NT motorcycle test road surfaces and hazards practice questions

Question 1

You are riding on an unsealed road and reach a patch of fine bulldust. What should you do?

• Ride through it fast
• Slow down before it, stay upright and off the brakes, and keep a steady throttle across itCorrect answer
• Brake hard in the middle of it
• Swerve around it at speed

Bulldust hides holes and washouts and offers almost no grip. Get your speed down on firm ground first, then cross with your inputs neutral and a light grip on the bars.

Rule cited: Northern Territory motorcycle rider handbook, topic: unsealed roads

Question 2

How should you handle a badly corrugated dirt road?

• Grip the bars tightly and hold your speed
• Slow to a speed where you keep control, stay relaxed, and stand on the footrests if you are able so the bike can move under youCorrect answer
• Brake hard on the corrugations
• Ride in the loose edge where it is smoother

Corrugations bounce the tyres and reduce contact with the ground, so steering and braking both suffer. A tense rider makes the shaking worse.

Rule cited: Northern Territory motorcycle rider handbook, topic: unsealed roads

Question 3

You reach a floodway with water running across the road in the wet season. What should you do?

• Ride through at speed to avoid stalling
• Stop and assess, and do not enter if you cannot see the road surface or judge the depth and currentCorrect answer
• Follow a four wheel drive through the deepest part
• Ride along the edge of the water

Moving water can hide a washed out surface, debris or a drop off, and it takes very little depth to push a motorcycle over. Wait, turn around, or follow official advice about closed roads.

Rule cited: Northern Territory motorcycle rider handbook, topic: wet season and flooded roads

Question 4

You are approaching a cattle grid on a station access road. What is the safest way to cross?

• Fast and leaned over
• Slowly, square to the bars, upright, with no braking while you are on itCorrect answer
• While braking hard
• At a shallow angle

The bars of a grid are slippery and can steer the front wheel. Set your speed on the approach and keep the bike straight and neutral until you are across.

Rule cited: Northern Territory motorcycle rider handbook, topic: rural road hazards

Question 5

The sealed road narrows and drops away to a loose gravel shoulder. Your wheel goes off the edge. What should you do?

• Brake hard and steer straight back onto the seal
• Hold the bike straight, ease off the throttle without braking hard, then return to the seal at a shallow angle when the surfaces are close to levelCorrect answer
• Accelerate hard to climb back up
• Turn the bars sharply towards the road

Trying to jump back over a raised bitumen edge sends the bike across the road and often into oncoming traffic. Settle first, then come back gently.

Rule cited: Northern Territory motorcycle rider handbook, topic: rural road hazards

Question 6

Why is the entry to a roadhouse or fuel stop a place to take extra care on two wheels?

• Because it is always unsealed
• Spilt fuel, oil and coolant collect there, and the surface can be very slipperyCorrect answer
• Because vehicles are travelling fast
• There is no particular risk

Ride through slowly, upright, with your feet ready and no sharp braking or steering. The same applies to any place where vehicles sit and idle.

Rule cited: Northern Territory motorcycle rider handbook, topic: surface hazards

Question 7

It has started to rain after weeks of dry weather. Which surfaces need the most care?

• Fresh bitumen only
• Painted lines, metal covers and the greasy film that lifts off the road in the first rainCorrect answer
• Only gravel
• None, rain washes the road clean straight away

Oil and rubber dust build up during dry spells and float on the first water. Cross paint and metal upright, without braking or turning on them, until the road has been washed properly.

Rule cited: Northern Territory motorcycle rider handbook, topic: riding in the wet