I did exactly as I was taught and I failed.. my instructor isn't happy -
It was basically on roundabouts the examiner said you ignore looking right and always look left.. which is not at all what I've been taught.. I was taught to only look left if you're turning right on a roundabout cos obviously you'd be in the lane closest to the roundabout, covering the danger from the right and a car might come from the left.. so u check left before making your exit..
In all other instances you look right because you would be in the left lane and already covering that so you just check right... if u see what I mean...
That is what I was taught, that is what I did and that is what I failed on..
Have I been taught incorrectly? Should you not be too bothered with checking your right shoulder on roundabouts and just check left?
Full Version: Rode exactly as I was taught.... and failed
Oh sh!t, sorry mate, better luck next time. Have u re-booked?
I was always taught to check left shoulder at roundabouts
I was always taught to check left shoulder at roundabouts
Here... this is what I was taught..
The red line is the path taken on the roundabout.. the green circles indicate roughly the position you're in when performing the lifesaver and the blue arrows roughly indicate the direction of the lifesaver.
That's what I was taught and that's what I did..
The red line is the path taken on the roundabout.. the green circles indicate roughly the position you're in when performing the lifesaver and the blue arrows roughly indicate the direction of the lifesaver.
That's what I was taught and that's what I did..
Well...i don't understand much about this...but i think the logical way shoud be...
Going left - you should only look right when entering the roundabout, as you are turning next left, you won't have any car passing you on your left...so..the left is clear...
Going straight - You should look to the right....and then left before exiting so see if someone is passing you....
Going right.....i think it's same as going straight...
And if you look both sides?isn't it valid?
Going left - you should only look right when entering the roundabout, as you are turning next left, you won't have any car passing you on your left...so..the left is clear...
Going straight - You should look to the right....and then left before exiting so see if someone is passing you....
Going right.....i think it's same as going straight...
And if you look both sides?isn't it valid?
Sorry mate ,try not to ponder on it(easier said than done I know) and get yourself booked for the next one,when sh!t things happen I try to think along the lines of "there's a reason for everything",works for me,think positive and here's to No.2 
,try not to ponder on it(easier said than done I know) and get yourself booked for the next one,when sh!t things happen I try to think along the lines of "there's a reason for everything",works for me,think positive and here's to No.2
On the approach to the roundabout you should do a rear observation over yer right shoulder just before you start slowing down. As you set off (if you're stationary) or approaching the start of the roundabout look right and then do a quick left lifesaver.
1. Turning left = indicate left on approach to r'about, take LH lane, quick left lifesaver as you enter the r'about and finaly do a lifesaver left just before you turn
2. Going straight on = no indication on approach, adopt a position towards the left of the RH or inside lane, look right on setting off or approaching start of r'about, as the exit approaches right shoulder check, left indicator and left lifesaver B4 you turn.
3. Turning right = right indicator on approach, glancing right when setting off or approaching start of roundabout, take a nice tight line round the inside RH lane, quick left lifesaver on entering the roundabout, go round, lifesaver left after the second exit has passed by then indicate left immediately and finally do a good left lifesaver before turning.
If you do this, you should be ok. BTW I'm not an instructor but the examiner complimented me on my observations. With observations just rememberits better to do too many than not enough both from a test point of view and your safety. Thats not a licence to ride along like you're having an acute Parkinson's attack mind so be sensible.
Other observations - mirror check as soon as you see a change of speed sign/slow down at junctions or standing traffic and shoulder checks when speeding up after speed limit signs or slowing down on the approach to them. Left lifesavers when pulling out and in round parked vehicles.
Sorry you didn't pass mate - stick at it you'll get there. Hope this is useful
Good luck fer next time
Tango
1. Turning left = indicate left on approach to r'about, take LH lane, quick left lifesaver as you enter the r'about and finaly do a lifesaver left just before you turn
2. Going straight on = no indication on approach, adopt a position towards the left of the RH or inside lane, look right on setting off or approaching start of r'about, as the exit approaches right shoulder check, left indicator and left lifesaver B4 you turn.
3. Turning right = right indicator on approach, glancing right when setting off or approaching start of roundabout, take a nice tight line round the inside RH lane, quick left lifesaver on entering the roundabout, go round, lifesaver left after the second exit has passed by then indicate left immediately and finally do a good left lifesaver before turning.
