I passed the skills test and now have the MC Novice endorsement on my drivers license! What a relief to have that behind me.
Having the endorsement means that the restrictions that apply while operating with the temporary permit no longer apply. I can now legally ride with passenger, commonly referred to as a pillion rider. I can also ride at night and on interstate roads. The MC Novice now on my license indicates that I have the endorsement and am within the first year of having it. This requires me and my passengers to wear a helmet. In the State of Ohio, you can choose to not wear a helmet. After one years time, the MC Novice endorsement drops and gets replaced with just MC. Then I could choose to not wear a helmet, which I will not choose to do.
I was nervous heading out to Hilliard for the test. The weather was cold and rain seemed like it was just around the corner. The bike I used for the test doesn’t have a windshield. So I got a nice 35 mph cold breeze slamming into my chest. I was wearing my gear so it was alright.
The test consisted of 4 runs in a closed course. These are described fairly well at the Motorcycle Ohio website. I was particularly spooked by the staggered-weave test where you have to slowly slalom through offset cones but I made it through flawlessly! I had a few point reductions on the quick stop run, I’m not sure if I stopped too quickly or waited too long. By this point I knew I would pass so I didn’t really care!
