I suddenly feel very old

[EstuaryBoy]

Many people are old when they are 40, If you stop learning, you almost immediately get old. Motorcycles and kids keep you younger. It is all in the mind. A victim's mindset can be very bad.
In Australia kids go to university to get a better job. To me that is a very poor reason. If you work for money in a job which does not genuinely interest you, you can get old very quickly

I think the bottom line is you have to exercise whatever you wish to keep in good order, be it physical or mental...
I stopped exercising my brain at 17, at 41 I tried to reboot it and found it sadly lacking, and that was a definite 'wake up' call, not to mention a substantial blow to the ego :-(

 

[ILLF8ED]

I’m not sure it makes me feel old, but in the 1990s I would be annoyed when someone called my Commando an old Norton. Having owned a new one my thinking is this is a new Norton. Old Nortons are pre war.

 

[concours]

And that 2.3l bike too I hope !?

Oh HELL YES!!

 

[ashman]

I just turned 64 and so far I haven't stopped learning, am always thinking and using my brain, my hands are always doing something with them, I retired in 2013 after taking a redundancy from the Tec College I worked at for 31 years (TAFE to us Aussies) so 9 years ago at 55 years old and so far haven't run out of things to do and my project bike has been pushed aside for when I do have time to start back on it, I wear my 2 dogs out on our morning walks between 6 to 10 km and when I get home I am full of beans, sometimes I do have my lazy days when I just let the old body recover as sometimes I tend to overdo things as if I start something I got to keep going till it's all done and dusted but when I do things I work at my own pace, if I run into a problem I walk away from it and think about it, never get angry when things go bad just think about it and work it out, sometimes I over think things but that's a good way to keep the brain working and the secret to old age is to keep active during the day.
My next major job will be painting my old timber house, I was lucky last time I did it over 23 years ago I fully sanded it down one coat of solar guard paint as primer and 2 top coats of paint, so now all it needs is a light sand and a new top coat, my brother in law who is a painted can't believe how well the last paint job has lasted, he suppling me with the paint he mixes all his left over paint to my colours and then hopefully will get back onto the project bike in the new year, life for me at the moment is so good, my wife is so lazy she during the day she starting to suffer because she not real active and she is younger than me.

Ashley

 

[Richard Tool]

Growing older has it’s drawbacks but like a wise person once
said : “ Growing old beats the only alternative “ .
I will turn 70 next summer . I have been riding motorcycles since I was 12 - had a few years break while raising young children.
In all those years I was lucky or did things right - maybe a bit of both - and then had my first accident in September of 2021 .
A teenage girl in a big SUV came into my lane and took me out .
Bloody and bruised but otherwise ok and my Commando faired well too . When I healed I got right back in the saddle without any concerns for myself but nagging worries for my wife and daughters.
Besides the bikes I enjoy other activities including hunting quail on crowded state grounds - been shot twice - and surfing . Shortly before my accident I was surfing early in the morning with two others and then they went in , leaving me alone in the ocean . I used to relish that and it’s attendant solitude but something changed that day . For the first time in my life I was uncomfortable being out alone .
Is this just a normal part of the aging process ? Am I getting wiser and realizing that the law of averages may catch up with me ?
I certainly don’t want to become a statistic , but I don’t want to cave in and give up what I enjoy . But also , if something untoward should happen I don’t want to be a burden to my loved ones .
I wrestle with these thoughts more and more - any of you guys do the same ? Input would be most welcome.
RT

 

[Torontonian]

