Riders Block versus Writers Block

Have you ever had a paper due, a work assignment, or even trying to just write something witty on a birthday card and couldn’t? That is how it feels to write for a living sometimes. Sitting there staring at a blank space and trying to will a story onto it. There are also times where riding a motorcycle feels the same way.This past Sunday was one such day, the weather was cold, the hurricane hitting the East Coast was gone but not forgotten, and I wanted to ride. Except I didn’t want to ride at the same time. I had visions of carving corners, empty black top with no vehicles to avoid, and a happy feeling in my soul thinking about it.

That is as far as I got. I used possibly every excuse to not ride. Needs an oil change, tire pressure was low, it’s cold, there is a Jeep in the way. There is actually a Jeep in the way, my new 1981 CJ7 project. I had what I call “Riders Block”.

So my wife and I climbed in my daily Jeep, a highly modified JK and rolled to our normal Sunday breakfast spot. Usually we are there with a bunch of guys who also ride, we hang, shoot the breeze, and then leave in ones and twos to head out on the road. Judging by this past Sunday I was not the only one with “Riders Block”. Sure there were a couple guys who made it, two vintage Brit bikes with frozen owners and a BMW with heated jock strap attachment. The rest of us for various reasons asked each other why we didn’t ride and then looked at the ground when we gave our weak kneed answers.

Without changing a thing or even thinking about it too hard I woke Monday morning, took the day off, aired up the tires, rode the bike around the CJ, and went for a ride. Riders block gone. Some times fortune smiles on us, other times we need to work hard at fixing what is wrong.

What do you do to get over “Riders Block”?