The Ride Inside with Mark Barnes

This episode contains a graphic account of a serious motorcycle crash, emergency medical response and rider fatality. After unexpectedly encountering a devastating motorcycle crash, clinical psychologist and motojournalist Mark Barnes reflects on accident scene management, rider training, protective gear, airbag vests and the importance of riding within your limits. His firsthand experience offers a sobering motorcycle safety lesson about preparedness, risk reduction and knowing what to do when a ride suddenly becomes an emergency. Send your questions to us via email: podcast@bmwmoa.org . The Ride Inside with Mark Barnes is brought to you by the BMW MOA Foundation.

Motorcycling offers far more than transportation—it can be a powerful source of discovery, creativity and personal vitality. Clinical psychologist and motojournalist Mark Barnes explores how riding, learning new skills, understanding and maintaining motorcycles, planning trips, customizing bikes and connecting with other riders can keep motorcyclists curious, engaged and fully alive. Send your questions to us via email: podcast@bmwmoa.org . The Ride Inside with Mark Barnes is brought to you by the BMW MOA Foundation.

Veteran riders develop a sixth sense for danger by learning to recognize the subtle "tells" of distracted drivers, unpredictable vehicles and changing road conditions. Clinical psychologist and motojournalist Mark Barnes explores how situational awareness, defensive riding and prudent risk management can help motorcyclists anticipate hazards, create space and make smarter decisions before a potential threat becomes an accident. Send your questions to us via email: podcast@bmwmoa.org . The Ride Inside with Mark Barnes is brought to you by the BMW MOA Foundation.

If you're having a midlife crisis but you're not buying a motorcycle, are you really having a midlife crisis? Send your questions to us via email: podcast@bmwmoa.org . The Ride Inside with Mark Barnes is brought to you by the BMW MOA Foundation and is on the web at BMWMOA.org .

Doing hard things won't kill you—but not doing them just might. Send your questions to us via email: podcast@bmwmoa.org . The Ride Inside with Mark Barnes is brought to you by the BMW MOA Foundation and is on the web at BMWMOA.org .

FORGET EVERYTHING YOU KNOW: Mark quotes that old movie "Willow" by reminding us that to move forward, sometimes we must un-learn certain things. By approaching things as a beginner would, we can gain the benefit of learning from a new perspective. Send your questions to us via email: podcast@bmwmoa.org . The Ride Inside with Mark Barnes is brought to you by the BMW MOA Foundation and is on the web at BMWMOA.org .

NOTHING TO DO: When does the freedom to do nothing at all take over? Mark looks at how, for a motorcyclist, having no agenda can actually be a huge boon to your schedule, happiness and life. Send your questions to us via email: podcast@bmwmoa.org . The Ride Inside with Mark Barnes is brought to you by the BMW MOA Foundation and is on the web at BMWMOA.org .

POINTERS: Rider education is a necessity throughout the lifespan of any motorcyclist. That's not hyperbole, and it's also the first thing you'll hear Mark say in this episode. He believes it deeply, and by the time you're done here, you will too. Send your questions to us via email: podcast@bmwmoa.org . The Ride Inside with Mark Barnes is brought to you by the BMW MOA Foundation and is on the web at BMWMOA.org .

A REAL PAIN: There's pain, and then there's *pain*! Whether it's from injury or experience, Mark talks about how we experience pain and how we can grow from it, whether or not it happens from motorcycling. Send your questions to us via email: podcast@bmwmoa.org . The Ride Inside with Mark Barnes is brought to you by the BMW MOA Foundation and is on the web at BMWMOA.org .

LONE WOLVES: Cosplay or not, the stereotype of the "lone wolf" biker persists in modern culture. Mark digs into why an introvert just might make the perfect motorcyclist in this day and age. Send your questions to us via email: podcast@bmwmoa.org . The Ride Inside with Mark Barnes is brought to you by the BMW MOA Foundation and is on the web at BMWMOA.org .

