For clarification, I do signal whenever I'm making space which is why it makes me even more perplexed these people can't wait 2 or 3 seconds for me to move away for them to overtake.

Hahah, this one I have to agree. Head on a swivel and anticipate what people are going to do. It's really gotten me prepped before most of my close calls.

And I do take it slow and ride my own ride. One thing I've come to understand, never bother following most kapchais because they'll just speed up and I'll be left going at a pace that's uncomfortable for me. No issues with stopping at traffic light lines because it gives me a chance to have a breather between my commutes. I've not run a red light except once when a car did not stop and it was either I move away or turn into tomato paste on the road.. yes, driver was on the phone.

Takde boss, no 'P'... I do have an 'L' on my bike though.

Have been taking my sweet time with the 'mandatory' bike school hours because I felt I could learn so much more and faster having 'real world 'experience. Will however be taking my final 3 hours of classes this Sunday and hopefully book myself for the exams in a week or 2. Doakan saya, kawans kawans

Thanks for sharing. Glad this feeling is normal. I hope I can shake this off with time or at the very least, not have to compose myself for a second or 2 before kicking gears and moving.

I'm very aware riding on the public road is anticipating dumb things people do and trying to work around it. Just annoying each time I'm approaching a corner, I'll be keeping an eye out on my side mirrors to check if there are 'Street Rossi' on a 'flying lap' going for the 'overtake'.

What's wrong with having an 'L'? Hahah, thought it's supposed to let people know you're new and to give space instead of forcing their way around dangerously...

I do ride safe and give space when it's safe to do so, but it boggles the mind that 60km/h is still not fast enough for some riders when lane splitting during slower or stationary traffic.

Yeaps, I never felt safe or confident enough to overtake during corners simply because I could never trust the person I'm overtaking to not 'eat' into my lane during the corners. In fact, I would rather slow down to ensure there is no one next to me when taking corners.

I do make space to allow these speeding lane splitters to pass at the earliest opportunity but I do wonder am I the issue when I'm going 60 - 65km/h while lane splitting? I really don't feel confident going faster than that because it gives me jitters as there are loads of cars that turn into the next lane without signaling and I've had to emergency brake a few times to avoid hitting them..

Thanks! That's what I thought as well. No way going so fast between cars is a good idea. Initially I thought the problem was me but apparently, it was the kapchais being 'street rossis'

I am also of the opinion that lane splitting is better as it helps move traffic along and it's not like cars lose anything by letting motorcyclist lane split kan? It's just speeding rempits who tend to hon from far away and speeding up when they see a car trying to change lane that gives motorcyclists a bad name. Padahal, bukan apa pun. Just maintain speed and let the car change lane la especially if they have signaled. Apa yang susah?

Went with a Leoncino to get my feet wet first and to experience riding on the roads. Easier to manage and with a profile that allows me to cut and work my way around traffic. Can't see myself developing those skills on a bigger, heavier bike. So it's really thanks to all the sifus here on the sound advice.

But of course, I'm already looking towards upgrading to something a bit bigger in the pipeline. A few more months down the line or if I come across something that tickles my fancy with the right price point. Hahah, who knows? I'm excited being the greenhorn that I am.

So far, motorcycling has been everything I wanted it to be.
- Excitement during commute back and forth
- Time Efficiency
- Cost Savings (Fuel, Parking, Tolls)

And this has translated to better quality of life for me and my family.

I'll be taking my Motorcycle license test on the 18th of April so wish me luck Hopefully I can remove the 'L' sticker after...hahah

I was looking at it! And it's really tempting. Has the Ducati Monster-ish sillhoutte that I like too.. at RM 30k NEW, sounds like a steal.

But kinda phobia with Suzuki. You see, I used to own a Suzuki SX4 and damn, the spare parts are crazy pricey. Some parts are on par with continental cars. Like why the heck am I even paying Continental sparepart prices to drive a Suzuki? Not only that, the spare parts are scarce..

That experience really taught me to study maintenance and spare part prices before committing to my next vehicle.. hahah

Super tempting! Been doing a bit of research from my end and it is true Suzuki bikes are reliable. Unfortunately, the starting price for their newer offerings are quite high, except for the SV650 which is very very very very veryyyy tempting.. new, to boot! Hahah

Will have to check around for a test ride. But I wonder if they'll allow an L license rider to test ride.

I would if money isn't an issue. Love that 'decepticon' look of Kawasaki bikes in general. That was until I managed to test ride a Z800 and realized that thing is heavy and will kill me if I'm messing around..

Couldn't believe how heavy that bike is even though it looks smaller than other bikes I've tested..

Cannot la bro. I have a family back home with 2 young kids. Need to be there with them while they are growing up during these formative years. I grew up with parents who weren't there for me much because they needed to work for a living, which I understand. I want to be present and build memories with my kids I never got to build with my own parents

To be honest, work commute hasn't been bad since I started biking. 3 to 4 hours cut down to 1.5 hours and I'm less tired too. It's a win in my books.. hahah

Not to mention the cost-savings with fuel, parking, tolls.

Z650 kenot la. It doesn't vibe with me. Spec and price wise, it's quite on par with what I am looking for. Just that I feel nothing when I look at the bike. Hahah

UPDATE: My JPJ exams moved to 11th April 7.30am tomorrow. Though I've been riding for a bit and have gone through the exam drills pretty ok, still feeling butterflies in my stomach.

Keeping fingers crossed I'll be able to peel the 'L' stickers off my bike. Wish me luck and say a prayer for a bro tomorrow, kawans! Hahah

Oh, and any last minute pointers would be much appreciated!

