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Motorbiking 101: How NOT to Drive a Motorbike in Pai | The Trading Travelers
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Motorbiking 101: How NOT to Drive a Motorbike in Pai

If there is one thing that we learned during our weekend trip to Pai, its that there is a good business opportunity in that small, mountainous hippie town: motorbike lessons. The amount of motorbike accidents we witnessed over the course of 48 hours was disturbing to say the least. We have heard many times over that Pai is the perfect place to learn to ride a motorbike with the desolate roads that wind through the mountains. It seems that many other people heard the same, but misinterpreted a bit. We thought we’d go ahead and clear things up. Pai is a good place to learn to ride. This doesn’t translate to: hit the roads without a clue as to what you are doing, endangering not only your life, but the other motorbikes, pedestrians and animals within your reach. Please, for the sake of all of our lives, take a moment to read over these few guidelines and then take yourself to a large, open parking lot or field to practice where you are not a hazard to humanity.

Motorbike Lessons in Pai, Thailand 101

1. First and foremost, wear a helmet! Even if you think you are a professional motorbike driver, you still cannot control other people on the road. Wear a helmet. Why is your helmet hanging from the basket of your bike when you are just learning?! WEAR A HELMET!

2. Put on a shirt. Please, do us all a favor and put on a shirt. I know you might have just left the hot springs and you’re in your bathing suit and you think you will look cool cruising down one of the most dangerous roads in Thailand shirtless. You do not look cool. You are, in fact, a hazard to yourself. No shirt = no protection when you come crashing down from that motorbike.

3.  Do NOT stop in the middle of the road to check a map or talk to your buddy. Pull over. It’s that simple. Just pull off to the side of the road. You never know when a car or truck is going to come flying around the corner and may not have time to slam on the brakes or swerve. That is bad news for you. Besides, stop being the reason that everyone has to slam on their brakes or swerve off the road because you decided to have a chat in the middle of it.

4. Do NOT get whiskey throttle. Whiskey throttle is when you freak out and instead of hitting the brake, you hit the throttle and then proceed to take out a number of parked motorbikes and pedestrians in the middle of Walking Street. This could result in a loss of lives and/or a lot of baht from your wallet.

5. Do NOT try to overtake going into a curve. You will likely end up on your back in the middle of the road, holding up traffic with painful road rash covering your body. When you then try to retrieve your bike from the middle of the road, do not get whiskey throttle and send your bike flying out of control again. It will just cause more damage to the bike and cost you more money.

6. Do NOT practice your motorbiking in the middle of Walking Street where there are large quantities of pedestrians, food stalls and vehicles. If it takes you 10 minutes to make one u-turn, this will likely result in an accident. If you get whiskey throttle, you will wreak havoc on those around you. As mentioned before, find a large field or parking lot where you can practice before taking your skills out onto the open highway.

In the event you ignore the previous suggestions, you may end up being “that” guy/girl at the bar with bandages from head to toe. That being said, you can take comfort in the fact that there are plenty of “those people” in Pai so you will not be alone.

***Unfortunately, this post was written based on true events we witnessed with our very own eyes. We are by no means professional motorbike drivers. Hell, we even had a wipe out of our own in Chiang Rai on our Honda Forza. These things happen and sometimes you cannot avoid them. But please just be smart on the road. Take precautions. Being in Thailand does not make you invincible.

Be safe out there, folks.

About the Author Charlie and Brittany

We are Brittany and Charlie - we traded the 9 to 5 and the so-called "American dream" to live our own dream and see the world. We sold all of our belongings and left the US in August 2013. For 5 years, we lived primarily in Thailand and built our online business and location independent lifestyle while we traveled to over 30 countries. We’ve had house sitting gigs on 3 different continents and we’ve even appeared on HGTV’s House Hunters International.

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Leave a Comment:

15 comments
Jazza - NOMADasaurus says May 12, 2014

Great post guys! I’m sure there’s quite a few people in Pai who wish they had of read this article before they haphazardly jumped behind the throttle!

Reply
    Charlie and Brittany says May 13, 2014

    Thanks! Glad someone was there to witness this craziness with us!

    Reply
Kristin says May 12, 2014

Welllll, did she or didn’t she get on the bike?! The pic on FB would lead me to believe she did….then I come here and don’t find any personal anecdotes!

Reply
    Charlie and Brittany says May 13, 2014

    Haha this is an old pic. We never really found the time for motorbike school. One of these days… 😉

    Reply
Adam @ round the world we go says May 13, 2014

Wow the fact those lessons were based on real events is a little worrying! You’d think new learner a would be more cautious! I know I would be driving at a crawling speed and slowing down on every corner etc. really worrying there’s people out there that don’t feel vulnerable on a motorbike they’ve only just started to ride!

Reply
    Charlie and Brittany says May 13, 2014

    It really was crazy! Every time we turned the corner…another crash. Scary stuff!

    Reply
    Magic travel Andrew says September 17, 2015

    People are on holiday and seem to think they are invulnerable. As if they are on a Thailand scooter themed roller coaster rather than an actual scooter that can actually get you killed.

    Reply
Kristin Addis says May 13, 2014

Pai is where I learned to ride as well but honestly, with the sandy, sometimes steep, and rocky roads, I’m not surprised when people crash! I don’t know if I really think it’s the best place to learn, after all. Some places in Vietnam have flatter roads and not much traffic, and may be the better option.

Reply
    Charlie and Brittany says May 13, 2014

    Yeah I definitely think a flatter area with less curves would be ideal for learning! Glad you survived it though!

    Reply
Pai in Pictures: A Photo and Video Essay | thetradingtravelers.com says May 29, 2014

[…] napping in a hammock. If you dare to venture out on a motorbike, please proceed to read our post on Motorbiking 101, and then explore one of the most beautiful regions of […]

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Driving Chiang Mai to Chiang Rai: Chiang Rai in 24 Hours | The Trading Travelers says December 3, 2014

[…] recommend? Well, after over 5 months of travels on our motorbike through Thailand, writing our own Motorbiking 101 post and even surviving our terrifying experience on the roads in Northern Laos without a scratch, […]

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Magic travel Andrew says September 17, 2015

Seen lots of similarly disastrous “unskilled person on a bike” type situations. Koh Phangan was the worst with dozens of people back on their scooter already bandaged up from their first incident. Still with no helmet, no shirt, no shoes, beer in one hand. Craziness.

Reply
    Charlie and Brittany says September 18, 2015

    We haven’t been to Koh Phangan yet but I can just imagine! It really is craziness!

    Reply
Jo (The Blonde) says April 20, 2016

I would say, don’t learn it in Pai – period. Learn it at home, where it is safe on the road. During my 2 years in Thailand I saw so many farangs having accidents because not only didn’t they now anything about how to drive in Asia, but it was also their first time on a scooter/motorbike. It’s better to learn it at home, that’s my experience.

Reply
Andrew Comte says June 2, 2018

Funny, yet at the same time serious and true. I stick to motorbiking in Roi Et where things are less crowded.

Reply
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