Kawasaki Sportsbike Riders Club - Australia - Online Forum

It can take a while ronstar, I had a good dose of invincability on my 250 and had a tendency to just hold it flat and point it at corners and it would go around was fairly quick well flat out really on a 250 and never came to grief even to the point i could set the rear end out sidways a bit and just watch out for the kick when the tyre bit again and it tossed ya in the air....great fun.

Got the six and it went down 500meteres from the dealers, freak accident i thought i wasnt hardly moving and the tyres wernt loaded up or anything how can this be.

Couple of rides later i went the lowside up my local mountain which wasnt any fun slid into a pile of crusherdust off someones driveway but it was enough to put the shits up me and am just getting to the stage where i can think about having a decent go.



Might have to wear out a few tyres before the confidence comes back and maybe a trackday or 2, but at this stage i am quite prepared to let the really fast boys disapear down the road because i know they wont have to wait too long for me to catch up.

confidence on the road ..which has bumps, cars, power poles and
white lines is needed. and you simply won't get that on a race track
a day on the track requires a completely different mindset
to riding on the road

We have a couple of diferent tracks in sunny Qld yoda one is more you traditional out in a padock with sand traps and plenty of space to go bitumen surfing without hitting anything type tracks made of hi grip ashphault and it will toast your tyres in a day the other has concrete walls dirt embankments and big run offs with 4 foot long grass so you cant tell what is runoff and what is a spoon drain anyway its a good place to exercise your head for a bit while you are gettting over those survival responces that are making you ride worse than bretts mum.

I let the really quick guys go at the track too, feel free to pass me any time and at some stage the pace will come back.

I had a huge truck accident in High St, Reservoir in Melbourne in 1999, for about 6 months I was fearful of anything like Taxi's, cars or busses, even trains, oh especially petrol tankers I was always telling car drivers I was a passenger with to "slow" down even when they were slow anyway. But time will heal, it is only human nature in the back of our minds to protect ourselves. So now I am riding a ZX12R, proof that it can be done, although you will never forget the accident you will gain your confidence back.

So I reckon ya ka-hoonas will come back to the correct size

Don't forget you hurt yourself & it was a pretty spectacular fall not just a drop. You should do what they say & get Chris to give you a nice massage before you go for a ride & you'll feel nice & relaxed (or maybe you''ll think of something else more naughty to do!) Who cares. You win either way.

Ron,

I have had a bit of a think about this, and here's my reply.

When I wrote my last bike off, I did it properly. The bike was farked and I ended up with strained neck ligaments and a dicky elbow for a few months.

I missed a stobie pole by mere inches, the bike took out a permapine fence post (which I missed), and I was lucky not to slice myself in two on the barbed wire fence. It was about as close to a near death experience as I'd like to have.

Anyway, I got myself a new bike and thought everything was going to be normal again. It wasn't. I rode a lot slower than I did before the stack and everytime I did ride I was 100% aware of my own mortality.

It's taken me 2 years to get back to normal. I actually believe I am a much better rider now than I used to be. It took me a track day at Phillip Island, a track day at Mallala, rider training at the Nurburgring and a 4 week Police motorcycle course to get to where I am now.

Having said that, everytime I go passed the corner where I came off, I slow down. I just cannot convince myself that I have the ability to take that stinking corner.

It's only been a short while, just let it happen.

Ronster,
it will come mate, but got at that new rider pace for a bit until that switch in ya head flicks over to Neka mode and ya "launch the farker". This next bit may sound a bit stupid but....try humming or singing or even running a tune through ya head for a bit....I found it helped me disengage the brain from thoughts of long flights and sudden stops.....might not be for you though.