If you do this, you should be ok. BTW I'm not an instructor but the examiner complimented me on my observations. With observations just rememberits better to do too many than not enough both from a test point of view and your safety. Thats not a licence to ride along like you're having an acute Parkinson's attack mind so be sensible.
Other observations - mirror check as soon as you see a change of speed sign/slow down at junctions or standing traffic and shoulder checks when speeding up after speed limit signs or slowing down on the approach to them. Left lifesavers when pulling out and in round parked vehicles.
Sorry you didn't pass mate - stick at it you'll get there. Hope this is useful
Good luck fer next time
Tango
Sorry to hear it Sodom. Roundabouts took me a bit of getting used to.
Keep your chin up and put in for another test straight away!! The sooner the better.
take care
Keep your chin up and put in for another test straight away!! The sooner the better.
take care
sorry you didnt get it m8,
cant see what exactly why you were taught to look right where you were.
basically, if you go straight ahead, you should check to your RIGHT as you approach (as that is where the traffic is coming from) & indicate LEFT as you exit.
if you are turning LEFT, then once again its the RIGHT you should be checking as thats WHERE THE TRAFFIC IS COMING FROM, hence the danger.
if you have to stop at the R/bout then you should do a "lifesaver" to the LEFT b4 you move off(after checking there's no oncoming from your right)
if turning RIGHT, then once againt check to your RIGHT as you approach, lifesaver RIGHT if you have to give way, then headcheck LEFT & indicate LEFT as you pass the last exit on your left b4 you exit.
clear as mud?
cant see what exactly why you were taught to look right where you were.
basically, if you go straight ahead, you should check to your RIGHT as you approach (as that is where the traffic is coming from) & indicate LEFT as you exit.
if you are turning LEFT, then once again its the RIGHT you should be checking as thats WHERE THE TRAFFIC IS COMING FROM, hence the danger.
if you have to stop at the R/bout then you should do a "lifesaver" to the LEFT b4 you move off(after checking there's no oncoming from your right)
if turning RIGHT, then once againt check to your RIGHT as you approach, lifesaver RIGHT if you have to give way, then headcheck LEFT & indicate LEFT as you pass the last exit on your left b4 you exit.
clear as mud?
QUOTE
As you set off (if you're stationary) or approaching the start of the roundabout look right and then do a quick left lifesaver.
QUOTE
With observations just rememberits better to do too many than not enough both from a test point of view and your safety.
err, not exactly Red Bull.on reading your post, its clear to me what you're thinking, but as clear as mud & quite wrong to suggest to a learner.some of the things you are advocating.
if you spend too long doing the "nodding dog" you WILL FAIL as you are using incorrect observations-looking both ways when you should only be looking in one direction is unsafe as you're not concentrating on the "forward obs" & YOU WILL BE MARKED DOWN ACCORDINGLY.
not a critism M8, but you gotta be careful what you're telling folks.
Looks to me like you've misunderstood and you're doing your observation to the right too late i.e. when exiting rather than on entering the roundabout.
To be honest i cant comment on the examination of your skills mate, i wasnt there so i dont know. Im sure the examiner didnt fail you for a laugh and im sure the instrcutor taught you right and im sure also that you felt you were doing the right thing.
What the instructor has failed oyu i think is making you uinderstand why you do the observations and why you need to do them at whatever point. After reading this thread at work i rode home and noted my own observations through several busy roundabouts at heavy traffic times. ive come to the conclusion that id fail the test - i was looking everywhere! I must have done about ten seperate observations when entering a large roudnabout and taking the third exit, maybe more bioth right and left. I have thought about this and decided i was doing all those observations because on that day in that roundabout i deemd them necessary. thats the thing, i dont do lifesavers and other obeservations because i was taught ot i do them because i think i need to to know whats goind on around me. in lighter traffic i would do less etc.
Red bulls replay is good but its still laying down rules for when and where to do observations and in my opinion if youre doing these things by rote then you might as well not bother - maybe, and i dont mrean this to be a dig or anything, thats what the examiner was picking up on. Maybe you were doing head turns at certaoin points regardless of what was going on in the junction and he though t you werent looking but just doing what youd been taught if that makes sense!
Whatever, think about why you need to do an ob and why youre doing each and every ob you do - when youre on the ball and sure about your riding youll be able to recite every journey regardless of its length stating every hazard and dogy incident hours later - this is because you understood the purpose of everything you did/didnt do. I would think its not that the instructor told you the wrong thing but the fact that youre mechanically repeating what you were taght and showing no understanding. like i siad dont be insulted by my comments theyre deffineitly not meant in that way.
