PDA

View Full Version : Has Age and/or Maturity Tempered Your Riding Style?



Lee
Thu May 18th, 2006, 11:15 AM
I'll go first, since I started this thread.

I'd say that my age may have altered my style a little. I'm fully aware that a serious accident might be difficult or impossible to recover from, since I'm nearing 60 and I can clearly see that I don't heal as well as I used to.

On the other hand, I'm more experienced and in some ways more confident than I was ~35 years ago when I first began to ride. I also have much better equipment, both gear and motorcycles, than existed back then, so I occasionally have a "hair on fire" kind of ride. And, I am riding motorcycles that are much more powerful than the ones I rode in my youth.

My eyesight is now better due to surgery. When my adrenaline is up, my reflexes are still very quick.

I guess I still might be a danger to myself and others, just like I was 35 years ago. :)

But, honestly, I think I now take fewer risks even though I often ride 50%-100% faster than I used to.

Lee

dapper
Thu May 18th, 2006, 11:32 AM
Yeppers!
I have seen what some risk can do.

Experience helps, as Lee stated with knowing what to do versus freaking out. One serious surgery can change the outlook of life when you least expect it too.
:cheers:

Polar X
Thu May 18th, 2006, 12:01 PM
Well I would have to say it has. Course having a little one helped too. I ride Cruisers on the street, but I ride them like a crotch rocket. So I decided to get a track bike and get my speed out on the track instead of the street. But I still LOVE adrenaline sports but I now look at the managed risk and actually think thru what I am doing instead of reacting to what I WANT to do.

But I will drag the boards and pipes on the cruiser everyonce in awhile. :twisted:

Teflon
Thu May 18th, 2006, 12:03 PM
don't give these guys any Viagra


me....age has nothing to do with my riding style, I started out on dirt bikes wayyy before I ever rode a street bike, and I have laid down plenty of dirtbikes, I hate to say this, and I will regret saying it, I have never laid down a street bike in 20+ years of riding street bikes, now I am afraid to step outside, there may be a BOLT of Lightning waiting for my ass...... kkkaaaa CRASHHH!!!

Polar X
Thu May 18th, 2006, 04:39 PM
There are those who have and those who will.
I wish the best of luck with maintaining that ZERO crash rate. I have been riding for 35 years and I have crashed many a bike, both on and off the road. But I can say with %100 conviction not a signal street wreck was my doing. All of them (3) were caused by someone else. I was in the wrong place every-time. fortunately only one of them resulted in a trip to the ER in the back of a noisy lite up box van..... :P

Scruff Dog
Thu May 18th, 2006, 06:37 PM
Having ridden motorcycles for about 40 years now, I am most impressed with the quantum leaps in technology over this period of time. And with each leap of technology, I seem to become a better rider.

So are the improvements in tires, engines, chassis, and suspensions making me a better rider, or is it each additional year of experience. I would guess some of both.

With age, you (should) gain knowledge, but undoubtably lose some motor skills. I feel that I'm still agile enough and savoy enough to ride todays sport bikes. What I don't completely trust in myself is my ability to concentrate, at a high level, through corners at high speed. So, I just don't push it.

We are truly an elite group of people. Statistically, very few men and even fewer women, will ever experience the the thrill of riding these high tech machines.

I plan to be around for the next quantun leap in technology. Bring it on.

Lee
Thu May 18th, 2006, 08:19 PM
The post was moved to another thread in this forum, "An Encounter With the CSP".

Lee

towneh
Thu May 18th, 2006, 08:25 PM
Yes, I'd say that both have caused some change in my driving but nothing like my near-miss in January. I find that helmets and CAT scans are very uncomfortable for me when I'm hurting... :(

Bus Henry

Nick_Ninja
Thu May 18th, 2006, 08:51 PM
I've been hit by cars when riding bikes. They really screw with your bones and joints. But that was over twenty years ago. It made me a better rider in the sense that I, for the most part, curtail my riding to daylight hours now. Night riding isn't my favorite activity ---- the eyes are the first to go as one comes closer to the 'wear-bars'.

Lee
Thu May 18th, 2006, 09:02 PM
N_N,

I was starting to have significant problems with my night vision. It crept up on me over a 5 year period until one day I realized I was avoiding driving and riding at night. (I still avoid riding at night for general safety reasons.)

