, it's a barge. If I were still living in Pattaya, I don't think I would have bought it--150 or less is more than enough for Pattaya, and far easier to park.  :-)

[Garzan]

I just remembered, the local Honda Big Wing up here in  Udon does motorcycle safety classes, so you might try asking at the Big Wing down in Pattaya, or perhaps at one of the Mityon Small Wing motorcycle dealers if they offer motorcycle / scooter safety classes.

[Yabusaki]

2 minutes ago, Garzan said:

I just remembered, the local Honda Big Wing up here in  Udon does motorcycle safety classes, so you might try asking at the Big Wing down in Pattaya, or perhaps at one of the Mityon Small Wing motorcycle dealers if they offer motorcycle / scooter safety classes.

Garzan,

Thank you for your immediate reply! I shall follow your advice soon!

[superdaws]

You might want to check out the Rides4Kickz youtube channel.  He is doing reviews of many bikes and may have covered the Forza or a similar larger bike.  One bike he highly recommended is the CRF250 which is a dirt bike but it handles the speed bumps like they almost aren't there.  But you might want to switch out the seat and tires on it.  You could also start with renting several bikes, that is how R4K is doing the reviews, so you can try out the model you are interested in first to see if you like it.  Just a warning apparently the brakes can be a bit worn on rental bikes but stay off the hills and keep your speed down and it should be ok. 

I'd agree with Garzan that you should start on a smaller bike.  I just learned how to ride in my home country almost 2 years ago and I learned on a 250cc bike.  It felt pretty large an intimidating when I first got on it.  I also got a CB300F which is 286cc's I think and despite many people saying that I would realize that it didn't have enough power I have never felt it lacks power, of course I also stay off the highway. 

[Dutcher]

On 10/11/2020 at 08:42, Yabusaki said:

Greetings,

I'm not ready to die but wants little more excitement in life! I never rode a motorbike/scooter before, only rode 15 speed bikes! Initially, I wanted to purchase a new trike but in Pattaya, you have to be certified handicapped by a doctor before applying for license! So, now I'm interested in purchasing Honda Forza 150/300.

But, I want to take several lessons in defensive driving, carrying passenger and driving in the city traffic. Any recommendations to a top notch school in Pattaya?

Greetings,

Did you successfully find any places in Pattaya offering motorbike driving lessons?

[Yabusaki]

Dutchess,

Yes, I found a private agency that offers 10 hours of motorscooter driving and safety lessons for 6,000 bhat! They have their own Scooters and driving course! But, I will not recommend the driving lessons because the instructors were amateurish and incompetent! I learned more from YouTube!

After 4 hours of lessons, I stopped going because I felt the lessons were just a waste of time! Moreover,  I decided to buy a Trike with 3 wheels to help me balance and ride around Pattaya with safety and comfort in mind! 

Edited July 11, 2021 by Yabusaki

[Rocketboy]

 I taught myself!

 

I had never rode a bike and said I wouldn't! But I changed my mind after moving here Oct 2018. In Dec 2018 I purchased a Honda Click 125 from Mityon without knowing a thing about riding a scooter. It was a decision I do not regret! 

 

At the time I lived on Soi 15 where you live. I watched a couple YouTube videos for beginners riding Scooters. I started slowly riding everyday....first just around the underground parking lot at the Urban Condo to get a feel for the bike!

 

When I felt a little more comfortable I ventured early mornings on Soi 15. I drove up and down, back and forth. There is a hotel off of Soi 15 that has a huge parking lot. I practiced turns there.

 

As I got more comfortable I went and drove on Soi Buakhao and eventually onto 2nd Rd. As time has passed I'm riding all over the place which has opened up a new living here experience! I took my time learning and as now being as careful as I can possibly be.

 

It's still a daily learning experience riding here!

 

 

 

Edited July 12, 2021 by Rocketboy

[HimBadMan]

5 hours ago, Rocketboy said:

 I taught myself!

