Learning to Ride a Motorbike Safely

[Kaoboi Bebobp]

Jenny, above in post 13, has it very much right.

 

A certain amount of bike skills training can help the nervous rider. Up to a point. The rest is experience. 

 

Cochrane, take the bike onto a back soi that has lots of open viewing space so you don't  cut someone off or run into someone else. Ride gently at first, gradually adding gear shifting, up and down, and slalom riding. Do this repeatedly. Then add in some braking exercises. Speed up, brake and slow down, adding speed and firmer braking -- separately front brake and back brake, then combined. Throw in some threshold braking, which you might call emergency braking. You bear down on the brakes (simultaneously, front and back) just above lockup. Learn to feel where this point is.  Do it repeatedly. Give yourself lots of stopping space. 

 

All the time you are doing this, check your mirrors, read the space around you with your peripheral vision.  If you're not always looking, you are wasting your time. You have to gain a feel for the bike and the space around you.

 

Then put the bike away and sit at a roadside cafe and watch what Thai riders do. Shocking, I know but you have to build the local traffic behaviour patterns into your head. 

 

Put some of these things into practice on the road but go slowly. You have to read every movement on the road around you and put those into the mental pattern. Try to anticipate everything. 

 

The riskiest stuff happens behind you. Teen boys rushing up behind you and passing with cm between you, guys on 650 cc bikes overtaking you, moto taxi guys rushing up the centreline ducking and diving, mini-truck drivers barreling down the hard shoulder while you're waiting to clear traffic to a u-turn, and kids flying down Sukhumwit with black clothes and no headlight at night. Then there's mid-age mothers with daughters or sons turning right out of a soi and onto the road without looking. All of this has happened to me.

 

Pattaya is truly the scariest motoring environment. I would rather fly down a rally stage, or race door to door on a track,  as I have done, than mix it with these bumpkins. 

 

Add: If I didn't make this clear enough, vision is everything. 100% all the time. And I still don't think you will avoid an accident in a country with the highest per capita road fatality rate.

Edited May 29, 2018 by Kaoboi Bebobp
Clarity

[catman20]

 i am also aware that the safest way to drive in Pattaya is in a car, however I want to learn how to ride a motorbike properly and then take my chances.

 

i hope you have good medical insurance  or and life insurance here as you will need either or both. good luck.

[connda]

Kudos for taking the right approach.  Too many riders with little if any experience jump on motorcycles and believe that they will be able to navigate Thai roads without incident - bad assumption. Thailand is even dangerous for those who have had motorcycle training.  So yes - get the basics down so that you feel confident with your abilities to actually control the bike instinctively.  That will free up your other senses in order to be aware of what is happening all around you because the key to surviving on Thai roads is being in total Defensive Driving mode at all times.  Best of luck and drive safely! 

[ICECOOL]

sell the bike and spend the money on taxi, tuk tuk, baht bus even mc taxi. 

[connda]

21 hours ago, Airalee said:

I used to ride a motorbike in Chiang Mai about 6 years ago before the traffic got to be overwhelming.  Now, I wouldn’t even chance it and there is no way that you would catch me on a motorbike in Pattaya or any other major cities/tourist centers.  It’s not so much my own skills and awareness that concerns me but the lack of awareness in the other riders/drivers.

I'm actually the other way around.  I primary used my bike in the city, in my case Chiang Mai.  I used it because it is, in my humble opinion, the best way to get around the city and the increasingly bad traffic.
So in my book, small motorcycles are actually good tools to use in highly congested city traffic.  If given the choice between driving my car or my motorcycle in the city, I'll choose my 125 cc Dream 90% of the time.  I'd use the car if I needed to haul things or if it was raining. However, once out beyond the Ring Roads or on the highways it becomes a different story.  But inside the city proper - motorcycle all the way. 
But everyone has there own comfort zone.  If you don't feel safe in the traffic, pick another mode of transportation. But there is a flow and rhythm to the madness that is Thai driving.  Example: Thais don't normally yield right of way, they don't normally stop at stop signs, they often run red lights, a large percentage of motorcyclist will not even bother to look when turning onto a thoroughfare from a side street, they will jump green lights, most have no concept of how to merge, lines on the road are decorations, etc.....  They don't drive like in the West, but they are somewhat predictable in what seems to be  otherwise erratic and unpredictable driving -- but it's unpredictable to you as a Western driver because you have not experienced this kind of anarchy on the roads before.  Once you start to make sense of the madness and see the 'patterns' in what we in the West would consider to be suicidal and careless driving, then you can start to predicate what is going to happen around you, then you factor that into your Defensive Driving. 

