I was doing a search (for something entirely unrelated to this post) and this thread came up. It's a good read still.
It's got me thinking and, now, I gotta write out my thoughts, add more to this discussion:
Before I got my A bump (in 2022), I was a long-time "I" rider. In fact, I got the bump to Intermediate back with the NESBA days (within a few months of being Novice). And, I recall thinking that the A bump was gonna come "any time now".
It didn't. For years, it did not come. I wanted the A bump but I saw riders in that group who were wicked fast. Also, I kept getting humbled by not only the faster "I" riders but also newly-bumped "I" riders who showed better progress than I did. And I couldn't keep up with any of them. It did get frustrating when: a) I would observe these faster "I" riders get the bump, and b) even when I got the "attention" I wanted (I was never ignored by the way), the lesson I was shown didn't help me progress enough.
I never vented loudly or blamed the coaches but I did wonder, sometimes, if it was me or if it was the "chemistry" between me and the coach. I say "chemistry" because teaching and learning styles vary among coaches and students. Follow what I'm saying?
Anyhow, fast forward to the N2 days in 2020 (and that is a LONG fast-forward), I started getting noticeably faster but only in some aspects of my riding. So, I was ignoring the deficient areas and using my strengths to keep up with or pass larger bikes. Me, on my 20yo 600, "racing" against liter bikes at track days. That was my focus and I thought having a "carrot" would help me progress. Because, when I start to pull liter bikes on the straight, then, hey, I must be doing things right, because I'm faster than a liter bike, right?
I also started crashing more in 2020 and into 2021. In hindsight, it was the same type of crashes. I need not detail them other than that (now) I understand why. Still, I ended 2021 on a good note. I felt some things had 'clicked' and thought 2022 was gonna start with a bang.
It did. On the pavement. I was frustrated. 3 track days later. I was back to my 2021 form. Or should I say "stuck" in my 2021 form?
I was good on setting up passing, corner exit speed and, thus, good speed into the chutes and straights. Brake zones, body position, vision, setting up for corners (1-3 turns ahead) were not always good. Reference points were inconsistent. Or actually bad. Some of these deficiencies I knew all along. Others I realized in hindsight now. I never dragged a knee prior to 2022. For some, that's a litmus test. For me, it was just bad body position. Elbows in, body crossed up and knee barely out. Coaches were always pointing that out to me. There's that phrase: "coaches were always..." That should've told me something because I was hearing that a lot on many things.
So, one track day, I talked to a guy named Emerson who was pitted near me. We all know him. I asked how to work down to later braking markers without crashing. I was a grab-and-stab-the-brakes kind of rider. Fork dive. Body weight fully on the upper shoulders and arms. And waiting for the bike to slow down and settle before ever daring to tip in.
So, this guy, Emerson, tells me to "brake less". I thought he was joking. But he was serious. I felt I was giving my braking all I had. HOW DO YOU brake less in a situation like that? Is this guy trying to get me to crash again? I honestly thought it was "dumb" advice and I was disappointed to hear it. It was not the magic nugget I expected. Confirmation bias right there.
But, I knew who Emerson was, I know his people and his racing/wrenching credentials. After he explained how to transition from brake to gas, squeeze and bite the brakes, then apply fully, I tried it starting from brake marker "5.5" (to be safe and ensure that I wouldn't kill myself). I found i slowed down way too much.
Long story short (and this post has not been anything but a long story, haha), I was able to quickly get down to brake marker 4. I couldn't believe it. I was happy though. And -- and this is important -- it felt slow. I felt my entry speed at tip-in was too slow. Actually, what I found was that I was able to slow everything down: my fork dive, my thinking, my breathing. I was relaxed and I found myself modulating the brake to lessen my braking and achieve higher tip-in speed. Trailbraking, obviously, got much less risking.
It was a great discovery. A great learning moment for me. And I only asked for advice because I was stuck. And I knew I was stuck. I knew I needed to do something different since I had tried all that I knew up to that moment. I knew I risked starting the season off with more crashing and, ugh, more bike part orders and repairs.
Going forward, over the year 2022, I asked other coaches for specific advice: how's my braking, my lines, my speed. I did get advice that I thought was going to "kill me". But I kept an open mind.
I was not a difficult person, not a head-butting type of non-listener nor was I ignorant to the fact that I had things to work on. But I ignored a lot of advice if I didn't understand it. I think I had kind of an introverted ego because, honestly, as long as I was faster than my friends... That may be familiar to some of you; you probably know what I mean saying that.
In 2022, I got bumped to the A group in two different orgs without asking. On my 600 still. I actually didn't want it because I wasn't sure. I was worried and didn't want to embarrass myself. But after half a year running in A, getting advice from the awesome A-coaches and equally friendly A riders showing me things on/off the track, it has really, really pushed me.
I still reflect on how long it took to get to this point. How, after years of not listening, that just a few months of being stuck and frustrated, changed my receptiveness to listening to advice (solicited and unsolicited) and honestly applying it EVEN when I didn't understand the advice I was given or thought it didn't make sense. I attribute that to the day Emerson gave me that first piece of advice about 'braking less'. I still laugh about how crazy I thought his advice was. Yet it changed my thinking and kickstarted my growth that year.
So now I put faith into coaching advice even though I'm not fully sure or understanding of the advice. Sometimes I'm not even trusting of it. I just believe and apply it.
I can say, now, whenever I coach, sometimes that's all I want for my students to do. Trust. Have faith. Listen. Apply.
And, of course, have fun!
