Vermont Motorcycle Knowledge Test Cheat Sheet
The fastest way to review before your DMV motorcycle test — the numbers and rules most likely to appear.
🪪 Permit & License
- Motorcycle authority is an endorsement on your Vermont license
- Get a learner permit by passing the knowledge test or a 4-hr VMAP course
- Permit valid 120 days — renewable only twice
- Permit: daylight only, no passengers, Vermont only
- Ages 16-17 need parent permission and a Junior Driver's License
- VREP Basic Rider Course (15 hrs) waives both the written and skills tests
🔢 Most-Tested Numbers
- Following gap2 seconds minimum
- Wet / night3 seconds or more
- Front brake70%+ of stopping power
- Scan ahead12 seconds
- Legally intoxicated0.08% BAC
- Alcohol clears~1 drink per hour
🪖 Helmet & Gear
- Helmet required — every rider and passenger, every age (§1256)
- Must meet the federal FMVSS 218 standard
- Eye protection required unless the bike has a windshield (§1257)
- After dark, lenses must be colorless
- Headlight on at all times, day and night
- A face shield protects your whole face; goggles only the eyes
✅ Remember This Answer
- Quick stop? Both brakes at the same time
- Front brake? Squeeze firmly — never grab
- Curve? Slow, Look, Press, Roll
- To lean/turn? Press the handgrip toward the turn
- Swerve? Brake before or after — never during
- Helmet & eyewear? Helmet always; eyewear unless a windshield
✅ Remember This Answer (2)
- Starts to rain? Ride in cars' tire tracks
- Railroad tracks? Cross straight, within your lane
- Tailgater behind you? Let them pass
- Cut reaction time? Cover the clutch and both brakes
- Daytime visibility? Headlight on — 2× as likely to be seen
- Where do crashes happen? Intersections, and short trips
⚠️ Common Test Traps
- "No room to stop" → Swerve — don't just brake harder
- "Stop fastest" → Both brakes — not front alone, not rear first
- "Brake while swerving" → Wrong — brake before or after only
- "It starts to rain" → Slow, ride in the tire tracks
- "Following distance" → 2 sec; 3+ in poor conditions
- "Made eye contact" → Driver still may not yield
⚠️ More Test Traps
- "Curve ahead, too fast" → Slow before — don't brake hard mid-curve
- "Lane sharing" → Two motorcycles can't ride abreast in one lane
- "Chased by a dog" → Approach slowly, then accelerate away
- "Carrying a passenger" → Bike responds slower — ride slower
- "Waited an hour per drink" → Side effects can still remain
- "Small animal in your lane" → Stay in your lane — don't swerve into traffic
🚨 Emergency Situations
- Tire goes flat → Hold grips, ease off, keep straight, edge off the road
- Stuck throttle → Twist it; if still stuck, kill switch + pull in clutch
- Wobble → Close throttle gradually — don't brake, don't accelerate
- Rear wheel locks → Keep it locked until stopped if straight and upright
- Obstacle you must cross → Hit it near 90°, slow, straight, rise on the pegs
- Engine seizes → Squeeze the clutch, pull off the road
🌧️ Surfaces, Weather & Night
- Pavement is most slippery in the first minutes of rain
- Slippery surface: slow before it, no sudden moves, both brakes gently
- Cross parallel seams or grooves at 45° or more
- Night: ride slower and open a 3-second-plus following gap
- Night: high beam when not following or meeting a car
- Watch for deer & moose at dawn, dusk and night
🏍️ Motorcycle Control
- Countersteer: press left grip → lean left → go left
- Use both brakes every stop — the front gives 70%+ of the power
- Corner in four steps: SLOW · LOOK · PRESS · ROLL
- Slow tight turn: lean the bike only, keep your body upright
- Pick the lane third that helps you see and be seen
- Head-check your blind spot before every lane change
🍺 Alcohol & Impairment
- Legally intoxicated0.08% BAC
- Under 210.00–0.02% BAC
- Leaves the body~1 drink per hour
- As little as one drink hurts judgment and balance
- Impairment begins well below the legal limit
- Marijuana impairs riding even where it's legal to use
🎯 Last-Minute Before the Test
- Both brakes to stop — front brake = 70%+ of power
- Every curve: SLOW · LOOK · PRESS · ROLL
- Press the grip toward the turn to lean (countersteer)
- Brake OR swerve — never both at once
- Follow at 2 seconds — 3+ when wet, dark or crowded
- Helmet always; eye protection unless a windshield; headlight on
- SEE = Search, Evaluate, Execute · 0.08% BAC = intoxicated
Confirm every number against the official Vermont Motorcycle Manual (VN-008) before test day. Full helmet law →
Source: Some test details are confirmed by the state agency; the rest reflect the consensus of major rider-education sources. Vermont DMV confirms the 80% knowledge-test pass mark; the 25-question count is the widely reported standard (the VN-008 manual states fees but not the count). Universal helmet law; eye protection required unless the motorcycle has a windshield.