Has this ever happened to you...

Let me start by saying that Ihave been riding 2 wheeled vehichles for over 10 years now, though I am new to the long road trip game. This past weekend I did a 800 mile loop, Skyline Drive, BRPW, and back home. The last 100 miles coming home were MISERABLE! I was very irritable, could barely take off from stop lights properly and well...just plain being an idiot. I don't know why this happend. Riding to work yesterday felt like a continuation of the ride home the day before, I was tentative about taking corners, my pace was erratic, and my fundamentals were just shot to hell. Could it be I just need a short break from riding? This has never happend to me before, maybe long trips just aren't my cup of tea all though I do have tons of fun. I guess I'll just finish out the week driving the truck to work and see how it goes this weekend. Has this ever happend to anyone else?

[image: View Post]VeryFineRide, on 14 September 2010 - 06:24 AM, said:

Let me start by saying that Ihave been riding 2 wheeled vehichles for over 10 years now, though I am new to the long road trip game. This past weekend I did a 800 mile loop, Skyline Drive, BRPW, and back home. The last 100 miles coming home were MISERABLE! I was very irritable, could barely take off from stop lights properly and well...just plain being an idiot. I don't know why this happend. Riding to work yesterday felt like a continuation of the ride home the day before, I was tentative about taking corners, my pace was erratic, and my fundamentals were just shot to hell. Could it be I just need a short break from riding? This has never happend to me before, maybe long trips just aren't my cup of tea all though I do have tons of fun. I guess I'll just finish out the week driving the truck to work and see how it goes this weekend. Has this ever happend to anyone else?


I definitely have days/rides where the mojo has run out and other days when I'm really 'seeing' the road and feeling in the groove. I think everyone has "off" days - I wouldn't be too concerned with what you've described. Clearly fatigue could well be a contributer in this case - the problem with fatigue is that it's often difficult to self-diagnose, its onset is insidious, our cognitive performance and motor skills are adversely affected, and the only really effective cure is to sleep/rest/take-a-break. We all owe to ourselves to adjust the "tempo" when we recognise our 'mojo-low' lights are on - so IMHO you're probably doing the right thing taking a short break.

It definately sounds like you were experiencing fatigue. How many breaks do you take along the way? Sometimes when I am rushed to get home on a long trip I take only very short infrequent breaks and I can definately feel it. If possible try to find a nice patch of grass or table outside and take off your helmet and just and just relax for about 30 minutes. Also I'm not trying to start a debate on the subject but I also find it much more relaxing and enjoyable when I listen to music.

Rollin

This isn't quite the same thing but last weekend I took my wife for her first ride since her back surgery. We just went for a quick ride up to Asheville, ate lunch and walked around and then rode back. The entire way there I had this nervous feeling that I just couldn't shake. I was riding fine, just that pit of the stomach feeling and adrenaline coursing through at full tilt. I felt better after we made it to eat and relaxed a bit, and the ride home was fine. Sometimes things are just weird, but it does sound a little like you were fatigued and had reached the end of your "enjoyment" rope.

Funny you mention it, as I was having a discussion with a buddy at work about the same thing.... These are the days when I just turn around and go home. Not only is it an unsatisfying ride, but your putting yourself in jeopardy. I can usually tell within the first 5 minutes or so whether I'm in the groove :dry:

After a long trip my bike gets parked for several days before I have any inclination to ride it again. I feel you have to build up to the higher mile days and be careful not to exhaust yourself in the process. 800 miles is a killer lot of miles. Don't let anyone try and tell you different. Also as far as your skill set suffering it's probably just you paying too close attention to what you are doing. If not then you need to thouroughly check out your bike and make sure there isn't a mechanical issue causing this. Wheels brakes chassis clutch fluid etc....

Yup, been there. It is definitely fatigue, both physical and mental. The same thing happens to me on lengthy car trip, it just takes longer to get to that state. I've been on many long motorcycle trips where the last 50 miles home are tantamount to torture. I know my limits and try to avoid getting to that state, but sometimes it just happens. For me, I get extremely restless, my legs hurt, there is mental pressure to stop and sleep, reaction times are slower -- absolute misery. But it's never permanent. It's always the result of fatigue. Give yourself a couple days to recover and everything will be right again.

Everyone has experienced ride where the heart or head just into it - whether it's fatigue, stress, or just being preoccupied with other things... If it's just not "working" for you, best bet is to step off, take the time to regroup and try again later.

[image: View Post]VFR Capt.Bob, on 14 September 2010 - 08:02 AM, said:

800 miles is a killer lot of miles.



Yeah but he said "trip this weekend". To me a trip implies at the minimum at least two days travel with an overnight stay away from home while an 800 mile "day" is a ride and a helluva' long one at that.