 

I had never rode a bike and said I wouldn't! But I changed my mind after moving here Oct 2018. In Dec 2018 I purchased a Honda Click 125 from Mityon without knowing a thing about riding a scooter. It was a decision I do not regret! 

 

At the time I lived on Soi 15 where you live. I watched a couple YouTube videos for beginners riding Scooters. I started slowly riding everyday....first just around the underground parking lot at the Urban Condo to get a feel for the bike!

 

When I felt a little more comfortable I ventured early mornings on Soi 15. I drove up and down, back and forth. There is a hotel off of Soi 15 that has a huge parking lot. I practiced turns there.

 

As I got more comfortable I went and drove on Soi Buakhao and eventually onto 2nd Rd. As time has passed I'm riding all over the place which has opened up a new living here experience! I took my time learning and as now being as careful as I can possibly be.

 

It's still a daily learning experience riding here!

 

 

 

Agree I self-learned as well.    Riding was not the difficult part for me.  It was learning the thai road "rules" and lack of rules.

1st. Driving on the left side does take some getting use to.   My USA brain is memorized to look left not right.

2nd was the thai light system. In the US. In most cities. I can turn left on green if no one is coming.   Here I've learned you need to wait for green arrow.    That took some getting use to.   

I just started paying attention to local riders. Now after a few months here I'm very comfortable and have taken some very long rides without any anxiety..

Although I do need to invest in better protection.

1st eye wear.  Learned this the hard way in Phuket a few months ago.   Smashed into a bug right in my eye.   Immediately lost vision and almost control.   Gained composure pulled over with swollen eye .   Now always ride with at least sunglasses to protect my eyes on local drives.

2nd. Sunscreen for legs . Head face etc.   Even on cloudy days riding with zero sun screen is bad news.

3rd for longer drives. Gloves and arm sleeves and jeans.

4th. Rain jacket in storage box.  Getting hit with rain while riding was a shock. Didn't realize how unpleasant it is.   

I can see why riding becomes addictive.  Started on a 125 moved up to 150 but would love one day to have 150 plus big touring bike if I ever moved here ..

Edited July 12, 2021 by HimBadMan

[Dutcher]

I agree that it is possible to learn yourself on a simple 100 to 150 cc motorbike.

But what about high power 500+ cc bikes? For example, I think that it takes some practice to learn how to stop your bike safely and as fast as possible when driving fast on the highway and an emergency occurs. Would be nice to find a driving school for that if somebody knows one.

[Rocketboy]

37 minutes ago, Dutcher said:

I agree that it is possible to learn yourself on a simple 100 to 150 cc motorbike.

But what about high power 500+ cc bikes? For example, I think that it takes some practice to learn how to stop your bike safely and as fast as possible when driving fast on the highway and an emergency occurs. Would be nice to find a driving school for that if somebody knows one.

I now have a Yamaha NMAX 155. I don't want anything bigger as I don't plan on touring around the country. I test drove/rode a Honda Forza... too big and fast for my taste, but a great riding machine!

[Rocketboy]

3 hours ago, HimBadMan said:

Riding was not the difficult part for me.  It was learning the thai road "rules" and lack of RULES.

I won't go into details as to why but I had to watch a five hour video about driving in TH when getting my Thai DL.

 

One thing that stuck with me from watching the video is that people here only tap their horns once for whatever reason...passing,etc. It's not polite to bang on your horns. Not like in the States when people go crazy with horns!

 

3 hours ago, HimBadMan said:

Driving on the left side does take some getting use to.   My USA brain is memorized to look left not right.

That was easy for me. What was not was driving a car from the "passenger side"! 555 That took getting used to even though it was only to practice parking to get my vehicle DL.

 

3 hours ago, HimBadMan said:

Rain jacket in storage box.  Getting hit with rain while riding was a shock. Didn't realize how unpleasant it is.   

Yes I learned to keep one or two in the storage box. The unpleasant part for me was/is getting soaking wet!

Edited July 12, 2021 by Rocketboy