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does it really make much difference to a bike or horse if someone passes at 60 or 90(not that you should pass a horse at 60 but its still a legal speed)
Yes, it makes a massive difference. I would rather they slowed down to 30 while they pass me - the speed limit is there as a maximum and not the speed you must ride at at all times.
It shouldn't be that surprising - the same bloke riding like a knob on a bike way too powerful for him is the same guy sat 6 inches from your bumper on the motorway in his company car; or punishment passing on country roads because you've held him up (in his perception).
I tend to see high speed motorbike accidents as one fewer idiot on the road. Sure, they suffer from cars pulling out without looking properly in urban and suburban areas, but that could be fixed by making everyone ride a bicycle for a year before being allowed to take their test.
What really pisses me off is the idiots on those R125s with the mentally loud exhausts. They’re not fast, or cool - just antisocial.
ive had quite a few fast bikes, the last one being a new fireblade. I’ll be honest and say it was the most terrifying thing I’ve ever ridden, constantly wanting to either wheelie or spin the back wheel. I sold it a while ago and now and again wish I had one, but I’d have a 600 next time which would be more than enough.
ive got mates who go out on a Sunday and regularly get their knee down on the road. That to me is mental and pretty irresponsible, I’m pretty certain it’s just a matter of time...
it seems to be people who had small bikes in their youth, who gave them up for career and family. Kits leave home, bit of spare cash, want to get back on the bike. Buy a big one but are too confident in their own ability to take some lessons, see what they’ve forgotten in 30 years.
We've got a bloke exactly like this at work - a real petrolhead who owns a trackday car, an Aston Martin, a non-running TVR & his 'daily driver' - I believe that's Pistonheads speak.
He's got no kids, recently split up with his long-term partner, no mortgage & an RAF pension on top of his decent salary, so the logical thing to do is buy himself a massive Triumph cruiser thing, bearing in mind he hasn't been on a bike since his early twenties.
Spent months poring over the spec of the bike he wanted, spent a fortune on it and associated kit but refused to take any refresher lessons - he's a petrolhead, so how can anyone else tell him how to tame the beast he's just purchased?
Ah.......2.5 miles from his front door at the first proper combination of bends he arrived at, he crashed. Nothing too serious, but needed to replace a few bits of bike, sore ankle & hip for a few weeks etc. Of course, the helmet that he walloped on the ground 'looks fine' so he's not replacing that because it was quite expensive.....
He rode it into work last Friday & looked less stable on it than my daughter on her balance bike (and she wobbles all over the place).
Apparently, even his friend's who are motorcyclists have recommended he get some refresher training but nope - he just refuses, even though he spends a fortune on track day tuition every time he does a track day....
Apparently, even his friend’s who are motorcyclists have recommended he get some refresher training but nope – he just refuses, even though he spends a fortune on track day tuition every time he does a track day….
Natural selection, innit? as long as he's an organ donor, and doesn't wipe anyone else out when the inevitable happens.
i’m really not sure why the cops don’t have a huge crack down on anti social exhausts either way.
1) the police can’t police every road and vehicle using the roads, mainly because this countries gone down the route of minimal policing.
2) the police don’t care about the noise motorbikes make, because they’d rather sit in ignorance.
Just a couple of ideas.
I’m not sure why or how aftermarket loud exhausts are allowed to be sold? If the exhaust doesn’t pass a loudness test then how come many of the aftermarket exhausts are being fitted to motorbikes?
If it was up to me then the law would be struck and enforced. If your bikes too loud it gets crushed in front of you. Bit dramatic I know but the message would soon filter through the grey sponge between your ears.
The A32 near me is a Mecca for Casey Stoner types, in the main because up near East Meon there’s a motorbike cafe and the road is an A road with 50mph limits on it. Not that 50mph means anything to the Casey Stoners who blat up and down it overtaking in the villages that are situated along there.
However, I do like bikes. I do see some really good riding and very normal sensible people going about thier business on two wheels. And if I rode a bike I’m sure that I too would find the A32 a nice road to ride along, because in a soft top car it’s pretty as England should be.
I have owned a couple of scooters, and ridden them down the A3 home from town, in the main both car drivers and other motorbike users were very courteous and sensible. In town it’s a bit of a lottery as to who you sit behind or overtake but still it’s a great way to travel.
I am jealous of Southern European countries who seem more tolerant and accepting of bikes on the roads, we just seem to get annoyed because mainly it’s deeply ingrained.