You take another test and youll be fine mate. everything worthwhile is worth waiting/working hard for.
best of luck to ya and sorry about this hiccup in your biking future.
What the instructor has failed oyu i think is making you uinderstand why you do the observations and why you need to do them at whatever point. After reading this thread at work i rode home and noted my own observations through several busy roundabouts at heavy traffic times. ive come to the conclusion that id fail the test - i was looking everywhere! I must have done about ten seperate observations when entering a large roudnabout and taking the third exit, maybe more bioth right and left. I have thought about this and decided i was doing all those observations because on that day in that roundabout i deemd them necessary. thats the thing, i dont do lifesavers and other obeservations because i was taught ot i do them because i think i need to to know whats goind on around me. in lighter traffic i would do less etc.
Red bulls replay is good but its still laying down rules for when and where to do observations and in my opinion if youre doing these things by rote then you might as well not bother - maybe, and i dont mrean this to be a dig or anything, thats what the examiner was picking up on. Maybe you were doing head turns at certaoin points regardless of what was going on in the junction and he though t you werent looking but just doing what youd been taught if that makes sense!
Whatever, think about why you need to do an ob and why youre doing each and every ob you do - when youre on the ball and sure about your riding youll be able to recite every journey regardless of its length stating every hazard and dogy incident hours later - this is because you understood the purpose of everything you did/didnt do. I would think its not that the instructor told you the wrong thing but the fact that youre mechanically repeating what you were taght and showing no understanding. like i siad dont be insulted by my comments theyre deffineitly not meant in that way.
You take another test and youll be fine mate. everything worthwhile is worth waiting/working hard for.
best of luck to ya and sorry about this hiccup in your biking future.
Sorry about the typos i cant be bothered to correct them!
QUOTE
Going left - you should only look right when entering the roundabout, as you are turning next left, you won't have any car passing you on your left...so..the left is clear...
What about a loon on a bike Lis?
well this looks like its gonna run & run,
as has been said its a question of what to do depending on the cicumstances.
but as far as DSA test standard, if you follow the guidelines in my 1st post, then you shouldnt have a problem.
how you interpret/execute what you're taught is another matter.
i still maintain that too many headchecks are as bad as not enough-but ,once you pass the test you will develop your own style & decide just how many checks you need in any given stuation-just remember, passing the test is the START of your journey-not the end.
as has been said its a question of what to do depending on the cicumstances.
but as far as DSA test standard, if you follow the guidelines in my 1st post, then you shouldnt have a problem.
how you interpret/execute what you're taught is another matter.
i still maintain that too many headchecks are as bad as not enough-but ,once you pass the test you will develop your own style & decide just how many checks you need in any given stuation-just remember, passing the test is the START of your journey-not the end.
DP is right and my reply was not meant as any sort of argument opener dave!
The dsa expect certain things and its a shame they dont give more leeway to the examiners, to actually judge the riding on its merits rather than looking to see if certain riding boxes get ticked.
The test is the start of the journey, i spose the message is to do it like your told ( maybe you thought you did but didnt). Its a sad day though when we can covertly admit that the test is sh!te and even dp asays you learn to ride the bike after the test.
That is an argument opener by the way.
The dsa expect certain things and its a shame they dont give more leeway to the examiners, to actually judge the riding on its merits rather than looking to see if certain riding boxes get ticked.
The test is the start of the journey, i spose the message is to do it like your told ( maybe you thought you did but didnt). Its a sad day though when we can covertly admit that the test is sh!te and even dp asays you learn to ride the bike after the test.
That is an argument opener by the way.
when you exit roundabout, always check left just incase some daft scooters cutting you up. you always look right of the roundabout when you enter, and lifesaver left just before you leave the roundabout. that's how i understood it.
Hi Sodom
Sorry you did not pass. I am sure you will next time.
Sorry you did not pass. I am sure you will next time.
Bummer, sorry dude 
Where did your test take place?
Where did your test take place?
Tough break dood - I'm sure you'll do it next time.
QUOTE(Ian @ Sep 17 2004, 06:52 PM)
Looks to me like you've misunderstood and you're doing your observation to the right too late i.e. when exiting rather than on entering the roundabout.
That's what I think too.
The instructor should have picked up on this before the test.
I'm a bit confused now - have I been taught wrong? Even my training place's printed sheets that they give out say to do things exactly as I've done them..