Edited May 30, 2018 by connda

[Road Warrior]

don't drive in pattaya its full of incompetent that  drivers  ,just sit and watch  them from a distance you will see what I mean !! such as overtake on the inside /turn into a road left and not look prior

[Jingjock]

Do not ride in Pattaya or anywhere in Thai without full control of your machine. Thai rules are no rules, you have accident, you pay unless you are right and have insurance. Do not ever underestimate the Thai's, they don't care as long as they get in front of you. My ex landlord Thai been driving here all his life, killed last week on motorbike????????? so that will give you some idea.

[NoshowJones]

22 hours ago, ezzra said:

Your best school will be to get out on the road, be mindful of your surroundings, as well as what is going on behind you by using your mirrors, take it easy at first and don't speed, stick to the left, good driving manners goes along way, wear your helmet even for a short ride, and you be ok, no school can teach you how to be a good rider...

This is a very sensible post, and I would go along with it, but only if you have genuine common sense which  most Thai riders and drivers do not have. Good luck.

[richard_smith237]

18 hours ago, Kaoboi Bebobp said:

The riskiest stuff happens behind you. Teen boys rushing up behind you and passing with cm between you.

 

If I could agree with one single comment in any of the motorcycle threads I've read its this one. 

 

In Bangkok (at least) I find the cars for the most part considerate of motorcycles. I won't ride at night because of the abundance of drivers under the influence. 

 

I do find that those approaching from the rear that pose the greatest danger. Those silently stalking a blind spot, who pass you within cm's without any thought that you may need to maneuver round a pot hole etc...  Some pass very quickly, you can feel them as they 'woosh' by.

 

Motorcycle taxi's are way too confident, I find it is these riders who place you most at risk when passing closely from your rear, when cutting up you, or when suddenly stopping in front of you. 

 

The Key rules for me are: 

1) NEVER any sudden sideways movement - If there is a pot hole, ride through it if you can rather swerving.

2) Always know your blind spots - difficult to do, but do it as much as possible. 

3) Try your hardest to know what is approaching from your rear, they will pass you too closely even when you are keeping up with and passing the 4 wheeled traffic in the city. 

4) Riding at night is far riskier - as soon as its dusk people start doing silly things. 

5) Learn your brakes and then learn them some more !

6) Riding the polished Thai roads in the wet is lethal - Get a bike with ABS !!!!

 

[Daveyh]

This is Thailand & no one, especially a Thai, can help you drive safely here ........ it's the culture here in Thailand to do whatever you want irrespective of the dangers. It is a very big risk & sadly, fatalities are common, because most drivers are talking on mobile phones & motorcyclists are texting whilst on the move ....... paying no attention whatsoever to road safety. A polite sounding your horn before overtaking is advisable, but be careful of sounding too agressive! Loss of face here turns ugly very quickly .......... so just drive slowly, keep left & let them get on with it, but always be careful of what's behind you ..... use your mirrors ok? Remember what I've said ....... drivers are talking on their phones & motorcylists are texting ....... a rear shunt is very common here, especially at traffic lights. Safety awareness seems to be an "afterthought" for locals, mainly due to the mindset here. Even farangs who live or are just visiting here drive exactly as they wish, knowing that police will ignore it ........... I'm afraid that it's a bit of a "free for all" here. The risks are higher .......... if you ride a motorcycle, so unless you are confident don't even consider it. A good tip to remember is; ........... at peak times of the day, stay off the roads as everyone is rushing around buying food etc etc ..... pandemonium rules for the "mad hours" between 7 - 9am & 4 -6pm. Stay safe. 

[fire2rescue99]

If you get a motorbike, you should only operate in on the street upon which you live. (assuming you don't live on Second Rd or something similar) Drive it from your home to the end of the soi, to the nearest 7 or market. And that's it. Don't venture off your soi.

