"Fear is the mind killer. Fear is the little death that brings total obliteration. You must face your fear, permit it to pass over and through you. And when it has gone past you must turn your inner eye to see its path. Where fear has gone there will be nothing, only you shall remain." Frank Herbert - Dune. It's not an exact quote, something I memorized when I was a kid and read the book. I like it.

Fear and time aren't related. You should be somewhat afraid every time you ride. As with anything, the more you practice the better you can face your fear.

 

Can't help you much, never really had any fear...sometimes I have bad feelings but I'm one that hopes for the best and expects the very worst no matter the situation.

I don't exactly push myself on the street but I don't ride scared either, so far I've only had one get off and on the trip home I was riding angry at the $400 it was going to cost me to replace the radiator that was spraying coolant all over my leg and making my back tire slide all over the place.

I guess thats my personal answer to fear, anger.

 

Fear is normal, my strategy is to minimize risk-or the variables I can control. In the case of riding, take it slow and practice the basics to get confidence with the bike again and be proud of taking your time to be a better rider. Push yourself more as you buiild you confidence and experience while staying with in your limits. Also, like your doing here, talk about it. That alone can do wonders!

 

Fear is a good tool to train the body. Depending on what is making you scared about riding, you just have to practice so that next time a situation arises you are ready. Think of training yourself not to make the same mistake a second time. Confidence comes with confidence. Maybe try just riding around in a parking lot or around a low traffic neighborhood and SLOWLY advance into more advanced situations.

 

What started off as fear for me turned into a healthy respect for my bike. I agree that experience helps you get past the point of fear. I started off really slowly and just kept pushing my limits a little bit at a time to the point where I felt comfortable riding it around on a daily basis.

 

for me it helped starting on dirtbikes and snowmobiles. constantly going down on dirtbikes and rolling sleds and getting tossed into the snow, i gained respect for the machine but also realized what my limits are. while riding bikes and sleds i was always following my dad on rides, who at the time was a better ride than i was. riding with people with better abilities makes you become a better rider. after a while you stop trying to figure out how to do something, and you begin to figure out what to do to make it easier or more comfortable for yourself.

i believe that if you can't get right back on a bike after crashing, chances are you won't do it at all, or it will be a couple of years. although it's different if you crash and have some major injuries preventing you from doing so... if i break bones from crashing, not really a big deal. i'll be mad that i'm missing out on riding time, really. i'm to the point now that i have gone down twice on the street within the last 2 years, walked over to my bike, picked it up, and continued on, no big deal.

for coping with the fear, i don't really let myself think about it. just do it. ofcourse i subconsciously think about my friends and family when i get on my bike. i never plan on it but i always end up thinking about the "what if" situation.

 

Ride fast enough until the adrenaline rush overcomes the will to live

But really, there are always extraneous variables that are out of our control in life, motorcycling has plenty of them (aka: every cager on the road!)

Be prepared, respect the bike, and ride within your limits. Wear ATGATT, know the limits of you the rider, because the bike almost always has a higher limit, etc.

I often test myself when I recognize a potential problem, asking, what would I do if this car pulled out here, or something fell off this trailer, etc. Hopefully when the time comes, you'll just do it naturally.

But if it helps, use a little fear to stay focused and alert. You know your limits, if you hate heavy traffic, avoid those roads and times of day for now. If you worry about deer, avoid riding near dusk. Control the situation as much as you can until you feel comfortable for the next step and enjoy the ride!

 

Take it to the track. Use the track to learn better technique to control your bike in a much safer, more predictable, environment. Explore the bike's limits there. You'll find the bike's limits are quite high. After that, you can concentrate more on traffic and road conditions with less fear because you'll know the bike can handle a lot more than you probably now give it credit for.

 

Every motorcyclist knows them, the lesser moments:

wether it's after a crash or just starting out, I'm frequently terrified. Especialy before a ride, durring it's not as bad, but I almost have to push myself evrytime to get on the bike.

