Confidence Trick

In the Why Norton? Why Commando? thread, Steve wrote:

hobot said:

I ride scared to death and try not to forget it, how about you.

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I wrote this on another forum some time ago. Got an interesting response, a mix of flack and support. Some saw where I was coming from, others did not.

"When I grow up I want to be a chainsaw because a chainsaw knows no fear."
It's not funny, it's true. While I may never grow up, I really am scared of so much:
I'm scared of those with fundamentalist religious beliefs and those that do not know doubt.
I'm scared that we've missed the climate change boat.
I'm scared that my son will do drugs when he gets older.
I'm scared that we've already passed the peak of living standards.
I'm scared that there's much more to be done and much less time than I thought.
I could go on for quite a while.

The fear that I think's relevant for this forum is the fear of riding. There are a lot of things that scare me when I'm out riding:
I fear that I've been wrong in mistaking frequent aggressive dangerous driving for stupidity and incompetence.
I fear that my lack of advanced skills will one day cause me to come to grief that I might otherwise avoid.
I fear that even a moment's loss of concentration will see me merging with the scenery.
So what am I doing faffing around in my head with all this while I'm riding? I can't help it. I think my way through everything, analyse everything, take everything apart in my mind, see how it works and then project the model back on the world. (No wonder I have trouble with simple verbal communication.)

My daily rider (the TRX) is not that bad, it handles quite well, tyres are good, brakes ok, but whenever I want to push on, in my head the computer says no, even though heart and bike both say yes. I always accede to head over heart. Probably from growing up on evil-handling Jap bikes of the 70s with cheap Cheng Shin house-brick profile Bakelite tyres. Most of the time the fear is well justified. I can't fang a corner that I can't see around, I can't do the same speeds in the wet that I do in the dry. Too many times though, I've gone into corners too hot and bailed half way through; standing the bike up and running wide on to the other side of the road. Stupid, stupid, stupid! The bike would have made it around. What the hell happened? I watch the other guys for as long as I can before they vanish into the distance, they have no trouble with these corners at speeds much greater than mine. Are they dangerous? Used up all their margins for error? No and no again. They always seem well-planted, confident and holding a tight line. I look over their bikes - are they tricked-up? I talk to them, ask if they have had extensive training? Some have had advanced training, but for as many the answer to both questions is no.

A mate explained the get upright thing to me. It's a fight-or-flight thing, a preparation for action command that stems from a rather primitive part of the brain that says "get vertical and balanced - NOW!" Not quite the correct thing to do when the reality is that you need to tickle a bit of rear brake and turn in harder. Most (I'm guessing more than 9 times out of 10) there's less chance of coming to grief from attempting the corner than bailing and straightlining!

Top speed is not something that I'm searching for. I don't see any point in ultimate speed for speed's sake when getting the most out of my vehicle and my skills are what really gives me a buzz. Acceleration and braking yes, hmm - ok. But being able to carry corner speed - fear always gets in the way. Sometimes I shrug it all off and say "I just can't find the groove today." Truth is I'm not a good enough rider to have a groove, it's just how brave I'm feeling on the day or more likely, how much I can get on top of my fear. Should I be seeking to change my overall style given how I've managed to survive over 35 years of riding thus far and just keep the bike's limits as additional safety buffer zone? I don't think so. I'm (probably) too old to transform myself into a knee-down scratcher, but the specific improvement I want is going to save my life some day. If I keep running wide, it's going to come sooner rather than later!

So how do you overcome this basic drive? Tracktime on an old banger or maybe dirt time on a motard would be my guess. If there's some way of practising this in your backyard or using a video game console, I want to know it!

