Pillion Riding Position

[mmayhew]

My wife is very new to riding on the back of a motorcycle. She probably has less than 300 miles in the saddle so I'm sure that explains most of what I'm about to ask, but I'm about to ask anyway.

1.) What position works best for you guys. I know this is personal preference more than anything else, but I'd still like to get a consensus. So far, she likes to be toward the rear, holding on to the handles. It TERRIFIES her when the bike leans but she's fine as long as it's straight, even at high speeds.

2.) Fighting the wind: She acts like the wind is almost unbearable at 70+ mph, even with the windshield up. She says the windshield helps but at 80mph she says she's fighting the wind hard. If she leans closer to me, it creates a vacuum and both of our heads start doing weird things. :blink:

3.) Controlling the bike: Any tips on her working with me instead of against me. This is very frustrating for me. As we approach a turn, she starts leaning to soon. If we are inside a turn and she gets nervous about the lean, she will jerk the other way.

Maybe she will just have to get used to it or maybe she just isn't cut out for riding but right now, it's almost not enjoyable for either of us.

 

[jhinderliter]

My wife is very new to riding on the back of a motorcycle. She probably has less than 300 miles in the saddle so I'm sure that explains most of what I'm about to ask, but I'm about to ask anyway.
1.) What position works best for you guys. I know this is personal preference more than anything else, but I'd still like to get a consensus. So far, she likes to be toward the rear, holding on to the handles. It TERRIFIES her when the bike leans but she's fine as long as it's straight, even at high speeds.

2.) Fighting the wind: She acts like the wind is almost unbearable at 70+ mph, even with the windshield up. She says the windshield helps but at 80mph she says she's fighting the wind hard. If she leans closer to me, it creates a vacuum and both of our heads start doing weird things. :blink:

3.) Controlling the bike: Any tips on her working with me instead of against me. This is very frustrating for me. As we approach a turn, she starts leaning to soon. If we are inside a turn and she gets nervous about the lean, she will jerk the other way.

Maybe she will just have to get used to it or maybe she just isn't cut out for riding but right now, it's almost not enjoyable for either of us.

i little more saddle time will help..

i tell em not to lean at all , just go with the bike also tell her to look over your shoulder in the turn ( right turn right shoulder and vice versa)... does she have a properly fitted helmet?

 

[Brodie]

mmayhew

I think it's great that your wife is interested in riding with you, I wish my wife were so inclined.

1. First off, go easy with her, stay off the freeway if you can. Do some local rides that is fun for the two of you. Let her get comfortable by finding out what works best for her.
2. Second, Look for an aftermarket windshield that will give more wind protection. When the time comes that she is ready for higher speeds she shouldn't have to fight the wind like that. It's noisy and tiresome.
3. Third, If I have a good looking lady on the back of my bike, I always encourage the bear hug position.

After you get some miles together you may be interested in rider to passenger communications. There are a lot of good systems out there.

Treat her well! She want's to ride with you - feel blessed.

Brodie

 

[mmayhew]

does she have a properly fitted helmet?

Yes, her helmet isn't the issue. I just think she will have to learn to deal with the wind.

 

[johnny80s]

Try a bigger windshield. There is a v-stream floating around the board that you can try just for the cost of shipping.

Get her a backrest or a topbox to lean against. It will comfort her to have something behind her.

 

[TestPilot]

Always try and bring her home wanting more, even if it means building slowly on a short base. When I have a new pillion I suggest, no, tell them, that when we corner they should gently lean closer to me (not snug - it's more in the mind than physical - I find it's 'comforting' for them) and look over my inside shoulder at/past the mirror, then into the corner. This gets them perfectly positioned, and takes their mind off the lean - they've got something to do - look at/past the mirror. After a short while they start automatically 'assuming the position' just fine, generally. I also go really easy on the lean at first - sacrifice corner speed for pillion comfort for a month or two, and it will pay dividends for many years.

 

[wfooshee]

My windshield covers me pretty well, but when it's in the right position I can feel the breeze closing in on my sides. That means it smacking right into the pillion space. Jan just deals with it, I guess; it never came up.

The passenger should NEVER lean or compensate for the lean. If she's looking correctly she probably wouldn't even be aware of the lean. Tell her to look through the turn, just like you do. Don't look at the road, don't look down, look ahead at where the bike's going. But don't fidget, don't lean, stay upright to the bike. That means don't move relative to the bike.

If she needs to stretch, shift her weight, relieve a cramp, or whatever, do it while moving, not while accelerating or slowing down. If she wants to when you're stopped, she has to make sure you're ready with the bike's weight before she shifts around, but it's actually easier and less "invasive" at speed. An intercom really helps convey intentions here, too.

Helmets will bump, that's OK. She moves forward when you brake, which means your arms brace your weight and hers against the bars, and your ****** carry your weight and hers against the tank. Be sure your equipment is properly packed for the ride. When you have to brake, you know when it's going to happen, she doesn't, so she comes forward. Nothing wrong with it, and no reason to try to avoid it.

 

[Beamer Reamer]

My wife is reasonably new to riding. Even though she was comfortable early on, we did learn things:

- I also think the wind screen is a big issue. We had lots of buffeting at speed until I put on a Vstream which resolved that issue.