Growing older has it’s drawbacks but like a wise person once
said : “ Growing old beats the only alternative “ .
I will turn 70 next summer . I have been riding motorcycles since I was 12 - had a few years break while raising young children.
In all those years I was lucky or did things right - maybe a bit of both - and then had my first accident in September of 2021 .
A teenage girl in a big SUV came into my lane and took me out .
Bloody and bruised but otherwise ok and my Commando faired well too . When I healed I got right back in the saddle without any concerns for myself but nagging worries for my wife and daughters.
Besides the bikes I enjoy other activities including hunting quail on crowded state grounds - been shot twice - and surfing . Shortly before my accident I was surfing early in the morning with two others and then they went in , leaving me alone in the ocean . I used to relish that and it’s attendant solitude but something changed that day . For the first time in my life I was uncomfortable being out alone .
Is this just a normal part of the aging process ? Am I getting wiser and realizing that the law of averages may catch up with me ?
I certainly don’t want to become a statistic , but I don’t want to cave in and give up what I enjoy . But also , if something untoward should happen I don’t want to be a burden to my loved ones .
I wrestle with these thoughts more and more - any of you guys do the same ? Input would be most welcome.
RT

The Psychiatrist is in. 5 cents please.
Love yourself first , then everything falls into place.
Being alone without feeling bad about it is good.
No one wants to be a burden , but one cannot predict how they ( loved ones ) eventually will deal with it.
You''ll figure it out.
I've been accidentally left alone in the ocean too. Really brings your mortality into sharp focus. Like some motorbike ridings.
Enjoy.

 

[robs ss]

The Psychiatrist is in. 5 cents please.
Love yourself first , then everything falls into place.

Weird I know - but I accidentally found yoga (classes) and it helps.
No - it wasn't the Lorna Jane mumble pants either!!
First line is deadly serious though

Edit: I should add that it's a small (12) class and the instructor's guidance on breathing and what to think about is, I find, very helpful.

 

[MexicoMike]

As I've said in other threads, a friend in his 80's rides several days/week, sometimes by himself, other times leading a small group through the twisties on 200 mile day rides. Another friend in his late 70's and vision in only one eye (!), rides every week as well, often after dark! Heck, I am reluctant to ride after dark and BOTH my eyes work!

Like any activity, this is about whether you WANT to do it and whether you are physically ABLE to do it. Of course, as we age we realize that our teens/twenties belief that we were bulletproof was incorrect. Sometimes we learn it by actual experience; sometimes by years of observation. But I don't see anything wrong at all with saying, "I don't want to do this anymore," for whatever reason. It can simply be that you don't enjoy it much anymore or you have simply lost interest/moved on to some other interest/hobby/whatever.

I look at it like the question I used to ask old people: "How did you know when to retire?" The annoying answer always was, "You'll know!" I found that very frustrating until I discovered that was the correct answer. They were (are) right, I knew when the time came and it was obvious and comfortable. It's the same with riding motorcycles...or playing football. When it's time to quit, you'll know. But it's an individual thing - unrelated to an age number.

Sometimes we quit doing some activity NOT because of any physical limitation but simply because we have lost interest. I don't see anything wrong with that. For example I used to fly (commercial/instrument rated) but haven't in many years; not because I can't but because I lost interest. Doesn't bother me at all. Same will be true with motorcycles...

 

[KiwiShane]

The most important thing I believe at what ever age you are is keeping in touch with your mates that share a common interest in (what ever that may be)...as much as you can or on a annual basis if need be...(life can be busy) every year we all meet up at this cool spot on the coast and we all celebrate still being here and remembering the ones that aren't with us no more...there is always something to look forward to...

 

[Fast Eddie]

I know some lads like to show off… but turning up in a helicopter…

 

[YING]

The most important thing I believe at what ever age you are is keeping in touch with your mates that share a common interest in (what ever that may be)...as much as you can or on a annual basis if need be...(life can be busy) every year we all meet up at this cool spot on the coast and we all celebrate still being here and remembering the ones that aren't with us no more...there is always something to look forward to...

Shane,
I love the variety of the motorcycles that show up at your gatherings!
Mike

 

[KiwiShane]

Shane,
I love the variety of the motorcycles that show up at your gatherings!
Mike

Cheers ...I will put up a post of the next gathering we have in the coming months.

 

[Thomasa]

I've been told by a couple of doctors that to keep arthritis at bay you need to keep moving. I think that's true of mental arthritis too.