 

The simple fact that you posed the question about driving a motorbike around Pattaya and where/how to gain skills says that you should not be riding around town. If you don't already have the skills, don't try it in Pattaya. You will be overwhelmed and gobbled up by events not understood by the uninitiated. You will go down, be side swiped, over run, rear ended and simply smashed. It's not worth it. I am not being mean spirited, I am telling you how it will be. Please take my advice and share your health, my Thai Visa buddy.

 

Also, the earlier post about riding pillow: That's funny. Either the person isn't familiar with "pillion" or they have a insistent spell check.

[fire2rescue99]

Oops, I meant "spare your health".

[digger70]

Get a high end Life Insurance And a High end Motorbike Insurance First,,,, then Watch the Thais ride ,,, Don't  Do What They Do ,,,Do you're own thing everything Legal and you may Live,,,,   ?

[LongTimeLurker]

On 5/29/2018 at 10:10 AM, maximillian said:

never ride without best of insurance you can get.

Most general medical insurance policies only pay out 50% if you are involved in an accident riding a motocy, unless there are some specific motocy policies available?

[sikishrory]

Yeh it's often mentioned as being the worst thing you can do to learn to ride a motorbike on Thai roads... And with good reason. 

That said, I taught myself to ride scooters in Phuket and then struggled through learning a dirtbike on koh tao. Now I am proficient and also have a bike back in Australia. 

I would say learning in Thailand made me a much better rider and riding in Australia is a breeze after the craziness here. 

You can try find a school in Pattaya which is a great idea but not sure what that would be like.

Otherwise get out there.

Pattaya is pretty crazy for traffic. Particularly with baht buses randomly stopping anywhere and everywhere. I would be weary of them. 

If I were to give tips I would say ~expect the unexpected. 

~always wait a gew seconds and look both ways when the lights turn green. Thais like to run red lights and I very nearly died because of this. 

~ think of 1 lane as 3 streams of traffic eg. Car in middle and bikes either side. 

~ google motorcycle target fixation. Sounds weird but it happens. 

Good luck with it all

 

 

 

[Nemises]

On 5/29/2018 at 1:19 PM, jenny2017 said:

If you are scared of driving, you'll have problems. 

If you are scared of dying, you’ll also have problems. 

[GOLDBUGGY]

There is a Driver Training School in Pattaya as I went there to renew my Drivers License (many years ago). It is a good school and I would recommend it for learning to drive a car. But for a 125cc Motor Bike it is a waste of time and money. Just a small practice course the size of any decent parking lot. 

 

Driving a small motor bike is easy to do and as many young teenages in Pattaya will show you, You just need some practice to built confidence and you will be fine. Ridng in a car may be a safer mode of transportation but for Pattaya and the traffic there, it is not the best mode of transportation. I can't count all the hours I saved in Pattaya riding a motor bike by passing a long line of cars and pulling right up to the traffic lights. 

 

Start off small in some parking lot to get the feel of the bike. Then work your way to some side streets and a few traffic lights. You would be surprised in how many side streets there are in Pattaya to avoid the main traffic roads. My wife hit everyone of them and even though she was an expert on a motor bike, she still avoided certain streets in Pattaya when she could. 

 

So I suggest you start small and work your way up to the busier streets. Or get somebody else to drive and enjoy the ride. Stay left and go slow.   

[Airalee]

18 hours ago, connda said:

I'm actually the other way around.  I primary used my bike in the city, in my case Chiang Mai.  I used it because it is, in my humble opinion, the best way to get around the city and the increasingly bad traffic.
So in my book, small motorcycles are actually good tools to use in highly congested city traffic.  If given the choice between driving my car or my motorcycle in the city, I'll choose my 125 cc Dream 90% of the time.  I'd use the car if I needed to haul things or if it was raining. However, once out beyond the Ring Roads or on the highways it becomes a different story.  But inside the city proper - motorcycle all the way. 
But everyone has there own comfort zone.  If you don't feel safe in the traffic, pick another mode of transportation. But there is a flow and rhythm to the madness that is Thai driving.  Example: Thais don't normally yield right of way, they don't normally stop at stop signs, they often run red lights, a large percentage of motorcyclist will not even bother to look when turning onto a thoroughfare from a side street, they will jump green lights, most have no concept of how to merge, lines on the road are decorations, etc.....  They don't drive like in the West, but they are somewhat predictable in what seems to be  otherwise erratic and unpredictable driving -- but it's unpredictable to you as a Western driver because you have not experienced this kind of anarchy on the roads before.  Once you start to make sense of the madness and see the 'patterns' in what we in the West would consider to be suicidal and careless driving, then you can start to predicate what is going to happen around you, then you factor that into your Defensive Driving. 

