I went on a little motorcycle adventure a few weeks ago and over all I had a great time. Rode some roads that were new, visited some old roads that were as great as ever and saw lots of beautiful scenery.
I did a fair amount of planning that you might recall, and the trip went great.
Well it was great except for one little thing. The massive anxiety attack I had at around 11AM on the first day. I’ve never experienced anything like it before. Certainly not when riding. I’m normally pretty calm and take things in stride, or at least I take things in stride even if I’m not remaining perfectly calm. This however was completely different. It started just as I got to 101 after riding what over all was a slightly disappointing Skaggs Rd.
Even though parts of it were beautiful, Skaggs Rd. just wasn’t quite what I hoped it would be.
I began to worry that I had planned too many miles and I was going to set up camp in the dark. I was worried that I wouldn’t have enough time to get all the roads I wanted to ride in. Or that I would be tired and crash.
It was shocking how worried I was getting, thinking about turning back, tightness in my chest. The last time I was this upset on a motorcycle was on my slog down Highway 97 to Klamath Falls. Even this was slightly different and I’ve never experienced anything like it that I can recall.
Eventually I took a break in Willits and called my wife. Talking to her always helps me get out of my head and back into reality. I also took some time after I was done talking to her to look over my route and confirm that I easily had enough time to do the trip.
Looking back I think I needed to go over everything the night before. Double checking the route and times so I don’t second guess myself and literally psych myself out. It certainly was a very unpleasant hour and a half on the motorcycle, one that would not care to repeat.
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