Slowing down on a bike (i.e. not riding so fast!)

Norbert666

Norbert666

Norbert666

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Essex, innit?
It's that season again.

Every Tom, Dick and Harry has begged, borrowed and stolen and has got their motorbike or moped out of the garage for the summer.

I commute into the City every day, come rain or shine. Winter and summer.

As other bikers will be well aware, it's very easy to get complacent and to start riding dangerously and generally far too fast.

A combination of factors has really got me worried: I am getting married In two months and in the past two weeks I have seen 5 serious crashes involving motorbikes.

I am starting to get quite nervous and feel, rather oddly, that my time is running out (not death, just being taken off by a car).

Does anyone have any tips for slowing down?

I don't particularly want a slower bike.

And, answers like, just ride slower will be ignored! :rolleyes:

I am sure that EVERY biker falls into this trap. Forgetting how fast you are actually going. Or arriving at your destination and not actually remembering any of the journey as you've been day dreaming all the way.

Cheers
 
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Relax more. Seemed to be the best thing for me when I wanted to drive slower and be less bothered about getting somewhere "on time". Leave earlier (depending on the length of your commute), so that you aren't pressured into "making time". Perhaps even use a different and more scenic route (if possible).

But yes, on the whole, just relax and go with the flow.
 
paradigm said:
Relax more. Seemed to be the best thing for me when I wanted to drive slower and be less bothered about getting somewhere "on time". Leave earlier (depending on the length of your commute), so that you aren't pressured into "making time". Perhaps even use a different and more scenic route (if possible).

But yes, on the whole, just relax and go with the flow.
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agree with this completely, it can be hard to ignore when you're going to get somewhere but it is the best way to do it
 
Yeah, this feeling comes to us all in time. Just relax and enjoy the ride.
I found that playing little games slowed me down. One I like to play is "Don't use the brakes". I try and complete my commute without touching the brakes other than to stop at junctions. Just try and use the engine braking for everything. It will slow you down no end.
 
unfortunately its true, and i wholeheartedly agree. Not sure everyone in this forum will, however.

what bike do you ride? EDIT: Just seen its a GSX6... maybe something less sports focussed?

I have a VTR SP-1 sports bike, and am contemplating chopping it in for a Triumph Sprint ST Sports tourer, in the hope it wont provoke me to ride like Mick Doohan everywhere.

As for the mortality, again i agree - i've felt it myself a good few times. Thing is tho if you're commuting to the city (London i assume?) like myself, then a bike is really the SINGLE best way. Its not perfect, but is cheap and quick. trains are expensive and inflexible, and cars take too damn long (i'm one of those guys you overtake sitting in traffic ;) )

All i would say is you've probably been riding a long time, and you're still here, so just keep doing what you've done. Riding fast itself isnt an issue, its just where and when taht make it ok/silly. I'd warn against filtering down traffic a high speed, ride everywhere in the city with main beam and assume every arse is out to run you down.

:)
 
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leave early, listen to relaxing music on a music player, get your thrills elsewhere.

alternatively, ride a push bike to work and you will see that no matter how fast a motorbike goes, an aggressive push bike, bent on making progress can keep up. After that, pushing on a motorbike just seems a little pointless; the pedaller's gonna get you :P

I commute on motorbike and pushbike and I have yet to beat my time on a pushbike on a motorbike. Im not an incredibly fast rider, but it is scary how little difference pushing it on a commute makes.
 
I don't really know what to suggest as I suffer the same thing. Commuting or in town, I have to make a conscious effort to "go with the flow" of traffic. Then the only place I overtake is when I filter. Off the lights I always try and put some distance between me an the cars for the sake of safety, but then short shift up to 6th as quickly as I can, making it harder to build up the speed. The only thing that slows me down is when I get a "moment"... i.e. "**** that was close..." sort of moment. I start to slow down if I feel my adrenaline picking up and just try as hard as I can not go over 40 (in town),and consciously force myself to stick closer to 35.

There's no tips I can offer, other than expect a cop on every corner or assume some **** will pull out of you and hasn't "seen" you, maybe take more time to observe and ask yourself, did I see all those hazards I just went past? You just have to make a conscious effort really - it's hard to suggest anything else. :/
 
Snax said:
leave early, listen to relaxing music on a music player, get your thrills elsewhere.

alternatively, ride a push bike to work and you will see that no matter how fast a motorbike goes, an aggressive push bike, bent on making progress can keep up. After that, pushing on a motorbike just seems a little pointless; the pedaller's gonna get you :P

I commute on motorbike and pushbike and I have yet to beat my time on a pushbike on a motorbike. Im not an incredibly fast rider, but it is scary how little difference pushing it on a commute makes.
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You listen to music whilst riding a motorbike?! :eek:
 
I just sold my bike for similar reasons ,its in the local papers everyday fatal bike accidents and after trying to help some 17 year old on the moors that hit a stopped car at about 35 and died made me very aware that even slow speeds can kill !
 