I don't want to be afriad, but I want to be safe. How many miles did it take before you didn't have to worry. The last thing I want to do is sell my bike because I'm too affriad.

How do you cope? You have to "get over it", But how do you do that? Is there such a thing as getting over your fear? If not, how to get rid of your fear?

I always have a couple of drinks before I ride, especially if it is going to be a challenging road.

 

:facepalm:

 

Keeping respect with small dose of fear, is good thing, I used to work on high lines, keeping your mind focused on what your doing, and not anything else is a blessing, its why I like shooting too, it gives me a singleness and purpose, with my complete concentration. Activities like riding, shooting, and often your vocation, may or may not require your complete focus. These kind of things, keep the committee between my ears at bay, and quite my inside noise so to speak............. just one old farts two cents

 

Fear is good if it makes you stay focussed and safe.
If it is making you unable to focus, then that's bad, but if not I wouldn't worry about it.
Try some rides on less traveled roads as often as possible to increase your confidence and develop instinctive reactions. If you ride in traffic consider doing it less or not at all until you have some base riding under your belt.
"No Fear?" =No sense if you ask me.

 

I don't know how long it took me. I started at 8, basically when I was too young to fear the trees that would jump out in front of me and my little Honda 50.

I've been hit twice on the road, though. I hopped back in the saddle as soon as I healed. I've never been scared to get back on.

 

I would differentiate between fear and having respect and being cautious and timid. Fear leads to panic which can lead to crashing. It's perfectly normal for many new riders to feel nervous about riding on the streets as opposed to a safe parking lot. And it takes time and experience to understand what the bike is capable of and how to be in control of the throttle, braking and steering. New car drivers have the same feelings as well, but have the protection of the cage. Taking a street biased course at a track would help in gaining confidence. You want to be loose when riding, not stiff because of feeling dread that something can happen or will happen. Practice makes perfect as they say.

 

wether it's after a crash or just starting out, I'm frequently terrified.

How many times have you crashed?

If you really are frequently terrified, that kind of stress can't be a good thing for riding skills. For example, you might be tensing up in turns causing you to run wide or to feel out of control.

Have you taken the MSF Basic Rider course yet? You said in an earlier thread that you couldn't get in until May. If not, it might help give you some confidence and is definitely worthwhile even though you have been riding for a few months already.

Other than that, you might read up on the behavior modification techniques of progressive relaxation and systematic desensitization, I'm sure there must be some self-help books or websites for overcoming fears/phobias, or find a behavior therapist locally who can work with you using those techniques.

 

I think fear can be a big factor if you aren't confident in your abilities or feel you aren't sure what to expect from a situation, or your cycle. Confidence, and building of your skills, will help overcome fear.

Get some training - MSF or do some time on the dirt. Learn what happens when a cycle is out of control and how to correct it.

Always have an answer in-mind for dangerous situations that come up on the street. Be very careful of riding too relaxed.

If you are intelligent, you need to feel alert, aware, and in-control in order not to be overcome with fear while riding - or you can be overconfident or just ignore the consequences like people you see riding without gear. Works for them!


Jay

 

Here is how I got over the initial fear of getting on my bike:

1). I rode late at night. I did this to minimize the cars on the road. When I first began to ride I was intimidated by the cars on the road so I just rode around 1am or so and the streets were almost empty by that point.

2). I practiced slow maneuvers in parking lots. Figure eights, quick stops, leaning, counter-steering etc.


I've once heard someone say to me, "when you get too comfortable with your bike or your riding style, that's when you know you are in danger."

I think what they were saying is that you should always have a healthy dose of reality of riding a bike and the dangers that come with it. And so let that keep you on your toes always.


Keep riding bro! Just gotta keep riding.

 

this is what i did after my first blip:

1) analyze what happened and which rules i broke
2) go back to the basics that everyone mentioned. check the bike condition before each ride. go over all the basic rules...visibility, cornering, braking, smoothness, looking where your going, etc.
3) go back to training and execute plan to avoid similar mishaps.
4) ease back into things
5) REV THE F* OUT OF IT HELL YEAH

 

Time in the dirt. I've found that most riders that start out doing dirt riding especially in their younger years make for the better street riders later in life.