+1 about not being in the zone, having an off day, or getting fatigued. The good news is you recognized it and realized you needed to do something about it: take some time off or back off your pace, etc.

After last year's Summer Summit meet I hardly rode my bike for 3 months after that. I had a great time that inspired a follow up trip this summer to Colorado but I was just burned out after the Summer Summit. This year's trip went great and this coming weekend have a 400+ mile day ride planned and can't wait. So fatigue is just a factor that we have to deal with in any situation.

Take a break and when you are ready to ride again the VFR will be too. :fing02:

I figured it was a matter of fatigue, and that led to over thinking and getting the squirely feelings about cornering and so on. I was just supprised it rolled over into the day after. As far as the trip goes, first day was 300 miles and second day was 500. I've done 600 in a day so I was pretty close to my limit. I'm hanging it up for a couple days and I'll go for a spin this weekend to see how it feels. Thanks for all the replies, glad I'm not the only one.

been there.. done that..ended the trip with dropping my cb750 in the garage , forgot to put the kickstand down..
just turned off the gas and left it there for week and rollerbladed everywhere :comp13:

Friend, I can almost guarantee that you will feel a lot more in tune with your bike when you get on this weekend. That is a long weekend. I have gone 13 hours, 700+ miles in a day (with poor weather conditions when I got into the chilly, raining mountains). You will feel better this weekend.
Cheers!

I've experienced fatigue at the end of really long days before, so it's not unusual - especially when you're riding many more miles/hours than you're used to. The keys seem to be: 1. Working up to long days if possible, 2. Recognizing when you're fatigued, and 3. More frequent and longer breaks when fatigued.

Long days can be fun, but they can also seem like work near the end. :sad: My only advice is to focus on the journey and not the day's destination or goal.

As for feeling out of sync, I've been there, too. Usually I successfully work through it and feel much better later in the day, but I've also had days when I never quite got comfortable. When that happens I ride slower that day and then maybe take a day or two off the bike to "recover". When I get back to the bike I usually feel great! :smile:

That's why I pretty much quit commuting on my bike to work in SF two years ago. Traffic is so bad in the City these days getting in and out that it even takes away what advantage you might have with a bike. Teh lowered bars and raised tail on my VFR isn't that condusive to slow threading the traffic type of riding with abrupt starts and stops too, so I end up wearing myself out physically and mentally during the commute. The stress involved really saps any enjoyment I might have had riding my bike to and from work everyday. Only thing I can think of for a solution is to get a more appropriate (smaller, lighter) bike for the task like maybe a......KLR650??

Beck
95 VFR

[image: View Post]VeryFineRide, on 14 September 2010 - 06:24 AM, said:

Let me start by saying that Ihave been riding 2 wheeled vehichles for over 10 years now, though I am new to the long road trip game. This past weekend I did a 800 mile loop, Skyline Drive, BRPW, and back home. The last 100 miles coming home were MISERABLE! I was very irritable, could barely take off from stop lights properly and well...just plain being an idiot. I don't know why this happend. Riding to work yesterday felt like a continuation of the ride home the day before, I was tentative about taking corners, my pace was erratic, and my fundamentals were just shot to hell. Could it be I just need a short break from riding? This has never happend to me before, maybe long trips just aren't my cup of tea all though I do have tons of fun. I guess I'll just finish out the week driving the truck to work and see how it goes this weekend. Has this ever happend to anyone else?

I haven't read ANY of these responces YET....So no offence to other suggestions..... I think it's just the need to slowly add on miles, rather than try a long one all at once. I think that happens to most riders that don't work up the saddle time..... And you have "for lack of a better term"....Jet Lag. So don't worry about it you'd be ready for a 440 next week-end.
:fing02: (I'm off to read the other post's to this thread now)

Your being able to tell by the symptoms is the key..... I use to drive Semi's coast to coast (OTR)....Now that you know we all do it....Injoy.... Sounds like the 1st day was fun...

When my confidence is shaken I kept on riding at a reduce pace and
treated my condition as a barrier to overcome...

First signs to watch for are my vision... when it starts to narrow and
hunt frantically for my awareness I start to make mistakes... so I
check that by concentrating on pushing my field of vision back to
wide... only with wide vision will I see enough space to stay calm and
begin make accurate decisions that will definitely boost confidence...

Next is breathing... I monitor for first signs of panicky short and
rapid rates and then concentrate on calming it down with long slow
breaths...

Finally I busy my thoughts with the 3 basic tools of cornering more effectively...

1 How quickly do I steer the bike???
2 How much lean angle do I use???
3 Where do I begin my turn in point???

And finally I grade my performance after each corner and assign a number from 1 to 100...