I'm never in a rush - I just end up ragging it regardless.

If I leave early, the roads are clear and too easy to do silly speeds.

Does that BikeSafe course talk about speeds or anything? keep meaning to do it but never got round to it.
 
First DON'T listen to music while riding, far too much of your situational awareness is built up from hearing.

Secondly, playing little games of riding style can help. The how fuel efficient can I be game, don't touch the brakes game, never ride over a white line game etc.

Thirdly the type of bike you have will infulence your riding. The stance and position of a sports bike urges you into going faster as you try to make the extreme riding position feel "right". Something more sports tourer will still give you just as much speed and excitement, but when YOU want it. A Triumph Sprint ST is still a quick bike, but the riding style and position means that you can take it easy and not feel out of place.

The other thing I find is that my road riding has slowed down a lot since I started racing. Maybe trackdays will quench your thirst for riding quickly. After riding on a nice empty track without distractions you also start to realise how crowded, busy, poorly surfaced and full of idiots the roads are.
 
Well, I've been thinking about this. I don't use my bike as a commuter yet (might do come university time this year, who knows) and I am constantly thinking about the fact that this is quite dangerous and I dread to think of the consequences of my first accident.

I had a very close call on Saturday, I was on a long left hander sliproad onto the M2 motorway, I had taken the corner a little faster than my friend in front, and such I was gaining on him rapidly, I had to take speed off, but that took me into the stones on the right, and then subsequently I 'bounced' off the kerb. Very close. I then went into major day-dream mode and totally was unaware of the fact I was on a slip road with traffic infront and to my side... I undercut the guy in front of me like an idiot and then proceeded to act stupid for the next half mile until I wised up.

Things like that scare me, and I just wonder is the bike a sensible choice as I first thought it was. I really think I should revert to just the car, but I for some reason have a guilty conscience from the fact I've spent so much money on gear over the past year which I don't think I could sell very easily.

I just don't know what to do really. Apologies for effectively hijacking your thread... :)
 
Dureth said:
The other thing I find is that my road riding has slowed down a lot since I started racing. Maybe trackdays will quench your thirst for riding quickly. After riding on a nice empty track without distractions you also start to realise how crowded, busy, poorly surfaced and full of idiots the roads are.
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Hmm, there's an idea.
Although I don;t need a track day to tell me about the multitude of idiots on the roads! :eek:
 
Dureth said:
The other thing I find is that my road riding has slowed down a lot since I started racing. Maybe trackdays will quench your thirst for riding quickly. After riding on a nice empty track without distractions you also start to realise how crowded, busy, poorly surfaced and full of idiots the roads are.
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I'm not a biker, but I fully agree with that comment! - I seem to be a lot more relaxed on the roads from doing a few track days every few months
 
I found doing the bikesafe course slowed me down in terms of outright maximum speed but made me smoother and faster overall.

But in general, going to a slower bike didnt work for me. I tried swapping my ZX9 for a Tiger but after the novelty wore off I found myself ragging that aswell, which was more dangerous as the handling and brakes werent up to it, so swapped back to a sportsbike.

The thing is, part of the attraction of a bike is effortless speed, and I dont think you can ever dial that out of your riding. The only thing you can do is try and be a bit more selective as to how and where you use the power, as well as getting more training, be it IAM, trackdays etc.

Most accidents are either low speed town accidents where the cars get you, or fast open roads with no one else involved when you just run out of ability. You can mitigate the town ones by increasing awareness and decreasing speed, especially in 30 areas/filtering etc and the open road ones by increasing your ability on the bike, therefore meaning that the next time you go into a corner too hot you have the confidence to just lean the bike more rather than panic brake, stand the bike up and hit the nearest tree/oncoming car. I know in a recent magazine they said that in the majority of fatal accidents on corners, its been deemed by the Police investigators that the bike was more than capeable of making the turn but the rider didnt have enough skill.
 
Streetfighter it ?

I have ridden un-faired bikes for the last few years and have found that I have slowed substantially, my cruise speed has dropped back into double-digits :) in an attempt to hang on.

The higher up riding position helps visibility and the big wide bars help flickability too.

It does nothing for the hooligan factor though.....
 
Hmmm I keep thinking the same, i mean to take it easy but just end up getting to a bend and enjoying it to much and them im off lol, im currently working on an SV650 for a track bike, but now im seriously thinking of tracking the gixer instead and using the the SV650 for the road, but then again that things still good enough to loose my license or worse :/
 
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