West Virginia Motorcycle practice
West Virginia Motorcycle: Hazards & Road Surfaces practice test
Gravel, wet pavement, grooved roads, and railroad tracks — reading and handling surfaces that matter far more on two wheels.
Content reviewed against official driver handbooks · August 12, 2026
14 questions · pass with 11 correct. You get instant feedback and an explanation after every answer.
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12 sample Hazards & Road Surfaces questions with the correct answer, a short explanation, and the official handbook reference. Read through them, then take the quiz above.
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1. How should railroad tracks that cross your path normally be taken?
Correct answer: Straight ahead, staying within your own lane
Riding straight ahead inside your own lane is usually safer than swinging out to meet the rails at a right angle, which can carry you into another lane.
Source: West Virginia Motorcycle Operator Manual — Ride Within Your Abilities, Railroad Tracks, Trolley Tracks and Pavement Seams
2. The throttle sticks open and working it back and forth has not freed it. What comes next?
Correct answer: Use the engine cut-off switch while pulling in the clutch
Hit the engine cut-off switch and pull in the clutch at the same moment, which takes power away from the rear wheel, then get to a safe spot and stop.
Source: West Virginia Motorcycle Operator Manual — Ride Within Your Abilities, Stuck Throttle
3. The handlebars start shaking from side to side. How should you handle it?
Correct answer: Hold the bars firmly, close the throttle gradually and keep off the brakes
Hold the bars firmly without fighting them, close the throttle gradually, stay off the brakes, shift your weight forward and low, and pull off as soon as you can.
Source: West Virginia Motorcycle Operator Manual — Ride Within Your Abilities, Wobble
4. You cannot avoid a small obstacle in the road. At what angle should you meet it?
Correct answer: As close to a right angle as possible
Approach as near a right angle as you can manage, and keep looking where you want to end up so the machine tracks there.
Source: West Virginia Motorcycle Operator Manual — Ride Within Your Abilities, Uneven Surfaces and Obstacles
5. What should your body be doing as the motorcycle crosses an obstacle?
Correct answer: Lifting slightly off the seat, weight on the footrests, letting knees and elbows absorb the shock
Rise a little off the seat, put your weight onto the footrests, and let knees and elbows soak up the jolt; a brief roll of the throttle just before contact lightens the front.
Source: West Virginia Motorcycle Operator Manual — Ride Within Your Abilities, Uneven Surfaces and Obstacles
6. Where should a rider be in the lane once rain begins?
Correct answer: In the tire tracks left by other vehicles
Ride in the tire tracks that cars have left, since the center of the lane turns hazardous when wet; the left track is often the better of the two.
Source: West Virginia Motorcycle Operator Manual — Ride Within Your Abilities, Slippery Surfaces
7. When is wet pavement at its most treacherous?
Correct answer: Just as the rain starts, before surface oil washes aside
Right after the rain begins, before the oil sitting on the surface has washed toward the edge of the road.
Source: West Virginia Motorcycle Operator Manual — Ride Within Your Abilities, Slippery Surfaces
8. You have just ridden over an object lying in the street. What does the manual tell you to do?
Correct answer: Pull off and check the tires and rims before riding on
Pull off the road and look the tires and rims over for damage before you carry on.
Source: West Virginia Motorcycle Operator Manual — Ride Within Your Abilities, Uneven Surfaces and Obstacles
9. A pavement seam runs the same way you are traveling. How do you get across it?
Correct answer: Move away and cross at an angle of at least forty-five degrees with one deliberate turn
Move far enough clear of the seam to cross it at forty-five degrees or more, then make one deliberate turn so it cannot upset your balance.
Source: West Virginia Motorcycle Operator Manual — Ride Within Your Abilities, Railroad Tracks, Trolley Tracks and Pavement Seams
10. Which of these does the manual list as a poor-traction surface?
Correct answer: Painted lines, steel plates and surface covers
Painted lane markings, steel plates and covers set into the road all offer poor grip, and worse when they are wet.
Source: West Virginia Motorcycle Operator Manual — Ride Within Your Abilities, Slippery Surfaces
11. A dog runs out and chases your motorcycle. What does the manual advise?
Correct answer: Slow as you come up to it, then accelerate past
Downshift and come toward the animal slowly, then accelerate away once you reach it. Do not kick at it, and keep looking where you want to go.
Source: West Virginia Motorcycle Operator Manual — Ride Within Your Abilities, Animals
12. Where do patches of ice tend to linger after the rest of the road has cleared?
Correct answer: In shaded or low-lying spots, and on bridges and overpasses
Low spots and shaded stretches hold ice longest, and so do bridges and overpasses, which lose heat from underneath.
Source: West Virginia Motorcycle Operator Manual — Ride Within Your Abilities, Slippery Surfaces
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Every West Virginia question is written from the official West Virginia driver handbook and checked against its current edition. DMV Test Free is a free, independent study resource — not affiliated with any DMV or government agency. About DMV Test Free