Hi, everyone. I have ridden bikes for several years, but I am not accustomed to carrying passengers. I just got a 2004 gixxer 600 about 3 weeks ago and my wife adores it and is constantly begging me to take her for a ride on it. Since I'm not that familiar with this, I started off going up and down the street with her on the back in our neighborhood and then taking turns down the streets. I did notice that the bike wobbles from side to side a bit during take off from a dead stop and also when coming to a stop. The thing that bothers me most is the actual stopping part. By myself, it's easy, but with her added weight, it makes it very difficult for me to judge how much brake to use and EXACTLY when to put my left foot down. It feels different each time I stop, so I'm not sure how to adapt. That is the only part that makes me nervous. Do you guys have any tips on this?
carrying passengers
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Have a willing experenced rider (passinger) go on 1st.
I don't know but maybe a MSF course could help.
I've been riding 2-up so much it's odd to me when I ride solo, there is a difference. Mainly the gentler riding style, (corners and such). My son wants me to be his 1st. passinger, because I would know what to expect, I said maybe your mother would be better because she has alot more time in that seat. I'll be the 1st., but not much room on a GSX-R 600 for me (his is a 2003) He has 6,500 miles on his with still no passinger.
It is a team event, I started by telling my passinger be consistant and not to change up. (lean or not to lean).
Your center of gravity WILL be higher so your handeling will be a bit more interisting, it's like learning all over again.
Good Luck, be carefull, and have fun
Jim
I don't know but maybe a MSF course could help.
I've been riding 2-up so much it's odd to me when I ride solo, there is a difference. Mainly the gentler riding style, (corners and such). My son wants me to be his 1st. passinger, because I would know what to expect, I said maybe your mother would be better because she has alot more time in that seat. I'll be the 1st., but not much room on a GSX-R 600 for me (his is a 2003) He has 6,500 miles on his with still no passinger.
It is a team event, I started by telling my passinger be consistant and not to change up. (lean or not to lean).
Your center of gravity WILL be higher so your handeling will be a bit more interisting, it's like learning all over again.
Good Luck, be carefull, and have fun
Jim
Get some mileage under your belt before taking a passenger along.
I ride pretty often with my wife on the back, when she's paying attention it's great but when she gets distracted it's sometimes like she's fighting with me over control of the bike. Actually on a motorcycle you should consider the passenger as a co-driver.
I ride pretty often with my wife on the back, when she's paying attention it's great but when she gets distracted it's sometimes like she's fighting with me over control of the bike. Actually on a motorcycle you should consider the passenger as a co-driver.
Actually, I have over 12,000 miles under my belt, on 4 different bikes. (on none of which I wrecked) Like I said, I'm new to carrying passengers. My wife is a pretty good passenger. She doesn't move around much at all and knows how to lean in the turns. I just have get comfortable with stopping with her on the back.
Make sure the combined weight of you and your wife do not exceed the recommended carrying capacity of the bike (I'm not being facetious here). Sport bikes usually have a relatively low weight capacity (I think my CBR was 375lbs). You may need to adjust the suspension to compensate for the added weight as well. This will give you better handling.
Make sure your passenger understands the physics of riding (i.e. - when to lean, don't put feet down, etc.). This can make a big difference. Like someone else pointed out, put both feet down when coming to a stop and make sure you are braking with both front and back brakes with an emphasis on the front (after all, it's 2/3rds of the stopping power). Like anything, it will take some practice to figure out how much to use. I think you are going about it the right way by practicing first until you get a better feel for it.
Make sure your passenger understands the physics of riding (i.e. - when to lean, don't put feet down, etc.). This can make a big difference. Like someone else pointed out, put both feet down when coming to a stop and make sure you are braking with both front and back brakes with an emphasis on the front (after all, it's 2/3rds of the stopping power). Like anything, it will take some practice to figure out how much to use. I think you are going about it the right way by practicing first until you get a better feel for it.
:lol:
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Having a passenger can be strange. My girlfriend has been riding longer than me and when shes on the back shes very good at leaning. It suprised me because I took my first turn expecting for myself to have to lean, but she did it for me. Kinda threw me off but now I'm used to it.
Braking and stopping are the most tricky. The brakes have to work twice as hard, and once you start to slow down the added weight will make the bike want to tip harder; especially when you come to a complete stop. Have both feet down once you're almost stopped.
Starting takes twice as much throttle too. That last thing you want to do is lift up your feet, thinking you've started too soon.....then stall.
Up-shift and down-shift much lighter too and take the corners MUCH slower. Its like learning all over again :shock:
Braking and stopping are the most tricky. The brakes have to work twice as hard, and once you start to slow down the added weight will make the bike want to tip harder; especially when you come to a complete stop. Have both feet down once you're almost stopped.
Starting takes twice as much throttle too. That last thing you want to do is lift up your feet, thinking you've started too soon.....then stall.
Up-shift and down-shift much lighter too and take the corners MUCH slower. Its like learning all over again :shock:
You need to be very familiar with the bike before you carry a passenger. The passenger needs to know that they are never to put their feet down, and that they should gently lean with you. Figure out what your bike's maximum load carrying limit is. You need to get one of those T-Shirts that says on the back: "If You Can Read This, The B___ Fell Off."axel_2078 said:
Actually, you can skip the last item - purely optional unless you're riding down the main drag in Daytona with very loud pipes. 8)
I'll go 2-up on my GZ 250 because my GF is small and I feel very confident with the bike. It will be a while before I get to the point I'll out her on the back of the Concours - it is a very different ride. But I'll get there.
I took all you guys' advice and it worked out really well. I practiced over the weekend. I used more throttle at take off to help stabilize the bike and I put both feet down when I stopped. That helped A LOT. Before everyone starts the lecturing...I used BOTH front and rear brakes until I had to completely stop. I definitly feel more comfortable than I did when I started. 8)
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