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How to rebuild confidence after an accident?


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I was not especially fast on corners, and still had a problem needing to fight a sense of panic on sweeping ones, but I think I was generally okay.


But last October I was going around a 90° right turn and caught a patch of mud I thought I had avoided. The bike slid out in a smooth movement, giving me no time to react, and I landed on my elbow.


Having been back on the bike a few times since surgery I am now too cautious on corners. An early bad habit has also returned of instinctively positioning myself on the inside of corners. I am not even sure why I do that, aside from poorer visibility it also makes them tighter and more difficult, but obviously I am fighting that instinct.


Mentally I feel fine, I know the accident was part bad luck and part that I should have just been a bit further wider. There was no sense of fear or doubt about getting back on the bike. But when riding now it feels like it did early on when nothing felt easy and I felt like I should just give up trying.


So does anyone have any tips or advice on rebuilding confidence, or is the only way just to keep riding and let it happen naturally? I would not mind just being slow and safe, and taking things in my own time, if it did not cause others to do stupid things.

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I have to say I know how you feel, it's always difficult to break out of that instinctive flinch after an accident, even when logically you know you're fine..


I think I would recommend one of the IAM or similar advanced riding courses.. I have heard amazing things from people who have gone on them and I am intending to do one this spring.. :)


Hope things get better for you x

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Ouch landing on an elbow sounds painful :(


Have you thought about maybe calling a local training centre and seeing about an hour or so ride about with an instructor? I know where I did mine they advertised taking people out if you'd just changed bike and were a bit nervous, or if you wanted advice of filtering and stuff.


Yes it's gonna cost you some cash but they will be able to coach you through any issues and advise and show you the proper way to do things. Also you'll have a good rear gunner to keep the idiots back! Just a thought :)

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Hi wishing you a full speedy recovery, building back confidence is down to the individual some just jump back on and continue, others it takes time. Take your time don't be rushed, learn to relax l find it pay's to have a good stretch before you set off this takes the tension out of the body and helps you relax. Fortunately you know the reason for your accident so build this into your memory bank and learn to read the road surface. If possible avoid dirty horrible days to go out until your back on song. Also whilst I'm thinking about it, make sure the body armour in your riding kit is up to the mark, especially around that damage elbow.

Best of luck stay safe

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Surprisingly the only pain I felt was later the same day as it stiffened up. But given I fractured the joint and now have a hole inside my elbow I have been very lucky. It has all been pretty painless and, other than the surgery scar, I have only lost a barely noticeable couple of degrees of straightening. The worst part of it all was the frustration when having to force myself to keep it rested.


As to the armour and clothing, I did check and that all seems fine. I am sure it worked too as with the elbow bearing the weight of the initial impact the damage probably should have been much worse. The consultant thinks the bone must have dislocated, but the fractured caused as it returned. I needed help picking the bike up, but was even able to ride home safely, if a little uncomfortably. Had it not been for the way the swelling looked (which was nothing) I would not even have gone to A&E.


Anyway, it sounds like the answers are just letting it happen naturally and seeking professional help. I was planning on training anyway though as I have not taken the tests yet. Unfortunately I was feeling confident about them before the accident, but wanted to leave it to the new year to get better on sweeping bends first.


I regret that now as I no longer feel ready and with the time lost the CBT is about to run out. So am going to sign up with a school so I can retake that if it comes to it, but I guess I should just see what a trainer says I need overall. I was originally hoping a few weeks on my own would be enough to recover then could go for lessons but doubt that now. Especially if the weather starts to turn icy.


Thanks everyone.

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but I guess I should just see what a trainer says I need overall.

Most places will do a free assessment to see what you need. Sucks your confidence has been shaken, hopefully it will come back and we will be hearing how you've aced your tests later in the year :thumb:

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Ahh if you're coming up to re-doing your CBT I've heard really great things from people who have done CBT and full test all bundled into one training course :)


I really think it might suit you :thumb:

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Its time patience and persistance. Yes some extra training may help but give yourself enough time and take things steady and it will all come back to you. It took me a month or so to get out of the nervous habits after 3 months off the bike.

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  • 2 weeks later...
If possible avoid dirty horrible days to go out until your back on song.

 

I think I may need to change my idea of a dirty horrible day.


Last weekend I stayed in because of the freezing temperatures and smattering of snow, it did not look that bad in London but I knew it would not be so kind once in the countryside.


So I went out this morning, feeling very cautious already because the road was wet. Then just outside London there was a patch of thick fog. But was through that when I turned left at a junction in the countryside, suddenly slipped one way, then the other, before going over on the right hand side. Thankfully it was immediately after the turn when I was straightening up so my elbow was not sticking out this time.


