Wot a pillock (me)

[simonm]

A southern fairy who wouldn't dare say it to my face  :rolleyes  :lol

:rollin

[red98]

some good advise there simonm,take no notice of the pm..theres always one  :rolleyes .....we have all been in that situation before hence all the advice,after a long winter lay up i do it myself a couple of times untill i get back in my stride,3/4 years ago i did a bike safe refresher course with local council/police all stuff i already new but nice to have a reminder.....road position also very important,use the whole width even the over side when its safe to do so  ......good luck with whatever you decide to do 

[red98]

"WOT A PILLOCK"........not you simonm,the idiot who sent the pm....now thats what i call a PILLOCK.

[simonm]

some good advise there simonm,take no notice of the pm..theres always one  :rolleyes .....we have all been in that situation before hence all the advice,after a long winter lay up i do it myself a couple of times untill i get back in my stride,3/4 years ago i did a bike safe refresher course with local council/police all stuff i already new but nice to have a reminder.....road position also very important,use the whole width even the over side when its safe to do so  ......good luck with whatever you decide to do 

The PM was just a joke.  Twas funny from both sides methinks ;-)


I might have a word with the local bodyshop and see if the dent can be pulled out of the tank easily or not.  The fairing is pretty narfed but may be fibreglassable.  Maybe this is the time to give the bike a respray, maybe with a funky purple flip if I can afford one.

[stevierst]

Jeez, glad your ok  Simon. Your lucky that you didn't buy that 9k ducati, they don't bounce anywhere near as good as a fazer! she looks perfectly repairable to me though, I've had worse damage on a bike and got it back on the road. It's the minimal damage to yourself that I bet your grateful for!

I'd be one of the lads to +1 twist of the wrist II. Go through the videos a section at a time, then practice that bit on the road. I only saw the videos for the first time last summer, and even with the millions of miles and years of riding I've done, I still learned quite a bit from it.

Get your machine and your confidence back on the road for the summer, and enjoy it buddy

Sent from my AT300 using Tapatalk 2

[Lazarus]

glad you're ok m8 - looks like I got off easy with my spill!

[Stedman8]

Listen to your uncle Steve, dont give up because you will regret it ,maybe not today, maybe not tomorrow but soon and for the rest of your life ( if in doubt quote Casablanca ) seriously though dont listen to people who say crap like give it up - the best advice I can give is learn to walk before you run - passing a test is just the beginning the main thing about riding is taking it easy and gain experience , things will become second nature and you will wonder what the problem was and don't worry everyone has doubts about their abilities to do things from time to time ( including motorcycling ) its the human condition mate, so get back in the saddle and look after yourself,cheers Steve

[simonm]

Listen to your uncle Steve, dont give up because you will regret it ,maybe not today, maybe not tomorrow but soon and for the rest of your life ( if in doubt quote Casablanca ) seriously though dont listen to people who say crap like give it up - the best advice I can give is learn to walk before you run - passing a test is just the beginning the main thing about riding is taking it easy and gain experience , things will become second nature and you will wonder what the problem was and don't worry everyone has doubts about their abilities to do things from time to time ( including motorcycling ) its the human condition mate, so get back in the saddle and look after yourself,cheers Steve

Thank you.  Appreciated.

[simonm]

I get a massive sensory overload which I can handle most of the time until I look at a corner and think I'm going too fast for this corner I need to lose speed.  In reality I think the speed I was going was fine, I just freaked about the physics and the sharpness of the corner and boom, I'd gone.


The tyres and tread on a motorbike scare me.


The road scares me (gravel, oil, rain, camber, potholes, diesel and huge lumps of concrete).


I need a ton more experience.  Given the spills I've had I need more confidence which is a catch 22.  My solution is to work on my cornering with a professional until I feel confident.


That's my plan anyway.


I'll get there eventually I hope.

