Why We Ride: A Psychologist Explains the Motorcyclist's Mind and the Love Affair between Rider, Bike, and Road

by Mark Barnes

Overview

Why would anyone want to do something as dangerous as motorcycling? For those who love to ride, no explanation is necessary. For everyone else, there’s Why We Ride. Designed as both an explanation for outsiders and an anthem for those within the fold, this new book presents the insights of Mark Barnes, PhD, a motorcycling clinical psychologist. As a popular columnist at Motorcycle Consumer News for more than 20 years, Dr. Barnes articulates the elusive physical, emotional, and interpersonal elements that make the world of the motorcyclist such a rich and exciting place. His wide-ranging text covers both sports psychology and the psychoanalysis of common riding experiences, including the results of Dr. Barnes’ own empirical research. Heartfelt and thought provoking, here is a straightforward account of what makes real motorcyclists tick.



Inside Why We Ride:



What makes all the hazards and hardships of riding a motorcycle worthwhile to perfectly sane, intelligent, and responsible individuals



Insights from clinical psychologist and moto-journalist Dr. Mark Barnes



Examination of the complex gratifications, relentlessly compelling passions, and deeply personal experiences that motivate motorcyclists



Sports psychology, psychoanalysis of common riding experiences, and reflections on the author’s personal journey as a rider



Results of the author’s own empirical research on the motives of motorcyclists



Thought-provoking exploration of the human dimension of motorcycling



Special section on how riders achieve the quasi-mystical state of “Flow,” a concept currently at the center of modern sports psychology

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781620082287
Publisher:	Fox Chapel Publishing Company, Incorporated
Publication date:	10/24/2017
Pages:	240
Product dimensions:	7.00(w) x 8.90(h) x 0.60(d)

About the Author

Soon after launching his career as a clinical psychologist in 1992, Dr. Barnes merged his interest in people with his life-long passion for motorcycling by writing about the human dimension of riding and working on bikes for enthusiast magazines. He settled in as a regular contributor to Motorcycle Consumer News in 1996; since then, 200 (and counting) of his monthly columns have explored wide-ranging psychological aspects of the motorcycling experience. Mark has also written almost as many gear and accessory reviews, technical/how-to articles, and feature stories about motorcycle-related events and destinations, and he presented his own research on the multifaceted appeal of motorcycling at a Popular Culture Association conference. Having ridden extensively both on- and off-road, sampling racetracks and virtually every type of bike in the process, Mark has amassed a wealth of observations and insights over four-plus decades of involvement. That personal history, coupled with his training as a scientist, clinician and communicator, has allowed Mark to capture in words the elusive physical, emotional and interpersonal elements that make the world of the motorcyclist such a rich and exciting place

Table of Contents

Table of Contents Preface PART ONE: WHY WE RIDE Introduction The Survey Category One: Engagement Category Two: Autonomy Category Three: Mastery Category Four: Exhilaration Category Five: Transcendence Category Six: Relaxation Category Seven: Practicality Concluding Comments PART TWO: SELECTED COLUMNS From the GARAGE The Joy of Maintenance Perfect Imperfection Just Say No Necessary Evils Your Rite to Ride Making it Personal Necessity is a Mother Garage Fever From the ROAD Human Relations 102 The Verdict Can't Live with 'em, Can't Live without 'em Feels Like the First Time…Again The Call of the Open Road Get Lost! What Should Be vs. What Is Doh! Brain Fade and the Perils of Fatigue From the TRAIL Dirty Thoughts Half the Fun Back to School Near-Life Experiences Experts From the TRACK Concentrating on Concentration Learning Curves The "Trust Me" Line You Just Can't Get There from Here From the COUCH (Freud goes for a ride) Twin Brain - Part One Twin Brain - Part Two Moto-Voyeurism Linkages Spiritual Motorcycling Self-Diagnostics Shifting Riding in the Zone Motorcycle Camping Moto-Connoisseurism Safe Distance Displacement Black Boxes The Voice of (In)Experience Loud Pipes Do What? Top Ten Reasons… Moto-Placebos Oh, What a Feeling! Getting in Touch with Your Inner Cartographer (or not) From the HEART (personal favorites) Wrecks Sensory-Motor Satori A Cure for What Ails Us Riding Through the Valley of the Shadow Giving Ourselves a Hand Milestones PART THREE: FLOW FOR RIDERS Introduction Aspect One: Challenge-Skill Balance Aspect Two: Action-Awareness Merger Aspect Three: Clarity of Purpose Aspect Four: Clarity of Feedback Aspect Five: Present Task Focus Aspect Six: Paradox of Control Aspect Seven: Absence of Self-Consciousness Aspect Eight: Transformation of Time Aspect Nine: Autotelic Experience Concluding Comments

Editorial Reviews

For its concise explanation of the manly art of bench racing alone, Why We Ride is worth reading. —Driving

Driving

Why we Ride—A Psychologist Explains the Motorcyclist’s Mind and the Love Affair between Rider, Bike, and Road is entertaining and thought-provoking and well worth a read. —Ultimate Motorcycling

Ultimate Motorcycling

Heartfelt and thought provoking, here is a straightforward account of what really makes motorcyclists tick. —Motorcyclist's Post

Motorcyclist's Post

Becoming a skilled rider requires layering; obtaining skills and polishing them over extended periods of time, refining them and always working to improve. Reading “Why We Ride” can be approached the same way; gradually assimilating stories and the lessons therein, and adopting them for personal use. —Ride-CT

Ride-CT

Why we Ride—A Psychologist Explains the Motorcyclist’s Mind and the Love Affair between Rider, Bike, and Road is entertaining and thought-provoking and well worth a read. —Ultimate Motorcycling

For its concise explanation of the manly art of bench racing alone, Why We Ride is worth reading. —Driving

From the Publisher