Alan2015

I enjoy train travel. Sort of nostalgic. My father was a railroad man and we used to get free train rides back in the day. (Oh, and hopped a few with buddies just for kicks. Darn lucky none of us lost limb or life!)

I've ridden trains twice in Thailand: an overnighter BKK - Chianmai, Japanese sleeper. Slept like a baby to the rocking/rolling/rumbling. But . . . the cockroaches in the cabin and what must have been bed bug bites sort of ruined the memory and has kept me from trying it again.

Second was a lazy Chiangmai - BKK daytime trip. Quite enjoyable seeing the countryside and the little stations along the way, as well as the interesting people, but a bit too long (timewise).

Usually, however, I feel too busy for such long rides and take the quick and cheap Nok Air flights.

BTW: I lived in Korea in the mid-80's when their trains were, in my opinion, far worse than what Thai trains are today. Fast forward to a wealthier Korea and a system that's coming close to Japanese standards. I expect with wealth, Thailand will also improve.

Hey Wow64, . . I was thinking of something like that . . if only I could actually do something like that!

Pianoman, . . that the tester would offer to let you skip the plank shows that they can (or could in the day) make their own call sometimes. I think things are getting tighter these days, though. I was told by a Thai staffer at my school that I could go out to the DLT course and practice during the lunch hour, so yesterday I thought I'd give the beam a try just to save any surprise once I go out for the actual test. But, there was no practice allowed any longer. The course was gated and a sign said "Test Entry Only. No Practice." The staffer had done her motorcycle license just four months before and she said at the lunch hour of the theory classes, the very same DLT staff encouraged the applicants to go practice. Now, "no practice" is their policy.

OP, you know the answer to this without asking. I must admit, a comical question though.

The balance plank, is just that, to show you are capable of riding " slowly" along the plank, "balancing."

On my first attempt, I gave it full throttle at the start of the plank & shot across no problem. When I completed the circuit & returned to start point, the testing officer, with a BIG grin, said, Ha ha, now again please, but very slow this time. Again, no problem.

I had no bike when sitting the test. My test was in Sakon Nakhon, not a big city, so I guess most or all test centers have bikes to use. No charge for the use of the bike. But I am a very hansum man, so that might have had something to do with the freebie.

Cheers..... Mal.

Well, actually . .

Just out of curiosity, I had the Yamaha dealer who sold me the Tricity call the local "DMV" and ask about this. Apparently he has a relative working over there. He was on the phone with them for over 15 minutes as they together pondered the issue. The long and short of it was that they agreed it was a legal motorcycle and they didn't have an appropriate test set up for it, let alone licensing category.

They hinted that if I had just shown up with it, they probably would have just waived that part of the test or maybe had me keep the one rear wheel on the plank. But, with the advanced warning that I could show up with it, they asked the dealer to persuade not to but rather just come with "a regular motorcycle" (I guess so as to not put them on the spot), which I'll do out of courtesy.

I really didn't intend to go there with my Tricity. I was just "What if - ing" to highlight the impact the introduction of the Tricity could have on the motorcycle testing / licensing regimen in Thailand. I'll be going next week with my trusty old Click (which I rode for two year always with the intention of someday getting a license to do so legally; recent local checkpoints have behooved me to finally get it done .)

The dealer said the "DMV' folks are having have some kind of meeting coming up and the local DMV test director is going to bring this up. So, who knows, maybe we'll see a 3-wheel motorcycle license someday, . . or not.

Just offer one of the other testers 50-100 baht and they will borrow you their bike for the test.

Technically it should be possible to take the test on the tricity since it's road legal.

Can the tricity cross the "bridge" on 1 front wheel only?

Some states in the U.S. have motorcycle categories that include 2-wheel or 3-wheel. I assume that if you test on a 3-wheel, you are restricted to a 3-wheel.

Thailand will have to see a whole lot more Tricity or other 3-wheel motorbikes, I guess, before they go that route.

I would guess at this point there isn't even a policy on how to handle a customer who shows up for the motorcycle practical test with a Tricity. That suggest the folks on the ground doing the testing would make the call, and like so much in Thailand the call could be one way here, another there; one way this day, another the next.

The practical part of the motorcycle drivers license has you cross a narrow "bridge" slowly to show your mastery of balance with a motorcycle.

With the Tricity . . 1.its two front wheels appear to be wider than the narrow "bridge". and 2. you can nearly sit on it stationary without falling over, so it really doesn't take the same balancing skill.

So, if I show up for the motorcycle practical test, what do you think their reaction will be? (I'm afraid they'll say "No" and "come back with a 2-wheeler".)