Which are you?

[Bendy]

Hell, let's run with the whole dissection of yesterdays events thing...

[Wave2k]

if crashing means your crap, then i am
other than crashing im not too bad.
maybe Not as quick as i think i am, but not bad
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Ducati 1299 Panigale
2009 Corvette C6 z51
RS125->CBR400->RXS100->GSXR750K2->Ducati749S->CBR600RR5->TL1000R->DRz400->RSVR1000->Honda VTR SP1->CBR400->GSXR1000K6->Honda H100->CBR600RR3->Ducati1299

[McJamweasel]

Define 'good', then I'll answer.
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BCF: Be yourself, just don't be an arse.

[Kickstart]

Hi

Half of people are below average.

Depends what you mean. In a lot of ways I am crap. In some ways probably better than average. Hopefully I ride within the boundaries of my (low) abilities.

All the best

Keith
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Traxpics, track day and racing photographs - Bimota Forum - Bike performance / thrust graphs for choosing gearing

[Bendy]

[Wave2k]

keith we have all seen you do those stand up wheelies,
thats how you snapped shauns clutch cable
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Ducati 1299 Panigale
2009 Corvette C6 z51
RS125->CBR400->RXS100->GSXR750K2->Ducati749S->CBR600RR5->TL1000R->DRz400->RSVR1000->Honda VTR SP1->CBR400->GSXR1000K6->Honda H100->CBR600RR3->Ducati1299

[Steve H]

I think most of us think that we're better than we actually are to be honest - Most bikers tend to ride beyond their limits whether it be peer pressure during a spin with mates or purely pushing the limits of their machinery which 99 times out of 100 far outreaches the indiviuals boundaries.

Scaring the crap out of yourself at least once or regretting a manoeuvre or mistake that's been made during a ride is unfortunately common place. Whether people have the bollocks to admit it is a different matter all together.

Still, we all live and learn don't we
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Mellow Yellow
The BCF Top TEN - 2010, 2009, 2008, The Original.

[wantser]

Ive gone for " i know how good I am" mainly because I know that I am still learning. I passed my DAS back in FEB and know that I am still learning how to ride everyday. I am confident in my riding, but know there is still alot of room for improvement. I am probably going to do an advanced rider training thing with the police or something along those lines before the summers out. Just for that extra bit a tuition!
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An expert is a person who has made all the mistakes that can be made in a very narrow field

[Dom]

Crap and I know it. Not fussed, and time'll change that anyway. I do think I'm fairly 'good' in the sense that I think I'm quite a safe rider though.

[Zoffo]

Good enough to know when I'm out-classed and thats the important bit.
How many off's are due to trying to ride beyond you abilities either to keep up with a faster rider of to impress a faster rider or on occasion to race a faster rider. Had a nice little blast with a guy on a MV Augusta F4 this weekend. Managed to stay with him for a few miles but let him go in the end. I was having to take what I considered to be too many risks to keep up.
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https://hyperbikes.forumsplace.com/

[MarJay]

I disagree Steve,

I find it fascinating that Bendy included the option "I'm faster than I think I am..."

This is because I know I can be faster, I've seen people do it, and on rare occasions I can ride quickly and feel safe. However, 90% of the time I am too held back by fear to ride to the best of my abilities. This is not to say that I am paralysed by it, but rather that as soon as I feel I could press on more some niggling doubts come into the back of my mind. They pretty much boil down to...

"What if I crash..."

now, I don't believe this is about how often one has crashed, or how many times etc, I believe that is more random than we make out. However I do believe that likelihood of crashing is affected by the mindset at the time.

The easy option for me when I'm 'pressing on' is to actually back off a bit. This I believe is why I am relatively slow on track and on the road.

Its actually a pain because its hard to get into the 'quick riding' mindset enough on a trackday to feel like I am really improving.

The other thing is, the niggling doubts tend to affect my concentration on and execution of 'fast riding methods' at least on track.

So, to sum up, I think a LOT of bikers are faster than they think, but are held back by fear and a lack of confidence in their own abilities.

In fact I may even go as far as to say that it is rare to find a biker who /is/ fully aware of his own abilities, and is as likely to think he is fast as he is slow.
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British beauty: Triumph Street Triple R; Loony stroker: KR1S; Track fun: GSXR750 L1; Commuter Missile: GSX-S1000F; Cheap project: CBR900RR FireBlade
Remember kids, bikes aren't like lego. You can't easily take a part from one bike and then fit it to another.

[Steve H]

Yep rereading my post MJ I realise that I maybe posting out of context - a lot of people however DO ride beyond their abilities, how else are we to explain all of the 'offs' that occur regularly on this forum? Maybe I'm confusing how good we think we are with pure rider stupidity.