IMO
yep, knowing your limits is a rare skill.
i’ve had a big bike, (zzr1100), i will be honest, it was too fast for me, i was scared of it.
mine was restricted (to 125bhp!) and was a big heavy bike, more modern bikes are 30kg lighter and have close to double the power, yes they can be ridden safely, but I’d wager that plenty of riders don’t have the self control to be sensible.
Of course, you get idiots in all walks of life, that’s what we are really discussing here.
Driving down to the coast on the A32 which has become a bikers honey-pot - appears that Darwinian principles abound as they overtake on blind bends / summits and pose the greatest threat to other motorcyclists coming the other way - a few cringe-worthy moments.
The huge difference between me as a cyclist and a motorbiker is that if I get it wrong, its only likely to a few grazes, damaged clothing and maybe broken bones at worst. I'm not inflicting potentially life-threatening injuries on another member of the public and become a burden on my family and health service by needing to be fed via a tube for the rest of my life.
I tend to see high speed motorbike accidents as one fewer idiot on the road. Sure, they suffer from cars pulling out without looking properly in urban and suburban areas, but that could be fixed by making everyone ride a bicycle for a year before being allowed to take their test.
You win.
basically in the same way as push bikes have come on you can now get a motorbike that outperforms most supercars for less than a mountain bike.
rider education is important but its always a second thought for most people.
i miss my bike
Turn up to trail centres these days and its mainly middle aged men on over biked bikes going faster than their skill level or age would dictate is right.
The road from Hawes to Ribble Head is one of the best drives about
My initial thought was as FunkyDuncs, it's no different to what what mtbers do. Most would be better off on a decent hardtail or short travel fs but buy into the latest trend for 150-160mm enduro/trails bikes and bimble around trail centres.
Bikers buy these 1000+cc race bikes/touring/streetfighter style bikes when they'd be much better off on something around 600cc or less and around 50-60bhp. (I've always believed as a biker that any more than a usable 100bhp was pointless on the road - no matter how experienced you are). Problem with buying bikes that suit your abilities is that it only takes one rider in your group to be on a more more powerful bike and the rest feel they have to too. Their lack of skill means they can't keep up. So instead of learning how to ride properly they opt of the quick fix and get a bigger engine. Parallels again with mtb 😀
Shops also play their part. I remember i was in a local shop (maybe 15 years ago) and a chap in his 50's wanted to get back into biking. Plenty of cash but not ridden since his was a pup. Walked straight over to the salesman and asked for a Fireblade. He was filling out the paperwork as i left.
As for noisey pipes...i'm all for them
As for the donor card comments...Coming from a place were riding bikes fast on the road is our national sport, i find that kind of comment in very poor taste 🙁
How did they enhance the reaction times on the test? That is the problem, you can’t speed up your reactions, the MCN bible tells you that you can through observation and all that but it doesn’t really happen
You missed the point. My point was that doing a ton on a motorbike takes seconds and your back at 60. Not like the frustrated bloke in a company A4 1.9 watching his speedo creep up 80, 81, 82, 83, 84, 85 ..................Doing a ton on even a crappy CB500 with a loose chain on an empty DC with nothing to react to doesn't feel fast because it's easy. You could do a ton and be back to 60 quicker than a car driver changes radio stations. It's illegal and you shouldn't do it, but it's a long way from the most dangerous thing you'll see on the roads on any given day, and you'll probably see a car going just as fast before instantly forgetting about it.
My second point was that people will always find something to hate about other groups that somehow seem to be getting an unfair one up on them.
Cyclists - don't pay road tax, jump ques and scratch cars with their handlebars, kill pedestrians, don't give way to overtaking cars. Any sensible person can see that those are either untrue, nonsense, not actual rules, etc. All because they don't like being overtaken by our magnificent calves and sculpted glutes on cheap bikes when they've paid tens of thousands of pounds to sit there impotent with rage in traffic, it upsets their view of the natural order of things.
Motor cyclists - all have loud pipes, act recklessly. You could be a middle aged dentist on a bonneville with quiet stock pipes and obey all the rules of the road and people will find reasons to hate you because you're not sitting in their view of "normal".
Mountain bikers - yayda yada yada
Black People - ...................
You get the idea.
Oh dear....