Mate,
ya just a tight arse.......
worried about scratching ya shiny new black paint job


but seriously I had a major off in 1977 that put me in hospital for over 12 months and if I own up, even now, I still occasionally tense up and if I am honest the last outing to Marysville with farked tyres putting me onto the wrong side of the road at the gentle speed of 60kph scared me enough that I went home early.
Just remember mate that they no longer give out medals for hero's and discretion is the better part of valour........your speed will return just give it time

ron...

mate it'll come back. as everyone encouraged me when i got back on two wheels after a long layoff...take your time and ride your own speed. now we all know 'your own speed' is pretty bloody good, but gees mate after that off its gotta take some time.

i personally reckon it doesnt hurt to have that little question mark in the back of your head. it helps me ride within my limits.

and mate we arent gettin any younger

Thankyou all

PC

The five stages of motorcycle riders was explained to me many years ago and can even be applied to day and here they are

1. learner

2. confident

3. overconfident

4. overconfident with speed

5. Crash

This works in a cycle.

The smart people ride within their limitations and try to remain at level 3 or 4
The other saying is "if you don't crash your not trying hard enough" and I think we have all been there. You have started the cycle again you are back on the bike learn from your experience and feel confident you have made the first step

regards
Sulli

Sulli, I think the 5 steps can be summed up in the old saying:

"There are two types of motorcyclists. Those that have crashed. And those that will."

ronster..mate...buddy ...pal..it wasnt ur fault..ur not a slow old bugger..its that bloody kwakka's fault...its a big heavy pig...lol...
actually seriously, it IS a big toy..and the cbr6 is a hi revving, light weight race bike...seriously u have stability over it, but theres no way ur gunna beat it to 140kph or so..mind u AFTER 140km in the saddle, i ber ur ass will b happier than ur mates...
now..on to the falling off bit..and who better to ask than me??
i tend to find if i fall off doing sumthing, then im not so confident to do that again..
eg-after i flipped the blade, i didnt do wheelies for ages
-after i lowsided it dragging a knee..ive never dragged a knee on it again since..not even at the track..
and yes i ride a whoile bloody lot slower, and more sensibly now cos im sick of paying to rebuild a bike..oh the pain aint so great either...

mate..theres no trophies on offer for the first to the pie shop/ fuel station, so who gives a bugger?? ...enjoy it mate...

oh and one last point for ronster,seraph & ne1 else who gets a bit tense on a ride...
SMILE....ud be suprised how smiling can actually relax the arms/shoulders etc...

or dance..i dance a lot..

perhaps there should be a poll to show that offs are a natural learning curve to reassure that we've all been there and done that and come back because of our love of riding
regards
Sulli

aardvark wrote:Sulli, I think the 5 steps can be summed up in the old saying:

"There are two types of motorcyclists. Those that have crashed. And those that will."

ummmm
can i add
those who have and don't want to repeat the experience

I like the singing to relax, it also helps when bored

Back in old Blighty they follow you on your bike test, giving you instructions via radio. I rode the whole half hour singing "Always look on the bright side of life" - worked for me anyway. If you can remember any, Pink Floyd is also very calming for those high stress traffic moments.

Smitty wrote:

smek wrote:I think the best cure is a track day.

I think that is a very bad cure

a track day is NOT your usual on-road ride
the speeds are too different, the corners artificial
and there is too much a chance of being sucked in..
like I can keep up with this guy ...and binning it in doing so
and its a waste if you go there to be slow..the other riders won't be!

confidence on the road ..which has bumps, cars, power poles and
white lines is needed. and you simply won't get that on a race track
a day on the track requires a completely different mindset
to riding on the road

well yes the track is completely different to the road. but on a track day you wont have things like trees, poles, gravel etc that remind you of the stack and cause you to stiffen up and ride badly.
It will remind you how much fun the bike can be and give you a chance to relax on the bike and enjoy the day.
Of course you never push harder than you're comfortable with, on the road or the track. But the fact that the track and the road are very different is what would help I reckon. Just getting out there for a different experience on the bike to remind you of the bond you had with your bike before the stack.
Now I'm not saying you'll come off the track and be scraping your knee round bends while giving the finger to the tree that got in your way last time. But it will give you a new perspective on the whole situation.

I've never tried it myself (too expensive and wet atm), but since my little slide down the road I've slowed through the corners a lot and I think this would help. might not work for you though, I know you've been there too and everyone gets over it in their own way.