As the day drew nearer, I started to have visions of me with a gang of 16 year old lads and their scooters…all of them laughing at the old bird struggling with the gears, her balance and basically just being on a bike full stop.
As it turned out, it was me and just one 16 year old lad on a scooter. It was his 16th Birthday and the CBT was part of his present.
I did feel very old and very envious of his automatic scooter. Our instructor was called Rob and the day kicked off with a chat about the importance of having the right kit.
We then went down to the sugar beet factory and practised getting the bikes moving, figures of 8, U-turns and some junction procedures. I felt very wobbly on the slow manoeuvres, but not too bad overall.
After lunch we had a session on the Highway Code, and then we were out on the road.
First Rob was in front, then we swapped round. I couldn’t decide if I was terrified, excited or both. I think it was actually about 80% sheer terror and 20% excitement!
The thing that struck me was how vulnerable you are on a bike. I felt like I should be visible to everyone. After all, I felt very aware of my surroundings - much more than I am in a car. The sounds, the smells - everything seems closer and more real. And yet the scary thing is, because you are small and probably not perceived as a threat to someone in a car, you get the feeling you are almost insignificant to most drivers.
We got back to the centre at 4pm and were de-briefed and handed our CBT certificates. A long day,but I felt like I had learnt alot.
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