Time to give it up?

[ratusratus]

if ya think of giving up go buy a car
you deserve each other

[P38]

Whens the right time to give it up?? (motorbikes OR riding)

About the same time you suck your last breath.

[Paul in NZ]

if ya think of giving up go buy a car
you deserve each other

Sorry - not following you at all on that one????

[Mort]

...........

[Mort]

I met a bloke in Taupo a couple of weeks back. He rode a Hornet 900. He was 83 years old. Been riding all his life. Looked good (for his age) and was witty, interesting and alert. A real pleasure to talk to.

I told my missus about him. She said "he's a bit old to be riding a bike don't you think ?"... I replied that it's probably riding a bike which has kept him so fit for his age.

Think not what you can do on the bike.... think what the bike can do for you.

[SARGE]

Whens the right time to give it up?? (motorbikes OR riding)

sorry big guy ... someone had to say it ....


they come with air bags now too.....

[pritch]

Some very creative responses..

I'm old enough to be contemplating changes in the next few years. I'd definitely like to keep riding but may have to get bikes more suited to someone with diminishing physical (and mental?) capability.

There are Ulysses members that ride scooters rather than give it away totally. I'd seriously consider that too if I had to.

There was a really ancient codger turned up to a function, he was unsteady on his feet and absolutely frightening on a bike. I parked it for him - he couldn't do it, and anytime he had his feet down he looked like he was about to drop it.

He was telling me that once on an intercity trip he pulled up at a set of lights in a busy town on SH1 and his gear lever stuck, he reached down to work it by hand and just slowly toppled over in the middle of the road.

It seems unkind but I think he was past his motorcycling use by date... Definitely on that bike anyway.

And Paul, best wishes for a recovery from the health problem.

[Box'a'bits]

Sometimes your desire to ride again is stimulated by riding a different bike or styles of bike. Someone suggested scooters (got one), or lighter bikes. Some Ulysses members have gone to trikes when their balance failed.

I get quite a lot of pleasure just pottering around the bike at times. There have been periods where I haven't riden for an age (for a number of reasons), but suddenly come back to it with a vengance. Keeping a bike around need not be expensive - you can put rego on hold.

Bikes are too much a part of my life to give away totally. I can accept that there are other ways to enjoy them though...

[James Deuce]

And Paul, best wishes for a recovery from the health problem.

That's more like it. That's the kernel of the message being delivered and I would have thought a community would be a bit more sensitive and supportive.

Having had a whole bunch of issues and actually dropping my bike just down the road from Paul's place after not long being out of hospital I know how he feels - a little bit.

He's done more than anyone I can think of to help people in all sorts of ways, not just biking related stuff, and deserves better than comments about riding until you die, or snide remarks about cars.

[SARGE]

That's more like it. That's the kernel of the message being delivered and I would have thought a community would be a bit more sensitive and supportive.

Having had a whole bunch of issues and actually dropping my bike just down the road from Paul's place after not long being out of hospital I know how he feels - a little bit.

He's done more than anyone I can think of to help people in all sorts of ways, not just biking related stuff, and deserves better than comments about riding until you die, or snide remarks about cars.

totally agree JD..

Paul .. let me relate a bit of a personal story to ya ..

my dad has Vascular Dementia ( Alzheimers on steroids).. his mind is going away more every day and he is a mere shade of his former self ..

i showed him pix of my FJ and i saw a spark light up in his eyes.. he's still a biker

if i go down that road( likely) i am going to tell my wife to hand me the bike keys and im going out on my terms .. doing what i love to do..


fishing .. boating .. knitting .. whatever .. youre never too old to do what you love .. even if its just sitting on it in the shed and making engine sounds

[Bend-it]

Thing is once I get into a project I find the project more fun than the riding. Weird, eh? Massively satisfying to produce a rideable bike that's better than the state you found it in, but it leaves you going, "Right! Next!".

