Need Advice...

[FJRBilldo]

So I'm close to getting her on the FJR. She's always been a bit scared of bikes. I didn't help this much by scaring the sh!t out of her a few years back on my litter gixxer 600. We were horribly late for our income tax appointment and the only way possible to make it on time was to take the bike. She agreed. Needless to say there was some lane breaking going on...nothing bad and pretty conservative, but she had never experienced it before.

She spent have the ride beating me on the helmet and looked like she hadn't slept for a month by the time we got there.

So I'm trying to make this a much more relaxed experience. I have a SHAD SH50 arriving today (with the Topmaster mount) so she will have a backrest. I plan to mount a vanity mirror inside the lid so she can fix her hair/face when we stop. I plan to keep a small pouch in the top case so she can take out earrings. Don't want that stuff poking her in the head while we are riding. I plan to get a partner to my Scala G4 so we can chat without screaming and she can listen to music. So my question is: "What am I forgetting?" What have you guys done to make it more comfortable and relaxing for the wives?

On the plus side, the very few times I had her on the gixxer, she did mention how much better you can see "the big picture" being up higher and without the confines of the cage blocking your view.

Thanks all!

b

 

[ionbeam]

...I didn't help this much by scaring the sh!t out of her a few years back on my litter gixxer 600...She spent have the ride beating me on the helmet...So my question is: "What am I forgetting?"...

This goes way beyond chocolate and flowers and moves into expensive jewelry territory

Find a route or destination that your wife likes and ride within her comfort zone. Having helmet to helmet communications will help a lot. Related thread worth a read here.

 

[NMRoadRunner]

When it came time to purchase an intercom/music sharing system for me and the wife, so we could talk on the long trip we were planning. I was telling my riding buddy what I was looking for and he looked at me strangly and just said "Why"

 

[BwanaDik]

When it came time to purchase an intercom/music sharing system for me and the wife, so we could talk on the long trip we were planning. I was telling my riding buddy what I was looking for and he looked at me strangly and just said "Why"

Yes, except wifey was the one who said it

We've got tunes but no intercom. Seriously, she said she'd only be jabbering her head off and distracting me from my duties up front. We remember stuff and talk during breaks/coffee which I think is kinda cool to do, we remember the ride better.

I'd actually be more inclined to have no intercom for a while, just agree to always stop if she has some sort of issue. Figure out a couple of hand signals before hand. One of the worst n00b pillion rider mistakes is the old "****! look at that!" routine and you

1) don't know where she's pointing

2) don't know if it's dangerous or just scenic

3) maybe she's just broke a nail....

Other than that, just listen to her to make sure you're taking care of all her fears. Anxiety on the back is hard to overcome

 

[Tree Doc]

****, I'd never ride on the back of a motorcycle!

I don't know how my wife does it but she loves to go! I'm always MORE than careful when she's onboard and the intercom has NEVER been a problem. Just set some rules before hand. I do it just like I do when I'm piloting an aircraft. When I get into a high workload, heavy concentration scenario like departures, approaches, and landings, my passengers know what it means ahead of time when I announce "Silent Cockpit" on the com. No one talks unless they're succinctly calling out traffic for me. "Plane at 2 o'clock."

 

[RPrice]

When it came time to purchase an intercom/music sharing system for me and the wife, so we could talk on the long trip we were planning. I was telling my riding buddy what I was looking for and he looked at me strangly and just said "Why"

"Why" was exactly what I thought too! :huh:

 

[FJRBilldo]

You guys are crackin me up. So l'll plan the first ride to the Tiffany's store right?

 

[RPrice]

You guys are crackin me up. So l'll plan the first ride to the Tiffany's store right?

Maybe.

Can you imagine burning down the highway on your incredibly sophisticated, smooth, powerful "Ferrari' of a motorcycle.........which is your FJR. You've impeccably maintained this machine for these high speed, high performance journeys close to home and far away, your "kit" is the epitome of high performance motorcycle gear.................... you are burning up the twisties, listening to your favorite riding song and thinking you are indeed in heaven on earth. As you accelerate out of another turn suddenly the favorite song is interrupted by your wife who says...................................... (it doesn't matter what she says).

You need to think this over carefully......................

 

[ionbeam]

You guys are crackin me up. So l'll plan the first ride to the Tiffany's store right?

Well, ya And then tell her that you are taking her to see and enjoy her favorite ????? (fill in the blank) How can you not be successful in showing her the right side of motorcycleingenoyment?

 

[redtail]

You guys are crackin me up. So l'll plan the first ride to the Tiffany's store right?

Maybe.