[Andy FZS]

I know just how you feel that is why I ride like a granny (no offence to grannies) I've only been riding a year since about 20 yrs off I really need to pluck up the courage to look for some help to properly enjoy my bike. Anyway good luck and I'm glad you're okay.

[darrsi]

"...My solution is to work on my cornering with a professional until I feel confident..."


Sounds like a job for David Beckham, he rides bikes and i've heard his cornering skills are excellent  :lol

[simonm]

"...My solution is to work on my cornering with a professional until I feel confident..."


Sounds like a job for David Beckham, he rides bikes and i've heard his cornering skills are excellent  :lol

:rollin
reminds me of this;


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QOAPKStmYnI

[Chris]

In reality I think the speed I was going was fine, I just freaked about the physics and the sharpness of the corner and boom, I'd gone.

What I get from this sentence is that the speed was fine for the bike and it could have made the turn BUT you were going too fast for YOU. Just because the bike can make a turn at a certain speed doesn't mean it should be at the limit all the time. It is good to find where abouts the limit is etc but that is for learning on a racetrack/ training track day like california superbike school.

My advice would be to save your money for a little while though and just slow down overall. If you want to go faster then give yourself time and get miles under your belt and build up the speed slowly so that you don't have those freak out moments. Keep watching the twist of the wrist and any other bike riding info you can and go out and try things SLOWLY and build up the speed SLOWLY. Just because you get a corner right at 30 and your technique is perfect the same corner at 40 or 50 or 60 might be possible for the bike but it will feel very different and your technique might not be able to cope. So if you do the corner 100 times and gradually build up the speed then your technique will grow and adapt as the speed increases.

Take your time and enjoy being out on the bike, keep the speed down everywhere and you'll not end up freaking out when a corner tightens up on you or a car does something unexpected around you or the lights change but you can't stop in time or a kid runs out in front of you... with good technique all these situations can be avoided or dealt with without going rubber side up but if you haven't taken the time to learn the principles of how the bike reacts to inputs then it''ll chuck you off.

Being relaxed is difficult when you get a fright or feel uncomfortable but it is so important, it helps you stay smooth with your inputs to the bike (throttle, lean angle of both bike and rider, pressure on pegs, steering, braking pressure etc). Using smooth inputs won't unsettle the bike and will mean the tyres aren't having to work so hard even if they are leaned right over.

Sorry for the tomb to read.

Take care and take it easy.  8)

Chris

[packie]

Simon....Glad your ok, man. Just something to consider and I risk getting scorned for this.....

Keep an open mind about the comandarie advice & support to get back in the saddle.

There is great support here for you to carry on. I personally wouldn't offer advice either way. Although the intentions are good, that advice and support  to get back in the saddle has the potential to actually kill you!!.....thats what you need to keep an open mind about.


Only you can determine that decision from the bottom of your soul and with all honesty. I know a lot of people who got into bikes (for whatever reasons) and who have since walked away because they just weren't cut out for it.


My bro-in-law walked away after a few falls just like you into corners. He had professional training and everything before and after his spills. He eventually was open and honest with himself and walked away. He just could not get his head around the fear factor of riding....simple as that. It didn't matter even when he was doing things correctly or how much professional biking help he got. His head was not geared for riding a bike. He is very happy now and have no regrets. So am I and his family because I have a gut feeling if he persisted in trying, he would have been killed eventually.


Biking is meant to be a pleasurable experience. On top of that and I can only speak for myself, I also knew instantly (despite the dangers) that "this was for me". I had a sorta inner grin from day one and nothing wouldn't extinguish it. I guess what i'm trying to say is that you either "have it" or you don't. I also have seen through my experiences that not everyone posses "that feeling" and may not acquire that feeling even after some formal professional training or moral support.