Im a middle aged man with a 160bhp R1
I also turn up at trail centres with my 170mm gnarsled
I suspect I may be ticking all the wrong boxes
But I enjoy riding both and don’t feel any great need to change either!!! 😂
You could be a middle aged dentist on a bonneville with quiet stock pipes and obey all the rules of the road and people will find reasons to hate you because you’re not sitting in their view of “normal”.
Indeed. You'd be amazed how many cars will pull out to stop you filtering past stationary traffic or traffic going very very slowly.
Oh dear….
Im a middle aged man with a 160bhp R1
I also turn up at trail centres with my 170mm gnarsled
I suspect I may be ticking all the wrong boxes
But I enjoy riding both and don’t feel any great need to change either!!!
Only if you drive your brand new S-Line Audi or M sport BMW to the trail centre 🙂
The roads are public infrastructure, not a playground for entitled idiots.
(I have had motorbikes all my life)
i feel sorry for you, being encumbered by a massive percentage of fellow bikers who are total bellends thinking the queens highway is their playground.
the ratio of nobhead/normal is the worst with motorbikes, all forms of transport attract weapons, unfortunately most choose a motorbike. at least they usually only kill themselves not other people.
Middle aged men on big motorbikes are a bloody menace. Middle aged women on big motorbikes, on the other hand, are completely virtuous... 😇
Rachel
You get the idea.
Nope. You've lost me with that one. 😆
What a lovely thread this is! Crushing bikes we don't like on the spot? Careful what you wish for.
Middle aged men on big motorbikes are a bloody menace. Middle aged women on big motorbikes, on the other hand, are completely virtuous…
Reminds me of the traffic jam this morning.
Tailbacks all the way from slough to Reading on the M4.
What's at the front?
A dozen young men with their shirts off picking and sorting veg in the field at the side of the motorway! Bestill your beating vaginas, foot back on the throttle and look where your'e going please!
it's probably apocryphal but I like the one about the transplant surgeon talking about the lack of organ donors and then it starts raining and he's says "not long now"
I was one of those bikers who gave up in their 20s, after coming off a few times but never damaging myself, and knowing a few guys who injured themselves badly.
Then in my 40s I went back to college, on a course with a dozen other people, We socialised with each other, & in the company of our partners - a total of 26. Two of the guys were bikers, Both reckoned they were ace riders, & had never had an accident. Both died within a year, both in their first ever road accident.
I'm not going on one of those things again, at least on British roads.
You could be a middle aged dentist on a bonneville with quiet stock pipes and obey all the rules of the road and people will find reasons to hate you because you’re not sitting in their view of “normal”.
Indeed. You’d be amazed how many cars will pull out to stop you filtering past stationary traffic or traffic going very very slowly.
Which is just plain selfish and verging on the aggressive and totally pointless, IMO.
Let them filter, if they can pass without cause for concern then let em’ ride on by.
Motorists are our own worst enemy sometimes.
Noisy exhausts are unacceptable, there is no need for them in the slightest. Same as noisy exhausts on cars, unacceptable and happy to see them crushed too.
Interesting reading. I often look at the big bikes these guys have and get little envious. Would secretly like a gs1200 but a smaller bike would suffice.
Used to ride a fazer 600 straight after my direct access 14 years ago. It felt like a rocket when I first got it, but after while I wanted more speed. Then, a car turned across me on a wet, dark ride home from work on Fulham road. My crotch took the full impact from 30mph as I didn't have the skill not to lock the front wheel, and there was a huge dent in the tank in an odd shape. I was purple down there for weeks. Even though I flew over the car I was only mildly bruised elsewhere thanks to good clothing. Cringe when I see the shorts and t-shirt riders.
That really put me off and I've never ridden again. I still wonder if ABS would have saved me.
I've produced two kids since so those soft bits are quite resilient.
Indeed. You’d be amazed how many cars will pull out to stop you filtering past stationary traffic or traffic going very very slowly.
I get this on my road bike, 🙁 Including drifting to the curb or middle of the road to stop you passing them.
I have yet to have the confidence to filter on my motorbike, having only been 1200 miles since passing my test, but given the way they treat me on the road bike, I'm only expecting more of the same when on the motorbike, hence my reluctance to even start filtering.
I like the one about the transplant surgeon talking about the lack of organ donors and then it starts raining and he’s says “not long now”
Dunno about the gender or age bits, but come the bank holiday cometh motorbikers smeared along the North Wales A5. Always a case of where rather than if. Not pleasant.