I thought up this variant on the old polar bear joke (while pootling along at old-fart pace holding up some other riders on a forum fang). I'll close with it.
There was this young feller who grew up to be a motorbike rider, just like his father.
One day he asked his father "Dad, am I a motorcyclist?"
His father answered "Yes son, you ride well and often. You are a motorcyclist."
A year passes and again the lad asks his father "Dad, are you sure I am a motorcyclist?"
His father answers "Yes son, you are a skilful and alert rider. You sure are a motorcyclist."
Another year passes and again the lad asks his father "Dad, are you really sure I am a motorcyclist?"
His father sighs and answers patiently "Yes son, you ride in all conditions and survive. You really are a motorcyclist. But why do you ask?"
"Because," replies the son, "I'm shit scared all the time."

Since writing that, I have done some advanced rider training with HART and have gained more faith in the TRX's ability to corner. I continue to learn. I continue to improve.

You Need This , http://www.tsoshop.co.uk/gempdf/TSO_Mot ... uction.pdf. Motorcycle roadcrafft = riders manual .
And read anything on rideing & driveing you find.Frank Gardeners old race driveing book is good .YES ; Dirt Rideing , gravel roads , and tracks
allow yoou to condition youre reflexes , so theyre there when you need them .

SCRATCHING . Suberbia : Forget IT . Anywhere theres Lamposts or Blind Bends : Forget IT .Out in the sticks , after haveing been down the road once,
I might know its clear and clean , and trust it further .
Basically Trafic gives you adreniline fatigue , as ' battle alert / stations , is often required 7 sometimes called for .EYE Contact is imperitive
for comprehenshion of others intentions . otherwise , presume theyre mad . Nice relaxing pastime . dressed as a hood , on a noisey device
theyre inclind to avoid you . :lol:

One of these will help , too . . . :mrgreen:



or This . . .



or THESE



Some overalls , a white helmet , and learn to talk through your nose , and youll be right . :mrgreen:

Time out of the city , or on a track , lets you have enough spare braioncells for figureing out what the bikes up to , rather that being preoccupied with all the bleedy signs , tin cans , and strange chaps hideing behind lamposts . Or go on a Club Run or at the track , or both .

Nicely written Dave. I used to do aerobatics in a bi-plane I once owned,it never scared me as much as going for it on a motorcycle! More room for error up there and didnt have the impatient and blind to contend with!
Having four daughters to raise my life is not just my own anymore so I do try to keep a connection between brain and throttle. At 51 its becoming easier and yes Im still learning too! If your swapping cheeks on the seat to make it around the corner, you should be on a race track and not on the road! Thats my 1 cents worth!!
regards Foxy

"Because," replies the son, "I'm shit scared all the time."

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This is my firm motto/creed - Never Ride to Ever Get Scared. Duh. EVER!!!

We has gotten into the spiritual zone now, ie: what's it mean to be alive for a time and what state do ya seek to spend it in? All life styles and philosophy is fatal.
Is there free will and choice vs pure fate/karma or more Buddhic/Zen blending of each both all any and none or nothing of the sort. Some claim something exists after the flesh/breath others its a one shot deal -get what ya can now. So how lucky do ya feel punks Knowing - Fate Is The Hunter- and you may or may not be holding the trigger just then or someone or something else.

I should of died at birth and until almost 30 yr old mostly felt worthless suffering. Being absolute King of the Road at age 20 on my P!!, appearing magically after Silva Mind Control class that taught ability to image-ine desires for real - was big shock that changed my approach to life That thing broke foot and neck bones by back fires and whiplash launches. Its response flashed me back to steel roller skakes on sugar sand dusted sidewalks and jerk up on slalom water ski grip pull. On 1st test start and puttering about in very tight suburban setting no armor the only place I gave it much throttle on single jug firing was steep down hill 100 yd ending in housing - coil kicked in to cartoon off vertical bike like a flag off bars feet failing behind with seat flipped up in face which twisted grip to FullF****WOT>>> sent me to 12 yr old bicycle crash game on sanded sidewalks to save by sideways snow skiier throw down on frame rails sparks to bounce upright on curb - sitting with heart beating to almost match the 600 rpm even idle. I did nothing wrong but to place my ass in a saddle.
Permanently imprinted to the core that cycles were crazy making stupid unpredictable addiction. Horse saddles are easy as dangerous too.