Another example of this is when both my bosses bought "his & hers" bikes with this "Route 66-come-easy rider fantasy" that they had in their heads. They had all the training that money could buy and the best of bikes and gear at their disposal. Both their bikes are gathering dust ever since. They rode locally for a day of too and it just wasn't the experience that they had dreamt up in their heads....far from it. They found it to be a frightful, intimidating and dangerous experience. Again...you either "have it" or you don't IMO....and only you know that All the training, talking and well intentioned back slapping won't give it to you....actually, it might have the opposite effect and have the potential to keep you locked into something that shouldn't be in and it could kill you as I said above.

From what i'm hearing from your quote below.....Your experiences have alarm bells written all over it. Hope I haven't offended you or anyone else with my opinions, and apologies in advance if I have. I am just more concerned about your safety.


"I just freaked about the physics and the sharpness of the corner and boom, I'd gone."

"The tyres and tread on a motorbike scare me."

"The road scares me"

[simonm]

[quote author=simonm link=topic=7127.msg67917#msg67917 date=1365326309]
In reality I think the speed I was going was fine, I just freaked about the physics and the sharpness of the corner and boom, I'd gone.

What I get from this sentence is that the speed was fine for the bike and it could have made the turn BUT you were going too fast for YOU. Just because the bike can make a turn at a certain speed doesn't mean it should be at the limit all the time. It is good to find where abouts the limit is etc but that is for learning on a racetrack/ training track day like california superbike school.

My advice would be to save your money for a little while though and just slow down overall. If you want to go faster then give yourself time and get miles under your belt and build up the speed slowly so that you don't have those freak out moments. Keep watching the twist of the wrist and any other bike riding info you can and go out and try things SLOWLY and build up the speed SLOWLY. Just because you get a corner right at 30 and your technique is perfect the same corner at 40 or 50 or 60 might be possible for the bike but it will feel very different and your technique might not be able to cope. So if you do the corner 100 times and gradually build up the speed then your technique will grow and adapt as the speed increases.

Take your time and enjoy being out on the bike, keep the speed down everywhere and you'll not end up freaking out when a corner tightens up on you or a car does something unexpected around you or the lights change but you can't stop in time or a kid runs out in front of you... with good technique all these situations can be avoided or dealt with without going rubber side up but if you haven't taken the time to learn the principles of how the bike reacts to inputs then it''ll chuck you off.

Being relaxed is difficult when you get a fright or feel uncomfortable but it is so important, it helps you stay smooth with your inputs to the bike (throttle, lean angle of both bike and rider, pressure on pegs, steering, braking pressure etc). Using smooth inputs won't unsettle the bike and will mean the tyres aren't having to work so hard even if they are leaned right over.

Sorry for the tomb to read.

Take care and take it easy.  8)

Chris
[/quote]




Like I said at the start "I said I was a klutz and it was my incompetence. Not much more I can say to completely accept responsibility for my own actions.  I think I'll call my local riding school and see what, if anything, they can do to help me with my cornering."


I know it was me.  There was no one else's fault it could have been.  I don't believe it was the speed either, I'm sure the bike could have got around the corner at that speed, I certainly wasn't going quickly.  It was me.  My confidence and my lack of experience.

[simonm]

[quote author=simonm link=topic=7127.msg67905#msg67905 date=1365319297][quote author=red98 link=topic=7127.msg67903#msg67903 date=1365319078]
some good advise there simonm,take no notice of the pm..theres always one  .....we have all been in that situation before hence all the advice,after a long winter lay up i do it myself a couple of times untill i get back in my stride,3/4 years ago i did a bike safe refresher course with local council/police all stuff i already new but nice to have a reminder.....road position also very important,use the whole width even the over side when its safe to do so  ......good luck with whatever you decide to do 

The PM was just a joke.  Twas funny from both sides methinks ;-)




I might have a word with the local bodyshop and see if the dent can be pulled out of the tank easily or not.  The fairing is pretty narfed but may be fibreglassable.  Maybe this is the time to give the bike a respray, maybe with a funky purple flip if I can afford one.
[/quote]


Simon....




Glad your ok, man. Just something to consider and I risk getting scorned for this.....


Keep an open mind about the comandarie advice & support to get back in the saddle.