Tell ya what... I'll be your newest buddy, and give you a hand with all that dreary riding bollocks... I supply you with clapped out dunger, you have all the fun of doing them up, then I'll do the dreary riding from then, deal?

[Bend-it]

Yes well, part of this is trying to prevent my early demise or worse, injuring someone I love or even a stranger (although nothings stranger than loving me)...

I am experiencing some health issues that potentially make riding dangerous to me and possibly to others (my primary concern). I went for a spin the other day and while it was fun, the stress of this made it a lot less fun than it should be. I've not got a concrete diagnosis so please don't ask (it wont be shared here, this is enough) yet. But it has currently eroded my conidence slightly which is an odd feeling because I've never really felt worried at all on a bike... Worse, I'm so busy monitoring this internal thing I'm not being as aware of the external things.

Its not nice riding knowing you are doing it poorly.?

Kudos for seeing it this way... Riding is about freedom and enjoyment, so when you ride because you feel like you should because you're a "biker", then it defeats the purpose. All the biking bravado around here is just that bravado, and you are no less (or more) of a person whether you ride or not.

So yeah, relax about it... if you don't get the right feel, then don't go. If you do, then go for it... until the doctors tell you definitely one way or the other...

[vifferman]

I am experiencing some health issues that potentially make riding dangerous to me and possibly to others (my primary concern). I went for a spin the other day and while it was fun, the stress of this made it a lot less fun than it should be.... But it has currently eroded my conidence slightly which is an odd feeling because I've never really felt worried at all on a bike... Worse, I'm so busy monitoring this internal thing I'm not being as aware of the external things.

Although I'm not you, and your experience is different, I do know Eggs Zachary how you feel.
I remember riding and feeling VERY switched on, VERY aware and alert, in complete control. Lately the "VERYs" have somehow morphed into "MOSTLY" or even "SOMEWHAT". Like I said - still probably/possibly 235% better'n yer average D'Aucklandriver, but it's enough to dilute the riding experience and give one pause.

Talking of which (sort of) - I've fuktmyback. Stayed home the last tow days, then decided I'd go to work, of for no other reason than I was bored at home, and tired of the Marge Simpson-esque noises of disapproval from the vifferbabe. (What? Is one not allowed to use one's sick leave when one is not fit for work?!?) So, I set off for work this morning in the car, and got about 3 or 4 hundred metres before turning back. I girded my loins for wet weather, and set off again on the VFR. Still hurts, but the strange thing is that riding a bike is so totally engaging that it's easier to ignore the pain.
Strange, but I guess it's a large part of the allure. It's why I persisted with communtering by bike despite nearly being squished by a bus the very first time I tried it in D'Auckland: love the alertness it engenders. Much better'n a double espresso.

[caseye]

You'll know when it's time.
If it is, it is! Ya can't argue with fate, but you can tempt it for a bit longer and see if it bites.or not.

[Shadows]

Yes well, part of this is trying to prevent my early demise or worse, injuring someone I love or even a stranger (although nothings stranger than loving me)...

I am experiencing some health issues that potentially make riding dangerous to me and possibly to others (my primary concern). I went for a spin the other day and while it was fun, the stress of this made it a lot less fun than it should be. I've not got a concrete diagnosis so please don't ask (it wont be shared here, this is enough) yet. But it has currently eroded my conidence slightly which is an odd feeling because I've never really felt worried at all on a bike... Worse, I'm so busy monitoring this internal thing I'm not being as aware of the external things.

Its not nice riding knowing you are doing it poorly.

Early days but does anyone want an 850 lemans?

Nothing worse than being preoccupied or worried about stuff when riding, especially when one's health is concerned.

Myself? If I found my confidence knocked back like you mentioned I wouldn't be ignoring it, that's your intuition, subconscious, or whatever you want to call it sending you a pretty clear message.

I'd be parking the bikes up until I found myself in a better headspace and / or I knew for sure whether or not I could carry on riding.

I hope you're OK, Paul. You're a good bastard.