I get such routine close calls that flash by so fast there is no time to react and if not *Already Out Of The Way* I'd be bug mash. I don't ever know how to react to these as over so fast brain only gets the images/data, sensation - after the fact. Sometimes I get involuntary squeals or curse word sounds an instant later with flash back spikes that make me so nauseous it'snot fun anymore. Yet this winter only had bike to ride for a week+ so forced myself to face it early to dark with deer flashing about. I think about my wife w/o me and things I've yet to finish.

I turned 60, surprised how good I feel so looking forward to over powered flight on Ms Peel, but even so, practice in my cage self talk like, don't over take here, relax, don't blast over that - constantly while just the instant prior was plotting how fast to enter on spun up rear trip to get hi sided sharper screwed in radius glee. So main use of blower power is I slow up so often and much unneeded into any every blind, I don't want to wait/strain long to get back to cruise even if it means floating front out level on down hill steeps >i can clearly see into the future a ways.

Every advance I liked in my life required great effort or pain, crashes to divorces. Severe patients tell me that fear of pain makes them behave in activities to thoughts and state of mind. This path helps them recover and stay ahead of the game of chance we call life. Healthy human nervous systems can weight the risks and ignore the rare to takes their chances to get what and where they like but should always know Fate is Ever the Hunter.

I believe in magic now, thinking and feeling a good future ahead going by body and mind ease to guide me, which lets me most breath easy. hobot

I have before - should I or should I not - now ? ? ? ?














suffering by pure fate of health and bouncing off what I was being programmed with with what I ran my face and heart smach into living it.

Great thread. I could go on and on about this, but will try not to get too existential.

I crashed badly as a new rider, getting into something and not knowing out to get out. I came to terms afterwards; I either needed to figure out what went wrong and do what I could to correct my thinking, or stop riding all together.

We all know things can go pear-shaped in an instant, whether on the street or the track. As for racing; Sometimes if I stop and think about it, I scare myself. The times when I'm most concerned about what I do is during the off-season, when I have time to process it all. Some internal defense shuts all that off when I'm on the starting grid. I'm being tested. It's been one of the most surprisingly revealing inward views I've had as an adult.

About a month ago I was coaching a friend who wanted to learn how to ride. I worried about her, as there was a big, ugly, un-bike-friendly world out there she was soon to encounter. If I could distill my teaching to her down to one line, it was, "don't EVER stop riding the bike".

When you get in to something you think is out of your control, you need to ride it through. As soon as you stop riding the bike, it's all over.

In a word ' Maintain the Initiative '.

I'm healing gradually but brain/neck injury have disconnected sides for control of reflexes. One part of me tends to snap throttle open wide to rush into danger while other part witnesses in shocked disbelief that other half could even be so thoughtless/fearless pleasure seeking. Oh Yes<*>Oh No

I try to collect/reflect on the stills and video's of life events i like best - easiest to bring up are times of my life on Norton Twins especially the Commandos. I do fear I'll relapse to lose my mind again just like this guy's moth into a flame spiral. I have gone so fast to me on hydroplanes and cycles in wild conditions my mind and point of view projects out ahead of me both in glee+shock its like tripping on psychedelics with rushes of injected coke. That I'm healthy alive now is proof i'm both up to it and lucky as hell so far. Is this a good day to...

