Pain in the neck

About 6 months ago I started with some discomfort in my neck which I think may be caused by the strain of riding bike at motorways speeds with no screen

Towards the end of Summer / Autumn it got quite bad making it really uncomfortable when trying twist my head and now I can't seem to get rid of it, not ridden bike much over last few weeks and it seems to have eased a little, but went out on naked SV yesterday for a short spin and can feel the discomfort worsening again.

I went to Docs a few weeks back and mentioned the neck pain to them, without even looking at my neck they just said it could be a bit of arthitus which is normal for people of my age but I can't help feeling they were just fobbing me off

As anyone suffered the same and found a cure? or do I just stick a screen on bike

[littleoldman2]

Get yourself to the doctor for a proper exam not a mention whilst there for something else. It could be arthitus or a bone / trapped nerve/ soft tissue problem. Its much to important to try to deal with by yourself.

[maviczap]

I've a regular 8 week appointment at the Osteopath, when she manipulates the muscles in my neck & shoulders I can feel the knots when she touches them.

My regular visits help to stop things getting too far out of shape, which includes freeing up my back as well.

Like little old man says go see a proper Doc or Physio/Osteopath

[rictus01]

Obviously after you have ruled out any medical cause and if you can defiantly trace it back to the bike, here are a few things you may like to concider.

There are a few known causes of neck pain to watch out for, not really anything to do with it being naked or faired, make sure you actually sit straight on the bike and not slightly to one side (often found with people who are shorter in the leg as they have a preferred side to slide off when stopping), another is rounded tensed shoulders as well as gripping too hard on the bars.

on a naked bike it's a common mistake to "hold on" to the bars more as speed builds, try to avoid this and take the added strain through your lower back maintaining a good posture by gripping with the knees (perhaps stomp grip or alike could help).

at very high speeds you can try "pushing" your chin back (not down) and tensing the neck muscles, but that's only required a three figured speeds really.

I've done well over a million miles on naked bikes throughout the years and those things have served me well.

cheers mark.

Thanks for replies chaps, I will get it checked out and let you know how I get on

Make sure your helmet has a high upper opening so your not forcing your neck back in order to see far enough up the road.
My Shoei xr-1000 is giving me neck ache because of this, so i'm going back to my shoei raid.

This pic might explain it a bit easier! You can see the white Shoei Raid has a higher upper opening than the black XR-1000 meaning less strain on your neck when looking ahead.

[Stingo]

Osteophytes can be a result of arthritis in the neck vertebrae and tend to hurt from time to time particularly if they aggravate a nerve or two. To establish if you have osteophytes will require an x ray.

Basically, as the disc between the bones degenerates, the bone matter sees a space and so tries to 'grow' into that space resulting in pointy bits of bone growth.
Disclaimer: I have osteophytes, but I am not a doctor....

[mister c]

Dont know what sort of age you are, but I'm 48. A couple of years ago I suffered from severe neck pains. I put it down to the way I was sitting whilst using the PC for long periods. It got to the point where I couldn't stand the pain anymore, so went to the doctors. I was diagnosed as having Cervical Spondylosis. You can read about it HERE. The Doctor put it down to my age as well.
The pain has gone now, but I have been left with constant pins & needles in my left hand, but I'm used to it now.

[Balky001]

the reason I sold the ZX was due to neck and shoulder pain. Rictus' tip on pushing chin back can really help neck on or off the bike as can sitting upright and putting flat of palm across the base of your neck to open up shoulders. There are a lot of exercises (pilates!) which can help relax the muscle if that's the problem you have

Most people tense when they ride and this, with the seating position, can cause a lot of strain. I get it in hip and neck. This might sound a bit silly but I found if I lean forward on the bike (fast speed or twisties) and my lid is low down you end up craning your neck up to see straight. Tilt the lid a bit so it rides up your forehead (or as Urbanfireblade suggests get a helmet with a higher sight line) a little and you can look forward more without straining your neck so much.

My neck damage is probably caused from sitting on the PC all day but riding does aggrevate it. I took drastic action and bought a Harley. I just hope your neck isn't that bad!!!!