What we all think

+1 to that! One thing I try and push on the IAM courses are movement of the bike draws the human eye. If your approaching a junction, move the bike around so you can see, your more likely to be seen and should somebody pull out, your going to be a bit further away and have a split second more time to react, which could be the difference.

Something else I find is that some people whinge if they get caught speeding. If your going to do it (and we all do!) lift your observations! That way you should see the speed trap before your caught. If you don't you were going to fast for what you could see.

 

Ha ha ya old' b*st*rd!
Can't remember when I started riding geared bikes, think I was about 12 or so when this fella let me ride his bike round the soccer field so he could flirt with my sister.
Stepfather gave me a Honda MBX 50 when I was 14 which I rode illegally on the road in swimming trunks, flip flops and a vest with an ill fitting helmet and no gloves.

I was a cocky little sh*t, used to get drunk and race about thinking I was Wayne Gardener. Needless to say I fell off several times but luckily never broke any bones. I think the first two years I rode that little 50 cc taught me a hell of a lot, stuff I couldn't learn from others like knowing my limits and realising I wasn't Wayne Gardener.

Ahhhh that little Honda MBX 50 rekindles so many fond memories! 68 mph flat out on the motorways lying on the tank has never felt faster.

So yeah, I was a nob and I bet you were also all nobs. So that's what I think...we're all nobs! Ha ha ha

 

This thread makes very good reading, I am not sure that I am qualified enough to make a comment, what I can say is that I have been out with a few riders (when I was riding on the roads) from this forum and to be honest. I would regard you all as safe good bikers, yes we have all had moments and times of "Jesus, that was close" situations.

The only reason why I stopped riding on the roads was because I did not get that buzz that I got/get on track.

I also believe that course like the IAM should have to be taken after passing your test (maybe within a period of 6 months).

Anyway, keep it safe guys and lets remember that we are all one big family, bikers against the cage drivers and the world.

Peace.

 

Not a bad thread Dave. :thumbup:

I never like to disclose any skill appraisal of myself in any aspect of life (tongue in cheek aside) as I feel that I would then have some fundamentally meaningless and arbitrary standard to live up to. And there's a good chance that any remarks will come back and bite me in the ass. So I'll leave it to others to judge and comment if they feel the need. Generally speaking, if you ride in groups and nobody has anything to say about your riding (good or bad), you're probably doing OK.

I'm also pretty agnostic about these things. What makes a good rider? A rider who does no harm, makes the most of it, and gets the greatest enjoyment from it. That's it.

Riding 'skill' or ability doesn't really come into it all that much for me. The basics of machine control can be pretty quickly learned. That's the easy bit. All the 'skill' you need from there is the discipline not to push things too far too quickly, and not to take the wrong risks, at the wrong time, in the wrong place. That's far more about critical thinking and awareness than it is about riding ability. And I'm not personally convinced that thinking and decision making is something that can be taught easily or consistently. When we do take the wrong risks/decisions (and all of us will, frequently or infrequently), we've just got to hope that we're fortunate with the outcome, and have the opportunity to learn from the experience.

From there 'ability' is all about confidence and experience, and each boosts the other, in my personal experience. Unfortunately, it also works the other way around; poor confidence & bad experiences propagate one another.

 

A few thoughts.
Confidence is great, we all know we ride better when we feel confident. But over confidence is our worst enemy, you can guarantee that shortly after feeling like Rossi you will be wondering how your bike ended up so high up in a tree.
Luck. It's funny how the more you practise, the luckier you get.
Nearly every ride something happens that you can learn from, it could be your mistake or someone else's, take a quiet five minutes afterwards to replay it in your head a few times and think about how it could have been avoided.
Always put your left glove on first- its lucky. Ha ha, that's just one of mine

 

ha ha ha yeah martin iv found the lord! firstly mate as pch said you are an old c*nt :lol: iv rode with you quite a lot this year and i must say you neve make me feel uncomfortable with your riding style, i tried to aim the thread at looking at yourself and others, iv noticed a few times on here threads that end in some sort of confrontation and subsiqently end up locked. From the people that posted so far it would appear none of us including ROB J who is probley one of the most trained/informed on the forum think we are the muts nuts, so why are we all so set in our oppinions?
I find it very interesting in picking up what makes us tick as a group, we all signed up to this site but we cant agree on the simplest of things.
Its discussed over the three pages what we think makes a good rider, and the outcome seem to be none of us really know, but we'l all argue till were blue in the face and maybe black and blue in the eye :fish: seems plain crazy to me ?

 

Thing is we all have our own opinions, which of course we are entitled to, and many of them will never change. People see life differently and rightly or wrong must accept that. Something may happen that 90% of the forum agrees with but some will always have a view on the other side.

 

Also, you can't tell the tone from a few typed words.
Where I think I'm being helpful, others may perceive it to be condescending.

 

I've enjoyed reading this thread. Many good points and issues raised and discussing these can only increase our awareness.

