Turns mine to mush. All I can think about is more riding.

 

My off road instructor out in Arizina said riding keeps you from getting alzheimers. Said it was proven....Yes, I said, makes sense to me...
I did find my stress levels were rather high riding across the Burlington skyway in Gale force winds with rain!

 

 

Thanks for that @V-Tom

 

Great post Tom.

 

Thanks for posting, V-Tom. Other things that are key in my riding are the smells along the way, not just the scenery; new mown grass, lilac bushes, autumn foliage, and the changes in temperature as you ride into a valley or a long shady stretch. These things I don't get the full experience gliding along in my climate controlled car.

 

and all the dead animals...

 

Thanks for sharing that, Tom.

I have a ride in two hours, now I'm stressed and am thinking about all the points!
I kid...

Two additional take aways, please don't ride with just a t-shirt and wear gloves.

 

If you have ever ridden into rain on a hot day, then ridden out of the rain and been “blown” dry, you’ll understand why cars suck.

 

Except when riding through sleet in Northern BC or hail in Montana's Rockies, then my truck is my BFF!

 

Ted Simon or Robert Pursig , et al .........who knows🤷 .......but not this......sorry.

 

??

 

Robert Persig he got into long distance riding .

 

Did you watch the video?

.. Tom

 

Great video.. thanks V-Tom!!

I couldn't resist the temptation and took two screenshots from that video. I cleaned them up and increased the resolution with AI.

Attached in widescreen format and also for mobile phones.

 

sorry

Ted Simon or Robert Pursig , et al .........who knows🤷 .......but not this......sorry.

I really don't understand what you are trying to say. Can you please elaborate?

 

I will try Tom, my thoughts on this are always evolving...
Talk of chemical reactions and the effects on the brain's architecture are interesting . But I am no neurosurgeon ....I build boats . That hands on approach may be affecting my thinking too, I will gladly admit that . I often get lost internally ( the same effect , but different method of getting there , to how a good ride will sometimes be ) concentrating hard ( it is surprisingly easy to feck it up in both cases if you don,t ) , rubbing down a boat for hours.
A " zen " state maybe..?
A release of dopamine ,endorphins ? dunno?
I used to farm livestock, and one of the clues to a stressed animal was repetitive motions. Done unthinkingly to release those helping chemicals. I can almost time the release of them when rubbing down a boat ( the repetitive motion again ) , 10 mins odd, I KNOW it is coming , push through the sleepy chemical ( whatever that is called ) and at 20 mins come out the other side and feel great . My co-workers often have to tap me on the shoulder.." tea up "...Again similar to riding, where did that last 2/3 hrs go , I remember every detail , down to the colour of the last car I overtook..but seems timeless...?

I try to think about how riding affects me, and the mentioned authors reach me and show two different approaches to the thinking ( in the philosophical meaning of the word ) that , for me at least , help to explain the why better ..if not the how.

Sorry for the ramble.....it is 4.30 am ish , I just woke up.....the old brain chemicals must be outta whack

 

Thank you very much for that video, V-Tom. I agree that riding focuses the mind on riding ONLY.
The intensity of the focus may help to drive away senility. At 83, I ride small motorcycles, not the
DL-650 that I gave to David Booth, with 90000 miles on its odometer, accumulated in 43 states
and all ten provinces.

I hope that you are enjoying living in Alberta!

Keith

 

Can you post a link to the YouTube please