2 up riding - questions and tips

[pimaCanyon]

I'm a new rider who's planning to eventually take a passenger. Here are a couple of questions for those of you who ride 2 up:

1) How much experience did you have riding solo before taking a passenger?

2) Does carrying a passenger feel a lot different than riding solo?

3) Did you spend much time "practice riding" 2 up, like in a big empty parking lot before venturing on the streets?

4) Anything else I should know about riding 2 up?

Thanks!

[Kaos]

It feels a bit different. You don't have to lean nearly as much to turn.
I didn't practice before my wife went 2-up with me, but I'd been riding for quite a while at that point.

You'll also notice that your acceleration will drop a bit, though on my scoot anyway my top speed stayed about the same.

[BuddyRaton]

Instruct you pillion rider to lean with you, no to fight the lean. I usually tell them to look over my inside shoulder when taking a turn. And no squirming!

Your braking will be changed a great deal with added weight, the same braking technique used when riding solo will result in much longer stopping distances.

[Lostmycage]

Instruct you pillion rider to lean with you, no to fight the lean. I usually tell them to look over my inside shoulder when taking a turn. And no squirming!

Your braking will be changed a great deal with added weight, the same braking technique used when riding solo will result in much longer stopping distances.

You're taking responsibility for another person in your hands, so take that into consideration before having a passenger. Take the same cautions you'd take on a new bike because the handling will be completely foreign.

Tell the passenger the following:
Look over the shoulder of the lean.
Keep feet up at all times.
No wiggling around.
Exhaust pipe is hot.
Wait for you (the rider) to give the OK to mount/dismount.

Also, figure out a way to signal things like bathroom break or discomfort, etc.

[pimaCanyon]

great suggestions! thanks!

Yes, having my girlfriend on the scoot with me is a big responsibility. If I crash riding solo, that's one thing, but I don't even want to think about crashing with a passenger on the scoot. Well okay, I do think about it in terms of safety and protective gear, but if I gotta go down, I don't want anyone else going down with me!

I think we'll head to a big empty parking lot around lunch time today and do a little practice riding.

[JSharpPhoto]

try and find some grass to practice on. it's softer.

[pimaCanyon]

just got back from a practice session at a big parking lot. With two of us on the bike, it definitely feels different. But the handling of the bike in motion is not as different as I thought it would be. 2 up makes the bike feel like you're doing some things in slow motion, kinda like the bike morphed into an elephant. I did feel the need to slow down a bit more going into the corners. Where I really noticed the weight diff is when we're stopped, feel the weight more with my feet on the ground.

I think we'll do one more practice session on the lot on Sunday, then out onto the streets for a short ride.

Need to get a top case now or a back rest, so it will be a little more comfy for my passenger.

[jmazza]

I'm not a big fan of 2 up riding on the Buddy. Both my wife and I are pretty small but it still feels cramped. Your description of the scooter feeling like an elephant is a good one.

Sounds like you learned a lot- slowing more before a turn is good, but be careful not to slow down TOO much going through the turn or you'll fall. The extra weight can bring you down a lot faster if you don't keep your momentum.

Need to get a top case now or a back rest, so it will be a little more comfy for my passenger.

I think with this statement you're missing the point of having your girlfriend ride with you. You don't want her scooting farther BACK!

[Kaos]

I'm not a big fan of 2 up riding on the Buddy. Both my wife and I are pretty small but it still feels cramped. Your description of the scooter feeling like an elephant is a good one.

Sounds like you learned a lot- slowing more before a turn is good, but be careful not to slow down TOO much going through the turn or you'll fall. The extra weight can bring you down a lot faster if you don't keep your momentum.

Need to get a top case now or a back rest, so it will be a little more comfy for my passenger.

I think with this statement you're missing the point of having your girlfriend ride with you. You don't want her scooting farther BACK!

Yeah, its not the ideal 2-up bike, but it does ok. I'm lucky that my wife is very small(4'8") because my 6'3" frame wouldn't be able to 2-up anyone bigger than that!