Basically I was taught:
Turning Left
1. Indicate left on approach
2. Check to the right to look for traffic on the roundabout
3. Enter roundabout, right lifesaver before you exit to make sure no-one's cut straight across the roundabout and is about to cut you up
4. Take your exit and cancel indicator
No need for a left lifesaver as you'd be in the left lane and so covering any danger from there
Straight Ahead
1. Basically the same as going left except indicate after you have passed the last exit before the one you want
2. Same right lifesaver for same reason
No left lifesaver for the same reason as above
Turning Right
1. Indicate right on approach
2. Check to the right to look for traffic on the roundabout
3. Enter roundabout, indicating left as you pass the last exit before the one you want to take
4. Left lifesaver before you make the move to exit
5. Take your exit
6. Cancel indicators
----------
The examiner said there was not a need for right lifesavers at all. He said you can do them if you want but there's no point. He also said he failed me because I didn't look left when exiting a roundabout. So I assume that means I was turning right correctly as I was doing a left lifesavers for the right turns as I had been taught.
I don't understand why my training place teach what they teach if it's not right. Some people on the thread suggested that I have mis-interpreted what I have been taught - I haven't. That is exactly what I was taught.
I got back into the test centre thinking I'd maybe made a couple minors when I hadn't made mirror checks obvious.. I couldn't believe it when he said that was why I had failed...
I wouldn't mind if it was for some error that I knew I had made. But as far as I was concerned I rode exactly as I had been taught..
I don't want to put straight back in for my test if I am going to be taught the same things again and then fail on the same things.. My instructor swears blind that he has taught me the right way but the examiner laughed at me dismissively and in a very belittling way when he asked which way you look on roundabouts and I told him what I'd been taught. I don't think he believed me.
Some people may also think it's a case of post-test sour grapes - it's not that either.. I'm just genuinely 100% confused and stuck now as to what the hell is the right way to do things..
Basically I was taught:
Turning Left
1. Indicate left on approach
2. Check to the right to look for traffic on the roundabout
3. Enter roundabout, right lifesaver before you exit to make sure no-one's cut straight across the roundabout and is about to cut you up
4. Take your exit and cancel indicator
No need for a left lifesaver as you'd be in the left lane and so covering any danger from there
Straight Ahead
1. Basically the same as going left except indicate after you have passed the last exit before the one you want
2. Same right lifesaver for same reason
No left lifesaver for the same reason as above
Turning Right
1. Indicate right on approach
2. Check to the right to look for traffic on the roundabout
3. Enter roundabout, indicating left as you pass the last exit before the one you want to take
4. Left lifesaver before you make the move to exit
5. Take your exit
6. Cancel indicators
----------
The examiner said there was not a need for right lifesavers at all. He said you can do them if you want but there's no point. He also said he failed me because I didn't look left when exiting a roundabout. So I assume that means I was turning right correctly as I was doing a left lifesavers for the right turns as I had been taught.
I don't understand why my training place teach what they teach if it's not right. Some people on the thread suggested that I have mis-interpreted what I have been taught - I haven't. That is exactly what I was taught.
I got back into the test centre thinking I'd maybe made a couple minors when I hadn't made mirror checks obvious.. I couldn't believe it when he said that was why I had failed...
I wouldn't mind if it was for some error that I knew I had made. But as far as I was concerned I rode exactly as I had been taught..
I don't want to put straight back in for my test if I am going to be taught the same things again and then fail on the same things.. My instructor swears blind that he has taught me the right way but the examiner laughed at me dismissively and in a very belittling way when he asked which way you look on roundabouts and I told him what I'd been taught. I don't think he believed me.
Some people may also think it's a case of post-test sour grapes - it's not that either.. I'm just genuinely 100% confused and stuck now as to what the hell is the right way to do things..
I've just called and spoken to my instructor. He managed to speak to the examiner yesterday afternoon.
What he said is that the examiner is saying that your priority shoulder check should be to your left hand side and, if you feel it's necessary you then do a right check as well.
He said it's the first time in the three years that he's been teaching that anyone's been picked up on this and they're now having to change the way they all teach to coincide with this.
Just my luck eh...
What he said is that the examiner is saying that your priority shoulder check should be to your left hand side and, if you feel it's necessary you then do a right check as well.
He said it's the first time in the three years that he's been teaching that anyone's been picked up on this and they're now having to change the way they all teach to coincide with this.
Just my luck eh...
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