I started when I was 14 years old with a lawnmower engine powered mini-bike and went up from there. I'm 55 years old now. I've had many dirt bikes before my first street bike.

I feel a lot more confident on a bike than I do driving a car because I feel I have more control with a bike. I never fear going out on the bike. I eagerly look forward to it.

 

Time in the dirt. I've found that most riders that start out doing dirt riding especially in their younger years make for the better street riders later in life.
I started when I was 14 years old with a lawnmower engine powered mini-bike and went up from there. I'm 55 years old now. I've had many dirt bikes before my first street bike.

I feel a lot more confident on a bike than I do driving a car because I feel I have more control with a bike. I never fear going out on the bike. I eagerly look forward to it.

I agree. Riding a small bike that is sliding around and is in constant need of correction is very helpful anytime you are dealing with 2 wheels.

I started at about age 12 in '75, but I started my boys around 4.


Jay

 

+4 to dirt riding, started out on dirt when I was around 4-5, first bike was a honda mr40...i just remember being scared every time I got on it because it was super fast and put me into every tree and hurricane fence in the yard, luckily children are super flexible and sorta bouncy, that was the only bike aside from the cr500 that scared me.

 

well unfortunately my childhood consisted of piano and painting as I didn't have a dad buying dirt bikes and fourweelers haha..

But Yes I did take MSF, 2nd weekend in May
It was worth every penny.. the skills and knowledge I took from MSF I use every time I ride

Unfortunately the day I graduated from MSF I was turning into a parking lot staying within my right of way and not breaking any laws and some ahole in a black cavalier was hauling it around the corner and I hit both brakes while in a tight turn and dropped my bike.

Mostly it was just embarrassing. I reacted appropriately because had I not stopped my bike would be under his car, it's just not a good situation..

Honestly I feel like I didn't let it get to me. I kept telling myself over and over that it wasn't my fault, fixed my bike in the parking lot and rode it home
So I'm not sure it really is the reason I fear it, if anything I think it's where I live.
I try to get out and ride as much as possible, usually just around the block, however
its out in the country so I can't go less than 50 without feeling like I'm putting myself
in a dangerous situation. and to get anywhere that the speed limit is less than 30 It's a 15 minute ride going 55 mph

Also I'm constantly concerned that someones driving behind me. I hate that

 

Evan, It's normal to have a bit of fear when doing something like this when your new to it. I have had similar experiences with drivers who in my opinion have no business driving any vehicle. It's scary to the point that some riders gave up and will only ride track.

Yes, It's embarrassing to drop the bike. Don't let that bother you to much, just keep at it and learn from the experience.

I know how you feel about feeling like people are following too close to you. I have that same feeling myself at times. All of us do to a certain extent. The only thing I can think of is to go out on Sunday mornings when traffic is at it's least congested and stick to some familiar roads until you get more time in the saddle.

 

Then get off the bike. You aren't ready for it. Might never be.

 

why do you say that?

 

Because of what you've written. You obviously (to me) aren't ready to ride. It scares you. It shouldn't. I'm not trying to be mean or insulting. If you are terrified of the ride, you can't enjoy it. If you can't enjoy it, wtf is the purpose of riding? Most of us ride because we enjoy it, not because we have to.

 

well it's not that I don't enjoy it..
while I'm out I love the experience
It just takes some convincing sometime to hop on
I'm looking for some experienced riders to tell me
how they handled fear in the beginning, maybe find
out how long most people rode before riding didn't
require so much thought in whats not important

not whether or not I should be riding
the last thing I need is you telling me not to try

 

Not true. You shouldn't try if you're scared of it. Doing that is a good way to get yourself (or worse) someone else killed.

Go to a parking lot and practice. Then get somebody to take you to some slow, open roads. Practice there.