Find me lots of right turns?

[northwind]

Funny thing, but I've gone s**t at right handers. Almost certainly a result of that crash last month, which happened when I had to square off a roundabout to avoid a car, and lost the front pretty hard. It didn't shake me up much at the time, but it's since then I've been having problems, all confidence based but it's got under my skin properly now.

I'm having to think more about everything too, which I really don't like, since that slows down my whole response times etc. The automatic riding reflexes that you rely on are all shaken up. I've never been fast, and I've been slower since I broke my hip anyway, but this is different, it's like I've unlearned chunks of how to ride- there's riding slowly and there's riding badly. It affected all my cornering at first, but I'm OK on lefts now, I've always preferred lefts to right and it came back fast. Also, it's my right leg that's gimped so I'm often overprotective of it... A niggle at the back of my mind, that. All in all, nothing properly dangerous, but it's slowed me waaaaaay down and I don't like it at all.

Anyway, I was seriously aware of it on the AR, to the point of embarassment as I tiptoed round another easy bend, and I started to properly work on it on the way to Kelso and back, but my right handers are still rubbish. Even my riding position went all to ****, I found myself counterleaning once like i was on my CBT :shaking: So, putting some effort into it now, and what I'd like to find is a fairly varied, technical road with a load of interesting right handers near edinburgh, to have a play on. I've been doing roundabouts, and that's fine, but there's nothing like the real thing. Longer sweepers in particular, to give me space to work stuff out.

And yes, I have thought of Knockhill :) If I don't get my act together soon I'm probably going to book into a rookie evening, I'm sworn off fast trackdays but this is educational :smt077

(If anyone's going to suggest coming riding with me, then please don't, I don't enjoy that much at the best of times... Being watched would make me worse, guaranteed. I know exactly what I should be doing, so it's not really a case of looking for advice, I just need to get back in the groove)

Anyway, thanks for reading. Over to Kitkat and Dean for the first insults :D

[Tiger 55]

It affected all my cornering at first, but I'm OK on lefts now, I've always preferred lefts to right and it came back fast.
Can't help you with the roads I'm afraid but for it's worth (quiet at the back!) I reckon the rights will come back to just the same as the lefts have. It just takes time.

Meantime score the full 10 New Man points for a huge admission. :)

[kitkat]

. Over to Kitkat and Dean for the first insults :D

as if ;) get some stabilisers :p

glenrothes has lots and lots of roundabouts and not too far away from you. let us know when you are going and we will bring picnic basket and rug and camp on roundabout. holding up point cards. im sure dean will wear the bikini like in the wrestling lol.

:smt056

[independentphoto]

as if ;) get some stabilisers :p

LIVINGSTON has lots and lots of roundabouts and not too far away from you. let us know when you are going and we will bring picnic basket and rug and camp on roundabout. holding up point cards.:smt056

Another idea?

[stuartyboy]

Northy....I know exactly what you mean. After my off my confidence went downhill drastically. I was ok when there was nothing in sight but the minute a car/bike/van was in front of me I backed off like crazy. Then someone would nip into my braking gap making it worse.

Confidence takes months and months to come back

[plowsie]

I was in the same boat mate after my second off, but then even worse i had a threatened highside the next day but stayed on, i felt like i was on ice there after, i just couldn't get anything right. Like the other guys told me, just do miles and build up confidence, go on new roads to you, that might help, it did with me.

[haggis]

Of course, Knockhill has it's fair share of right-handers......

Only problem being the tendancy to get more and more confident, and then you 'find the limit' again. Ouch.

I'm not helping really am I. Soz....:)


I was just as bad and nervy after my off - every sheep was a potential kamikazee waiting to zero in on my trajectory. Little b'*ds! lol.

[jim@55]

lost confidence ??,,,
that'l b me then!!
honestly after coming off recently (fairly slowly i may add).on a roundabout, in good conditions ,and it felt like the tyres just let go ,im driving miss daisy on a bike ;) it feels (or rather i think)like their just waiting to let go again ,,good road ,,,average speed , not a lot of lean and im ****ting myself ,,im scared its gonna happen again i thought ''il test this '' and went round a round about getting faster all the time ,,and it was ok ,,but still ,,thoughts of impending doom are never far away..i was out with another forum member (scooby 2102)and we were riding at a modest pace and i honestly dont think i could have rode any faster,we werent pushing it and i was thinking ''what if ''a lot....just when i was getting a bit of trust in the bike /tyres ,,its never 'let go'' b4 ,,so i hope its just been a one off ,,back to square 1:(

[STRAMASHER]

Good confidence builders I like (apart from the best one...doing miles and doing them often, once a week is no good!) is new set of tyres(£££) Or going out a run on your own on open roads and not using your brakes (fun).

A new set of rubber will change the way your bike feels for the better. :cool:

The brake thing plus maybe trying to stick to one(V's;) ) or two(IL4's:rolleyes:) high gears makes you flow your corners better, driving through turns earlier and instilling confidence in your cornering. Feels good too!:D


Thats youse had your biking lows,:smt056 now its time............




Time to get HIGH!!!!:D

[Scooby Drew]

I hear it man - I am still don't have it together after last year although I have stopped having 'mares about RTAs every second night. I've even pretty much given up riding for fun, I just commute (with the occasion attack on an innocent roundabout or motorists who's in the way :p)

It gets better over time, just don't try too hard.

[northwind]

Thanks folks- you're alright, you lot ;)

Livingston's a great idea, around the shopping bit's not just roundabouts, lots of big daft sweepers too. Think I'll make a date there at the weekend. I'll be doing plenty of normal riding but I want to really focus just on the rights sometimes, repetition as well so I can think things over properly. I'd go round Salisbury Crags 50 times, it'd be perfect (great road that) but that's a wee bit antisocial :D

A new set of rubber will change the way your bike feels for the better. :cool:


That's completely true :) When my mate Ben had his big accident, he was on Sportecs and just couldn't get back into riding, in the end he stuck on Diablos which are basically the same tyre, but it was all in his head anyway so it worked a charm. Spurious changes ftw.

I do trust the tyres though, they only let go because they were stone cold and it was a little bit damp- it was a "turn and maybe crash, or don't turn and definately crash" thing. Certainly no worries about the hardware, it's all in the head this. I had a really good run home today, and then something occurred to me at the end, in the whole trip there's only one proper right hander :smt119

[suicidesam]

Right hand bends are not my best point either, met a car on one.. my side of the line :smt119 and had a major moment! Still cannot commit fully to a right sweeper unless i can see through the bend. Decided to change the way i position myself on them for a bit, following a set road position instead of apexing the bend.. then started to build my speed up again. Back to looning it on the way to/from work now (few nice rights) but still take it easy on strange roads.