The zone!

[greminn]

Ahhh... another believer who knows exactly what I mean....

Thanks.

It was a really good afternoon

See this page: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flow_(psychology)

Ayrton Senna says it well:

The Formula 1 driver Ayrton Senna, who during qualifying for the 1988 Monaco Grand Prix explained: "I was already on pole, [...] and I just kept going. Suddenly I was nearly two seconds faster than anybody else, including my team mate with the same car. And suddenly I realised that I was no longer driving the car consciously. I was driving it by a kind of instinct, only I was in a different dimension. It was like I was in a tunnel."

He was in "The Zone"

[Katman]

The Formula 1 driver Ayrton Senna, who during qualifying for the 1988 Monaco Grand Prix explained: "I was already on pole, [...] and I just kept going. Suddenly I was nearly two seconds faster than anybody else, including my team mate with the same car. And suddenly I realised that I was no longer driving the car consciously. I was driving it by a kind of instinct, only I was in a different dimension. It was like I was in a tunnel."

He was in "The Zone"

He was also in a Formula 1 race.

The road is not a fucking racetrack.

[greminn]

My problem is the fact that you're promoting something that should not be part of any accelerated learning programme.

No offence... but where was this thread marked as having anything todo with an accelerated learning programme?

The fact that people are chiming in and saying "i know exactly what you mean" is just saying that what beyond wrote rings true with alot of people on this forum.

[Katman]

The fact that people are chiming in and saying "i know exactly what you mean" is just saying that what beyond wrote rings true with alot of people on this forum.

Then those people should realise that there is a very real danger of encouraging new riders to go out and search for 'the zone'.

Do you really think that new riders won't read this thread and think "fuck, I'm going out to get me a piece of that"?

It comes back to the 'collective responsibility' that has recently been discussed in another thread.

[greminn]

He was also in a Formula 1 race.

The road is not a fucking racetrack.

Dude!, it is about a state of mind. Most people here are adults with a sound mind (well maybe ). If you are not one of them and are going to read it wrong and go out an kill yourself thinking that you can cheat death... then you were probably going todo that at some stage in your life anyway.

Just because Sennas comment was said about a race on a racktrack does not mean that it does not apply to many many other things in life. Riding your bike, surfing, running, hell - i know computer programmers that talk about getting "In the zone".. They are not on a "fucken" racetrack.

I also get that it would be hard to kill yourself being a computer programmer

Again... no offence.

[JohnC]

He was also in a Formula 1 race.

The road is not a fucking racetrack.

The road may not be a race track,but the ideal being spoken about is the same,,,You just seem to have attached your own negitive spin to something that every bike rider is going to find for themselves one way or another sooner or later,,,,so they read about it on a motorcycle site from a guy that likes to talk about his own inturpretation of it.
Frankly I'm supprised somebody as judgmental as your coming across rides at all.
This could of been a good thread,,,,but then along came you with your "fucking" race track.

[Katman]

The road may not be a race track,but the ideal being spoken about is the same,,,You just seem to have attached your own negitive spin to something that every bike rider is going to find for themselves one way or another sooner or later,,,,so they read about it on a motorcycle site from a guy that likes to talk about his own inturpretation of it.
Frankly I'm supprised somebody as judgmental as your coming across rides at all.
This could of been a good thread,,,,but then along came you with your "fucking" race track.

Sorry, I should have realised as soon as I saw your 'Posts: 10'.

Hi, I'm Katman.

[greminn]

Then those people should realise that there is a very real danger of encouraging new riders to go out and search for 'the zone'.

I must say that the first post only wants me to go out, learn more, ride better so that i can get into "The Zone" more often.

[GOONR]

Then those people should realise that there is a very real danger of encouraging new riders to go out and search for 'the zone'.

Do you really think that new riders won't read this thread and think "fuck, I'm going out to get me a piece of that"?

It comes back to the 'collective responsibility' that has recently been discussed on here in another thread.

Im a new rider, I know my own limitations and will always stay well within them.

[Katman]

I must say that the first post only wants me to go out, learn more, ride better so that i can get into "The Zone" more often.

And that is why a new rider should not be encouraged - in an "accelerated learning" type of fucking way - to search for any fucking 'zone'.

(Fuck me, this is like pulling fucking teeth).

[beyond]

And that is why a new rider should not be encouraged - in an "accelerated learning" type of fucking way - to search for any fucking 'zone'.

(Fuck me, this is like pulling fucking teeth).

Keep it up and you'll be a dentist soon eh?

[greminn]

Sorry, I should have realised as soon as I saw your 'Posts: 10'.

Hi, I'm Katman.

Ah i should have realised your comments come from a mind at The Gates of Delirium.

Hi, Im greminn. Here in "normal land". Its a nice place. Common down!

[beyond]

The Formula 1 driver Ayrton Senna, who during qualifying for the 1988 Monaco Grand Prix explained: "I was already on pole, [...] and I just kept going. Suddenly I was nearly two seconds faster than anybody else, including my team mate with the same car. And suddenly I realised that I was no longer driving the car consciously. I was driving it by a kind of instinct, only I was in a different dimension. It was like I was in a tunnel."

He was in "The Zone"

That's the zone alright and yep, it's not for learners but learners will get there if they practice and work on getting their lines right and getting to know their bike inside and out and........ never mind... I won't convince Katman....

[Headbanger]

I'd expect F1 drivers to live in the zone when behind the wheel, That's where greatness happens. And you have to be pretty damn great to drive an F1....Let alone race them.

All Hail the Zone.

[greminn]

More on the same topic:

Nine elements of flow ("The Zone)


Csikszentmihalyi identified nine elements of flow that he saw repeatedly in his research:

1. There are clear goals every step of the way. In many everyday situations, there are contradictory demands and it’s sometimes quite unclear what should occupy our attention. But in a flow experience, you have a clear purpose and a good grasp of what to do next.

2. There is immediate feedback to one’s actions. When you’re in flow, you know how well you’re doing.

3. There is a balance between challenges and skills. If a challenge is too demanding compared to your skill level, you get frustrated. If it’s too easy, you get bored. In a flow experience, there is a pretty good match between your abilities and the demands of the situation. You feel engaged by the challenge, but not overwhelmed.

4. Action and awareness are merged. People are often thinking about something that happened - or might happen - in another time or place. But in flow, you’re concentrated on what you’re doing.

5. Distractions are excluded from consciousness. Because you’re absorbed in the activity, you’re only aware of what’s relevant to the task at hand, and you don’t think about unrelated things. By being focused on the activity, unease that can cause anxiety and depression is set aside.

6. There is no worry of failure. In a state of flow, you’re too involved to be concerned about failing. You just don’t think about failure. You know what has to be done and you just do it.

7. Self-consciousness disappears. People often spend a lot of mental energy monitoring how they appear to others. In a flow state, you’re too involved in the activity to care about protecting your ego. You might even feel connected to something larger than yourself. Paradoxically, the experience of letting go of the self can strengthen it.

8. The sense of time becomes distorted. Time flies when you’re really engaged. On the other hand, time may seem to slow down at the moment of executing some action for which you’ve trained and developed a high degree of skill.

9. The activity becomes “autotelic” (an end in itself, done for it’s own sake). Some activities are done for their own sake, for the enjoyment an experience provides, like most art, music, or sports. Other activities, which are done for some future purpose or goal - like things you have to do as part of your job - may only be a means to an end. But some of these goal-oriented activities can also become ends in themselves, and enjoyed for their own sake. Csikszentmihalyi concludes by saying that “in many ways, the secret to a happy life is to learn to get flow from as many of the things we have to do as possible.”

A-bloody-men to that!