My 1st bike-Phantom TA200

After passing 2B for about a week, I went to look for a bike that I can start riding with and develop my riding skills from there. I thought of owning a Phantom TA200 the moment I passed my stage 8.01. I thought that it might be a good bike to prepare for the Super 4 that I want to own a year later. The Phantom TA200 is one of the heaviest 2B bikes around...

I scouted around several shops for the Phantom TA200, until I finally found one that had a good engine condition with a nice colour to it.

This is my Phantom...

It has journeyed with me through so many silly mistakes I made during my P-plate year. Forgetting to put cashcard before exiting carpark, doing wide turnings during my 1st week of owning the bike, etc.

Through this bike, I learnt a lot of stuff about bike maintenance. Maintenance such as knowing how to check your own tyres, pump your own tyres, change your own engine oil (though lazy me would let the mechanic do it), etc...

I didn't travel beyond the borders of Singapore with this bike though... This bike is very stable, however its power is better off travelling just around the island...

Time really flies... I have been owning this bike since May 2007...

I do have the desire to do some touring... and maybe even travelling up to Thailand if possible...

I guess my time will come when I get my 2A...

The 2B Experience...

I signed up for the 2B course at BBDC (Bukit Batok Driving Centre) in November 2006. It was only until December 2006 that I started on the practical lessons.

Aww... that book looks oh so familiar... reminiscence of the old times... even the book has become tattered and torn... it was a struggle to scan this!


I was a new cyclist, so naturally I wasn't a fast learner at 2B. In fact, I was really quite slow as compared to other people who were learning with me. In certain lessons, I even had to take 4 times to pass it!


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My learning progress was as follows:
Stage 1.01 (Orientation): 2 times
Stage 1.02 (Moving off, stopping & gear shifting): 2 times
Stage 1.03 (Riding posture, speed control & cornering): 2 times

Stage 2.01 (Blind spot, target stopping, slope & left turn): 2 times
Stage 2.02 (Turning, lane change & traffic rules): 3 times

Stage 3.01 (Narrow plank & pylon slalom): 4 times
Stage 3.02 (Emergency brake on wet surface): 2 times

Stage 4.01 (S course & crank course): 2 times
Stage 4.02 (U turns in circuit & review circuit courses): 1 time

Stage 5.01 (Risk forecast training & pillion riding): 1 time
Stage 5.02 (Evaluation - Circuit): 4 times

Stage 6.01 (ROAD-Independent riding in light & medium density traffic): 4 times

Stage 7.01 (ROAD-Independent riding in medium & heavy density traffic): 2 times

Stage 8.01 (FINAL evaluation): 1 time

SP (self-practice) + RC (Circuit Revision - why is not called CR???): countless...

TP test: 2 times

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In the midst of the learning process, my knees were bruised many times by many situations such as: releasing the bike from the main stand and then the main stand hit my knee, falling off the bike while doing pylon slalom, e-brake, etc... And sometimes to the extent of flying off the bike!!

In one occasion, while doing pylon slalom in stage 3.01, I fell down in such a way that the bike landed on legs and my left ankle was burnt by the exhaust.

Luckily, BBDC was quick in its first aid and the instructor drove me to the nearest clinic for a tetanus jab and bone checkup. Thank God that my bones were not broken!

After about 4 days of recovery, I proceeded to complete stage 3.01 and moved through the other stages!

After 4+ months of painful training and perseverance, I finally got my license in May 2007!

About a week after obtaining the 2B license, I bought myself a Honda Phantom 200!

It is through this bike that I learn a lot about the nitty-gritty stuff of biking (parking places, basic bike maintenance, etc.) and also enjoying the freedom and convenience that a bike can give!

First Step towards my motorcycle dream

Why does a lady want to even bother to learn how to ride a motorcycle in the first place? Well, here's the answer to the question.. I've always wanted to learn how to ride a motorcycle ever since I saw the movie, The Matrix Reloaded. I was intrigued with the great chase scene in the movie with Trinity riding a stylish Ducati 996! She was so cool and stylish on the bike! Gosh, how I wish I could be like her!

However, I just didn't have the guts to. Why was that so? I didn't know how to cycle at all!!

I was determined to start with the first step of getting closer to my motorcycle dream. That is... to learn how to cycle. Believe it or not, I started learning how to cycle only at the age of 21. Never mind, there is this saying... It's never too late to start learning.

I desperately wanted to learn how to cycle. Some of my friends tried all kinds of methods to teach me how to cycle, but to no avail. In the midst of it all, I fell down countless times and my knees were bruised so badly that I couldn't walk properly.

I decided to seek professional help in learning how to cycle painlessly. At first, I didn't know how to start. Thanks to the Internet, I was able to locate this cycling instructor who gives cycling lessons for beginners. I was all the more spurred on to sign up for the beginners' cycling course after reading these terms.


I signed up for the cycling course in mid-September 2006.

True enough, my instructor Edmund Lee delivered on his promises. After the first lesson, I was able to balance the bicycle! By the end of the course (4 lessons), I was able to execute U-turns and maneuver through obstacles!

After I completed my course, I purchased my 1st mountain bike and practiced for about 2 months. I cycled around Singapore as a practice.

This is the epitome of success with a photo of myself and my cycling instructor, Edmund Lee.


After I was able to do that, I started a new chapter in my life. I signed up for Class 2B course in November 2006.

As in the wise words of Benjamin Franklin, "Well done, is better than well said".

From that moment on, my 2-wheel adventure began.


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Hon Kah Trading
Address: Blk 4, Queens Road, #02-109 (Off Farrer Road), Singapore 260004
Edmund Lee (Cycling Instructor) HP: 9005 5062
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