About 6 months ago, I did some research on the web and at a health food store to see if it is possible to restore or at least retard the deterioration of my night vision. I've had some success. I don't experience glare as badly as I used to. The stripes between the lanes are much more visible than they were a few months ago.

3 times per week, I take Lutien, Bilberry, and Lycopene together. I know this is purely subjective but I noticed a significant improvement within 1-2 weeks after I began to take these supplements.

Lee

CYCLE_MONKEY
Fri May 19th, 2006, 11:08 AM
Boy, that's an interesting topic. I took more chances, and did way more stoopid sh!t back then (drinking, smoking, mushrooms, etc), but it was all speed-related, I never stunted. I wasn't THAT stoopid. Wait, that's contrdictory, isn't it? :D

I do find I ride a LOT harder, and corner faster. Partially, it's the bike and tires (SO much better than my old '86 on the 18's), partially the access to the good roads to practice on (Ohio sucked), partly the better gear, and partly me getting better from all of the above. I think my 1 track day really helped also, and look forward to way more now I've got gear.

Thanks Lee for that info, i've noticed problems at night also. Maybe it's because I've only got one good eye! :lol:

Bob954
Fri May 19th, 2006, 10:42 PM
I can't say that age has tempered my riding. I know that I push the envelope more now with better bike and years of riding experience. Though I am more cautious with gravel after one get-off in the spring a number of years ago. And so far night time has not been an issue for me.

Lee
Sat May 20th, 2006, 07:20 AM
Maybe it's because I've only got one good eye! :lol:

C_M, you're kidding, right?

If you have only one good eye, you have little or no depth perception. :shock:

Lee

CYCLE_MONKEY
Sat May 20th, 2006, 09:29 AM
Maybe it's because I've only got one good eye! :lol:

C_M, you're kidding, right?

If you have only one good eye, you have little or no depth perception. :shock:

Lee

No, I'm dead serious. My vision out of my right is fine, but because of an alignment issue since birth (when I used to be extremely cross-eyed), even after the surgeries, I still really only use my left. I guess I use a different method to get my depth perception. As a result, I basically only use my left when I ride/drive. I guarantee I could smoke anyone here if we were both forced to put a patch over our right eye. :D

Buddau
Sat May 20th, 2006, 09:36 AM
I think that responsibilities (kids, house payment) has changed my riding style more than my age has. I'll be 40 this July :cry:
I have a pictures of my boys on my bike where I can see then when I ride.

Mista Black
Sun May 21st, 2006, 02:41 PM
I guarantee I could smoke anyone here if we were both forced to put a patch over our right eye. :D


i'll put a patch over my left eye and take you on in the canyons beotch!!! :D

i'm blind in my left eye... ask anyone who's ridden with me: it hasnt caused me to ride slow. i can't hit a perfectly thrown baseball for shit but taking a sweeper at 140+ is no sweat.

as for the question of the thread: i think it's made me a smarter rider. i dont think it's caused me to ride all that much slower though.

Mel
Sun May 21st, 2006, 05:33 PM
i'm blind in my left eye... ask anyone who's ridden with me: it hasnt caused me to ride slow. i can't hit a perfectly thrown baseball for sh!t but taking a sweeper at 140+ is no sweat.

as for the question of the thread: i think it's made me a smarter rider. i dont think it's caused me to ride all that much slower though.

Yeah, Jeff's right....I have ridden with him and can attest to the fact that his lack of eyesight isn't what makes him slow, it's the letters BMW on the bike that do him in. :D

Mecha Hayai
Sun May 21st, 2006, 10:43 PM
Yeah, Jeff's right....I have ridden with him and can attest to the fact that his lack of eyesight isn't what makes him slow, it's the letters BMW on the bike that do him in. :D

That's cold B.

I haven't slowed down with age, but I'm a lot more cautious now that I've gone down hard.

Mecha Hayai
Sun May 21st, 2006, 10:49 PM
don't give these guys any Viagra


me....age has nothing to do with my riding style, I started out on dirt bikes wayyy before I ever rode a street bike, and I have laid down plenty of dirtbikes, I hate to say this, and I will regret saying it, I have never laid down a street bike in 20+ years of riding street bikes, now I am afraid to step outside, there may be a BOLT of Lightning waiting for my ass...... kkkaaaa CRASHHH!!!