[Lostmycage]

Pimacanyon's got an SYM HD200, which is a lot more comfortable riding 2-up than the Buddy. The advice still applies, but he's got the advantage on the Buddy with the larger seat and adjustable suspension.

[jasondavis48108]

1) How much experience did you have riding solo before taking a passenger?

At about 1500 miles I took the msf course and got my cycle endorsment and that helped me feel more confident about having a passenger.

2) Does carrying a passenger feel a lot different than riding solo?

yup it sure feels a whole lot more cramped

3) Did you spend much time "practice riding" 2 up, like in a big empty parking lot before venturing on the streets?

I only ride 2-up with my 11 year old son so we practcied in the nieghborhood before venturing out on the busier streets

4) Anything else I should know about riding 2 up?

I can't imagine riding two up on a buddy with another adult, its hard enough with my son who is small for his age but I'm 6' 1" and about 200lb so if your a smaller person it may be easier.

[peabody99]

Some states offer 2up riding.courses. truth be told though if the person riding on the back is going to be in your life for a while, I would think about a 2nd scooter. I hate riding 2 up. I am a terrible back seat driver- I feel impending death is always near. And I am squirmy as hell. Plus my back hurts... lol hard to believe we have been married so long reading this.

[Vic]

I ended up getting a Sym RV250 specifically so that I can take a passenger with me. I am not a small girl and my kids are extremely tall and getting taller every day.

It felt like a walrus riding a scooter with a giraffe on the back and I am certain we looked just as silly.

My son is about 6' tall (I am 5'2") and the one time I had him on the back I actually put my elbows on his knees and rode around like I was in an easy chair, the scooter handled about as well as that too.

My daughter was (ahem) slightly shorter than me but has a very thin frame, we managed okay until she hit a growth spurt and her legs started going off in every direction.

This is with a couple of skinny kids, I can't imagine riding for any distance with an adult.

On the Sym, I forget they are back there and they are as comfy as can be. At the last rally my kids rode on the back on my Sym and a friend's Piaggio and they both actually fell asleep (apparently my daughter kept bumping helmets, my son sat very still and nobody realised he was sleeping until they stopped and he just sat there. )

As for gear, absolutely, positively, not an option. Also, remember that your legs are somewhat more protected but theirs are out there hanging in the wind and at much higher risk. I see you are in Arizona, so this might not be an issue, but the pillion also gets cold legs much faster. In heat they can also sit back there and cook-they don't get the air to their core like the pilot does and their jacket vents don't work as well.

In Ohio you can't ride with a passenger until you have your full endorsement. I had more than 8k miles under my belt before I took on a passenger. I also suggest that you maybe try to find a friend that rides and will understand about leaning and so on to get some road experience with before taking a non-rider pillion. Have your girlfriend do some reading about riding too so she will understand some of the do's and do NOT's of riding. the last thing you want is her to get freaked out about something and start to move back there while you are trying to get out of trouble-that could be a recipe for disaster.

Oh, and they get on the bike, they sit down, put their feet on the pegs, and DON'T MOVE around-especially as you are slowing down (that was tough for my daughter and gave me a few moments of terror a few times).

good luck.
V

[Skootz Kabootz]

I recommend checking out the Proficient Motorcycling chapter on riding 2-up...

[pimaCanyon]

I recommend checking out the Proficient Motorcycling chapter on riding 2-up...

Thanks for the suggestion! I have that book on order (thanks to an earlier post of yours--not about 2 up riding, but about making yourself a better rider in general).

[Skootz Kabootz]

I recommend checking out the Proficient Motorcycling chapter on riding 2-up...

Thanks for the suggestion! I have that book on order (thanks to an earlier post of yours--not about 2 up riding, but about making yourself a better rider in general).

I'm like a broken record when it comes to recommending Proficient Motorcycling. Wait, is broken record even a viable metaphor any more? Maybe I'm more like a skipping CD...