Bad Weather & Night Driving — Alaska
Alaska motorcycle permit practice test: 339 free practice questions (Based on the official driver handbook). The official format is not yet verified; check the official site before your test. Bad Weather & Night Driving: 17 questions.
Rain, snow, ice, fog and night driving: visibility, traction and headlight use.
This topic page is still being reviewed against the official handbook. Until review is finished it is hidden from search engines.
| Topic / Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| Topic | Bad Weather & Night Driving |
| License test | Alaska Motorcycle permit test |
| Topic questions | 17 (5% of 339 total) |
| Review status | This topic page is still being reviewed against the official handbook. Until review is finished it is hidden from search engines. |
Official handbook
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Questions (17)
1. When it starts raining, it is usually best to:
- Ride in the center of the lane.
- Pull off to the side of the road until the rain stops.
- Ride in the tire tracks left by cars. ✓
- Increase your speed.
Answer: C. Ride in the tire tracks left by cars.
When it starts raining, it is usually best to ride in the tire tracks left by cars. The manual explains that the center of a lane can be hazardous when wet, so when rain begins you should ride in the tire tracks left by vehicles, and it notes the left tire track is often the best spot depending on traffic and road conditions. Those tracks are where car tires have pushed water aside, so the surface is less slippery than the lane center. The manual also says to slow down on wet surfaces and to ride on the least slippery part of the lane.
2. During the day, your headlight should:
- Not be used.
- Be used on its high beam setting. ✓
- Be used on its low beam setting.
- Alternate between high beam and low beam settings.
Answer: B. Be used on its high beam setting.
During the day, ride with your headlight on the high beam setting. The manual treats daylight riding as a visibility problem, noting that a motorcycle running with its light on during the day is twice as likely to be noticed. It also tells you to get all the light you can and to keep the high beam on whenever you are not following or meeting a car. Since nothing is in front of you in that situation, the setting that gives the most light and the most attention is the high beam. The manual reserves low beam for night riding and fog.
3. When being passed, all of the following are potential hazards, except:
- Extended mirrors.
- Objects being thrown from other vehicles.
- Blasts of wind.
- Headlights. ✓
Answer: D. Headlights.
4. When riding on a slippery surface, you should not:
- Reduce your speed.
- Avoid sudden moves.
- Use both brakes.
- Brake quickly. ✓
Answer: D. Brake quickly.
When riding on a slippery surface, you should not brake quickly; use smooth, gentle brake pressure instead. The manual's slippery-surface advice is to slow down before you reach the slick spot, avoid any sudden change in speed or direction, and use both brakes with gentle pressure. It says to squeeze the brake lever gradually rather than grab it, and it warns that too much brake can cause a skid. A quick, hard stop asks for exactly the kind of abrupt brake force the manual tells you to avoid on a slippery surface.
5. When riding at night:
- Distances are easier to judge than they are during the day.
- Using a high beam headlight always makes it difficult to see.
- Use only one lane position.
- Reduce your speed. ✓
Answer: D. Reduce your speed.
When riding at night, you should reduce your speed. The manual's night-riding section says it is harder to see and be seen after dark, and it lists slowing down as a way to compensate. It tells you to ride slower than you would in daytime, especially on roads you do not know well, so you have a better chance to avoid a hazard. That matches the choice to reduce your speed. Other night-riding advice in the same passage, such as increasing following distance, also supports riding more cautiously after dark.
6. Which of the following will best protect your eyes from wind?
- Eyeglasses
- Sunglasses
- A windshield
- Goggles ✓
Answer: D. Goggles
7. If your front wheel begins to skid, you should:
- Keep the front brake engaged and ride out the skid.
- Keep the front brake engaged and release the rear brake.
- Immediately release and re-engage the front brake. ✓
- Release the front brake and increase the pressure on the rear brake.
Answer: C. Immediately release and re-engage the front brake.
If the front wheel begins to skid, immediately release the front brake lever and then reapply it smoothly with less pressure. The manual treats a locked front wheel as an emergency you must end right away: let go of the front brake lever the moment the wheel locks, then squeeze it back on smoothly with lighter pressure. It explains why this cannot wait — a front-wheel skid costs you steering control and balance immediately, so staying on the brake keeps the wheel locked and the bike unsteerable. Releasing and reapplying restores the roll of the front wheel while still giving you braking. The same manual gives the same instruction for a front wheel that locks during a quick stop.
8. It is difficult for other motorists to see motorcycles at night. To make up for that, a motorcycle rider should:
- Reduce their speed when riding at night. ✓
- Sound their horn repeatedly when riding at night.
- Not ride at night.
- Stay directly in front of another vehicle to be seen in their headlights when riding at night.
Answer: A. Reduce their speed when riding at night.
Slow down at night — ride slower than you would in daylight, especially on roads you don't know well. The manual lists reducing speed first among the ways to make up for how hard night riding is. Because other drivers struggle to pick your headlight or taillight out of the surrounding car lights, and because you see less yourself, riding slower gives you more time to spot a hazard and avoid it. The manual ties this advice specifically to unfamiliar roads, where you have less idea what is coming. Sounding the horn or staying home is not part of the guidance.
9. Motorcycle headlights are:
- Usually more powerful than a car’s headlights.
- Usually just as powerful as a car’s headlights.
- Usually not as powerful as a car’s headlights. ✓
- Usually larger than a car’s headlights.
Answer: C. Usually not as powerful as a car’s headlights.
10. Compared to riding during the day, a motorcycle operator who is riding at night should do all of the following, except:
- Ride more slowly.
- Allow more space between their motorcycle and other vehicles.
- Use their high beam whenever possible.
- Tailgate other vehicles. ✓
Answer: D. Tailgate other vehicles.
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Last checked: 2026-10-17 · Verified from official source
Updated: · Based on the official driver handbook