RETAIL THERAPY: Anal, oral, discretionary, emotion, spending, guilt … all loaded words that bring up scads of stuff for each of us, all in different and yet surprisingly similar ways. Send your questions to us via email: podcast@bmwmoa.org . The Ride Inside with Mark Barnes is brought to you by the BMW MOA Foundation and is on the web at BMWMOA.org .

NOT THE MAN I USED TO BE: As we get older, we find ourselves occasionally struggling to do things we did quite easily in our younger days. Mark explains the challenges inherent in those things, as well as why it might not be such a bad thing to have to work harder at things that used to come easily. Send your questions to us via email: podcast@bmwmoa.org . The Ride Inside with Mark Barnes is brought to you by the BMW MOA Foundation and is on the web at BMWMOA.org .

WHAT'S IN A NAME? A lot, as it turns out, and it's tied into identity and how we choose to see ourselves as well as how we present ourselves to others. Mark gets into how and why it matters to motorcyclists in some interesting ways. Send your questions to us via email: podcast@bmwmoa.org . The Ride Inside with Mark Barnes is brought to you by the BMW MOA Foundation and is on the web at BMWMOA.org .

Mark and Dallas Shannon discusses the evolution of the Traction eRAG , the importance of structured training, and the cultural differences in riding education. Dallas emphasizes the need for a gentle entry into off-road riding to help new riders overcome fear and develop essential skills. He also highlights the role of mentorship and the impact of age on riding, advocating for a more supportive and educational approach to off-road riding. (Part 2 of 2) Send your questions to us via email: podcast@bmwmoa.org . The Ride Inside with Mark Barnes is brought to you by the BMW MOA Foundation and is on the web at bmwmoa.org .

Mark and Dallas Shannon discusses the evolution of the Traction eRAG , the importance of structured training, and the cultural differences in riding education. Dallas emphasizes the need for a gentle entry into off-road riding to help new riders overcome fear and develop essential skills. He also highlights the role of mentorship and the impact of age on riding, advocating for a more supportive and educational approach to off-road riding. (Part 1 of 2) Send your questions to us via email: podcast@bmwmoa.org . The Ride Inside with Mark Barnes is brought to you by the BMW MOA Foundation and is on the web at bmwmoa.org .

THINKERS AND DOERS make the world go 'round, but in different ways. Mark explores how they might be closer to each other than we might think and gets into why we need to have – and be – them both. Send your questions to us via email: podcast@bmwmoa.org . The Ride Inside with Mark Barnes is brought to you by the BMW MOA Foundation and is on the web at BMWMOA.org .

GUILTY PLEASURES are things we might try to hide from our friends. "Not that there's anything wrong with that," they might say, but we don't want to hear it. But when it comes to actual guilt over sharing the things (like motorcycling) which bring us joy, Mark says it's smart to leave yourself some wiggle room. Send your questions to us via email: podcast@bmwmoa.org . The Ride Inside with Mark Barnes is brought to you by the BMW MOA Foundation and is on the web at BMWMOA.org .

GETTING WHAT WE ASK FOR maybe isn't always the best solution for our motorcycling lives - but then again, maybe sometimes it is. Send your questions to us via email: podcast@bmwmoa.org . The Ride Inside with Mark Barnes is brought to you by the BMW MOA Foundation and is on the web at BMWMOA.org .

TIMING: Both work and play deplete our energy reserves, so determining which is more important at any given time (and how to approach balancing one with the other) are critical to how we wend our way through our daily lives, both on and off the motorcycle. Send your questions to us via email: podcast@bmwmoa.org . The Ride Inside with Mark Barnes is brought to you by the BMW MOA Foundation and is on the web at BMWMOA.org .

Many of us put on our helmets every day to go ride, but we never really think about how effective they're going to be at preventing traumatic brain injuries. That appears to be all John Lloyd thinks about; after testing hundreds of helmets, he's arrived at some fairly startling conclusions. He relates his study in this discussion with Mark and Wes Fleming, host of the podcast Chasing the Horizon . (Note: This is a lightly edited version of the discussion, which can be heard in full on Chasing the Horizon Episode 162.)