You're 25 and you've been riding 20+ years? Nice. :D
Better knock on wood. I never thought I'd go down, but I've been down twice now on the street.

Mista Black
Mon May 22nd, 2006, 12:51 PM
I vote we take away mel's right to post in here ever again!!! :321:

Mel
Mon May 22nd, 2006, 01:11 PM
Hey, ya know, if I hadn't said it, someone else would have. :D You know I love ya, so just know that it was said with love.
That, and based on the number and type of meds I take, and how often I manage to hurt myself, I should be like an honorary old person or something. ;)

Lee
Mon May 22nd, 2006, 01:45 PM
Cycle_Monkey, Mista Black,

You guys are amazing. I never would have thought anyone could ride safely or aggressively with vision in only one eye.

My hat's off to both of you guys. And, please don't ride close to me. :)

Lee

Scruff Dog
Mon May 22nd, 2006, 09:32 PM
Who doesn't have some sort of a limitation after age 40.

FZRguy
Mon May 22nd, 2006, 10:46 PM
I look back at my street riding days during college (early 80’s) and am thankful I survived. I knew little about the fine technique of riding a motorcycle back then. One of the things I like most about riding is that it’s a skill sport that the general public has no clue about. I’ve crashed a couple times on the street and countless times on dirt, with a blown ACL and broken clavicle as the most serious injuries. I try to improve my skills and be a safer rider on a continuous basis.

Teflon
Tue May 23rd, 2006, 07:42 AM
One-eyed jacks?

CYCLE_MONKEY
Tue May 23rd, 2006, 10:21 AM
i'm blind in my left eye... ask anyone who's ridden with me: it hasnt caused me to ride slow. i can't hit a perfectly thrown baseball for sh!t but taking a sweeper at 140+ is no sweat.

A Beemer might do 140....off a cliff! :D

Actually I'm the same way. I totally suck at all stick and ball sports. How did you lose your vision? Running with a pointed stick? :lol: J/K My vision in my right eye is fine, it's just that I have always seen double (or quadruple when drunk!), and my mind just disregards the right eye's input. Now that I have medical ins., I might finally get that fixed.

RAGrote
Tue May 23rd, 2006, 12:43 PM
Um....
IGNORED

SXSMITH
Tue May 23rd, 2006, 01:17 PM
Say what?

A Beemer might do 140....off a cliff!

I hit 150 easily on Hwy 285 or C-470 with visibility and no traffic.

Age only allowed me to get more expensive bikes...

Scott

p.s. what does your STOCK bike do?

Granite Gray Rocks! (http://www.kenrockwell.com/bmw/k1200s-record.htm)

Nick_Ninja
Tue May 23rd, 2006, 02:41 PM
Say what?

A Beemer might do 140....off a cliff!

I hit 150 easily on Hwy 285 or C-470 with visibility and no traffic.

Age only allowed me to get more expensive bikes...

Scott

p.s. what does your STOCK bike do?

Granite Gray Rocks! (http://www.kenrockwell.com/bmw/k1200s-record.htm)

I have a friend that just bought the K 1200 R. He got rid of the damn thing in less than 1200 miles. The thing would stall out and leave no computer code. BMW dealership and factory couldn't trace it or fix it --- or make it reoccur for that matter. We all witnessed the issue unfold and could attest that the problem was real and not preconceived. BMW wouldn't back up the issue until it left a computer error code or crapped out all together. POS if you ask me and really S_H_I_T_T_Y customer service.

Soooooooo my buddy turned it over and bought a Kawasaki ZX1400. I don't care what you ride I'll put $$ on the line that it will spank what ever's between your legs --- STOCK :twisted:

Oh --- and he's 56 years young.

SXSMITH
Tue May 23rd, 2006, 02:52 PM
I don't care what you ride I'll put $$ on the line that it will spank what ever's between your legs --- STOCK

I'll call you at 550 mph.

Scott

http://www.pbase.com/sxsmith/image/44883496/large.jpg

Mel
Tue May 23rd, 2006, 02:58 PM
NICE! My goal in life was to become a fighter pilot...almost managed to accomplish it too. Damned tumor...

