Muscle memory and motorcycles (question on retiring and coming back)

[ddanger]

I have heard of "muscle memory" for sports. Does the same apply to motorcycle racing? I have been racing a few years. If I took a year or two year break, THEN decided to come back, how long would it take me to get my skill level back to where it was? 

I guess I am just looking for everyone's opinion on this. Would I come back as a slow novice, struggling to keep up?  How long before I get back into the swing of things?
Who here has done just that?

[benprobst]

the only muscle that really needs to remember anything is your BRAIN. being quick/fast is almost 100% mental. getting over being just another quick/fast expert is when the physical really comes into play. If you were fast before you will be fast now. A friend of my family came back to run an endurance race with me last year, before taking about 3-5 years off he was prob top 3 fastes lw riders in the country when he came back he was immediatly as fast as i was in the very first practice session and was soon 2 seconds faster than me and only second or two off the fastest guys in the country on a motorcycle that was prob 4 -5 seconds off pace. Same goes for my Dad, my uncle and I will ride dirtbikes for years at a time w/out my dad and when he comes out he is immediatly on our pace.  So yes as long as your brain learned it in the first place you shouldnt have forgeten.

[ddanger]

Wow that is good to know about your friend. I hope I can do the same.  Anyone else have stuff to share?

[Super Dave]

I've seen it be different from individual to individuals

Some individuals require an amount of repeditiveness to develop, and then redevelop the feel for something at speed. 

Additionally, it depends upon your competitive level when you left.  Riders that are usually at the top of their individual game work very hard to get to that.  Get them away from that environment, and they may still be "fast", but they may not have the outright speed that they once had.

Now, I had a conversation with a very, very veteran AMA racer at one time.  I was kind of left floored by his idea that he no longer raced "agressively".  The reality is that over time, you learn a whole lot, and you get a bigger back of tricks.  You know when to wait, pounce, etc.

Initially, your return shouldn't be too bad.  You've been involved before, so you know the "sport".  Recognize your reasonable limits, and come at it with a fresh mind set.  Go back to your "bag of tricks" regardless of which size you have.  It is valuable. 

And have fun...

Will you get your form back?  Yes or no.  You might not have the opportunity to commit that much to it.  On the other hand, your age might provide you with a little more wisdom that you didn't have in the pasts.

[Scotty Ryan]

I've seen it be different from individual to individuals

Some individuals require an amount of repeditiveness to develop, and then redevelop the feel for something at speed. 

Additionally, it depends upon your competitive level when you left.  Riders that are usually at the top of their individual game work very hard to get to that.  Get them away from that environment, and they may still be "fast", but they may not have the outright speed that they once had.

Now, I had a conversation with a very, very veteran AMA racer at one time.  I was kind of left floored by his idea that he no longer raced "agressively".  The reality is that over time, you learn a whole lot, and you get a bigger back of tricks.  You know when to wait, pounce, etc.

Initially, your return shouldn't be too bad.  You've been involved before, so you know the "sport".  Recognize your reasonable limits, and come at it with a fresh mind set.  Go back to your "bag of tricks" regardless of which size you have.  It is valuable. 

And have fun...

Will you get your form back?  Yes or no.  You might not have the opportunity to commit that much to it.  On the other hand, your age might provide you with a little more wisdom that you didn't have in the pasts.

Dave - I thought that we had talked about riding less to save yourself for the important things.... J/K - it's an inside joke and only Dave will understand...... But then again there are alot of things that Dave and I will only understand - like why the lawn furnature at Wal Mart is so inviting at 3am....

[Super Dave]

I found a very nice wall sconce in brass this past weekend.  I might have found you one in cast iron.   

Have fun at vir.

[d-wire]

a buddy of mine raced back in the 1800's or something.(Hamorobby on here) ......he came back as a novice for a few months ....he's in expert now and holding his own.  Your results may vary, but Id say if you were fast........you probably will be fast.

[tshort]

I was racing lightweights (and formula old fart, to give you some idea of my age) when I started with CCS Midwest region back in 03.  Raced full season that year, and half season in 04 - then took a break/quit/retired - whatever you would like to call it.  Moved to Cali early last year, and since we now live less than half an hour away from the AFM's home track (Infineon), broke down and decided to buy a bike and get back in it this season - around a 3 year hiatus.

It's hard for me to compare, since I have not been on my home track again (Blackhawk), nor racing with the same gang.  The fields here are *huge* - 40 to 50 bikes in lightweights, vs. 6-12, maybe, when I was racing with CCS.  And the number of fast guys is likewise a lot more.

One of the things I'm noticing is I'm not quite as aggressive here as I was there - but maybe that's because there's just so many more bikes to deal with - kind of tempers my willingness to push, since there are so many more ways things can go wrong.  Or...maybe I'm just getting old.

I am finding I can push my SV around pretty hard, and have noticed a steady drop in my lap times, so far, each weekend I go out.  I wouldn't put that down to muscle memory at work, really.  Feels more like mindset memory (as others have mentioned already).  I think my mind remembers most of what it feels like to go fast - and it's just a matter of learning the new tracks, getting used to the large numbers, getting comfortable on the new bike, and then getting back up to speed again (just like Spring, after those long Midwest winters).

Been an interesting process.  I nearly quit after the first session around Infineon - it is perhaps the most technical track in the country for bikes (at least that's what some of the AMA guys have said).  Very demoralizing place to come out of retirement on - and then be faced with being slow, running at the back of the pack, and feeling totally useless. 

That's changed now - so we shall see.