1 did I rolling off the gas to early???

2 did i tighten on the bars???

3 did I narrow my vision???

4 did I fix my attention too long on something???

5 did I steer too early or not quick enough???

6 did I brake when it wasn't necessary???

If I start receiving grades in the 75% range do I begin feeling a real rise in
my level of confidence...

BusyLittleShop.... Great post.... I'm going to put that in my files........ Thx

I'm reading "Total Control" now............. Love this stuff.............

"don't fight with yourself. you will lose" -kosmo cramer.

yes it happens, about once or twice a year. last time was after I almost lost a wide, fast turn going downhill. the wall kept coming at me, grabbed brake, bike stood up and sh--t just got worse. remembered the basics... lean!, no brake! bit of gas!, eyes on the exit!, all of that in 1 second I dare to brag...

so yeah, took a month of tentative short rides to shake that off.

/edit; wise words from a pro training session early on my public roads racing career still ring true;

Doesn't feel like your day? -it isn't. Ride another day.
Returning home without a hosp. bracelet IS the goal. All else is b.s., baits, p*ss contests and worthless rewards.

All great posts guys, appreciate it! I am a firm believer that you are never to old or experienced to keep learning, or refresh for that matter. One thing I truly learned in the military was keep a broad view of things, concentrate on the mission at hand but don't get tunnel vision or mission-itis.

[image: View Post]TexOz, on 14 September 2010 - 06:50 AM, said:

I definitely have days/rides where the mojo has run out and other days when I'm really 'seeing' the road and feeling in the groove. I think everyone has "off" days - I wouldn't be too concerned with what you've described. Clearly fatigue could well be a contributer in this case - the problem with fatigue is that it's often difficult to self-diagnose, its onset is insidious, our cognitive performance and motor skills are adversely affected, and the only really effective cure is to sleep/rest/take-a-break. We all owe to ourselves to adjust the "tempo" when we recognise our 'mojo-low' lights are on - so IMHO you're probably doing the right thing taking a short break.

Eggs, Zachary! :fing02:
Just don't take too long a break. My forced break of nearly 3 months stole much of my mojo. I was riding OK(ish), but not at the 10/10ths you need to stay alive. Made a few silly and very minor mistakes that could've been disastrous, but weren't.

Yes it has happened to me. Now I won't ride unless I'm feeling 100%.

If it's just a let down response after completing a big ride after lengthy planning, you'll be OK once your body and mind have rested for a while. Just take short break until you have set a new riding goal to motivate you. Or go fishing or whatever else floats your boat.

On the other hand, if you suspect that it's genuine depression breaking through, see your doctor without delay.

Are you still riding on the stock seat? Could the heartbreak of monkey butt be a contributing factor? Under Armor boxer jocks, plus a custom seat to prevent that slide to the tank might help.

Proper riding position(s) and being in shape are also critical, there are lots of threads on this. (e.g. vfr comfort)

Surprisingly you might find a longer trip (2000 miles+) is easier psychologically. As Zappa said: "you've gotta get out of it before you can get into it". Just be sure you're in shape first.

While I'm always tired when I get home from a long trip, I hop on the bike for my commute the next day.

[image: View Post]VeryFineRide, on 14 September 2010 - 06:24 AM, said:

Let me start by saying that Ihave been riding 2 wheeled vehichles for over 10 years now, though I am new to the long road trip game. This past weekend I did a 800 mile loop, Skyline Drive, BRPW, and back home. The last 100 miles coming home were MISERABLE! I was very irritable, could barely take off from stop lights properly and well...just plain being an idiot. I don't know why this happend. Riding to work yesterday felt like a continuation of the ride home the day before, I was tentative about taking corners, my pace was erratic, and my fundamentals were just shot to hell. Could it be I just need a short break from riding? This has never happend to me before, maybe long trips just aren't my cup of tea all though I do have tons of fun. I guess I'll just finish out the week driving the truck to work and see how it goes this weekend. Has this ever happend to anyone else?

When going for a long milage weekend try giving yourself plenty of time to get home. Make the last day enjoyable. Maybe less miles and not be in a hurry to get home. Michael Jay

The last bit of a long trip is usually tough. You have to plan so you don't get to the point of exhaustion, and become an accident waiting to happen. :excl:

ARe you still on stock tires?

i had one of those days last year on a group ride. as has been said, the important part is to recognize and adjust. I just flat refuse to push it when i am in that kinda funk, because even if i dint fall off, i am making myself more misirable trying to force it.

It makes those days "when your tyres are made of gorrila glue and the weather is 70 degrees and sunny and you have no hang-over and you havent gone a millimeter off line in miles" that much better.