Trackday depression - Help please

[Geodude]

All my bike riding friends call me the cart horse because of my slow riding and often leave me well behind and then moan about having to wait for me, but TBH i ride the way i ride and i enjoy every minute im on the bike end of.

great advice guys. I do love my r6 and everyday it makes me smile. I know it sounds daft but hadn't actually thought of ignoring everyone else. Don't ask me why but ive always been measuring my ability by watching others going faster than me. relaxing, thinking about my ride and not others sounds like a better way to do it.

[anna]

Firstly, going fast does not equate to being good on a bike.

Twisting your wrist is not skill.

If the trackdays are not enjoyable dont do them, they are useful tools to some to build confidence and do things that they arent able to do on the road.

As most people who have ridden with me will tell you, Im slow, I always have been, you will always find me at the back of a pack, but I love riding in the pack watching better riders and learning from them. I know the frustration of wanting to be better though.

Go out on your own enjoy the bike, shake off the frustrations you have been having on the track and go out on the bike on some roads you know get your confidence up, then go for mini adventures.

Originally Posted by G

Do you fear getting hurt, or do you fear binning your expensive pride and joy?

Dont worry about coming off while riding. I wear all the protective gear so feel safe enough. Trashing the bike would probably be a pain in the wallet, but not the end of world. After reading all the posts I guess Im using valuable concentration thinking about other riders instead of my ride, which now I think about it is a daft thing to do

Ah, sorry to hear you're not enjoying it Nate. Only thing I can say it just think positive and forget about the possibility of crashing/binning your bike. thinking along these lines won't increase your confidence. I really won't worry about other people; some people are just naturally a little more daring and willing to push it a bit harder to be quicker around the track, where as others will take time to increase speed.

You've done X amount of trackdays without crashing, so that is quite impressive in itself. Are you not enjoying them because you feel you aren't going quick enough or doing the R6 justice? If you are, just forget about it and just enjoy each corner as it comes. I for one barely notice how well other people are doing on track as I just do my own thing and focus on the next corner, and I definitely don't give any attention to what's behind me.

I thought you enjoyed Cadwell! Chin up.

Originally Posted by TazDaz

I thought you enjoyed Cadwell! Chin up.

yeah, enjoyed 2nd day. Cant remember why. think i felt more relaxed as Id been the day before and knew the layout. was defo faster as I passed people who were passing me the day before. Upto now I have booked trackdays at different locations and not stuck to one to learn the track

Originally Posted by anna

Firstly, going fast does not equate to being good on a bike.

Twisting your wrist is not skill.

Twisting your wrist isn't being fast either. "Going fast" is not "being fast"

Bikes are fast, so anyone can "go fast". Someone that is fast is someone that is capable of riding the bike as fast as it can go all the time around a lap, which of course doesn't mean that they will do so, necessarily. These people are better on a bike, more skilled, than the people who are simply incapable of riding like that. They're also far safer riding at a pace which is the "limit" for a slower rider, because they're so far from their own limit. A MotoGP rider is never going to crash if you ask him to ride 3 seconds off his best laptime, on any bike, for 20 laps, but see how the typical trackday rider would do trying ride at the same pace.

It doesn't come down to bravery even, really. Just as with cars, the people that are slower are slower because they lack the control which gives them the confidence to go faster, and the knowledge that their machine is still capable of more.

Trackdays should be a personal enjoyment. You should be out there because you want to experience the track and your bike. It will end in tears if you pressure yourself, just accept that you are the rider you are, nobody will be able to flick a switch and turn you into Rossi, so ignore the others.

Visit different circuits. I know several riders who've done trackdays just because they want to experience the circuit, they're not interested in "the limit", they just want to ride the circuits they've been watching the racing on all these years.

<--- cropped from shot: Bellero the TEC

I know how you guys feel, I'm not very fast, at the AR I was at the back of the pack for two of the five legs. I feel like bigchris does, and wonder why sometimes. Other times I just have a whale of a time on the way into work and wonder why I'd want to give it up.

Ride for yourself, so you enjoy it. If that means no more trackdays, fine. If that means not bothering with rideouts because of embarassment, also fine. You will probably be happier looking back on 50 plus years of slow but steady riding as opposed to 18 months ending with 130mph into a tree.

You could try Silverstone this weekend...its pretty much completely different to other tracks as its flat and very wide.

You don't need to be riding at the limit to have fun, you need to relax to have fun. It's not about speed, it's about you feeling like your riding well. Relaxed, confident, flowing riding feels good, but that doesn't have to be fast. If you feel that way then speed will come on it's own with practice.

How do you feel when you ride on the road? Is it just a physiological barrier that hits you when you get on a track, or do you sometimes feel like that with your road riding too?