The New And Improved Unofficial R65 Forum V2
General Category => Chit-Chat => Topic started by: rob650 on October 10, 2007, 11:18:13 PM
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Evening everybody.
I got back from a 3-day weekend recently, (almost all of it riding, thank you God) and came to the realization that after 22 years of bike ownership and a lotta miles, I still don't ride very aggressively. I'm talking about the two-lane twisties where cycles like ours should really shine.
Several times I found myself heading for turns, kind of positioning myself to to keep up my speed and sail right through as the bikes around me would do, but at the last second I tend to"back off" a bit. In my head, I'd chalk it up to not being able to see far enough in the turn, or unfamilar roads, or a bump or something knocking my "balance" off a hair, so I better slow down a little. But I saw myself doing this over and over and it was starting to annoy the crap out of my male pride in my riding abilities.
My bike is in fine shape. Tires are almost new and the correct PSI. I don't think I have any suspension issues, but maybe there are some adjustments that need to be addressed that I don't know anything about. This is still the best handling bike I've ever owned...others were UJM's
I've have had several accidents in my riding life, maybe self preservation is holding me back?
Or am I just flippin' wuss?
I'd appreciate hearing what you all have to say. Maybe its time to take a riding class. It was still an AWESOME three day weekend!
Thanks
Rob
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Your age? Kids? Overall health? Spouse or SO?
I find myself at 51, with 2 kids in college, doing precisely the same thing.
It bothers me sometimes, but mostly I just try to enjoy my 7/10ths riding: beats the hell outta 0/10ths.
Don't know what you'd call it exactly, but I just wanta have fun without getting hurt these days.
I fully realize that I won't heal as well as I could at 20, have a helluva lot more to lose, and no longer have that young mans invincibility/"I'll live forever" thing going on. I can see the light at the end of the tunnel now.
ATGATT's another sure sign: I see the young guys in shorts and t-shirts literally going 100+ on 6-lane I-40 every day, with less-than-zero room for error, and it rattles me more than a little sometimes. I wear my gear, but nothings gonna help much if you crash like that.
Instead of "wussiness", I much prefer to think of it as "maturity"...
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38. No kids. In good shape. Spouse/SO.
What you say makes sense. I do have more responsibilities, and more to lose these days. maybe it is maturity and just enjoying those 7/10ths. Can't bouce off the roofs of cars like I used to...Thanks NCSteve
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I have to agree with the above, but even then, sometimes if you are 'in the groove' and all is well with the world, the road and your bike, then you may find yourself riding to the best of your ability and a big grin is your reward.
But when you are not 'in the groove', just ride safely. You cannot be a superhero every day. Only push on if you are feeling 100%.
Being 'in the groove' these days for me only happens a few times a year. The road has to be the right road with minimal traffic, the weather has to be good, the bike has to be 100%, my humour has to be good. Does not happen often, but when it does its great!
However, I am fine when not all of the above criteria is met. As said above you cannot have it all your own way all the time.
Steve H
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I have two smallish sports cars ( Honda Civic CRX Si, BMW Z-3 3.0i ) and I am a lot more aggressive in cornering with those vehicles, than on either of my bikes. Unless you are in a controlled environment, ( race track) , you just don't know what's in the road ahead, or on the wrong side of the road. I'd call it self preservation, and the fact that my 51 year old body is not going to heal very well in the event of a serious incident !!
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+1 on the maturity. My R65 is too heavily loaded for that kind of riding. But even when I ride the much more maneuverable A65 Thunderbolt or the Firebird with its new Avons or the insainly maneuverable Honda CBR600F - I'm not riding flat out. In the tight twisties even on a perfect day I still don't have x-ray vision that allows me to see through the hill to the exit of the corner. I find myself going faster when I have a fast rider in front of me and his brake light is giving me an indication of what the exits look like, his tires are telling me what the traction is like (oil? gravel?). And if he runs away well that is fine. I let him go.
I have met the sausage creature* and it is a terrible sight to behold. Its breath is cold and damp and short. Its skin is pale covered in matted hair, broken. Its eyes see right through you like you are not even standing there.
I guess that makes me a wuss....happy to be just putt-putting along! 8-)
*Hat tip - Hunter S. Thompson http://www.latexnet.org/~csmith/sausage.html
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Being 'in the groove' these days for me only happens a few times a year. The road has to be the right road with minimal traffic, the weather has to be good, the bike has to be 100%, my humour has to be good. Does not happen often, but when it does its great!
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I'm with Steve: sometimes I ride aggressively, under the right circumstances. I tend to ride the Triumph much harder than the R65, maybe just because it weighs much less. But the R65 does fine too. I'm riding it down to a tech day by Oakridge this Saturday and if I have time I may ride the Aufderheide again, but I'm expecting leaves and needles on the pavement this time of year so I'll probably take it easy and enjoy the scenery, unlike last month.
In the book Proficient Motorcycling, he talks about how many seconds ahead you want to be able to see, based on how fast you are going. Sadly I can't remember the figure, but I definitely try not to outrun my sightline. You need to be able to stop before you hit something around the next curve; one time for me it was an SUV in my lane coming my direction as he went around a stopped garbage truck. I have good brakes. :-)
I need to get that book back from my brother, I doubt he'll ever read it if he hasn't by now.
And Bob: CRXs corner really well, don't they?
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I like to enjoy my R65 in the twistys, and living in Langdale, I have the delights of the lake land roads n my doorstep. As to how hard I push it depends on my mood, the road surface and the weather, but most of all (and I' m not proud of it) whether I am in a hurry...
Having said that when I am just looking for an accleration fix or in the mood for a mad half hour I usually pinch the wifes Kawasaki as its got better breaks, suspension and in comprison to the beemer handles like a 250..