I actually agree with you 110%.  When I first moved to Chiang Mai back in 2012, there wasn’t the extreme influx of Chinese tourists that bring about an unpredictability within the controlled chaos that is Thai traffic.  I’ve even been with a friend in their car in CM driving east on Suthep and had a pair of Chinese girls on a motorbike veer left directly into her car ultimately tearing her rear bumper cover  even with the horn being honked and nowhere to move in slow congested traffic.  Luckily, nobody was hurt.  I do know that the owner of Bikky is constantly having to replace parts of their rental scooters when the Chinese tourists return them.  Most of my life was lived around the Nimman area and it was particularly bad there.  I actually feel safer riding a motorbike in CM than I ever would in Los Angeles.  I recently moved to BKK so with the BTS system and efficient (and cheap) taxi service from my part of the city where they all use the meter (being that it isn’t in one of the rip off tourist/shopping areas) I now definitely cannot see the same benefit to having a motorbike as I did in Chaing Mai.  

[bandito]

On ‎5‎/‎29‎/‎2018 at 12:10 PM, maximillian said:

https://global.yamaha-motor.com/news/2008/0806/yra.html

 

Unless you feel very confident, don't ride in Pattaya. Don't ride in Thailand when you're old or feel old, never ride without best of insurance you can get.

Invest in your safety. Safety gear, safety training.

 

 

 

Well, I'm over 80 yrs old and still drive a motorcycle in Thailand for over 30 yrs.

Never had any lessons or license.

To me it's the same as riding a bicycle only faster about 100 km/hr faster.

[Rimmer]

An off topic post has been removed

[crankshaft]

Been coming to Pattaya for 10 years...

My scooter driving rules

Don't drive at night

Use a proper helmet

Don't drink and drive...not even one drink

Drive with your head on a swivel..be aware of traffic ahead, both sides, as well as behind you

Expect drivers of all vehicles will not follow road rules.

Expect vehicles to pull out in front of you from parking/side streets etc

Expect to get passed on the left and on the right at all times

Expect to get passed on the right when turning right off a road

Expect wrong way traffic in your lane

Expect pedestrians to be on the road

Park your ego at home and be prepared to give your right of way to all vehicles...better to be right than dead right

 

[elgenon]

I rented a motorbike twice in Pattaya and once in Samui. Bad results each time.

In Patts a truck came straight at me on the wrong side of the road on a turn. Another time coming from Big Buddha a bulldozer backed into the road in front of me and was dropping sand. It doesn't matter if it was your fault or not. The pain is the same.

[bkk6060]

Just get out there and start slowly.  Maybe 15 minutes, then work your way up.

 

I got to tell you, can be very dangerous here.  You need to be very aware and have your head on a swivel.  Never assume anything and look both ways even at a green light.  Over time you will gain confidence.

 

Riding a bike here creates so much more freedom and it can be a lot of fun.

[Kohsamida]

1 hour ago, bkk6060 said:

Just get out there and start slowly.  Maybe 15 minutes, then work your way up.

 

I got to tell you, can be very dangerous here.  You need to be very aware and have your head on a swivel.  Never assume anything and look both ways even at a green light.  Over time you will gain confidence.

 

Riding a bike here creates so much more freedom and it can be a lot of fun.

I'd love to have a motorbike here in Chaing Mai for the sense of freedom and enjoyment; just wish things were safer, MUCH safer.  I ride a bicycle and there isn't a day that goes by that I don't see something stupid dangerous happening, or am the target of someone driving dangerously.  On a bicycle I feel that I can more easily avoid trouble, but still, even a bicycle is dangerous in this crazy (but lovable) place.  Having your head on a swivel is mandatory; sometimes I feel like the girl in The Exorcist!

Edited June 1, 2018 by Kohsamida