CYCLE_MONKEY
Tue May 23rd, 2006, 03:51 PM
Say what?

A Beemer might do 140....off a cliff!

I hit 150 easily on Hwy 285 or C-470 with visibility and no traffic.

Age only allowed me to get more expensive bikes...

Scott

p.s. what does your STOCK bike do?

Granite Gray Rocks! (http://www.kenrockwell.com/bmw/k1200s-record.htm)

150 INDICATED. I've seen an indicated 172 on my '01 1K on the way to work on the I-25 frontage road one morning and it was still pulling hard. And I've seen the Euro-mags run one to a verified 186. Game, set, match. Although, that's a much faster Beemah than Jeff's (who's one-eyed-ballz I was bustin').

Nick_Ninja
Tue May 23rd, 2006, 04:15 PM
That be fast.


I don't care what you ride I'll put $$ on the line that it will spank what ever's between your legs --- STOCK

I'll call you at 550 mph.

Scott

http://www.pbase.com/sxsmith/image/44883496/large.jpg

SXSMITH
Tue May 23rd, 2006, 06:05 PM
Fair enough.

o BMW doesn't officially make a 'sport' bike.
o You'll never know your speed unless you use a GPS.
o I'm a noob on this bike.
o I don't race on the street. Too dangerous.
o Jap bikes rock. Had 'em before.

Now let's go riding and enjoy the summer!

And anyone really interested in going up in an L39 for jet aerobatics let me know. It will only cost you (discounted) fuel. And they take credit cards @ the FBO. The 3 ships are located at Lancaster Field just south of Dallas. Be prepared to pull 5.5G's sustained.

Flyin' Photos (http://www.pbase.com/sxsmith/flying)

R1chie
Tue May 23rd, 2006, 06:44 PM
Fair enough.

o BMW doesn't officially make a 'sport' bike.
o You'll never know your speed unless you use a GPS.
o I'm a noob on this bike.
o I don't race on the street. Too dangerous.
o Jap bikes rock. Had 'em before.

Now let's go riding and enjoy the summer!

And anyone really interested in going up in an L39 for jet aerobatics let me know. It will only cost you (discounted) fuel. And they take credit cards @ the FBO. The 3 ships are located at Lancaster Field just south of Dallas. Be prepared to pull 5.5G's sustained.

Flyin' Photos (http://www.pbase.com/sxsmith/flying)

I like this guys attitude. :)

Butterfly
Tue May 23rd, 2006, 08:33 PM
i'm blind in my left eye...

You are? :think: I didnt know that....

Mista Black
Tue May 23rd, 2006, 09:34 PM
yep... you learn something new everyday. so if my right eye is looking you in the eye and my (blind) left eye appears to be looking elsewhere... relax i can't see out of that eye :D honest :P


A Beemer might do 140....off a cliff! :D

i've seen it at 146 at about 12 feet over sea level (and GPS verified). but it was all tapped out at that. - but i know you was just given me the shit i gave you back :P

CYCLE_MONKEY
Wed May 24th, 2006, 07:29 AM
And anyone really interested in going up in an L39 for jet aerobatics let me know. It will only cost you (discounted) fuel. And they take credit cards @ the FBO. The 3 ships are located at Lancaster Field just south of Dallas. Be prepared to pull 5.5G's sustained.

Flyin' Photos (http://www.pbase.com/sxsmith/flying)

About how much? I'd LOVE to. I used to work on F-4's out at China Lake, and spent about 14+ years doing defense work, and a few short stints at NASA too. Planes ROCK!

CYCLE_MONKEY
Wed May 24th, 2006, 07:30 AM
Hey jeff, maybe we should start a NEW forum:

The One-Eyed Fuggin' Old Bastards Club?!?! :lol:

3/4gixxer
Wed May 24th, 2006, 09:17 AM
Hey jeff, maybe we should start a NEW forum:

The One-Eyed Fuggin' Old Bastards Club?!?! :lol:

Dang it! I was working hard to get into the FOG group. Now I gotta poke my eye too?!?! :lol:

Nick_Ninja
Wed May 24th, 2006, 09:22 AM
Just keep reading this board --- it's like placing a hot fireplace poker in your ocular orbit ---- on occasion :D

Teflon
Wed May 24th, 2006, 09:28 AM
Is it a problem for the Old Guys sticking to the seats of their bikes from bleeding Rhoids?