Aside from figuring out how to mount this or that, then making brackets or troubleshooting whatever rig comes through the shop door, I've taken up playing in the local symphony orchestra. That forces me to read music, something I'd gotten pretty rusty at. And that led to Jazz improvising, which it even harder mentally. Both of those activities keep me in face-to-face contact with other people and meeting new people. I don't get out to the monthly vintage bike meetings anymore because of distance and traffic. Then, so many of my old mates in the bike world have passed on (sigh) and another is voluntarily "dropping the body" on Tuesday because of a terminal brain tumor.

I'll do an hour's cross-country skiing this afternoon as a walking meditation.

 

[Stevo]

I’m a Brit expat, a now retired, as of 12l21, tool/instrument maker aged 67 yrs, been over here with the missus 14 years. Rode bikes or scooters as only mode of transport until age 23. Decided at age 57 that I was still missing something in my life and at a lifelong buddy’s suggestion, took the motorbike training course and bought a 2007 Yamaha FJR AE, which I still have.
Ye gods, how bikes had changed while I was away! It’s a rocket ship!
Bike ownership and riding have definitely given me a different outlook on life and getting older. Being a member of forums, meeting up with other like minded riders and riding with them has been very enjoyable and satisfying, a very agreeable distraction from some less agreeable aspects of aging. I’ve always enjoyed the maintenance aspect that goes with using mechanical equipment, so there’s that too.
In 2015, I bought and imported a 1960 Matchless G3 from a family friend in the UK, because I was attracted to the look and sound of a piece of old English motorbike engineering that was only five years younger than me.
Retirement and relocation with more space has allowed me to realize a teenage curiosity, that was to own and ride…..a Norton Commando!
Have only had my ‘74 850 a couple of weeks but I love it and on current showing and riding enjoyment, I’m confident it’s going to bolster my refusal to feel any older than 23!
Just my 2c worth.
Steve

 

[KiwiShane]

I’m a Brit expat, a now retired, as of 12l21, tool/instrument maker aged 67 yrs, been over here with the missus 14 years. Rode bikes or scooters as only mode of transport until age 23. Decided at age 57 that I was still missing something in my life and at a lifelong buddy’s suggestion, took the motorbike training course and bought a 2007 Yamaha FJR AE, which I still have.
Ye gods, how bikes had changed while I was away! It’s a rocket ship!
Bike ownership and riding have definitely given me a different outlook on life and getting older. Being a member of forums, meeting up with other like minded riders and riding with them has been very enjoyable and satisfying, a very agreeable distraction from some less agreeable aspects of aging. I’ve always enjoyed the maintenance aspect that goes with using mechanical equipment, so there’s that too.
In 2015, I bought and imported a 1960 Matchless G3 from a family friend in the UK, because I was attracted to the look and sound of a piece of old English motorbike engineering that was only five years younger than me.
Retirement and relocation with more space has allowed me to realize a teenage curiosity, that was to own and ride…..a Norton Commando!
Have only had my ‘74 850 a couple of weeks but I love it and on current showing and riding enjoyment, I’m confident it’s going to bolster my refusal to feel any older than 23!
Just my 2c worth.
Steve

Good on ya mate !!

 

[Casual]

Growing older has it’s drawbacks but like a wise person once
said : “ Growing old beats the only alternative “ .
I will turn 70 next summer . I have been riding motorcycles since I was 12 - had a few years break while raising young children.
In all those years I was lucky or did things right - maybe a bit of both - and then had my first accident in September of 2021 .
A teenage girl in a big SUV came into my lane and took me out .
Bloody and bruised but otherwise ok and my Commando faired well too . When I healed I got right back in the saddle without any concerns for myself but nagging worries for my wife and daughters.
Besides the bikes I enjoy other activities including hunting quail on crowded state grounds - been shot twice - and surfing . Shortly before my accident I was surfing early in the morning with two others and then they went in , leaving me alone in the ocean . I used to relish that and it’s attendant solitude but something changed that day . For the first time in my life I was uncomfortable being out alone .
Is this just a normal part of the aging process ? Am I getting wiser and realizing that the law of averages may catch up with me ?
I certainly don’t want to become a statistic , but I don’t want to cave in and give up what I enjoy . But also , if something untoward should happen I don’t want to be a burden to my loved ones .
I wrestle with these thoughts more and more - any of you guys do the same ? Input would be most welcome.
RT

