How the ride feels

[slofox]

Does anyone else experience this or is it just me?
Some days I go out to ride and it all just goes click without any effort. And then on other days it is hard work - I don't trust the bike, road, myself, whatever, and tend to ride without full confidence.
Today it all worked. Despite some fog patches etc, I had full faith in the machine and even the tar melted roads. I felt relaxed and at one with the experience. Effortless and so very much more enjoyable. Yesterday was the opposite, at least on the first half of the ride. I felt edgy, the road looked slippery and I generally took it real easy, although coming back was a lot better.
I don't know what makes the difference from day to day. Could be my own physical or mental state. Could be how I sit on the bike. Could be weather or some other unknown factors that I have not thought of yet.
Any thoughts?

[Reido]

yes, very much so

yesterday was crap for me. it just didnt feel right,
20km into the ride, going left at an intersection with too much gas/revs etc, back wheel spun and slid 30cm? or something... stopped went back.. something slippery >_<


but yeah i have days like that.. everything goes right, or nothing does

strange isnt it?

[Pwalo]

I think everyone gets that from time to time.

I ride pretty well every day, and most of the time I'm pretty relaxed about the whole thing, but every now and then I'll feel out of sorts, almost as if I'm out of time/rythm/something.

To be honest I don't think about riding, as such, when I'm on the bike. Too many other things to pay attention to on the work run.

[vifferman]

I have some days where I know I'm really tired or out of sorts, and have to make a mental note to be extra careful on the bike so I don't cock things up and die. (Yeah I *know* I should take the car instead on those days, but it's not always an option).
Apart from tiredness or mental distractions (worries of the day or whatever), I dunno why sometimes things don't click. Being aware of it and disciplining yourself to allow for it, or alternatively stay off the bike, is all you can do to deal with it, I guess.
More worrying for me is 'grumpy days', when I feel like shit and ride like a dick because of it. It's very hard to not give in to that.

[prettybillie]

It's nice to hear that I'm not the only one who feels like this.

[Murray]

Does anyone else experience this or is it just me?
Some days I go out to ride and it all just goes click without any effort. And then on other days it is hard work

Any thoughts?

Hey Slofox it could depend on how much of your wine your've been drinking???

Nah I think it happens to every one, especially if you do not ride regularly!!

cheers

[Anarkist]

Yeah, definitely. I went for a slide down the pavement last night because of a lapse in concentration.

Some days just aren't meant for riding. :sweatdrop

[spookytooth]

Yep some days it i just dont click with the bike and road'some days everything just feels right.Having said that i haven't been on a ride and thought i wish i had stayed home :)

[slofox]

1.)Hey Slofox it could depend on how much of your wine your've been drinking???

2.) Nah I think it happens to every one, especially if you do not ride regularly!!

cheers

1.) har de har har...:blah:...it could be, but since I am not allowed to drink any of it, it shouldn't be.....(or maybe it is the NOT drinking!!!).

2.) I ride every day, so that's not it either....sigh...

In fact, anything I have done in the sport line has been like this. When I was a squash player I had on days and off days. These days partner and I compete on the dance floor and we have the same thing there. Some days it is effortless and you get what they call "flight" going ( you get about two minutes of this per year of training...). On other days the feet are made of lead and we lumber around the floor like lame elephants....guess the bike thing is just more of the same old same old.....

[slofox]

Having said that i haven't been on a ride and thought i wish i had stayed home :)

I agree - the worst day riding is better than the best day working...

[Stirts]

And I thought I was special :weep:

On the bad rides I talk out loud (well shout actually) to myself.
"Concentrate you fuck knuckle" is the main one. It works most of the time.

A very wise man once told me "if you are having a shit arse ride, pull over, walk round your bike a couple of times, then get back on" That works sometimes too.

I always do a little self analysis of what state I am in, and if I am feeling off, either physically or mentally I will not ride.

[Fatt Max]

Yep, same trouble here.

Some days I cant settle in, keep shifting in the seat and just cant get comfortable. I did read a thread about getting the seating position right and everything just falls into place from there.

I also have days when for the life of me I cannot find neutral without a whole heap of stomping on the clutch pedal and swearing in my lid about life in general.

Then I have great days, it feels comfortable, smooth ride, no heavy braking and life is great.

I suppose its cos we are (in the majority) human have this wonderful gift of being different.

Thats my story anyway's.......great thread, really interesting...