Teflon
Wed May 24th, 2006, 09:29 AM
this guy is cool.....very cool.....




I don't care what you ride I'll put $$ on the line that it will spank what ever's between your legs --- STOCK

I'll call you at 550 mph.

Scott


http://www.pbase.com/sxsmith/image/44883496/large.jpg

Mista Black
Wed May 24th, 2006, 02:54 PM
Hey jeff, maybe we should start a NEW forum:

The One-Eyed Fuggin' Old Bastards Club?!?! :lol:


:spit:

hell yeah we should!! Ralph, make it so!! :lol:

Mel
Wed May 24th, 2006, 02:59 PM
Is it a problem for the Old Guys sticking to the seats of their bikes from bleeding Rhoids?

:wtf:
No one can blame me for being mean to the old people anymore!

Snowman
Thu Jun 29th, 2006, 12:13 PM
The older I seem to get the less time I seem to have to do the stupid shit anymore.

Given that I have ridden liter bikes for most of the street career, I consider myself lucky to have survived my 20’s.

I used to ride with a bunch of guys in Oklahoma whose main form of entertainment was to race from OKC to Dallas on Friday nights, hit the bars then wake up the next morning and race back. Unless of course you hooked up with someone then you got a reprieve until the next weekend. After about two summers of this, it became common for the OHP to fly their planes up and down I-35 looking for our guys basically shutting the stunt down.

Next I got evolved with the 17 year old daughter of a convicted drug smuggler who didn’t like the idea of a scum rocket rider dating his daughter. (buts that’s another story.)

Nick_Ninja
Thu Jun 29th, 2006, 01:06 PM
The older I seem to get the less time I seem to have to do the stupid shit anymore.

<snip>
Next I got evolved with the 17 year old daughter of a convicted drug smuggler who didn’t like the idea of a scum rocket rider dating his daughter. (buts that’s another story.)

You could have probably had the girl and made daddy happy if you showed up on a Harley. Or bribed him with an eight-ball and a bag of killer bud :siesta:

Duc'nnit
Fri Jun 30th, 2006, 08:08 AM
I don't care what you ride I'll put $$ on the line that it will spank what ever's between your legs --- STOCK

I'll call you at 550 mph.

Scott

http://www.pbase.com/sxsmith/image/44883496/large.jpg

Nice helmet hair........550 must be fast! :o

Mel
Fri Jun 30th, 2006, 01:09 PM
Next I got evolved with the 17 year old daughter of a convicted drug smuggler who didn’t like the idea of a scum rocket rider dating his daughter. (buts that’s another story.)

I don't think I have heard that story yet...you are gonna have to share that one with me ;)

TheSollyLama
Sun Apr 29th, 2007, 04:16 AM
It isn't age or maturity that makes me think twice.

Actually I ride harder than alot fo the young guys I see around.....

But if anything makes me think about slowing down it was the horrendous crash at Aztec on a KX250 that very nearly cost me a leg and did lead to about two years in and out of hospitals and the torture session therapy just to be able to walk again.

Of course more intelligent folk might have given up altogether. I actually bought a 600R with braces on both my legs just to hold it up.......

So there is a strong argument to be made that I didn't learn a damn thing from all that pain and surgery.

pilot
Sun Apr 29th, 2007, 08:42 AM
No, I'm dead serious. My vision out of my right is fine, but because of an alignment issue since birth (when I used to be extremely cross-eyed), even after the surgeries, I still really only use my left. I guess I use a different method to get my depth perception. As a result, I basically only use my left when I ride/drive. I guarantee I could smoke anyone here if we were both forced to put a patch over our right eye. :DFrank uses the "within' spittin' distance" method". If he spits and it hits the guard rail before the ground then he's at the right point for his late apex. Else, he figures he's turning too early:).

bluedogok
Sun Apr 29th, 2007, 12:35 PM
Given that I have ridden liter bikes for most of the street career, I consider myself lucky to have survived my 20’s.
I can only say as a witness to your 20's, I have to agree :crazy:

Ghost
Sun Apr 29th, 2007, 02:21 PM
Holy thread-rezzing. From June 06 to April 07.

