Quebec is a funny place. It isn’t really Canada but something trying to be it’s own country. The border to Ontario is about 40min away but the rules are very very different. Quebec hates motorcyclists and are trying their hardest to neuter the culture of motorcycling by making it extremely expensive and difficult to get on a bike.

So, you come to the province with your licence from another country, like the UK and they say… “sure you can swap it, lets just take your photo and here is your lovely plastic card.” You look at it and say “… er… hangon, where the hell is my Motorbike endorsement?”“Oh, you’ll have to re-do your tests, but you don’t have to wait the two years probationary period, you just get your licence.”

This means that, despite riding motorbikes on the road in Europe, Asia and Africa for decades they want me to jump through more hoops, consisting:

• Theory Test – Some of the questions so badly translated into English it is nigh on impossible to answer ($11 Test, $60 licence)
• Closed Track Test – Driving around some cones ($27 Test, $15 licence)
• Road Test – Two People in a car follow you for 30min  ($99 Test, $171 yearly fee for licence)

Not only do you have to do tests but the wise amongst us have to arrange for someone to inform us of the secret hand shakes and hoop jumping positions that these bike hating beurocrats want us to perform. Luckily there are people like Morty’s Driving School who cater for those who need to learn the correct curtesy for the court of Quebec. But that’ll cost you about $500 for all the training and bike rental.

Yes I’m bitter. Obtaining a motorbike licence in the UK isn’t easy. That in itself was a hard clutch to drag and now I have to do it all over again.