What will it take to slow you down?

**beyond** · 18th September 2006, 20:56

Well, I think this is a very serious question and one we all need to look at closely.

As you know, I saw a very good mate come to grief on Saturday's Coro loop and he is a top rider and knows his stuff. If I had been in front, it would more than likely have been me.

I have been thinking the same as R6_kid. I have seen four of my mates go down this year and three didn't get off lightly. I've been offroad twice this year, once becuase for no reason my rear decided to overtake the front on a corner at speed (140) and the second time a brief lapse of concentration, too busy looking at the scenery and got a closer look than I wanted. (170)

The good think about a naked bike, you have no fairings to total so all the damage was superficial, except the last one took me a while to walk properly after clouting the road with my knee.
When I was young, I was a hoon on bikes. I love speed and always have. But I also love twisties and go as hard as my bike will allow.

After 25 years of not riding, I bought my 1400 last year January as I figured that seeing I'm knocking on 50, I will have settled down, so a sports cruiser would do the trick and my missus would be comfortable as we tootle of to Whangamata for lunch. But guess what, one month after owning the bike I'm up to my od tricks. Bitten by the bug again and just can't help myself go hard or speed.

Often I think, what will it take. Before I head out on a ride I think, this time take it easy, enjoy the scenery. That lasts about five minutes. Also, I don't just ride hard in a group or with others either. When on my own I really push the envelope hard for the sheer thrill.

You actually become immune to adrenaline surges when facing close calls and many times I have brought the bike out of a loss of control situation and you think, you egg, pull back some and then 10kms later away you go again.

Biking is addictive. I can't help myself. I could not stand to see a friend or fellow biker die in front of me. I know others who it has happened to and they have never ridden again.

It would be great if normal sensible riding gace you the rush you get from balsting along, but it doesn't. As a day out progresses, you push harder and go faster.

So what to do?? Lets all book in for counselling classes and speed addiction therapy.

proble is, all the people I ride with regularly, have gone down this year and for all of us, if we ride hard and fast, it's a mater of time isn't it?

None of us are invincible and none of us have a ticket to say we are guaranteed to live to 70 or 80 whatever happens.

I like to think I will and make it in one peice but we sure are pushing the odds against it. Comes down to our own human mortality.

**Edbear** · 18th September 2006, 20:56

Originally Posted by Clivoris

All of the above.

Wot he said. And surviving to my age now, and realising just how tenuous our hold on life is. Still have fun, but tempered by the desire to live long enough to be a problem to the children...

**Lou Girardin** · 18th September 2006, 20:57

Nothing the cops can do.
Not seeing a mate die driving at the speed limit after a lifetime of hooning.
Not seeing more dead people than most of you have.
Not seeing more accidents than most of you have.
No amount of stupid adverts.
I will continue driving in a manner and at a speed I feel safe at.

**BarBender** · 18th September 2006, 21:07

Therapy might do it for me.

**McJim** · 18th September 2006, 21:10

Mmmmm - can't answer this - I haven't got fast yet.

**scumdog** · 18th September 2006, 21:13

Originally Posted by Big Dave

None of those options G.

The potential for losing my licence and not being able to ride has done it however.
I sold my sports bike and bought the tractor and am actually enjoying riding even more.

Me too, the T-Sport 'probably' only will do 180-190kmh but as I cruise rather than fang it I'm not worried about tickets/binning, I just enjoy the ride.

**merv** · 18th September 2006, 21:18

With age I'm finding its my eyes that are slowing me down - as it is I've had to take to wearing glasses but that whole control, depth perception, cornering thing just aint what it used to be for me so I'm already not as fast as I used to be I am sure. So far not much else matters so I voted "Other".

**Ixion** · 18th September 2006, 21:29

Where is the option for "I already ride slower than Nana's nana, and any slower would be dangerous, due to the risk of being sucked off the bike by the slipstream from overtaking snails" ?