There is great support here for you to carry on. I personally wouldn't offer advice either way. Although the intentions are good, guys should be careful about giving that advice because it is quite possible also too that you are one of those people who are just not cut out to ride a bike. There are such people. So this well intentioned advice and support  to get back in the saddle has the potential to actually kill you!!.....thats what you need to keep an open mind about.


Only you can determine that decision from the bottom of your soul and with all honesty. I know a lot of people who got into bikes (for whatever reasons) and who have since walked away because they just weren't cut out for it.


My bro-in-law walked away after a few falls just like you into corners. He had professional training and everything before and after his spills. He eventually was open and honest with himself and walked away. He just could not get his head around the fear factor of riding....simple as that. It didn't matter even when he was doing things correctly or how much professional biking help he got. His head was not geared for riding a bike. He is very happy now and have no regrets. So am I and his family because I have a gut feeling if he persisted in trying, he would have been killed eventually.


Biking is meant to be a pleasurable experience. On top of that and I can only speak for myself, I also knew instantly (despite the dangers) that "this was for me". I had a sorta inner grin from day one and nothing wouldn't extinguish it. I guess what i'm trying to say is that you either "have it" or you don't. I also have seen through my experiences that not everyone posses "that feeling" and may not acquire that feeling even after some formal professional training or moral support.


Another example of this is when both my bosses bought "his & hers" bikes with this "Route 66-come-easy rider fantasy" that they had in their heads. They had all the training that money could buy and the best of bikes and gear at their disposal. Both their bikes are gathering dust ever since. They rode locally for a day of too and it just wasn't the experience that they had dreamt up in their heads....far from it. They found it to be a frightful, intimidating and dangerous experience. Again...you either "have it" or you don't IMO....and only you know that. All the training, talking and well intentioned back slapping won't give it to you....actually, it might have the opposite effect and have the potential to keep you locked into something that maybe you shouldn't be in and it could kill you.


From what i'm hearing from your quote below and especially the stuff I highlighted in green.....Your experiences have alarm bells written all over it. Hope I haven't offended you or anyone else with my opinions, and apologies in advance if I have. I am just more concerned about your safety.


"I get a massive sensory overload which I can handle most of the time until I look at a corner and think I'm going too fast for this corner I need to lose speed.  In reality I think the speed I was going was fine, I just freaked about the physics and the sharpness of the corner and boom, I'd gone.The tyres and tread on a motorbike scare me.The road scares me(gravel, oil, rain, camber, potholes, diesel and huge lumps of concrete)."
[/quote]

[quote author=simonm link=topic=7127.msg67905#msg67905 date=1365319297][quote author=red98 link=topic=7127.msg67903#msg67903 date=1365319078]
some good advise there simonm,take no notice of the pm..theres always one  :rolleyes .....we have all been in that situation before hence all the advice,after a long winter lay up i do it myself a couple of times untill i get back in my stride,3/4 years ago i did a bike safe refresher course with local council/police all stuff i already new but nice to have a reminder.....road position also very important,use the whole width even the over side when its safe to do so  ......good luck with whatever you decide to do 

The PM was just a joke.  Twas funny from both sides methinks ;-)


I might have a word with the local bodyshop and see if the dent can be pulled out of the tank easily or not.  The fairing is pretty narfed but may be fibreglassable.  Maybe this is the time to give the bike a respray, maybe with a funky purple flip if I can afford one.
[/quote]
Simon....


Glad your ok, man. Just something to consider and I risk getting scorned for this.....

Keep an open mind about the comandarie advice & support to get back in the saddle.



There is great support here for you to carry on. I personally wouldn't offer advice either way. Although the intentions are good, guys should be careful about giving that advice because it is quite possible also too that you are one of those people who are just not cut out to ride a bike. There are such people. So this well intentioned advice and support  to get back in the saddle has the potential to actually kill you!!.....thats what you need to keep an open mind about.