Wasn't at my best today as it was an eventful day yesterday. My bike refused to start when I wanted to head back yesterday and I ended up having to take the train home from PJ. Sampai rumah pukul 10pm.

Woke up this morning and it was raining cats and dogs since last night. More of a bummer when I reached the driving school for the test and found puddles of water all along the test track Sat down to compose myself while I got sorted out with registration and the number vest.. guess what my number was, Nombor 1!

Certainly did not help my nerves that there were 5 other B Full license doing their retest as they failed the last one while there was only 2 of us taking our B Full amongst the 20 or so B2 calons.

After the JPJ officer taklimat, he pointed at me and said, B Full Nombor 1 camne? nak start dulu atau tunggu hujan stop? Hujan kecik kecik je, apa ada masalah?

So there I go, going through RSM and RPM. FINALLY, the moment of truth... I lined up the Titi and summoned all the prayers and well wishes I could muster. Rev-ed and went up without a hitch, steady as she goes. Eyes forward, feathering the clutch, tapping back brakes and I before I know it, made it to the end without a hitch. And for some reason, my bike decided now is a good time to die on me the moment my bike came down the Titi. Quickly restarted the bike and moved on to the next test.

Everything else went without well as my confidence grew doing the routine drills. After going through Bahagian 2, I started on Bahagian 3 pulak. All was going well but as I was approaching the JPJ officer pondok to continue the rest of Bahagian 3, the officer pointed at me and asked me to go park my bike, you're done. Tak payah continue lagi

GABRA wei... I was thinking, where did I go wrong, as I replayed the scenario in my head on the possible mistakes I could have done during the course. Talk about having a downer on a rainy day. As I went to the office to get my keputusan, the counter said 'Tahniah, dah lulus!'

So TLDR, I passed! and I want to thank you all for being part of this journey from Page 1 of this thread when I have no prior riding experience! You are all MVPs and part of what makes this community awesome!!

Hahah, which means the rain turned out to be a blessing in disguise then! Just glad I have one less thing to worry about and I can finally just concentrate on gaining actual road experience.

My test batch only had 2 B Full license on that day. The other 5 were test retakes. Consider quite a lot also la according to the JPJ officer. I think it's true what some of the otais in this thread said. It's really a test of nerves and memory as there are a few maneuvers that seemed easy but also caused some to fail because they skipped forgotten or panic-ed. Someone panic-revved the kapchai off the titi into the side barrier with a bang..

All in all, an experience I'll remember. The whole ordeal reminded me of when I started learning how to drive

Weak battery... or rather old battery. Bike battery never changed since new (2021). The voltage indicator didn't show any voltage drop but when the starter was pressed, it didn't turn. Went to the workshop and the moment the battery was switched, the bike started right up.

So that's that...

Bike runs like a champ now. No issues at all besides needing it's next service this week And after this service, it's time to start actively putting it up for sale to upgrade to my next bike hahah

Anyone interested in a low-mileage 2021 Leoncino 250 by any chance? Boleh PM me.. It's 6300km mileage at the moment.

Comes with
- Nuts Wheels Exhaust
- Nuts Wheels Bar End Mirrors
- Body Crash Bars (Not Frame Sliders)

Ooo, I've heard many good things about Takong Racing too but looking at the selections, their items are priced a bit above what I'm prepared to pay for protection gears. Hahah, but definitely something to keep in mind when it's time for me to replace my lid. Always wanted a Shoei but it's quite pricey. I remember the name Shoei well from my younger days watching 'Kesatria Baja Hitam' stayed in my mind till my adult years now, I still remember the name Shoei...hahah

I previously went to Durian Bikers to get my first lid which was a full-face with ECE 22.06 protection. Happy with the fit and service rendered by the team at Durian Bikers too. They really took the time to explain features and fit as I was a new biker looking for my first helmet.

Agreed on the individual risk appetite. The act of getting on my bike still gives me shivers and most days I need to sit still, attune myself before setting off.

I'm always with my full face, jacket and gloves when on the bike because I'm not one for risk.. not when I'm 42 and have a family counting on me.

Touch wood, I've never had to 'test' any of my safety equipment yet but I've had close calls before which reminded me why defensive riding and emergency stop drills are key.

And it's always an 'interesting' conversation starter when I meet my clients as I turn up for meetings with my helmet and jacket in hand. Hahah

Yea, I've seen this. That was one of the main reasons why I went with a Full Face.

Secondary reason was because if I did something stupid / newbie mistake, the full face helmet can hide my 'face'

After 7 months of extensive riding, I've been slowly upgrading my gears as I felt more confident being on the bike. I've upgraded my jacket and gone for full leather gloves from my first cheap RM20 mesh gloves. Yes, read the reviews for gloves on this thread and went for it... heheh

Gosh, the leather glove is a game changer. Night and day in terms of comfort and feel. It's a full glove but not gauntlet gloves as I think I'll save that for when I 'graduate' to the next stage. Not sure if I need gauntlet gloves though because it seems a bit excessive.

I'm also looking at upgrading to a streetfighter style helmet soon but from what I can see, the streetfighter style helmets are mostly considered half helmets because the chin protectors are removable plastic pieces and not considered protection. I'm looking at you MT Helmet Streetfighter and Scorpion Exo Combat 2.

The Bell Boozer looks too rounded for my liking pulak and Simpson helmets are way outta budget for now...

Also to update on riding, my early jitters are still there each time I get on the bike but at least I don't feel my heart thumping wanting to jump out of my chest when I start the bike. Not from the excitement, mind you, more from the anxiety.. hahah