 

[Casual]

Richard, I too have the same thoughts swirling through my close to 70 yr old brain. I live in Australia and we have had 2 yrs of solid rain, with the resulting potholes appearing in plague proportions. The councils here have a substandard way of repairing them. In august this yr I was riding down a highway and hit a large “ patch“ which had been done on 2 levels. In front of the patch was a bit of a trough in the road surface and the whole thing was in shadow. I hit the trough and used all the compresion stroke and then hit the step in the patch. I hit the asphalt at 60 mph and suffered the results,. I live alone with my 26 yr old autistic son and even at the crash site I was telling the paramedics I had to get home by 3 pm Needless to say I was in the ED for 2 days. To my surprise my ex decided she would come and stay with us till I recovered.Now I have various people trying to persuade me to sell my bikes, thus creating the wrestle with the issue of my sons well being, my age, condition of the roads etc. in the end I just told myself ( and everyone else) that once a man is unhorsed he must get back on and then decide which way he will go. That has shut them up for now , and to a degree calmed my own thinking down. In one way I feel to keep riding would be selfish, but I know once I get a good ride in I feel renewed, if I don’t ride i am theoretically more safe, but safe for what? Safer to drift more gently into senility, to loose another link with reality? If I’m honest I have no answers and I believe it is a decision we all make eventually ,in our own time. So commiserations and assurance’s you are not alone. Regards Casual

 

[Torontonian]

Live in the now.
Buddhist philosophy .
( Thailand 8 X . , Cambodia 3 X . , Vietnam 2 X. , Laos 2 X. , Japan 1 X. , Malaysia 2 X . , Nepal 2 X. , ) .
Learned a lot in these short years . ) . Next one is Mex. again ( 18 X . becoming 19 , ) and then on to Nicaragua . ) .
Snow melted and will fire up the Norton for a local spin in a few hours . No salt was ever laid down.

 

[baz]

Richard, I too have the same thoughts swirling through my close to 70 yr old brain. I live in Australia and we have had 2 yrs of solid rain, with the resulting potholes appearing in plague proportions. The councils here have a substandard way of repairing them. In august this yr I was riding down a highway and hit a large “ patch“ which had been done on 2 levels. In front of the patch was a bit of a trough in the road surface and the whole thing was in shadow. I hit the trough and used all the compresion stroke and then hit the step in the patch. I hit the asphalt at 60 mph and suffered the results,. I live alone with my 26 yr old autistic son and even at the crash site I was telling the paramedics I had to get home by 3 pm Needless to say I was in the ED for 2 days. To my surprise my ex decided she would come and stay with us till I recovered.Now I have various people trying to persuade me to sell my bikes, thus creating the wrestle with the issue of my sons well being, my age, condition of the roads etc. in the end I just told myself ( and everyone else) that once a man is unhorsed he must get back on and then decide which way he will go. That has shut them up for now , and to a degree calmed my own thinking down. In one way I feel to keep riding would be selfish, but I know once I get a good ride in I feel renewed, if I don’t ride i am theoretically more safe, but safe for what? Safer to drift more gently into senility, to loose another link with reality? If I’m honest I have no answers and I believe it is a decision we all make eventually ,in our own time. So commiserations and assurance’s you are not alone. Regards Casual

I felt this way when my kids were young and dependent on me
I was the bread winner working between 6 and 7 days a week with no sick pay
I was really careful when riding for a number of years
I only had one spill when a car pulled out of a side road and swiped the tail light off my commando
It was fastback spec back then
I didn't actually come off ,I managed to hold the bike up as I hit the kerb but I remember at the time thinking what would happen is I was laid up for a few weeks!