Only you can determine that decision from the bottom of your soul and with all honesty. I know a lot of people who got into bikes (for whatever reasons) and who have since walked away because they just weren't cut out for it.

My bro-in-law walked away after a few falls just like you into corners. He had professional training and everything before and after his spills. He eventually was open and honest with himself and walked away. He just could not get his head around the fear factor of riding....simple as that. It didn't matter even when he was doing things correctly or how much professional biking help he got. His head was not geared for riding a bike. He is very happy now and have no regrets. So am I and his family because I have a gut feeling if he persisted in trying, he would have been killed eventually.

Biking is meant to be a pleasurable experience. On top of that and I can only speak for myself, I also knew instantly (despite the dangers) that "this was for me". I had a sorta inner grin from day one and nothing wouldn't extinguish it. I guess what i'm trying to say is that you either "have it" or you don't. I also have seen through my experiences that not everyone posses "that feeling" and may not acquire that feeling even after some formal professional training or moral support.

Another example of this is when both my bosses bought "his & hers" bikes with this "Route 66-come-easy rider fantasy" that they had in their heads. They had all the training that money could buy and the best of bikes and gear at their disposal. Both their bikes are gathering dust ever since. They rode locally for a day of too and it just wasn't the experience that they had dreamt up in their heads....far from it. They found it to be a frightful, intimidating and dangerous experience. Again...you either "have it" or you don't IMO....and only you know that. All the training, talking and well intentioned back slapping won't give it to you....actually, it might have the opposite effect and have the potential to keep you locked into something that maybe you shouldn't be in and it could kill you.

From what i'm hearing from your quote below and especially the stuff I highlighted in green.....Your experiences have alarm bells written all over it. Hope I haven't offended you or anyone else with my opinions, and apologies in advance if I have. I am just more concerned about your safety.

"I get a massive sensory overload which I can handle most of the time until I look at a corner and think I'm going too fast for this corner I need to lose speed.  In reality I think the speed I was going was fine, I just freaked about the physics and the sharpness of the corner and boom, I'd gone.The tyres and tread on a motorbike scare me.The road scares me(gravel, oil, rain, camber, potholes, diesel and huge lumps of concrete)."
[/quote]


I have that grin, of course I do.  The second you do you CBT you know if you like riding or not.  If you're not scared of the bike and the tarmac you're not human.


Have you ever looked at the width of the wheels on an BMW M3 ?  It has 4 of them.  Forgive me if I'm a newb who isn't entirely confident of 2 tyres on a motorbike that probably has more BHP per tonne than an M3.


I appreciate your comments but I'm old enough to know if something is beyond my capabilities or not and riding a bike is not beyond them.  I need experience, practise, tuition and confidence (not too much of the last one).  End of story.


Thanks for the input.

[packie]

Simon wrote:
I appreciate your comments but I'm old enough to know if something is beyond my capabilities or not and riding a bike is not beyond them. 



Fair enuff...but I can't help it if I just didn't pick up on your dogged determination to succeed in your comment below, especially the bit in red....


"I'm a newb and I've come off twice in three months.  Starting to wonder if it's a sign."


....I wish you well and safe riding.

[caretaker]

stick to your own pace, dont ride with anyone else and stay off the back brake! i only use the front brake, bad habit i know. but using the back on a bend is asking for trouble. after i passes my test centuries ago, i only used the back. gradually, and like yourself, several offs, i realised that i should start using mainly the front. still had a few offs since though, so youre in good company.

[wezdavo]

Pleased you where ok after the crash..

You need to relax bud, don't put too much pressure on yourself to go fast..

Speed will come with time..

Remember, no matter what your head says, bikes ARE built for this kind of thing..

[wezdavo]

Just a thought but maybe your not reading the road far enough ahead??

Meaning you are carrying too much speed when approaching corners, which is scary..

On the approach to a corner I like to have everything done, braking , gears and positioning, so all I have to worry about is when to flick it in and when to roll the throttle on..