No injuries, and I was able to pick the bike up so parked it on the side of the road. Whilst I was checking it and myself over a driver stopped and warned me there was black ice about. A tad too late! I guess I should have been more alert as the road looked obvious in hindsight, but between a big wet puddle on the junction and weather forecast I was not even thinking of ice and it completely took me by surprise.


Managed to get myself home but it clearly knocked me even further, practically walking around corners or when approaching anything that looked slippy. Was much easier last time when riding with a shattered elbow!


I only cut across the end of the patch and would probably have survived the first slip had it not turned me straight back onto it to throw me the other way. But it was bad positioning by me in the first place as I was too far inside on the corner, a combination of the effects of the last accident and avoiding a grate in the road, or I would not have crossed it at all.


I am not sure whether I am just unlucky or should be treating all this as a sign.

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don't go out on bike in this weather mate, your confidence has been knocked which your trying to regain and you got the extra worry of ice , fog and puddles extra, wait until the weather improves.

You already mentioned is it a sign , sounds like your having doubts , take a step back , chill and wait for the sun. :thumb:

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Glad you and the bike survived. As Six30 says wait till the good weather and you can concentrate on the riding without worrying too much about the road surface.

I went out a week ago and the back moved enough for me to "clench" going round an island.

Went out today and the roads scruffy and I noticed I was being over cautious on islands and trickling round trying to keep the bike upright.

So stay off roads till they are dry and the temperature rises then you will soon get back in the swing of things. :thumb:

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You already mentioned is it a sign , sounds like your having doubts , take a step back , chill and wait for the sun. :thumb:

Yeah, no rush. If you've lost your confidence the last thing you want to worry about is the weather!!

Hibernate the bike for awhile and wait for the sunshine. Nothing wrong with being a fair weather biker!

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Based on the forecast I honestly thought the conditions would be fine today, had I know it would be icy I would definitely not have gone out. Admittedly a bit dumb on how wet it would still be after rain last night. But as my CBT expires in about three weeks my plan was to see how things go this weekend then can contact the training school next week to see what they think I should do.


Today I just wanted to get home, but was thinking to properly go back to basics tomorrow and visit a car park. It has been a while since practising figure-8s etc. and will have to do them again soon anyway, but to just spend some time feeling completely comfortable with the bike.


After going out every weekend before the accident, including in rain, it had been so frustrating being unable to, but I think you all are right about waiting on the weather. It is just CBT deadline which complicates things (especially annoying as I was unable to use most of the first year of it due to illness) so will probably still go out as planned tomorrow (I can easily manage the car park and back) then just seek professional advice on my options.


Thanks.

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I was exactly the same as you. Riding a YBR in all weathers and falling off. Then riding a KLE500 in all weathers and falling off. Then I thought I had missed a patch of mud on my Versys and fell off.


The cause is inexperience + bad weather + a bit of bad luck + speed (even if it does not fell like you were going very fast, you were for the road conditions) = accident.


The solution is experience + a bit of good luck - speed = no accident.


The best way to get experience is to ride and practice looking ahead for hazards and getting better at bike control, which is speed and balance. Did you have any or decent elbow armour?

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This may be a dumb question, but do you think having a different helmet may be unsettling me?


I decided I would still go to the car park yesterday, and all felt okay so I also had a little ride around, just on local roads, before coming home. Still wet, but no need to worry about ice. On one particular bend though I was worried I was going too slow for the gear and would stall, but when I looked down I was only just under 30mph so had plenty of revs.


Before the accident last year I had a cheap helmet. It worked perfectly when it mattered but obviously needed replacing, and I got a Caberg which is much quieter. I think I am so used to judging my actions by the sound of the engine that without is making me feel like I have less control.

 

The cause is inexperience + bad weather + a bit of bad luck + speed (even if it does not fell like you were going very fast, you were for the road conditions) = accident.

 

Even before the original accident I was not particularly fast, just not too slow, but that sounds right for it, which was on the outside of this corner:


https://www.google.co.uk/maps/@51.25226 ... a=!3m1!1e3


I was going at 30mph, which I was told was okay when I asked for advice at the time, but there was mud across the inside half of the lane which I thought I had avoided. What I should have done is move closed to the centre, taking it tighter and slower, to give more space from it.


I do have armour but my right elbow was sticking out slightly as I was pulling on the right bar. As I went down in a quick smooth movement I had no time to react, so it would have felt the initial impact. The armour is what came with the jacket so cannot say how good it is, but I am sure it helped as it could have been a lot worse. The consultant thought the impact itself only caused a dislocation, but the bone fractured as it went back into the socket as the fragment was outside.


Saturday's accident was on this corner:


https://www.google.co.uk/maps/@51.22034 ... a=!3m1!1e3


I was going about 15mph turning left onto that road heading north. As it straightened the road was was worn smooth in the left car tyre position. It was smooth and black but just looked wet like everywhere else. Because of the weather having warmed up several degrees since last weekend's frozen conditions, and no sign of ice in any puddles, I never even considered black ice even though it is looked obvious in hindsight.