Tony
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I'm 62 and still enjoy the twisties sometimes. I have 4 air heads to pick from, and due to the raw power of the R90/6 and the R100RS they usually get the nod when those times come. The R65 is light and does a great job also, but the torgue of the big twins is what lights my fire. I'm not as aggressive as I used to be due to slower reaction times etc. My days of doing the Predmore schools are over. A couple times a year when the all the stars and the moon line up correctly is enough for me these days :).
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If you live in an area where you are riding on twisting turning roads quite often, you're going to be more proficient at it than some one like me that has resided in the flat-lands all of their life. Even here in Phoenix, you have a good 5 hour ride to get to ' interesting' roads that are not clogged up with traffic. So I do not consider myself at all proficient in high performance riding. There are too many variables out there, that can reach out and ruin your day before you know what hit you !!!
Yes Ed , I think the CRX is one of the most fun cages that could be bought for $10,000 new 16 years ago ! I've got a brake job coming up in a few weeks on vacation, EBC pads, new rotors, fresh Yokohama AVS tires, and warranty replacement Koni adjustable struts for the front. I've got a back-roads assault planned, before I go back to work, unless snow gets in my way !
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Years ago I was introduced to the adage: There are old pilots and there are bold pilots but there are no old bold pilots. I think this applies to motorcyclists quite well. I enjoy riding at my own pace and I pick my time and place to ride, all in an effort to reduce my exposure to risk in what is a pastime that is inherently risky. I'll take my thrills with a side of common sense and a realistic assessment of my abilities at 52. Your no wuss and I'd probably enjoy riding with you.
rick
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It's just a adjustment one has to make in life. I am in my 60's.............. use to have the lighting fast reaction time of a mongoose till I hit about 45. Now....while not as slow as sloth.......... I am slower for sure. So........I simply call it common sense..maturity will work also. One simply has to adjust. Hitting a curve at speed you know you can handle.....even if it is a bit slower....does not make one a wuss....it just means you not a stupid chit. Your smart enough to know what your limits are. Another part is....if your like me......you once pushed things a bit....and having been there......... done that....do not feel the need to do it again. From the time you see the pothole.....the bump in the road and react to it is slower. It just a hard core fact of life that one gets slower with age. Also figuring into the equation.....is the number of people dependent on you now and the knowledge that one does not heal nearly so quickly. But life is beautiful, fun............taking the grand kids for a ride is totally cool. So...........life may be moving a heart beat..... .or two slower.....the ride is still great, the country side still as beautiful. Tis a damn fine world we live it....slow down and enjoy it.
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I guess 'aggressively' is a relative term. I tend to ride a bit faster than some, and a bit slower than
others in general. But, I tend to use my tires and not my brakes in turns - smoothness is what I
strive for, whether it is at 35 mph or 70+ mph. I like the little R65, as it seems that I can take
almost any line I like through most turns, where on bigger, longer,heavier bikes one has to
do more trajectory planning in advance when approaching the turn. I do occasionally drag
bits in turns, but not frequently as I hate scraped up stuff, and keep my suspension and tires
adjusted to ensure I get good lean angles (and I haven't owned a 'cruiser' type bike in 10 years).
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Good words from all you guys, appreciate it.
Feels like the hand of "maturity" grabbin the back of my jacket, and pulling me off the throttle a bit sometimes, like I do to my little nephew when he's about to walk into something. MrRiden, I've heard that old/bold adage also, and I plan on being an old biker!
Ah, the good old days when I could fly over the hood of a "hit and run" driver, and walk out of the ER under my own power the next day...
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Some days are just wonderful when you feel just so balanced and happy. I probably have never ridden super fast anywhere BUT what I enjoy most is what is called the "PACE" ...a smooth cornering at a good pace, doing nothing suddenly, in control, and for me picking good cornering lines through the turns. Knowing that I cannot see all the way through a turn really really interferes even with my choice of approach, through and exit lines. If ya can't see or the hazards are many and varied I guess a smooth cornering equal radius path is the best but certainly not the "funnest"
I bet it is fun when a road is closed for an event and everyone knows no one is coming the other way! But, my brain would then be thinking that there would be wet leaves and gravel right on my chosen path! :o
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Sue, I think my current style is pretty much in line with your approach to cornering. I found out that booze, gravel, and skin don't mix very well at about 19 years of age and it gave me a glimpse of my own mortality. I will admit, however, to still pushing the speed thing in a straight line or when I can see well ahead of me!
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I like to ride fast, always have. Not fast downtown, well maybe sometimes light to light, but fast on the less traveled backroads. I also ride offensively, trying to be ready for what ever is around that next curve or whoever is going to pull out in front of me in the next straight. Working out scenarios in my mind as what exits or choices are present should something happen. Can't tell you how many times this has saved my a$$. Going fast is a risk, and eventually it may catch up with me. I know this, but a life lived without risks is just life, life with risks is always an adventure. Don't let others influence you on how to ride with them, and as I have said before, ride your own ride......Dew.
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Well, I'd like to think I ride aggressively in turns, but in reality, probably not. At least not until I replace what I'm pretty sure are the OEM rear shocks that have me "bottoming out" half the time in turns! ::)
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I used to carve AFAP through the corners until my first crash in 25 yrs of motorcycling, not ten minutes after bragging to my riding companions during a pit stop about the track cornering class I'd taken a couple years earlier... doh. Of course the track class on was on my R65 and not on the crashed bike.
My answer is training, EVERY year, whether or not you think you need it, will help out the most. Confidence in riding borne of class and practice is worth 10^ what you pay for it.
Of course since acquiring a KLR, aggro riding isn't a prerequisite for crashing. He ll, I don't even have to be moving.... ::)