My Pops is 84 and used to race speedway and when I was young and just starting to ride, he told me the same thing homeslice..."never quit riding the motorcycle". We lived in Houston in the 60's & 70's and we used to go camping down on South Padre Island Texas. You could drive out on the beach a really long way and set up camp and not see anybody else out there for damn near most of a week. When my big brother and I weren't swimming, sailing or fishing we would thrash our '69 Yamaha 180 two stroke twin "Scrambler" out there. Now I could barely touch the ground with my left foot while my right was on the peg and one day I remember getting into trouble on that bike. I was going way too fast down by the water, then went up in loose sand near the dunes and had it flopping from one side to the other. I'm not really sure how I did it, except that I never quit riding the motorcycle. The thought of bailing off of it just didn't occur to me, due in part to his training I suppose. Well, I was a little too close to the campsite when it happened and he'd seen that awkward tank slapper, close call, near wreck. When I came back in, he said that he was proud of me and that I'd really "man handled" the bike through it. I remember feeling quite full of myself (probably not such a good thing 'cause I already had a pretty big ego) and was a cocky little shit too, but what the heck. I went on to ride a little motorcross for a while after that. Anyway, years later when I had my license and had been riding on the streets for a while, I got a '78 SOHC 750 (punched it out to 828, had it balanced and blueprinted, put a kerker header on and a set of 38mm Mikuni smoothbores with some k&n airfilters). Well my Dad came out to the garage one day and said to me...when you're riding that thing, always look for your out & remember to ride "safety speed"....never ride faster than what you feel comfortable with, irregardless of what the posted limit is. Whether it be with regard to weather or traffic or road condition, (he knew that I was racing on the streets and freeways---I had had more than a few tickets from HPD). But that has stayed with me all these years, and like Foxy said "my life is not my own anymore" I've turned 49 and have 6 young kids of my own, I ride quite a bit slower now than I ever used to. So I would highly recommend riding a dirt bike davamb. Cj

I crashed badly as a new rider, getting into something and not knowing out to get out. I came to terms afterwards; I either needed to figure out what went wrong and do what I could to correct my thinking, or stop riding all together.

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I never rode enough to crash until I moved to Ozarks in '99 with miles of various grades of THE Gravel. Took 4 days to make it to solid ground w/o crashing once or twice usually so slow no ballistics involved yet so fast I didn't know what went wrong. By 3rd day I almost gave up but moth to flame went out again knowing I'd have to crash some more and did by doing it different than pavement. Half the crashes were slowing for turns the other half was hitting loose stuff + wash boradss/pot holes to suddendy snatch bike sideways or once on my SV hit 3 holes just right at 35 mph to lift both tire and let bike tip sideways before impact, going straight ahead trying to behave, crap.

When goats got me I screamed in scattered knee pain for 30 sec. then 2.5 min more in pain of no way to protect me or bike no matter what. I wavered on my sanity to ride again even asking to hear others stories of routine commuting w/o incident. It take me about 3 yr to both get over the animal fear and after effects.

As to the soft deep sand, I'm Florida boy than moved to Texas and thought I undestood it till I "hit" THE Grader Fluffed Up Gravel, only way to take it on purpose is by bezerk throttle that essentially floats front out of significant traction or it will rudder you right into the deck. Go too slow and it whips you down before you can react. Must sorta ski it on a plane. Ugh. There is one single event that tested me most of all. I've not written here yet that involved bottomless pit of polished pea pebbles in a semi truck Mt. pass emergency trap. I found another pebble when I mocked Peel up for Empire rally, 6000 mile and 6 yr later. Ugh. Not even tracked craft ever made it out on their on power, cable pulled only,

How do ya rationalize a logging truck you flashed and waved at a few hundred yds off and it waits like he's seen ya till nil reserves then pulls right out across lanes, whoowhee. Another one is car with plenty of time to pull onto hwy and their into lane but gets so excited they just spin tires to barely creep up fully sideways in your lane by time you get there, ugh. I try to force myself to lock up front brake on way out each ride because that's only thing that's saved me a number of times.

I read an excellent quote from Craig Breedlove on the subject on the first page of the Burt Munro bio "One Good Run"

"I don't panic. I can get scared and feel the adrenaline and feel the butterflies, but I don't panic. I think of how to get out of a bad situation and the worse it gets the faster I think. Fear is your friend because it ensures you'll be cautious, but you can't let it overwhelm you. You tuck it in your pocket and it rides with you."