But I have never gotten any sort of "buzz" from speed, as speed. The satisfaction of elegance, recognising the harmony of the machine and the forces acting on it, yes, like a dancer, the feeling of balance, the intellectual satisfaction of assessing those forces, yes. But speed itself has never done anything for me. I like a good STEADY speed , where the road just unwinds and slips past and man, road and machine become a gestalt whole . That requires a certain minimum speed , which varies with road and machine, for below that speed the effect does not occur.

**Maha** · 18th September 2006, 21:34

If i slow down anymore, then i would lose any respect i have, from crashe.....

Hypathetically, if that wanker yesterday on SH16 had come to grief, that would not have an effect on what speed i ride at. If he had been cleaned out by a car/truck whatever, would have totally been his fault, and the irony is, in a bikers eyes, it would have been the car/truck drivers fault, cos the dumbass cager never saw him, so seeing a dead dude wont change the way i ride.... i will click 'other'....i had an incident with my car 10 years ago, some of you may have noticed the scar....well that slowed me down in more ways that one....

**BarBender** · 18th September 2006, 21:34

Originally Posted by Ixion

But I have never gotten any sort of "buzz" from speed, as speed. The satisfaction of elegance, recognising the harmony of the machine and the forces acting on it, yes, like a dancer, the feeling of balance, the intellectual satisfaction of assessing those forces, yes. But speed itself has never done anything for me. I like a good STEADY speed , where the road just unwinds and slips past and man, road and machine become a gestalt whole . That requires a certain minimum speed , which varies with road and machine, for below that speed the effect does not occur.

Dude - Arent you the one that went past me at about 120k's up a hill and around a cnr just before Mangawai on a 250 ride back in April?
Or was Petal in a bad mood with you for making her stay at the back for the first half of the ride?

**R6_kid:Me** · 18th September 2006, 21:40

Originally Posted by Ixion

Where is the option for "I already ride slower than Nana's nana, and any slower would be dangerous, due to the risk of being sucked off the bike by the slipstream from overtaking snails" ?

But I have never gotten any sort of "buzz" from speed, as speed. The satisfaction of elegance, recognising the harmony of the machine and the forces acting on it, yes, like a dancer, the feeling of balance, the intellectual satisfaction of assessing those forces, yes. But speed itself has never done anything for me. I like a good STEADY speed , where the road just unwinds and slips past and man, road and machine become a gestalt whole . That requires a certain minimum speed , which varies with road and machine, for below that speed the effect does not occur.

get off the drugs, this is a discussion, not a poetry group

**Ixion** · 18th September 2006, 22:12

Originally Posted by BarBender

Dude - Arent you the one that went past me at about 120k's up a hill and around a cnr just before Mangawai on a 250 ride back in April?
Or was Petal in a bad mood with you for making her stay at the back for the first half of the ride?

That wasn't Petal. That was Little Ratty. Petal doesn't do corners. But it wasn't fast, only 120kph

**car** · 18th September 2006, 22:23

Originally Posted by R6_kid

So what do you think would need to happen in your life to slow you down?

I was tired, with a new baby in the house. My paternity leave was almost up, I was going to have to get back on the daily commute. I made a very, very, very silly mistake while prepping my bike, and my hand got dragged into the back sprocket.

Lost the end of my right thumb. Didn't hurt a bit, until a few days later, then it hurt like a bastard for a couple of weeks. But more than the pain was the constant visual reminder, "There, you've gone and done something really irreversible now, you can wear it like a badge. Happy now? Is this what you wanted?"

Not really. I was miserable for the three weeks my hand was in bandages, and every day I considered selling the bike. Every day I wondered what it was that I was trying to achieve by risking my life, riding like a fool, taking stupid chances.

My friends convinced me not to sell on a snap decision, and they were right.

A few weeks later I was back on the bike, but not so much, and I don't think I've ridden quite as stupidly as I did before. I'm happier to keep it sane when I know I'm not up to the job. No silly overtakes. I sometimes get a bit quick, but the conditions have to be right and I have to be in the mood.

Maybe I'm just getting old.