Motorcycling

Finally on the bike – and you know exactly what you're doing.

You dream of riding a motorcycle, but a thousand questions are spinning in your head – and you don't want to ask anyone and get an eye-roll in return? That's exactly what this book is for. When the author started out, all he could find were travel features, wrenching bibles and race-training manuals – nothing for the honest beginning. So he wrote the book he wishes he'd had: relaxed, patient and on a first-name basis, with no jargon and no showing off – and with a special eye on women getting into riding.

This is the British edition. Everything in it – the law, the signs, the tests, the fees – is about riding in Great Britain, and Part II follows the route the DVSA actually sets out: CBT, the theory test, module 1 off-road and module 2 on-road, across categories A1, A2 and A. Northern Ireland runs its own system through the DVA.

Three parts – one complete companion

• Part I – Beginner Questions. Detailed answers across 13 categories to the questions you really do ask at the start. Why doesn't the motorcycle fall over once it's moving? How do I brake and shift correctly, how do I ride corners and direct my gaze? How do I overcome fear and uncertainty? Plus rider training, riding in town, on country roads, motorways and mountain passes, protective gear, buying your first motorcycle, maintenance, breakdowns and emergencies – right through to electric motorcycles and off-road.
• Part II – The theory test. All fourteen official topics, plus the motorcycle-specific chapters the car books leave out, plus mock papers at full length: 50 questions, 57 minutes, 43 to pass. The principle is clever: the question is on the right, and the solution with a clear explanation is on the left when you turn the page. That way you can honestly test yourself without the answer jumping straight out at you – and with no app subscription.
• Part III – The online community. The motorcycle catalogue, the advisor for choosing a model, the route planner with weather check, the navigator for your phone, a collection of routes and the digital garage that reminds you when the MOT is due.

And between the chapters you'll keep stumbling over hand-picked biker sayings – classics from the regulars' table and little bits of wisdom for the road. Not exam-relevant, but they simply belong.

What makes this book special

• Honest rather than sugar-coated: if something about a model isn't right for beginners, it says so plainly.
• On a first-name basis and without jargon – even if you've never stood next to a motorcycle before.
• With a special focus on the questions that matter most to women at the start.
• Sourced, not guessed: every rule is traced back to The Highway Code or the statute behind it, and the explanation tells you whether it is a MUST or only advice.
• Hands-on: knowledge from the author's own start, rider training and thousands of miles on the road.

Who is this book for?

For everyone who wants to do their research before spending any money. For anyone revising for the theory test who wants a complete practice bank without an app subscription. For returning riders easing back in. And for riders who simply enjoy a good read.

Enough gut feeling and half-knowledge. Get on – this book makes the start easy. Ride safe and keep the rubber side down.

Independent practice work – our own questions, not DVSA revision questions and not the official theory test questions. Not endorsed or approved by the DVSA or DVLA. Covers Great Britain. Law as at August 2026. Passing is not guaranteed.