Can you imagine burning down the highway on your incredibly sophisticated, smooth, powerful "Ferrari' of a motorcycle.........which is your FJR. You've impeccably maintained this machine for these high speed, high performance journeys close to home and far away, your "kit" is the epitome of high performance motorcycle gear.................... you are burning up the twisties, listening to your favorite riding song and thinking you are indeed in heaven on earth. As you accelerate out of another turn suddenly the favorite song is interrupted by your wife who says...................................... (it doesn't matter what she says).

You need to think this over carefully......................

finally... someone with reason!

 

[FJRBilldo]

I guess I'm in the minority...i love spending time with my wife. She's hot, she's cool, and she would never try to keep from doing anything I wanted to do. We have nothing but fun together. Is that really a rare thing?

Anyways I just got the Shad SH50 on the bike. Seems like good quality and doesn't look too huge. The padding on the backrest seems rock hard though.

 

[Kevin_Ireland]

I guess I'm in the minority...i love spending time with my wife. She's hot, she's cool, and she would never try to keep from doing anything I wanted to do. We have nothing but fun together. Is that really a rare thing?

Anyways I just got the Shad SH50 on the bike. Seems like good quality and doesn't look too huge. The padding on the backrest seems rock hard though.

No you're not in the minority, your wife is hot!!! J/K'ing! :yahoo:

My wife and I ride connect via a chatterbox. I had to set some ground rules for her when to talk and what to say because at first she'd never shut up! It really helped after she started riding herself. Now when she in on her bike or the back of mine she only talks when necessary and it's usually about road or traffic hazards. It can be a great tool once boundaries are established. It's also nice to point out things of interest or discuss when and where to stop with out actually stopping.

 

[Geezer]

The communication system is a great idea. The few times I've ridden any distance with a pillion we had to work out signals to know when she need a break and we were not able to share interesting sights with each other.

Another problem with a pillion on an FJR is that unless she is taller than you she will not be able to see forward over your helmet.

 

[BikerGeek99]

I guess I'm in the minority...

Perhaps, but you're not alone. With the exception of commuting, I can't hardly get either of the bikes out of the garage without the wife coming out the door geared up, helmet in hand. A few thoughts:

Gear: get her gear that is comfortable for her and is properly cut for wimminz. Women tend to not like un-flattering gear.

Gear2: if you're going on a multi-day trip, make sure that either her gear is waterproof or she has rain gear AND gets it on before she gets wet. There is a reason why I know this.

Gear3: if, like my wife, your wife gets cold easily, make sure she has proper layers readily available to put on.

Comm: I have a StarCom on the FJR. We can talk to each other and we listen to XM. Some couples prefer to listen to their own music (if any) and communicate using hand signals. To each their own - the StarCom and XM works for us.

Seat: a comfy seat is a must if you're taking any longer trips. We did a 550-mile day back in '08 on the stock seat and she was in utter misery. I put a Russell on there and it is night and day for her.

Pictures: my wife loves taking pictures. It has taken a couple of iterations, but she has it down now: she rides with a relatively inexpensive point-and-shoot camera on a lanyard around her neck. She can sit back there and jam to the tunes and take pictures of whatever she wants. That's nice for me, because while I'm busy driving the bike, she is taking pictures of stuff I never see. It's a win-win, if you ask me. Just make sure that the camera she is using can be operated while wearing riding gloves.

Hope that helps ya...

 

[Checkswrecks]

Keep it short and REALLY gentle, especially if she's short enough to not see past you. btw - freeway on the back is reeeaaaally boring.

Her biggest concern is going to be "how do I keep from making him crash?" so talk up front about being still or holding you to lean with you. The FJR is not much of a problem but on other bikes you have to point out not to put feet in the wheel and about hot exhaust pipes on shins. My ex has a nice oval reminder on her shin from putting it against a pipe just in front of a muffler when we stopped to get off. The comments about limiting when to talk are good.

Give her a job. Tell her that it's her job to wave to all other bikes, select music, and to take photos.

 

[FJRBilldo]

Gentlemen thank you for all the great advice! You bring up some outstanding points and I plan on using it all.

 

[not2shabby]

TTIUWOP!...of your wife of course! :lol: Seriously though, My wife likes being able to talk...and talk...and talk while we ride. I upgraded her 'intercom only' Interphone with the new F4 stereo unit for X-mas so she will hopefully listen to music until there's something important to say...Being able to communicate does make her more relaxed and into riding.

 

[lnewlf]

I bought a Smuggler...

 

[FJRBilldo]

Okay okay...here's a photo of me and the wife. Geez

Me and the wife