I'm not an experienced or a good rider. I've been riding about 2 years and spent 26 years driving.

I believe skills learnt outside of riding, like; interacting with other people at work or in public places; realising you can't control other people but can try to control situations; knowing that every individual has their own totally unique set of values which governs how they understand and react to the world around them. All of these considerations help me to better understand what is happening around me and how i may keep myself and my family safe.

Luckily for me I've spent over 25 years working in public transport. This have given me a good insight into what surprises people can throw at me and how to handle people in many types of situations. And i'm still learning!

Luck also comes into riding. Some people can ride like a...holes all their life and never have a moment. Others can be dead unlucky and be in the wrong place at the wrong time with nowhere to go. The down side of this one is those with the luck can be fooled into thinking they are good riders and may be blind to the mayhem they leave behind in their mirrors.

For my five penneth. I think being a good rider comes down to some core areas. The ones i thought most important are listed below:-

1. Riding skills - actual ability to be able to control a bike well in different conditions and at different speeds. This includes being able to feel what your bike is doing and understanding it to prevent that accident. Experience and learning from others can improve this in all of us but i think some of it comes down to physical ability too. However, some people are naturally good at feeling things and reacting. Others can't no matter how hard they try. A bit like sports at school. Courses and helps form pthr bikers can make a huge difference to these skills.

2. Knowing your limits - This is a hard one as it will mean different things to different people. For me it comes down to knowing not to push yourself into that fear zone where you start to react using survival instincts rather than your learnt skills. It's hard to learn this one except by having those "oh sh.t" moments. Sometimes you get away with it and sometimes you don't. Hopefully the near misses, like going into a bend a little too hot will make us think twice before doing it again.

3. Reading the road and riding accordingly - Looking for those visual clues about where the road is going and what may be your next threat. Seeing what people and vehicles are doing and considering what they may do next. This can be learnt through experience and courses like IAM. Worth its weight in gold to anyone on a bike.

4. Risk taking. We all have our own view of what risks are acceptable. Such as some people will always cross the roads at proper crossings. Others will happily dodge traffic crossing a motorway to save five minutes. I think this is the biggest difference between a good and a bad rider. Id rather go out with a safe slow rider, who does extra lifesavers than someone who rides their luck and could easily suck others into taking unnecessary risks. Our perception of risk is very personal and is very hard to change except through our own life experiences. So it's the most important point but the hardest to change.

I hope this gives you all a small insight into how my head works and hope it may benifit soemone or add to the general discussion.

 

Yes yes i love the risk taking bit, i believe that 99% of riding is about risk management, and haveing and using the skills to manage that risk

 

For me just getting to Greg first is what matters

I only ride about 250 miles in a year ! So dies mean I'm a crap rider maybe not sure !

I try to ride with riders who a feel are as good or better than me at riding but first who or safe !
I don't have to say how bad or good I may be riding the fact after 15 on road off road riding must say something As I'm still here

 

That's only so ya don't have ta pay fer the round! Ha ha ha

 

To me a good rider is someone who learns something new every time they ride their bike.

And of course, someone who remembers to put oil back in the bike after they've drained it.

 

ive just read the whole thred , and i feel like ive done an hour in therapy,
i have been riding for23 years on and off and considder myself a reasonably good rider.my only offs where in the first three years of riding. i feel the only way i can get the most out of road riding is to eliminate as many potential hazards..i never ride in the wet intensionaly and i never ride when im tired or grumpy as i feel state of mind plays a big part of the way we ride. i find riding in groups makes me ride competitavly.riding in trafic or built up areas encourages feelings of agression. i am no saint ..i like the odd wheelie and i frequently break the limit and knee down action giver me a real buzz..i find the best rides are on roads i know very well ,thats why youl see me on the roundabouts at pimbo [scem] on a sunny dunday when the footy is on and the roads are all mine and i can push myself and the bike to the limits with reasonable safety.weather im in the van , car , or bike i treat other road user with care, caution and curtisy.am i a bad or good biker ? or do i just need more therapy...?.... please feel free to judge me

 

sounds like you need more theropy aperbag:

 

The point being you read it ! all of it ! and you then posted so it must be of interest to you to

 

Ha Ha! luv it,u don't get out much then. Agree Roundabouts only reasonably Safe place to play, barring diesel. Skem. Lucky Sod

 

yeh tiredness is a major factor in offs imo.... all it takes is a momentary lapse in concentration and it can go wrong fast...
eg burds wearing short skirts in summer... having cold hands... dying for a slash... fatigue... discomfort.
sometimes after work i'm dying to get out on the bike for a blast but have 2nd thoughts cos im tired...
and sometimes you have them days where it just doesnt feel right.
im not really a superstitious person but if i get that bad feeling i'll get the bucket & wax out instead & leave the ride for another time.
and yes... agree with the not intentionally riding in the wet.
some people love it. i dont.
was a time when i had no choice when i used my bike for commuting to work etc but now i just ride for pleasure.
no sense riding for pleasure if you're not enjoying being cold & wet!