PR (Panic Reaction)
I received a PM from Skydvr yesterday telling me he had a couple of OhSh!t moments when riding over the weekend. He had met a vehicle in one of his favorite corners and had a PR. He did exactly the wrong thing by standing his bike up.
When a vehicle pops up in a blind corner in exactly the wrong spot, it triggers a PR in most riders and the decision you make at that exact moment may make the difference between life and death. We have all been there and done that at some point. I had this exact thing happen to me a few years ago and I nearly became a hood ornament for an F350 Ford. I couldn't get that thought out of my head for days afterwards. I came so close to ending it all and I knew it!
After that little mistake that came within a snatchhair of taking my life I came up with a little mind game that seems to work well for me. I shared this little tidbit of info with Keith (Skydvr) and he suggested I post it up for the troops. It's simple but works quite well for me.
Every blind corner I encounter, before reaching the tip in point, I force my brain to think there is a vehicle just out of sight crowding the centerline and I am going to meet this guy in exactly the wrong spot. This forces me to choose a line that will avoid any possible collision and keeps me out of harms way. If my brain is already aware this fantasy vehicle is there, I can totally avoid the PR when one actually appears.
I have had many encounters with vehicles in blind corners since that close call some years back and not once was I in the wrong position at the wrong time and not once did it trigger a PR. If your mind in cocked and ready, even if you are in a bad position, the instant the vehicle appears you will instantly take evasive action without taking time to evaluate the situation and you will aready have a plan of excape programed in.
Of course we all know avoiding the centerline as much as possible is the safest way to avoid oncoming traffic but we can't always do that when romping through the twisties.
I learned this early on in aviation, "Always leave yourself an avenue of excape"! This is also true with motorcycles especially in right hand corners where we face a head on collision if we run wide.
This little mind game works for me and it may work for you as well?
I received a PM from Skydvr yesterday telling me he had a couple of OhSh!t moments when riding over the weekend. He had met a vehicle in one of his favorite corners and had a PR. He did exactly the wrong thing by standing his bike up.
When a vehicle pops up in a blind corner in exactly the wrong spot, it triggers a PR in most riders and the decision you make at that exact moment may make the difference between life and death. We have all been there and done that at some point. I had this exact thing happen to me a few years ago and I nearly became a hood ornament for an F350 Ford. I couldn't get that thought out of my head for days afterwards. I came so close to ending it all and I knew it!
After that little mistake that came within a snatchhair of taking my life I came up with a little mind game that seems to work well for me. I shared this little tidbit of info with Keith (Skydvr) and he suggested I post it up for the troops. It's simple but works quite well for me.
Every blind corner I encounter, before reaching the tip in point, I force my brain to think there is a vehicle just out of sight crowding the centerline and I am going to meet this guy in exactly the wrong spot. This forces me to choose a line that will avoid any possible collision and keeps me out of harms way. If my brain is already aware this fantasy vehicle is there, I can totally avoid the PR when one actually appears.
I have had many encounters with vehicles in blind corners since that close call some years back and not once was I in the wrong position at the wrong time and not once did it trigger a PR. If your mind in cocked and ready, even if you are in a bad position, the instant the vehicle appears you will instantly take evasive action without taking time to evaluate the situation and you will aready have a plan of excape programed in.
Of course we all know avoiding the centerline as much as possible is the safest way to avoid oncoming traffic but we can't always do that when romping through the twisties.
I learned this early on in aviation, "Always leave yourself an avenue of excape"! This is also true with motorcycles especially in right hand corners where we face a head on collision if we run wide.
This little mind game works for me and it may work for you as well?
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