I have yet to have the confidence to filter on my motorbike, having only been 1200 miles since passing my test
Now you've been riding a bit I would highly recommend joining the local Institute of Advanced Motorcyclist group and get some extra hints. Once you get passed the beards and BMW GS's some real good practical tips can be had.
some real good practical tips can be had.
what like how fast and close you need to pass a road cyclist to give them a heart attack ?
I have yet to have the confidence to filter on my motorbike, having only been 1200 miles since passing my test
Now you’ve been riding a bit I would highly recommend joining the local Institute of Advanced Motorcyclist group and get some extra hints.
I'm also in the same boat, I'd recommend buying the Police Roadcraft book, once your riding its easy to study and implement. Next year I'll be joining the local advanced rides too.
As for the OP, IMO the sports bike riders are on the decline either by natural attrition or the prospect of jail time. Looking at the current scene with maybe fresh eyes I'd say that the adventure/tourer market, then the HOG cruiser types individually make up a far greater number than the power rangers. And with the hipster/café/retro scene coming fast on its heels. Its too easy to tar everyone with the same brush, I'd say the decent law abiding (ish) riders far outweigh the knobbers, but its the knobbers you notice and remember unfortunately.
BikeBouy .- The white and blue police tape on the old railway bridge on 272 is from when a bike got it a little bit wrong . He was a friend of a colleague , married + kid . Probably out having fun , but accidents happen .
I also find alot of motorbikes close pass when I'm out on my roady. Its as they do not see pedal cycles as vunrable , but I would imagine being whacked by a motorbike is probably still going to hurt as much as if you get whacked by a car
IAM is for when you’ve had a bit of experience, I don’t think they will look at you for 6 months after you’ve passed your test (they push the improving, not teaching how to ride).
My main motorcycling buddy is an IAM instructor instructor so I ended up heading out on their club rides now and again. I learned a fair bit, mostly road positioning, but they helped me sort out cornering (keep the gas on, ‘positive’ steering) but I never joined... I think they just assumed I was an associate 🤣 I did buy and read and try to implement the Police Roadcraft book, it’s well worth the £12-15 it cost me.
Check out your local Police road safety offerings (usually a day or weekend affairs) or, god forbid, get post test training from the people you took your DAS with. Not everybody has their own personal instructor... 🤢
Someone* did the ton on their way back from their (passed) motorcycle test following their instructor.
On my direct access course they encouraged us to break the speed limit. Mainly on short 1 or 2 mile sections of dual carriageway, someone managed 100 as well.
The instructors actively encouraged excess speed routinely in the second half of the course.
Apart from during your test, but after that we could “play”.
Ex-motorcyclist and ex-motorcycle journo / road tester / track tester etc here from the era when the Honda Fireblade was still considered cutting-edge fast. I rode a lot of miles and a lot of quick miles and didn't die, so I must have been reasonably competent, though obviously not at TJ's level 😉
I totally get why people ride motorcycles quickly, it's the nearest thing to flying you'll get without actually, well, flying. And the easy access to brutal speed and acceleration is intoxicating. But you're also very, very vulnerable to your own and other road users' mistakes - which is why I stopped riding - and though people forget this, you can cause a lot of damage to other people if you crash into them and that includes car drivers.
Going back to the OP, motorcycle group riding is a bit of a nightmare. There's a tendency for people to stop making their own decisions and just follow the leader's line good or bad. Throw in other traffic and it often gets messy. The first bike makes a clean overtake, the second follows and just about makes it, then the third or fourth bike start making marginal decisions, cutting into gaps that are disappearing etc. If you miss the overtake, it's easy to get frantic as your mates ride off into the distance and make a bad decision yourself.
You can see it happen all the time on any popular 'biking road'. Throw in a bit of duelling ego stuff for good measure, and things can go very wrong quiet quickly.
I always hated riding in groups for that reason, particularly if you were back marker and were continually playing catch-up. I always preferred riding alone or with a like-minded mate.
But to go back to the beginning, I do think it's one of the main reasons that fast bikes ridden in groups often seem to be horrendously badly ridden. Throw in another group and things can get even worse.
I know not every riding group is like this, but the odd UK culture of riding race reps maybe contributes to it too. Personally I avoid driving / road cycling on roads which are popular with weekend motorcyclists, not because I hate or despise them, but because I have a well-developed sense of self preservation. And also, seeing people hurting themselves unnecessarily is just bloody sad. I stopped going to the Isle of Man TT for that reason.
I still sometimes miss my bike though.
Good post BWD, sums up my experience from my 20's.