FWIW there is more on him at http://www.wired.com/wired/archive/4.11/breedlove_pr.html

I think if someone is scared riding a motorcycle then they don't belong on it, sooner or later it has a good chance of killing them.

My father, myself and my one brother are from the same mold, whenever we got onto anything with wheels we had to see how fast it would go and we were never scared while doing it, just grinning as we built bigger and bigger ramps out of board and blocks to jump bicycles over. If we crashed hard we were back at the next day.

A few times when I had some really close calls I still was not scared, I did what I had to do to drive or ride through the trouble. I would shake uncontrollably for a half a minute afterwards, but not during.

Everyone is different with different talents. I don't think everyone has the talent to ride a motor-vehicle to one or more of it's limits. My one brother doesn't but he can do Calculus a lot better than I can.

Since motorcycles got really trendy a bit over twenty years ago a lot of people without the talent have gotten on them that don't belong on them. They get on them for any reason but a good one and those are the ones you read about in the paper that end up stuck in grills or hitting trees and walls etc..

I had a friend who bought a Triumph 750 quite a few years ago because he thought motorcycle riding was cool and it would get him chicks. He did not even finish a training course on 125cc bikes to get his license, he was scared just doing that in a parking lot. The Trumpet never got out of his garden shed, and I give him credit for staying the heck off it and finding another way to get laid.

You have got to be a natural at it, fearless, able to speed and weave through traffic while looking backwards with your hands off the bars. You have to feel elated in high gear at high rpms and when your rear tire slides around turns. You have to do all this without thinking at all, because if you take the time to think about what you are doing then you are already in over your head.

That is my advice to motorcycle riders, if there is anything you don't enjoy about riding fast or in traffic, if any of it makes you think while doing it, then get back in a car and find another hobby. There are so many things and people in life to enjoy, things you will miss when you are paralyzed, or people that will miss you when you are dead.

"Dont ever stop riding the bike"

Kenny was talking about handling a situation but what if you literally stop riding for years and come back?

I rode my bikes on the road every single day from 15 to 27 and had no other transport.

Then marrage and family I probably never sat on a bike until I was 43 - and then I decided to try Classic road racing.

I never had a concern on the road - either when young or today but today Im very selective where I ride. There is no fun riding in the city. Plus on the road I ride conservativly and dont try to turn it into a race. I get pretty annoyed with guys who go crazy and will not go out with them. If you want to race go to a track. Plus many guys who go like crazy on the road are hopeless riders. I have been on a track with them and I can beat them with my eyes closed but on the road thay take stupid risks and leave me behind. Where the sense?

So for me road confidence is recognising the environment. You are sharing it with everyone else, dont try to be Hailwood - remember even he was killed on the road by another driver.

Getting on to the track and building confidence is a different issue. I have to confess my racing confidence has gone now unfortuantly.

My mistake was as follows - Firstly many of the guys I knew had been racing a long time, some of them were very good and I tried to catch up too fast. I had ridden with them fine when I was young but they had kept riding. I had a nearly 15 year gap.

Secondly I was too proud. There's a line in the Fastest Indian film where he quotes Roosevelt i think. "The credit goes to the man in the arena not the critic"
I can remember a day when one of the guys who sponsered riders but never rode himself told me I was going too slow. Forget what the sideline guys say. - your the guy out there not them. I wanted to prove to this guy I could go quick and in the end it bit me.

Then although Im not a great rider I am pretty competitive. This also pushed me to go too fast too soon.

Anyway finally one day I was chasing one of the fast guys and staying with him however it was all pretty ragged. The rear wheel was stepping out on several corners and then it started to come round big time. So I snapped the throttle shut. Very big mistake. Major high side, broken bones, hospital.

