Is this you?

This definitely describes how I feel about riding - I almost always ride alone. I have never enjoyed riding in groups other than meeting for a meal or get-together somewhere. When I ride I prefer to be alone or with only another person, two tops.

Another factor I have come to believe is that riding a motorcycle, experiencing the hum of the road and the wind and perhaps the way you body responds to riding, will stimulate your vagus nerve. Stimulating the vagus nerve is known to give you a feeling of well being and increases your focus and improves your experience of life.

Dan
 
Chris09 said:
i dunno anything about the vangus nerve but I get it
it's awesome getting out for a rip on a great bike
but the bike...
has to be great 😆
Click to expand...
Key Aspects of the Vagus Nerve:
  • Functions: It acts as the "rest and digest" component of the autonomic nervous system, managing heart rate, digestion, respiration, and speech.
  • Mental Health Connection: It mediates the gut-brain axis; increased vagal tone is linked to improved mood and reduced inflammation, which is associated with decreased depression.
  • Stimulation Methods: Activities that calm the body include deep diaphragmatic breathing, meditation, singing, humming, exposure to cold, and gentle exercise.
  • Symptoms of Dysfunction/Damage: Damage can cause hoarseness or loss of voice, difficulty swallowing, reduced gag reflex, abdominal pain, and digestive issues. [1, 2, 3, 4, 5]
Physical Structure and Role
  • The vagus nerve (cranial nerve X) consists of two nerves (right and left) that originate in the brainstem and branch throughout the body.
  • It provides >75% of the parasympathetic nerve fibers, allowing it to send signals that lower heart rate and reduce blood pressure.
  • It also acts as the primary pathway for the immune system to alert the brain about inflammation. [1, 2, 3, 4, 5]
Stimulation for Therapeutic Use
  • Natural Stimulation: Deep breathing, cold-water immersion, singing/chanting, and laughing stimulate the nerve to induce a calming effect.
  • Medical Stimulation: Vagus Nerve Stimulation (VNS) devices are used to treat chronic, treatment-resistant epilepsy and depression.
 
I too ride alone...I am not anti-social, just pro-solitude. I have a few friends who ride, but I prefer doing what I want to do, WHEN I want to do it. I just can't see many advantages to riding with a group.
 
When I ride with my brother, it’s great as he’s always right on my six (not too close though). When I ride with others I know, sometimes it’s a bit more of a hassle (they ride a bit slower than me, so I’m always looking in the side view mirrors to make sure they haven’t fallen too far back- when they do, traffic sometimes passes them, then they’re tough to spot).
 
It could be me :thumb: I like to ride with others, but preferably with people I know well who have the same attitude towards motorcycle riding as I do. If I ride alone, it attracts the least attention and I don't need to stop often.
 
Interesting.
I usually ride solo, wife hates motorcycles and won't ride, and I don't have a lot of time off work.
However, there are a handul of folks who I do ride with occasionally, in a couple of groups... either my RiderCoach friends, or adventure rider / dual sport groups. And sometimes these groups intersect.
Off-road, I rarely venture off alone because it's easier to lift 650lbs with 3 guys than by myself.
 
Erdoc48 said:
When I ride with my brother, it’s great as he’s always right on my six (not too close though). When I ride with others I know, sometimes it’s a bit more of a hassle (they ride a bit slower than me, so I’m always looking in the side view mirrors to make sure they haven’t fallen too far back- when they do, traffic sometimes passes them, then they’re tough to spot).
Click to expand...
I was leading a group of 3 other couples up to the Tunnel of Trees in Michigan and one couple kept laying to far back and getting caught at traffic lights. Finally I had to ask them if they knew where we were going and if they had a GPS or map (nope!) because I wasn't stopping for them anymore. They kept the gap closed after that! A buddy is fun but a group not so much!
 
Is this you?

That was a great video. I mainly ride alone. Riding with one or two others can be fun but not a huge group. I've done that maybe three times and it's hadn't been nearly as enjoyable as either riding solo or with a small (2–3) group.
 
I get out for a group ride maybe once a year at the BRG with @Uncle Phil and friends.

Solo most of the time with no set route.
No GPS screen. No 🎶 playing, other than what’s inside my head.
 
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