I was riding with a group of very fast lads (club/national level racers and one who made it into WSB before a bad crash ended that).
Trips up to Devil's bridge got a bit out of hand for all of those reasons. Now I take it pretty easy on the roads and do track days, you can't get close to the track feeling on the road so there's no point.
Now you’ve been riding a bit I would highly recommend joining the local Institute of Advanced Motorcyclist group and get some extra hints. Once you get passed the beards and BMW GS’s some real good practical tips can be had.
Can't recommend this enough. Riding with a mentor from my local IAM group completely changed my riding. My OH, who frequents rides pillion, has commented on how much smoother and quicker my riding is but that she feels totally safe.
I took my advanced test a couple of years ago and failed. Despite this, the examiner said I was an incredibly safe rider. I'll think about taking the test again sometime but given how my riding has improved I know I'm a better rider despite not having the appropriate piece of paper. Strange but true I'm now quicker on a 650 dual sport bike than I was on an 1100 sports tourer having done the IAM training.
god forbid, get post test training from the people you took your DAS with
That's exactly what I intend to do. £200 for a day with the guys around North Wales training
I'll have another road bike but I'm not interested in riding on the roads anymore - a 4 year commute into London on a sports bike ruins that concept. I'll get a 600 for trackdays as I can ride fast without the worry of getting nicked or hurting someone.
As to middle aged men and speeding, I think part of the issue now is that it's such a lot of effort to get your bike license that you've got to REALLY want to ride a motorbike to bother with it. Those that REALLY want to do it probably want to do it to go fast hence why a high proportion of motorcyclists ride like nobs. It's also expensive which means only those that can afford it need apply. I think if the test was easier (but limited to BHP) more people would ride bikes, the proportion of idiots would drop and car drivers would be more used to bikes being on the road. However as it stands, someone with a bit of cash can do their test and immediately go out and buy a 200bhp bike for £10k. that's never going to end well...
I think part of the issue now is that it’s such a lot of effort to get your bike license that you’ve got to REALLY want to ride a motorbike to bother with it. Those that REALLY want to do it probably want to do it to go fast hence why a high proportion of motorcyclists ride like nobs. It’s also expensive which means only those that can afford it need apply. I think if the test was easier (but limited to BHP) more people would ride bikes, the proportion of idiots would drop and car drivers would be more used to bikes being on the road. However as it stands, someone with a bit of cash can do their test and immediately go out and buy a 200bhp bike for £10k. that’s never going to end well…
genuine question from someone who is bike-curious at the moment - is it harder or easier than the car test? As we often have the view on STW that the car test is stupidly easy, right idiots pass it, and the only thing slowing them down is insurance cost for the younger people. As bikes are generally an 'addition' rather than instead of a car, even if commuting only, then you are pushing it to the middle aged category.
Yeah another “are bike tests that difficult” question.
I passed mine wayback when we had a world ragged by air cooled KH250 triples and RD400’s with expansion chambers fitted..
I think the tester told me to ride around the square outside of the test center and to stop when he held his A4 Pad out 🤣
I rode home on the KH250 I borrowed from my cousin. Then bought a Bultaco trials bike..
genuine question from someone who is bike-curious at the moment – is it harder or easier than the car test?
Probably about the same for a modern test if you're starting from scratch.
Fairly straightforward if you can cycle and already have your car licence.
It’s also expensive which means only those that can afford it need apply. I think if the test was easier (but limited to BHP) more people would ride bikes
Anyone can go a CBT for ~£150 and get on the road with a 125. Hardly expensive and adequate for 80% of general miles that most people do.
If you factor in all of the training required, its no more expensive than gaining your car licence.
It took me 6 x lessons on top of the CBT, It's not too bad. The guys who I had for lessons (direct entry) thought the examiners for bikes are less stringent than the ones doing car tests. One reason they gave for this was that they know most people are taking the bike test so they can enjoy motorcycling i.e. fun, rather than necessity.
This was definitely the case with me for both the Mod 1 and mod 2. I could not have asked for a more decent examiner.
The big thing the examiners are after for bikes is that you are safe on the road, that is the top priority.
As a bit of background, I had bikes 35 years ago and since then have regretted not taking my test then. However having had to take the CBT, MOD1 and MOD 2, plus the lessons I'm glad i didn't take it then, as I'm sure I would have struggled jumping on a biggish bike without that foundation I had as part of taking my test, the £1000 it cost is the only thing that's stings. 🙁
My view is that is easier than the car test, but only if you have been driving for a while.