 

[Alan L]

Richard, I too have the same thoughts swirling through my close to 70 yr old brain. I live in Australia and we have had 2 yrs of solid rain, with the resulting potholes appearing in plague proportions. The councils here have a substandard way of repairing them. In august this yr I was riding down a highway and hit a large “ patch“ which had been done on 2 levels. In front of the patch was a bit of a trough in the road surface and the whole thing was in shadow. I hit the trough and used all the compresion stroke and then hit the step in the patch. I hit the asphalt at 60 mph and suffered the results,. I live alone with my 26 yr old autistic son and even at the crash site I was telling the paramedics I had to get home by 3 pm Needless to say I was in the ED for 2 days. To my surprise my ex decided she would come and stay with us till I recovered.Now I have various people trying to persuade me to sell my bikes, thus creating the wrestle with the issue of my sons well being, my age, condition of the roads etc. in the end I just told myself ( and everyone else) that once a man is unhorsed he must get back on and then decide which way he will go. That has shut them up for now , and to a degree calmed my own thinking down. In one way I feel to keep riding would be selfish, but I know once I get a good ride in I feel renewed, if I don’t ride i am theoretically more safe, but safe for what? Safer to drift more gently into senility, to loose another link with reality? If I’m honest I have no answers and I believe it is a decision we all make eventually ,in our own time. So commiserations and assurance’s you are not alone. Regards Casual

Hi,
I‘m sorry for your unfortunate story. We too are suffering from appalling road conditions.
I hope something positive comes out of your misfortune. I can’t begin to appreciate the pressure of looking after your adult son must put on you. I’m sure you should be commended for your love and commitment you show him.

As for giving up riding your bike, well, I guess it’s all a matter of perspective. If you, as an experienced but very mature rider, thought it was necessary to give up riding because of risk, how could we possibly allow an inexperienced young person to ride a bike who has their entire life ahead of them.
Every activity we engage in is to some extent a calculated risk. To live a cloistered life wrapped in cotton wool avoiding risk, in the hope of statistically gaining a few more weeks of life through risk avoidance, doesn’t seem much of a trade off to me, in comparison to doing something you genuinely enjoy.
Crunching the numbers on the likelihood of death or serious injury on a bike is an easy calculation but quantifying the improved quality of life by enjoying the freedom of riding, not to mention the possible increase in lifespan by staying active, is not so easy. Does age make cowards of us all? I don’t know but living the humorous cliche, ‘grow old disgracefully‘ probably extends peoples lives rather than shorten them.
Increasingly the ski slopes a full of octogenarians continuing the sport they love and I’m quite sure that they not only enjoy life more but actually live longer than those who throw the towel in. The risk of serious injury or death is more than offset by the quality of life.
I guess my uncalled for advice is to do exactly as you want to and not be influenced by others.

Regarding my original post, I’m not sure if I was exactly clear in what I was trying to say. To put it in a nutshell, I no longer feel very much in touch with many of the other participants at bike shows. My interests are much more historic and technical. I would rather see a well cared for BSA Bantam than a 2022 Harley. I would rather see a bike raced by a back yarder who scrimpt and saved for every improvement to do passably well in it’s day than today’s latest rocket ship.
Showing off a modern bike that was designed by marketing experts to unashamedly cash in on classic designs from bikes fifty or possibly closer to one hundred years old, creating a virtual parody of the original bike and then believing that somehow it is a unique artwork is an anathema to me.
Building a ‘show-bike’ by simply adding on more and more ‘off the shelf’ bling, ending up with an unridable caricature of a motorcycle that one would be likely to see in a Batman movie, fails to hold my interest.
Transforming from the average ageing ‘dude’ into a geriatric imitation of a 1% biker by the addition of leather, chains and death’s head badges somehow seems rather pointless.
Anyway, each to their own, I just don’t seem to fit the mould any longer.
regards Alan