Vision is, without a doubt, the most critical piece of becoming a proficient rider.
And I'm sure that all of you have heard "keep your eyes up" but that phrase is a huge oversimplification
of an incredibly complex process.
So, stick around, today we're going to take on Vision.
Vision is a lot more than just looking further ahead or keeping our eyes up.
Vision is all about actively searching for clues, cues and references that can help us
pilot our motorcycle as effectively as we can.
It is that super-secret technique to becoming a great rider.
But first, lets talk a little about how our eyes work.
We all know that just like a camera, light comes into our eye and hits light-sensitive
cells on the back of our eye where a camera would have film or a sensor.
But, just like a spoon, the image that gets projected onto the back of our eye is, actually,
upside-down.
Our brain flips the image over for us, translating the way our eyes capture that information.
Next, we rods and cones across the back of our eyes.
In simplest terms, cones capture color and detail and they are most densely packed around
the middle.
The rods capture light and more densely located further out.
This tells us two key things; first, it explains why, when it's low light, we mostly see without color.
It also explains why it's hard to see a faint star until we don't look directly at it.
But even more relevant to us, it explains how we really only get clear detail in the
center of our field of view.
The further away from the center, the fewer details our eyes capture.
Additionally, we all have a blind spot where the optic nerve connects to the back of our eye.
Finally, our eyes are really good at detecting movement.
Something about thousands of years of catching prey and evading predators.
[Roar]
Now, we can trick and fool our eyes and there
are entire websites dedicated to optical illusions.
Patterns that appear to jitter, static leaves that appear to move,
grey images that appear to have color.
But what if took this knowledge about how our worked and used it for good instead of evil.
You see, our brain is an amazing thing.
Our brain takes in that upside-down information, fills in all the gaps from blind spots, any
lack of color, even any lack of detail and creates as complete of a picture as it can.
Our brain can even "zoom in" on something small or in the distance to allow us to get a little
more information.
So, have you ever noticed how when you're reading a book, or watching a movie, everything
in the periphery just kinda' disappears?
This is pretty much what happens when we get scared and fixate on that thing that is scaring us.
Like that pothole or rock in the middle of a corner.
Or that guardrail.
Or that street sign.
When we focus on that single thing, all the other information disappears, just like when
watching a movie.
Another problem is that our eyes will continue to center in our eye sockets.
This is why we as riders need to actively be pointing our chin at what we want to see.
This means that while we are riding, our head should be constantly moving, pointing our
chin; pointing our eyes at everything, to give our brains as complete of a picture as possible.
See everything.
Look at nothing.
- So how do you see it?
- You go fast, but as the car speeds up, everything else slows down.
You don't do that.
You do this.
Right?
And then you see everything.
- We need to be actively scanning for everything, without ever fixating on a single thing.
See the road surface, but don't focus on it.
See the car coming the other way, but don't stare directly at it.
See the pebbles on the side of the road, but don't look at them.
See the guardrail, but don't fixate on it.
Check out those tar-snakes, we call 'em "gummy worms", but don't obsess over them.
See everything.
Look at nothing.
So, the next time you go for a ride, this is what I'd like you to do.
Keep this phrase prattling around inside your head;
See everything.
Look at nothing.
Actively look for everything that might pose a risk and as soon as you spot it, actively
look for the next thing that might pose a risk.
Play this game with yourself and see how soon you can spot the risk.
That way it's not just "Keep your eyes up" or "look ahead."
You actually have a strategy.
By actively scanning like this, we are giving our brains a ton more information to assemble
that complete picture of all our surroundings.
By actively scanning for those potential risks as soon as we can, we will have a great visual
lead, meaning, we will be visually and mentally further ahead of the motorcycle.
Our sense of speed will be lower, our anxiety will be lower, and we'll have more time to
develop a plan for and deal with all the factors we have to account for as riders.
See everything.
Look at nothing.
Click like and subscribe and that other stuff YouTube wants us to say.
But, if there is a phrase that you like to say to yourself as you ride, I'd love to hear
what it is in the comments.
Thank you so much for watching, and ride well.