Smac, in yer face
SAM MACLACHLAN
TOO OLD..?
WHEN IS OLD, too old – and what does “old” even mean these
days? When it comes to riding bikes, it’s a question I ask myself
every five years or so. I’ve come to the question earlier this time –
seeing a mate on the deck after a big one, and Mr Bayliss’s recent
announcement have brought it on.
For me, 2018 marks 45 years on this earth, 25 years since I got
my bike licence and 16 years since I first wrote for AMCN. Yep,
on paper I am getting on a bit. I’m really not feeling it though. A
recent bike test for AMCN means you will soon see me jumping a
roadbike in a tight alley. I just signed up for a 24-hour MTB
race in March. I feel like I am riding better than ever.
But then there is my mate on the deck...
He was riding really well, too, around a
racetrack. Looking smooth and in control until
he was caught out with a small mistake that
landed him in hospital and with a long road
to recovery. The brutality of bikes.
He is older than me, but only a little and,
as he lay on the baking bitumen, broken and
having his leathers cut off him by the ambo
crew, all he could utter between groans of
pain and waves of morphine was, “I’m too old
for this shit.” Indeed. So when does that “too
old” thing become a reality?
For Troy Bayliss, it certainly ain’t right now.
I feel for his wife, Kim... But if ever there was an
evergreen, it is TB21. He still bounces around like
a jackrabbit, so it’s not as shocking as some other racers
returning to the fray after so long away. I can’t help hoping Mick
Doohan, Mat Mladin, Mark Willis and a few others decide this is a
great idea and join in!
For me, I feel on top of things, even if I know I won’t bounce as
well if it goes upsidedown – I am banking on my experience to
keep it rubber side down, the one advantage us older guys have.
Knowing when to back off is a brilliant skill, one I’ve actually been
pretty good at over the years. Risk versus reward isn’t an equation I
struggle to reconcile with when on a bike. Most of the time.
So how will age affect Bayliss? It won’t, I reckon. I remember
watching him pancake a scooter around 2am during the Le Minz
24hr Scooter race at the Gold Coast many years ago – he doesn’t
know how not to ride at 100 per cent. I remembered that too late
during a pillion session with the legend – at a wet track.
I reckon he too will use his experience to keep out of trouble,
though when racing the likes of Waters and Herfoss, it’ll be no walk
in the park.
Will his return put “bums on seats”? If he wins, yep! If he’s mid-
pack, maybe not. I’m betting he’ll be competitive though.
But what happens when that experience fails you and
you’re lying in hospital, busted up and hating it
all? That can happen no matter your age, but it
arguably has more effect when you are older,
when you don’t heal as well. Mind you, you’re
more likely to be in a position where you can
take a bit of time off work without as many
repercussions.
The bottom line for me is that riding
keeps me young, fit and enjoying the
moment, something us bike riders do more
than many other people. You have to be “in
the moment” on a bike, so whether you’re
young or old, being able to tap into that keeps
you young and therefore not “too old”.
So when is too old to ride a bike? When you
can’t physically hold on any more? When the brain
won’t motivate you to take on the mental mountain of
riding a bike? When you finally decide the risk ain’t worth
the reward? Until any or all of that happens to me, I’ll ride on.
For my broken mate, the jury is out. How he heals and when, will
all influence how soon he gets back on, or even if he will. He regrets
nothing – except crashing, of course.
For TB21, it may be when something else finally ticks his boxes
the way two wheels clearly do. Or he may just ride until he has
nowhere to store the Zimmer frame. I definitely can’t wait to
see that fearsome broadside riding style in ASBK again and look
forward to what it could do for road racing in Australia. It could do
with a boost so, “Go the ‘old’ bloke!”I can’t help
hoping Mick
Doohan, Mat Mladin,
Mark Willis and a few
others decide this is
a great idea and
join in!