Quote:

"The problem I believe is that I am spacing out"
"I've caught myself daydreaming once in a while"
"Problem is,,most all of us, that have ridden for awhile, is complacency."

All of that already said is so true,, been there-done that.

I've been riding since 76,, and yeah, I know I'm old,, and don't react like I did when I was 45 let alone dream about being 25 again!!
Last year I took an "Intermediate Class" riding course offered locally and am so glad I did.
It was an opportunity not only to bring awareness of current riding issues to light but to have a non-bias instructor observe my riding skills/technique and behavior,, he offered several tips and pointers.
The class helped me kind of "re-focus" my mind.
The course is set-up at a local Tech college parking lot and I can go over there after hours or on a weekend and ride the painted lines to refresh the things we covered.
The lot is too small for the Advanced Class. I've got to travel 70miles for that one.

I've seen several members here mention taking these classes every other year and from what I learned about myself last year I am going to do just that.
I'm KNOW I need the "Advanced Class" and will do that next year,, it's not a Pass/Fail issue at all,, it's about me keeping ME current.

I'm not trying to dog ya atrox88,, just sharing that I know I'm getting older too,, and I need to be proactive about my riding.

Glad ya came out of it OK, bet yer kinda stiff huh?

p.s. I should mention that when I say I know I need the advance class,, it means I'm ready for it,, I thought I needed the Advanced class last year,, I'm glad I took the Intermediate first,, I would have been totally unprepared for the Advanced

 

You never really know a road. If there's one you ride often, its easy to get complacent. But I've run one of my familiar local twisties and found, in the middle of blind corners:

Lots of gravel, spread all over
Streams of water
Puddles of oil
A pack of bicycles wobbling all over the road at 5 mph while the rest of us are doing 50
An SUV that had attempted a 3 point turn and gotten itself wedged across both lanes
A car stopped in teh middle of the lane so wifey couldtake a picture.
Deer, elk, javalina, etc.

I try never to go faster than I can see to stop.

 

Oh Yeah Man!!
Around here we're solid Agriculture/Farms
Add to the above mix a combine/tractor that blew a hydraulic hose or cooling line!!

 

Same problems with agriculture here, you forgot the dirt from the fields or the sloppy wet manure. P U !

 

Sounds like it's time for an advanced MFS rider course! Bone up the couple of bucks, free up the couple of days needed and go take the course! When you get done, if they tell you that you have a problem you can make a decision then! EVERYONE picks up bad habits over time. Time for a refresher course!!

 

OP I really like your honesty and bringing up this subject. It's made me start thinking again. Thank you

 

I have a really bad habit of riding too close to the cars in front of me when waiting to pass. More than once I have had to break real hard when they stop or slow down ! I know what i'm doing is wrong but keep drifting into that position repeatedly. I'm 69...b.

 

You really need to pay attention. On a bike, a lapse of concentration can bring bad results.

I am also 64, 99% of my riding is back roads, rural, farm country. As I ride, and see a road I never been on I take that road. Even if you ride the same road everyday, pay attention!

 

I'll be 60 in Nov., been riding since 1969, 1/4 million miles on the road. 27th motorcycle, 1st Harley. The last 4 out of 5 road bikes since 1993 have had ABS and only because no one else has said it, this scenario is exactly the reason I choose ABS. They claim you can out perform ABS, and I believe that, if you are ON your game. When I'm not on my game and all of a sudden I need to scrub speed quickly I'm a believer in ABS. Grab the binders for all their worth and let technology go to work for you. It can get a lot worse hitting the tree, pole or guardrail. No thanks. My opinion and $.75 won't buy you a cup of coffee, so take it for what it's worth...

 

I took an advanced class, my goodness, 11 years ago. But it is not hard for an experienced rider to:
1) get lazy, i.e. Comfortable with their skill level even as our reactions slow.
2) think we experienced it all and survived. That our skill set is good enough.

After my advanced class I was a better rider. But as a year goes by, I start taking short cuts, quick and easy saves. Therefore, after my advanced class I looked at the situations that required automatic rapid response. Emergency stops, whether because of a left turner, deer, for any reason needs to be automatic, no time to think. Two mistakes are bike not vertical and locked the rear wheel. Those are things I can practice and after an afternoon in a parking lot, I have relearned it for the whole riding season. This has saved me from posting an" I hit an elk" post.
The other skill that get rusty for me is swerves. It seems so natural until it happens, deer at night, ladder in the middle of the road. So I practice swerves, it is unnerving at first. I run up to 45 and counter Steer left, right, then right left. I start at 25 and work up. Once, at 70+ on I-90 that drill saved me from t-boning a huge doe at 11:00 PM. Once I run through my drills, it stays with me all riding season.
Slow turns. Turn head, look all the way around, feather clutch, rear brake. It is amazing, each spring I feel like I am turning a 22' long 1200# metric. But after 5-10 minutes doing figure 8's and circles, I feel like I'm on a 250cc Honda dream. I don't remember the minimum, but I feel like I can whip that bike around in 10'. Even two up, and my honey jumps around like she has ants in her pants.
The way I look at it, these are skills of mine that get sloppy over the winter. Even though I ride year around, rain and wind give me extra pause to be careful all winter, but I know each string, a single afternoon restores my skill set to max.
To counter road boredom, I am forever scanning for animals, turning vehicles, looking ahead of the car in front of me, etc. I taught myself to enjoy doing this. I even do it in my car.
I hope you accident is just a wake up call and that you will find new and different skills to continue your riding. I know my reactions are slower than at 23, but I can use my experience and skills to be as safe or safer a rider as I was at 23. But at 70, when I feel I've lost that edge, I'll happily move on to a sports car. Life is too short to give up, refresh your skills and move on. 2 or 4 wheels is not the issue, the issue is how we handle it.
My uncles doctor told him at 100 not to cut and split his own firewood anymore. Do as much as you can to be that guy. ( he is the same guy that in the mid 1920's he rode a Harley from Massachusetts to California. After he told us the stories, the adventures before gas stations and paved roads, we asked him why he did it? He told us his brother had done it the year before and he was not going to let his brother beat him at anything.) Hardship and accidents are just part of life. How you react to them is the measure of your character.

Added: youth has strength and exuberance, age has experience and ruthlessness. When my 6' son came home from high school wrestling practice and decided to show some dominance, I took him down so fast and hard, he never knew what hit him. I knew I had 6 seconds to beat him or it was all his game. Same with motorcycling, as we get older we need to learn to recognize that a disaster is impending and use strength and skills we little use, but keep in reserve. Use the advantages of experience and those 23 year olds don't necessarily hold an edge short term.