Mind over matter

[fyrgem]

The mind is a very powerful thing.

It can convince you something will be harder than it actually is.

I learn this everytime I go for a ride, always learning something new, and building my confidence.


Rode over the Harbour Bridge for the FIRST time this morning!
For some reason a steep driveway, traffic, motorway riding and that bridge had delayed my first ride to work for 2 weeks.
Turns out I have the skills to overcome all of that, room for improvement of course BUT I actually had fun!


So if you are nervous about your first ride/open road/motorway/traffic you will discover that with practice you'll be surprised what you can achieve
Even if you ask some of the old boys and girls, they'll tell you they are still learning something new everyride, no matter how small.

Problem is... now I don't want to be at work but riding!!!

[Banditbandit]

Bwhahahaha .. every day I ride to work I don't want to stop at the gate ...

Good on you for giving it a go ...

[fyrgem]

might have to take the long way home

[iYRe]

I quite often have to take the long way to work.. well.. "have to" is relative.. I choose to, or I'd never stop once I got to the office.

[Tigadee]

Heh! Heh! I remember my very first time on the motorway - 80kph seemed scary then! Then 2nd time 80kph was OK and 100kph seemed scary.

Hard to believe that was a year and a half ago. We live and we learn... Or should that be "We learn and we'll live"..?

might have to take the long way home

"That's a bad idea," said NO ONE ever...

[Maha]

Been there in heavy traffic/raining/wind gusts and 2up...60 seconds of intense concerntration

[fyrgem]

Heh! Heh! I remember my very first time on the motorway - 80kph seemed scary then! Then 2nd time 80kph was OK and 100kph seemed scary.

When I got my learner licence 3 years ago you weren't allowed over 70kph, so now I have a bike and I'm riding again, motorways and higher speeds are new to me. exciting and scary all at the same time. I'm not too bad at 80kph, visited 100kph a few times downhill on the mway and that was a little butt-clencher moment

[Tigadee]

I'm not too bad at 80kph, visited 100kph a few times downhill on the mway and that was a little butt-clencher moment

Good times...

[Grashopper]

Took me ages to make it to a petrol station on my bike. Was to worried I would slip, drop the bike and totally embarrass myself...

[Glowerss]

Been there in heavy traffic/raining/wind gusts and 2up...60 seconds of intense concerntration

To be honest, even on really windy days I never find the harbour bridge to ever be too big a drama.

Now, the causeway along the northwestern between rosebank and great north road. Anytime it's windy is downright fucking ridiculous. Particularly coming down the offramp, you just get hit with a wall of air.

Last time I went across that when it was windy, it was simultaneously blowing me straight into the concrete barrier, and against me to such a degree i had to drop down to fourth from 6th just to hold steady at 80kph. Couldn't go any faster till I cleared it.

[strandedinnz]

When I got my learner licence 3 years ago you weren't allowed over 70kph, so now I have a bike and I'm riding again, motorways and higher speeds are new to me. exciting and scary all at the same time. I'm not too bad at 80kph, visited 100kph a few times downhill on the mway and that was a little butt-clencher moment

Give it a week and you'll be lane splitting and shouting abuse at all and sundry for daring to get in your way! ;-) hehehe

Just wait till you get a bike that can do silly speeds ... my first 250kph run was an eye opener, and I look forward to trying out a bike that can go past 300 .. just to see what it's like :-)

[fyrgem]

Took me ages to make it to a petrol station on my bike. Was to worried I would slip, drop the bike and totally embarrass myself...

I know the feeling I was afraid I was going to overfill the dam tank and spray gas everywhere. then I had trouble putting the lid back on so to avoid holding up traffic I rolled to the side to sort myself out

Now, the causeway along the northwestern between rosebank and great north road. Anytime it's windy is downright fucking ridiculous. Particularly coming down the offramp, you just get hit with a wall of air.

I know the bit your talking about! if it doesn't flood the wind will wash you away

[fyrgem]

Give it a week and you'll be lane splitting and shouting abuse at all and sundry for daring to get in your way! ;-) hehehe

I'm hoping to leave my road rage in my cage, even my partner says I'm bad haha but I do feel more and more apart of that bike everytime I ride it. eventually it'll be second nature. at the moment all I want to do is ride

[iYRe]

The worst bit, imho, is the south western going north.. the wind whistles up the harbour and is funneled into a narrow bit there. I've been through there when it was blowing so hard that I could literally not lean the bike to corner. All the highsided vans/trucks were crawling at 10-20kmh.. most terrifying situation I have been in. Around the same time, I was stopped at some lights, 2 feet down... van beside me moved away and I got hit by the wind (I was on the "lee" side). If it wasnt for some good luck I'd have been flat down

[fyrgem]

The worst bit, imho, is the south western going north.. the wind whistles up the harbour and is funneled into a narrow bit there. I've been through there when it was blowing so hard that I could literally not lean the bike to corner. All the highsided vans/trucks were crawling at 10-20kmh.. most terrifying situation I have been in. Around the same time, I was stopped at some lights, 2 feet down... van beside me moved away and I got hit by the wind (I was on the "lee" side). If it wasnt for some good luck I'd have been flat down

I drive a work van on the weekend, hate it. It's like a driving a gaint sail