I am not sure my speed would have made much difference but my position was bad though. There is a small grate in the middle of the lane at the junction, I think the black speck on the Google satellite image, so ended up too far inside and had to cross the start of the worn area as I headed to position myself into the middle of the lane. Although I did cross it, my front wheel turning left when I slid and it took me straight back onto the patch and ended up going over on the right hand side. I think I would have stayed up but for that second effort.


But had I not been so tight to the inside I would have missed it completely. This is definitely the main problem I am having after the accident. Given the hemet example above I think my speed on corners is too slow for that reason, as I am taking them tighter and with poorer visibility.


Although wet conditions definitely do not help, especially in town, as there are so many metal covers in the road I am slowing even more in expectation of them around bends, and almost always right. It feels more like an assault course. Yesterday on an S-bend there were even rainbow patches right in the middle of the road all the way around.


As much as I know better, and feel more comfortable when I can stay outside, even when I consciously make sure to position myself properly in advance I still somehow end up on the inside too often though. And if that was not frustrating enough, it then encourages others to make dangerous overtakes.

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wait for some decent road and weather conditions, pick an interesting stretch of road that you know well, and ride it over and over, working on the things you feel you are struggling with....don't push it for speed, but concentrate on being comfortable, holding your road position, and just settling into being safe .

over time and with many passes on the same road, you should find you relax and start holding the ride more smoothly, and then the speed will gradually increase in a safe way .

I would also highly recommend both bikesafe and performance plus, followed by IAM training,

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You should be able to take the armour out of the pockets to see what it is like. For me, so long it is CE rated (which should be marked on the armour) and it fits neatly into the pocket it will do its job.


Feeling good about your kit, the way you are riding and the road means you are going to be in the zone, where you feel good about your riding, you are riding well and within you and your bike's limits.


When you clean your bike, do you wash the tyres to get rid of grease and then rinse them afterwards to get rid of the soap? How often do you check tyre pressure? Making sure your tyres have the best contact with the road is important especially in bad weather.

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I do have a road I consider my practice one, but what I really need is one that will be empty as the biggest problem is having to worry about what other people are going to do.


Even in town on Sunday I felt like someone was going to ram into me as they decided to overtake on a bend when there was another car coming the other way. I knew I was too far inside on it, so was going to move further out into the lane but thankfully took a glance to my side first only to see a car already pulling in from only a few feet out. That is not just a current thing, I am so used to people making dodgy overtakes from just doing the speed limit. I once had a car follow me all the way from Horsham to Guildford and it was disconcerting because they never tried to overtake. But I totally get why people say an L-plate is treated like a target.


But that is why I was heading for country lanes on Saturday, just to get some roads to myself even if not necessarily the most ideal ones for my needs. I did the same two weeks ago and felt and lot more confident after leaving the nicely surfaced B-roads to go onto the narrow lanes covered in mud and grit and with fields draining onto them. As much as I love my practice road in part because it is fairly quiet, it is still an NSL one where people will try to pass anyone doing less than that.


Can you even buy non CE armour? But yes, mine is. And I have never washed my tyres, I did not know you were supposed to!


They do get wet cleaning the wheel, which is just with water, but the only thing I do to them is make sure not to get any chain lube on them. The pressure I check on an ad hoc basis, although I did so a week or two before the original accident so was confident in them at the time. Having only dine around 6,000 miles they still have loads of tread too.


Even the most recent accident was the fourth time out since I last checked the pressure, as I did it a month ago after bing given permission to use my arm (and ride) again after surgery.

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I do not disagree with just riding it out, it is just the combination of the current weather and CBT deadline forcing things a little or I will not be able to. Hence seeking advice as otherwise I am more than happy to let things come back in their own time.

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I would say find someone experienced to go for a ride with, follow them copy them ect. Ice and snow steer clear but wind and rain isnt a problem with decent gear and tyres.


Its patience. Dont overthink things, just ride

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  • 3 weeks later...

How badly do you have to perform on the road to fail a CBT?


Going to retake my mine tomorrow, and fear I may be the first person in history to fail a retake. The playground stuff should be fine, but the last few times I have been out recently I feel like I have been getting worse. I managed to get so slow turning at one junction I managed to stall in first gear.


When I originally took it I could not do U-turns so they booked me to come back a week later. I had so much self doubt I considered not going and just writing the whole thing off. It actually ended up being very simple (I had already worked out for myself what I had been doing wrong) but despite my experience I feel less confident now than I did then.


Hopefully professional help will get me through it, after which I think It might just be best to hibernate until summer, although I am not sure yet of which year.

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