Cornering confidence - how long?

[yorkie_chris]

Originally Posted by Ed

Well you never know... depends on cost I spose, and how much you'd be wasting if you hated it or weren't up to it. In my case £299 that I couldn't afford.

Chris - hard to MTFU with a mashed pelvis!

Not directed at you at all that mate, with serious injuries you can obviously only start when you're fit.
I was more on about the little 10mph lowsides people have, some will spend ages going "ooooooohhhh", others will go "b*llocks!", break out the gaffer tape and string and go about their business.

I think it comes back to types of character, but I'm not a pshrink so will go back to talking about oily stuff.

ohh i get you know if i had i a 10 mph lowside and the bike was fine id probably laugh

[Bibio]

what got me over the fear of crashing was crashing. i done a looot of it when i was younger and mostly trying to push the bike as far as it would go until it let go. i used to go out with the attitude that 'i'm going to crash today' which most often than not i did. slowly and surly my brain clicked and learnt how to correct the bike to prevent it.

i used to do stupid things like 'what happens when you just flick the bike into a 90degree bend' yup you crash, or what happens when you 'lamp the brakes on mid corner' again you crash, or what happens when you 'pull the brakes a hard as you can in a straight line in the wet' yup you guessed it you crash. although i come from a family of bikers and was told not to do thease things but i was never told why so me being me had to find out, so i crashed a lot.

I also think age has a lot to do with it, when you're younger you don't think of the consequences, what happens if you can't work, how will you pay to fix the bike etc etc, I was exactly the same, I never give stuff like that a thought tbh.

I'm self employed, I do have to stop myself riding too fast ( for me) sometimes as it would be very hard to get over a big crash where I couldn't work.

I've had confidence issues also, still get them sometimes, I'm not a quick rider, I've still got a lot to learn, but by doing it slowly my way I'm getting better and more confident.

Being honest, I'm not obsessed with going flat out everywhere, I like going fast or a decent pace for me but I like riding so much if I was out with a slower rider it wouldn't bother me going slower, I'm quite happy bringing up the rear on rideouts, I'll keep pace with the ones towards the back but if they wanna go slower I'm fine to sit there.

I guess we all get different kicks doing things differently.

im 18

[lukemillar]

Track days are a bit of a misnomer. Sure you will probably end up leaning way more than you would on the road and building confidence, but when you get back on the road, you then realise that you just can't ride like that safely! There is simple too much stuff to hit when it goes wrong.

[timwilky]

sometimes it helps to ride with a small group of capable riders, follow their line and example. Safe in the knowledge that the only difference between them and you is a stupid doubt held in a couple of neurons. If they can safely get round that bend there is no reason why you cannot. After all they are not doing Mamola saves etc.

[NTECUK]

You can get a single session at snetterton £20. I'm sure other tracks must do the same.
Worth it just to concentrate on what your doing (no side roads or cars etc).
Ignore the fast guys.
It's a bit annoying when a 250 make you look like your stuck in 1 st though....

[mister c]

It was quite funny, as last night I was riding at a "spirited" pace on the way home from work. I know how fast to enter certain bends & feel comfortable with it. Last night, playing with a 3 series BMW, I entered one bend at about 10 mph faster than I am comfortable with. The bike coped very well & shows that it has more to give than I have. I came out the other side shaking & cursing myself, saying what a div I was for doing it.
It shows that my confidence level isn't the same as the bike's.
I do find that with right handers I still tense my right arm, which is the worst thing to do & I have to physically tell myself not to do it as I enter the corner. I think that it stems back to a crash at 3 Sisters 2 years ago where I cracked a couple of ribs & damaged my ankle.

[Geodude]

I still have a mental barrier after my off at 60+ on a corner due to inexperience, which i broke a few ribs etc and that was two years ago. i still have no confidence on corners or roundabouts and i think im one of those people who just cant lean. Im not a fast rider and find it hard to keep up in groups or following other riders so i tend to ride on my own mostly. I agree with Yc about types of character.