[spookytooth]

I also have days when for the life of me I cannot find neutral without a whole heap of stomping on the clutch pedal and swearing in my lid about life in general.





on those days try stomping on the gear lever:yes:

[retro asian]

I also have days when for the life of me I cannot find neutral without a whole heap of stomping on the clutch pedal and swearing in my lid about life in general.

:yes:
Must be a VL250 thing....

[ManDownUnder]

hell yes - some days I got my mojo - and not others... and I ride/keep distances etc accordingly...

[wysper]

Does anyone else experience this or is it just me?


Clearly its not just you. I get this too. Some days I just turn around and come back home.


/rhythm/

yep. thats it for me. If you aren't is sync or rhythm then for me it is all custard.



Nah I think it happens to every one, especially if you do not ride regularly!!



I ride practically every day (commute) and even on some of those rides, same roads, same time of day and same weather... it just doesnt feel right.. I corner poorly, misread traffic flow etc... some days I just have brain fade... dangerous days those.

[ViragoVixen]

Phew - what a relief! I have the same prob. Some days its like I was born to ride and others ...well they're just frustrating. It's lucky the lid can't respond to my outbursts. :pinch:

[mattian]

totally understand where your coming from. My favourite part of my day is riding to work in the morning....... The traffics heavy but, I'm sharp and extra focused on potential hazards, its kind of nerve wracking at times but, thats part of the enjoyment factor. On the other hand, my ride home in the afternoon when I am tired usually ends up with me getting worked up about something silly that I normally wouldn't get upset about, and done some stupid shit just because somebody pissed me off, You can never underestimate that fatigue factor and learning to recognise it has to be a good thing.

[trump-lady]

I have this too. I always think of it like surfing. Surfers have shit days, shit conditions, get cold but they still go out and surf. Why? Cause like us its the one wave that keeps em coming back. For us its that ride where everythings in sync. Cant possibly have this every ride cause then it would just be normal. I think we all strive for that perfect ride and that is what keeps us riding.

I think prob multiple things trigger a "bad unsynced ride" I always ride to how Im feeling, if Im uncomfortable, slow and steady. People who ride with me will be able to tell how Im feeling by how Im riding. I can never tell if it will be bad before I get on the bike but can feel it very quickly after 1 minute.

I have been known to turn around and go home also if its really bad.

Heres another one, at times like this I also find myself thinking about coming off. This never happens when Im in sync.

[bezajel]

totally understand where your coming from. My favourite part of my day is riding to work in the morning....... The traffics heavy but, I'm sharp and extra focused on potential hazards, its kind of nerve wracking at times but, thats part of the enjoyment factor. On the other hand, my ride home in the afternoon when I am tired usually ends up with me getting worked up about something silly that I normally wouldn't get upset about, and done some stupid shit just because somebody pissed me off, You can never underestimate that fatigue factor and learning to recognise it has to be a good thing.

Heh, I'm the opposite, much more likely to have poor concentration in the morning, whereas in the afternoon I'm more awake (though, the traffic's worse).

Some rides I just don't click, and have to keep reminding myself to pay attention, and catch when I start to drift off. Mornings argh!

[mattian]

Heh, I'm the opposite, much more likely to have poor concentration in the morning, whereas in the afternoon I'm more awake (though, the traffic's worse).

Some rides I just don't click, and have to keep reminding myself to pay attention, and catch when I start to drift off. Mornings argh!

Yeah, its a bit of a dilema when you have to commute on your bike everyday because you have no other choice. When you feel edgy and feel like under any other circumstance you probably wouldn't go out for a ride is the time when you have to tell yourself to be extra vigilent...... even more so than usual.:sunny:

[bezajel]

I guess I do have another choice... catch a bus!

It's just a bad choice.......... !

[Mikkel]

I usually need to warm up a bit in the mornings - takes a couple of minutes before I gel with the bike. How well I manage to gel with the bike varies quite a bit though...

[Dean]

I find when i dont ride for like a week or longer i hop on my bike and feel a bit nervous and ride appauling,it takes a while for me to get back in my mojo/rhythm.But these times its actually good for me and maybe good for you other riders because when you have these shit days it should only strive you to make your skills more better, to strive for that perfect ride

[sunhuntin]

yep, get that every now and then. sometimes, a bad feeling ride usually is a hint that some bint is gonna try and kill me. i talk myself into slowing down or stopping whatever bad habit behaviour im doing.

on a side note, does anyone notice different wind temps? when i was riding home from grubs farewell, i kept noticing chills in the wind, like what you get when riding near water, but this was all country, hills etc and no water to speak of. it was really weird as ive never had that before.