Anyway, yes, age/maturity/whatever has turned me into the guys I used to bitch about. I don't necessarily ride *slower* but I tend to ride smarter (which probably is slower most of the time...).

There was always this older guy, Rodney, on a 1993 CBR900RR, Ohlins front and rear, brembos, he'd been riding for, well, I don't know how long. But he had grown up in the same place he lived now, and had been riding since the 70s on the same roads. He knew them so well that no matter how good, hot, fast, you thought you were you couldn't catch him, and he made it all look effortless. He never stepped across the yellow line, he never made a mistake, he never even looked like he was trying. He simply knew his bike, knew his limits, and knew the roads like no one else. He was someone we, at 20-something, thought was a cool OLD rider, but I never realized back then just *how* good he was until I got older. Today, I think he was/is the baddest assed rider I've ever met simply because he was always safe, and always fsat, and still made it look incredibly *easy*, yet I would be draggin knees and sliding to the edge just rying to keep up.

When I first transitioned from a lifetime of dirt riding to street and then to road racing (1992) I thought cars were back-markers and if I could put my bike between any two objects without hitting them, then I was fine.

Passing on double yellows, passing on the right, passing on on/off ramps, everything was justified by my "skill" and my power-to-weight ratio. Plus, at 17-21 yrs old, you think you're invincible and your bike, whatever it is, is the fastest, baddest @ss thing ever to smoke whatever granny you just flew past at triple-digit speeds.

I once had a laminated copy of my "best" citation for doing 133 in a 65 in Alabama, and I had all the paperwork that supported it, including the impound receipt and the various court documents for my night in jail and my license suspension. My friends, at the time, thought it was the coolest, baddest-assed thing ever. And, the only reason I'd gotten stopped was b/c while fleeing my friends and I ended up in construction, in gravel, and Dan put his bike down, taking me with him. Our two other friends kept upright and kept going.

Then, in 1996, my best friend since forever, my racing pit man/mechanic/driver Kenny B. was killed in front of me when we were just driving home after a full day's ride. We'd ridden all Sunday, stayed over at our friend James' to play video games and watch taped AMA racing, and were getting up early Monday morning to head to work.

We weren't screwing around, we'd exhausted our supply of wheelies Sunday, we were simply heading home, tired, and completely sober (neither of us drank, even then) and a woman who *Was* drunk blew a 4-way stop and put Kenny through her windshield. He was riding ahead and to my left, I was staggered back about 10yds and to his right. The woman had a greyish Malibu, no lights on, and neither of us saw her coming.

I won't go into details about the accident, but it was enough to shake me from riding for about 2 years. And, once I came back to riding I was *only* doing track riding and local racing, I would not ride on the street.

Finally, in 1999 I went back to street riding, but it was with a vastly different attitude, more respect, and to be honest, more fear than I'd ever had before. The accident had shown that no matter how "good" you are, shit happens that *you* cannot control, and no amount of "skill" will save your ass, or your friend's.

So now, like an Old Man, I ride quickly without trying to prove anything to anyone--including myself. I won't take the excessice risks I used to, I won't pass "cagers" on the inside of an onramp, or the outside of a turn, and I don't wheelie past hot chicks to "impress" them.

I've quit riding to "win" and just ride to ride.

...And I still miss Kenny.

Nick_Ninja
Sun Apr 29th, 2007, 02:40 PM
Good read and good points :up: Sorry about your loss.

Bassil Duwaik
Sun Apr 29th, 2007, 03:43 PM
And anyone really interested in going up in an L39 for jet aerobatics let me know. It will only cost you (discounted) fuel. And they take credit cards @ the FBO. The 3 ships are located at Lancaster Field just south of Dallas. Be prepared to pull 5.5G's sustained.[/quote]

Can I get to pull the ejection seat?

Oldgreen
Thu May 24th, 2007, 03:49 PM
Hello, I 50 and I just started riding again. Got off in 1990. I have tempered my riding just a bit, but still love the twistys. I have a green '06 Kawasaki ZX6R with an "Old Guys Rule" sticker on it and still hammer it once in a while.