- I think pillion snuggled forward would be the best position for her with her hands at your waist. No need for the death grip or bear hug except for maybe those tender moments.

- Hanging on to the grab rail is not a good option other than an occasional stretch.

- She should never lean, but just go with the bike. Since she should be aware of the road, her looking over your inside shoulder would put her in a great position.

- With time, she will become relaxed and that will help a lot.

- A comm system is nearly a must have. You can't yell over wind and bike noise and communicating without the comm is frustrating and takes away from the experience. Besides, the first time my wife jabbed me to point out some scenery I nearly lost my bladder trying to avoid a non-existent obstacle.

As other said, nice quiet roads with beautiful sweepers are a great way to start. After a bit, you will find yourselves in the twisties without second thoughts. Good luck, riding with a companion is great stuff.

 

[mmayhew]

- I think pillion snuggled forward would be the best position for her with her hands at your waist. No need for the death grip or bear hug except for maybe those tender moments.

Thanks. I've tried getting her to move to this position but she says she's much more comfortable holding the grab rails. She uses them when we accelerate and brake to keep her balance.

- A comm system is nearly a must have. You can't yell over wind and bike noise and communicating without the comm is frustrating and takes away from the experience.

I agree. I started this thread for the comm system.

 

[bk000]

Adding a backrest or topcase to lean on will give some comfort as she won't feel like she's about to fall off the back. That might also help the sensation that she feels like she's "fighting the wind" at high speed.

It might also allow her to stop holding the grab handles and hold onto you instead since she will have something behind her holding her on the bike.

 

[DELETE-PLEASE]

Adding a backrest or topcase to lean on will give some comfort as she won't feel like she's about to fall of the back. That might also help the sensation that she feels like she's "fighting the wind" at high speed.
It might also allow her to stop holding the grab handles and hold onto you instead since she will have something behind her holding her on the bike.

In addition to some comfort, it's a good reference point for the lean. If you tell her to keep the backrest centered on her back, when it starts to lean, she should just try to keep her back glued to the backrest. So she'll lean at about the same angle.

Bottom line is take your time. Start off on short trips, no real twisties. Parking lot practice with u-turns and swerves with her will benefit the BOTH of you. It'll help her get used to leaning in a much safer and comfortable environment at low speeds. Hopefully after some short trips and parking lot practice she'll start to get a little bit of a feel for it.

After a while, she'll feel much more comfortable on the bike and that'll just help out more and more.

If you go another site called sport-touring(dot)net, there's a GREAT writeup stickied under the forum "beginner's garage" that has VERY VERY good information. Additionally, the MSF website has some information. Here's a link . . . CLICK. It's a PDF file, and I printed it and gave it to my girlfriend to read over as it has some good information.

All in all, take it slow, understand that she's new to riding and being on a bike, and practice in safe environments. Roads with little traffic, parking lots, straighter, LESS curvier roads. Might seem boring now, but the time taken now will help her to feel comfortable for the future and will help guarantee a life-long passenger instead of her getting so scared so often that she gives up.

Alexi

PS - If she is willing and can be coerced, have her take the basic riders course. It'll teach her a little about riding a motorcycle and she'll get some firsthand experience at leaning and how a motorcycle turns and whatnot. My girlfriend currently says "No way", but I'll probably ask her about twice a year and maybe one day she'll change her mind. Only time will tell!

 

[Bogey907]

Have her slide her pelvis forward, to give you some lower back support. Plus you may find her in a more, ahem, "friendly" mood when you get home.

Works for me! :exhappysmiley:

 

[Geezer]

I found the helmet knocking with a pillion more of a problem on the FJR than any other bike I've owned. I learned to be as smooth as possible when accelerating or decelerating to minimize it.

 

[08FJR4ME]

I found the helmet knocking with a pillion more of a problem on the FJR than any other bike I've owned. I learned to be as smooth as possible when accelerating or decelerating to minimize it.

+1

My only complaint with my pillion but she is getting much better. Mostly my fault anyway due to hard braking when neccesary or fast throttle letoff.

 

[bk000]

PS - If she is willing and can be coerced, have her take the basic riders course. It'll teach her a little about riding a motorcycle and she'll get some firsthand experience at leaning and how a motorcycle turns and whatnot. My girlfriend currently says "No way", but I'll probably ask her about twice a year and maybe one day she'll change her mind. Only time will tell!

I offered to take the course again with my wife and she agreed. It was a refresher for me and she had someone she knew in the class with her.

 

[SPORT]

So...Are you asking what position I like my wife in...your right, that's a little personal. :assassin:

 

[juniorfjr]

So...Are you asking what position I like my wife in...your right, that's a little personal. :assassin:

Actually for a little variation, she could sit in front of you facing back. Picture that.

 

[SockMonkey]

So...Are you asking what position I like my wife in...your right, that's a little personal. :assassin:

Actually for a little variation, she could sit in front of you facing back. Picture that.

The passenger footegs come in a bit handier than you might otherwise imagine. Or so I've been told...

 

[bk000]

So...Are you asking what position I like my wife in...your right, that's a little personal. :assassin:

Actually for a little variation, she could sit in front of you facing back. Picture that.

The passenger footegs come in a bit handier than you might otherwise imagine. Or so I've been told...

I also recommend keeping the RPMs above 5k...