As an example I thought I was improving as a rider until a recent ride out with a friend of mine (ridng in excess of 30 years) whom I asked to pick holes in my style - After the ride and subsequent conversation I realised how much more I can do to improve my riding technique. With the benefit of his critique I've found myself more able purely over the last few days now that I've been putting his advice into practice (little things like my body positioning that I thought I had down to a tee before he advised me accordingly).

I know my limits but I don't think I necassarily ride within them ALL of the time, I have times of blinkered madness (that I mentioned on this site recently) and that's the point I was attempting to convey.
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Mellow Yellow
The BCF Top TEN - 2010, 2009, 2008, The Original.

[Annabella]

I know my limits, and don't push them.

I think I'm slow, and ride like a hlaf-blind granny would. Others disagree...
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I did Cadwell!
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[feef]

I think I'm crap.. I believe I'm crap.. but then Ive been told by a couple of mates that I'm not, and I kept passing everyone in the slow group on my first ever trackday.

On the otherhand, soeone I know who is a good rider has said I'm slow/crap.

so am I slow and crap as I believe or not?

a
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[Method]

Ive been told that im a crap rider, and that i ride to fast, and too stupidly... but i feel that everything i do is within my limits...

That however is my problem, i feel that things are within my limits, when realy they are not. The fact that i 'get away' with certain manouvers and speeds seems to push into my head that i do have the ability to ride at speed, when realy i dont have anywhere near the experience i feel is required to ride the way that i do sometimes.

I have race track expeirence (offroad / speedway/ grasstrack) which means that i do have the ability to ride beyond my limits and get away with it regularly. This unfortunately has seemed to transfer onto my road riding, and i do find myself thinking after a ride... "i realy shouldnt have done that"... or halfway round a bend..."i realy cant handle this".

I think it comes with time and experience, you learn through your mistakes
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[steveh]

ive been told im a good rider, but then again ive been told i ride to fast and too silly around corners ect, id like to think im a "good" rider, but im probably not, only ever fell off a bike a year ago (50cc)

Steve.
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Current : 06 Zx10r, 07 Wr450f SM, 74 850 norton commando, 63 bsa b40, 1962 Triton 650, 67 Triumph Tr6r, 1955 Triton 750, 1978 TY250E.

[KevTM]

i reckon i'm a good rider in a way as i've never been hit or hit anything, never created any cause for concern, courteous (spelling), smooth(ish), in groups i ride staggered, on my own nearer the white line, don't brake too hard or pull out in front of people.. and don't do too much dodgy stuff

am i good riding fast? no.. that's something i know i'm crap at, recently i've been looking for the vanishing point around corners rather than looking at the road surface in front of me and i find myself going faster, just confidence i think.

right enough having a fast(ish) bike turns you into a hooligan at times so recently i've probably been worse.

[JonB]

It may be arrogant, but for a new rider, I don't think I am that bad.
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Be careful whose advice you buy, but, be patient with those who supply it. Advice is a form of nostalgia, dispensing it is a way of fishing the past from the disposal, wiping it off, painting over the ugly parts and recycling it for more than it?s worth.

[G]

Seeing that there's no extra information given to base my opinions on for this vote, I voted for the last option.

There's many things that I know I should do (road and track) that I don't. Plenty of times I think 'that was crap'.

[bazza]

I'm pretty sure I'm crap by most people's standards on here.

I ride like a granny and proud of it. I bought my bike for me, so that's who gets to say how it's ridden. Everyone else can just feck off.


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"That's it. You people have stood in my way long enough. I'm going to clown college."
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[craigs23]

I know my limits, and I'm still learning the limits of my bike. I'm happy with my pace but don't think that speed is the only way of defining how good a rider is.

I'm comfortable.

[Hex]

[stinkwheel]

I know my limits well enough to know when I am chancing my luck. I push my limits sometimes but always with that nagging at the back of my head. This is how you get better though.

I still make sure to have something left in reserve, I don't ride on a track so you have to be ready for the unexpected. If you are decked right out or at max braking every corner, that rogue drain cover is going to have you off and there is nothing you can do about it.
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“Rule one: Always stick around for one more drink. That's when things happen. That's when you find out everything you want to know.”
I did the 2010 Round Britain Rally on my 350 Bullet. 89 landmarks, 3 months, 9,500 miles.

[instigator]

I'm young, I'm still learning, I've made mistakes, I don't know my limits nor do I particularly want to find them as of yet. End of.

[Mungel]

Like most things in life, practise makes perfect. The more you ride, the better you get.

I voted crap, not because I think im a bad rider, just because i know that im not experienced.

I know my current limits, I ride (mostly) within them.

Scratch that, I ride like a Jessy.....
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Mungel
ZZR600 (dead) - ZX9R (sold) - FZ1S