I also decided not to take those 3-4 days quick entry DAS as I think taking time between lessons to let what I had been taught sink in helped a lot.
just my 2penneth worth
I’ve ridden bikes for 20 years or more now. I’ve had big ones (fnarr) and small ones, most stuff apart from an actual silly fast superbike. They hold no interest for me as I generally use mine as transport. Currently riding a CRF1000L Africa Twin
Couple of observations
I used to live in Hampshire and commute into west London every day. Darn Sarf bikers tend to be high milage commuters, ride in all weathers and very sensible. I very rarely had or saw any issues at all. Now living in Sheffield it seems most bikes are used as toys and there’s a far higher percentage of dicks. Driving into Matlock Bath one day we saw some of the most appalling riding imaginable. Funny thing was I reckon I could have handed most of them their asses on a plate with my low powered commuter bike. I shudder to think about it. I don’t want to be associated with people like that. I don’t ride with any groups mostly for that reason. I don’t want to be tarred with that brush thanks
Exhausts - I have a road legal Akropovic can on my bike. It’s got a bassy burble but it’s not excessive. It came with the bike. No way I’d pay £700 RRP for it! It’s nice though. I’ll keep it. But the other week we were up on Mam Tor and the valley below was filled with the sound of sports bikes with illegal cans. It wasn’t nice. IMO it’s a blight that needs removing. I’d refit my standard can if I thought it made a din like that.
Like I said I’ve been riding for many years continuously in all weathers year round. I’m in it for the long run. Self preservation is the name of the game. But sure I’ll use the throttle if I feel like it. It really is ridiculously easy to get to 100 and back as already mentioned. Overtaking is over in a couple of seconds too, and it feels easy and relaxed when done right. I once took our Ducati ST3s to Reading and back and I remember shaking my head in disbelief at the ease and pace I’d got there. With experience and restrained use of the power A to B speed has to be experienced to be believed. Queues of cars and heavy traffic just don’t exist and I find I arrive more relaxed than I would in a car because I’m not trapped in a box and raging at the traffic.
Move just ridden to Birmingham to pick up a package. I didn’t need to do that. But I enjoyed the ride. It’s a nice sunny day, I think most cyclist could understand that at least, eh? 😀
genuine question from someone who is bike-curious at the moment – is it harder or easier than the car test? As we often have the view on STW that the car test is stupidly easy, right idiots pass it, and the only thing slowing them down is insurance cost for the younger people. As bikes are generally an ‘addition’ rather than instead of a car, even if commuting only, then you are pushing it to the middle aged category.
The bike test is a whole different beast to the car test and it's changed a lot in the last 10-15 years.
For a big bike test (unrestricted A licence) you must be over 24 or have done 2 years (i think) on an A2 licence (restricted to 45bhp ish), then you must pass the tests on a 600cc+ bike (roughly speaking, but a big bike nonetheless). However, you can't ride a big bike on the road on your own, you must be accompanied by an approved instructor and in radio contact. So, you have to pay for lessons and can't practice on your own. Cost for the Direct Access Scheme (basically from no experience to full licence is anywhere from £600 to £1500.
So that's the age and cost restrictions, that's before you've even got to the tests. Which are:
Mod1 - off road tarmac area, several slow speed riding tests, figure of 8, U turn, slalom etc plus a swerve test and emergency stop. Takes about 30 minutes, put a single foot down = Fail. Easy to pass, easy to fail. The harder of the 2 tests.
Mod2 - road riding, 35 minutes or so with the examiner on a bike (or car) following you. Similar to the car test but no parking etc, just a couple of stops to pull out from behind parked cars, and a hill start or 2.
It is quite possible to pass the lot in a week, I passed my CBT and rode a 125 for 5k miles commuting, filtering etc before doing the DAS over 3 days (2 half days training, Mod1 on the 3rd day at 9am, couple more hours training then mod2 at 12pm the same day. Passed both first time. That cost me £550 or so, inc test fees, CBT would have been another £100 on top. That was the cheapest (and best) school in my area, you can work out the hourly rate if you say it was about 5 hours per day training, the tests are about £100 all in, so £30 ph for the instructor & use of their bike.
Overall, it's not hard if you've got a few months of 125cc riding experience, but vs the car test there's more stuff preventing access (cost, age, time restrictions).
On the car test, you don’t have to remember to put your feet down when you stop...
Rachel