And when I got back on the bike on the track I couldnt get the crash out of my head.

So my advice is build confidence and skills carefully. Listen to other riders you respect not the guys who talk but never do. Make sure the bike is in good condition with properly set up suspension. modern tyres carry way more corner speed than 1968 !!! Read or take a course in track riding and be realistic in your abilities. We are not all world champions. I could easy run top of the mid field with out any silly moves. Build up to the leaders and dont try too much too soon. At 50 it was probably a bit late to become NZ champion but some good fun would have been a reasonable target!

Holmeslice said:

Some internal defense shuts all that off when I'm on the starting grid.

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Samurai - mindset for battle, focus on the tasks at hand; unencumbered by the thought or fear of harm to ones self. A bit of Zen and calming ones mind for the task at hand (without fear).

Some of my more magical moments were at speed.

For a different perspective, I've been riding bikes for around 45 years and when I started road racing it really took the fun out of street riding for me because I realized how f*cked up it is to ride on the street.


Great thread.

Speed and competition adrenaline can over whelm normal fear reactions. I'm still not down from the last highs I had on Peel some years ago. More news here of another innocent rider fully protected being killed by small truck running a stop sign. No logic no effort can protect you once in a saddle. I don't fool myself anymore I just weigh my greed for joy vs my avoidance of risk ride to ride. Last ride I remember on Peel was after the stuck throttle took out her power so could only practice and test hands off body slam steering in steep turns with huge wind screen dampening it at 110 at night as all she'd pull anymore and could see lights ahead in blinds to avoid. If you are a motorcycler you are either a willing nut case or in denial state. On days the reality hits till I about vomit I tend to take my cage.

yes, yes, and yes to all of the above.

For me, its not fear, but the heightened sensory perception experienced in all the senses. When I'm out there, going fast in what I think is the right time and place, there is no fear.

many years of motorcycling, and a few bad spills, (mostly precipitated by poor judgement) have chilled my foolish traits.

But it is something that I cannot kick. need it and willing to take the chance. It helps me to have a good, expensive arai.... fools confidence. fuck, at 54 I could drop dead tomorrow.

plenty good reading on this thread here... many thanks and happy mardi gras!

cheers,

Don

I recall overhearing a friend and fellow racer describing his mind set getting ready for and leading up to a race day, he stated "I have the right level of anxiety".

Anybody that says they are truely fearless are brain dead and/or clueless; well maybe that is a bit of a strong statment but, once the flag drops.............................

I totally agree with you there DwS. On the original forum where I posted this essay I had a lot of people tell me that I should simply give up riding. They either didn't read what I wrote, understand what I wrote or had no concept of fear. I have not been without a bike for over 35 years and have covered an awful lot of distance in that time. I still have all the bits I was born with and I don't set off metal detectors at airports. The same could not be said of some of my fearless mates unfortunately.

Fear to me is a very useful tool, but it doesn't mean I'm riding in a state of witless panic every second I'm out there. Quite the opposite. Fear is that little voice of sanity that tells me when I think I'm pushing harder than I have the skill to, when I've compromised my margins for error - my own and other's and when my options to be in control in traffic are diminished by stupidity, incompetence or outright aggression - again, my own as well as others. Fear is not some daemon that shouts in my ear every second that I'm going to come a gutsa, hell most of the time I hear that is when I'm gearing up to go for a ride - I'm not even on the bike yet! All part of my routine I guess and by the time I'm out of my driveway I'm totally focussed on just riding.

Most of us here would be classed as 'mature' riders I guess, in that we are all survivors, so in some respects this is preaching to the converted or egg-sucking 101. It's not meant to be patronising. It doesn't matter how you survive. The skilled and successful rider has a set of tools they use to get through every ride while still being able to enjoy it. There are many better riders than me out there, always will be, but it's a poor ride for me when I don't find something to improve upon, experience something new and enjoy being a motorcyclist.