FinchR88
06-14-2011, 12:35 PM
:yahoo:
...even if it was "only" as pillion.
After over a year of being away from motorcycles (I am not counting my little ds-guy in pieces since I haven't ridden it yet), I finally had the opportunity to get back on the horse, so to speak. No, not my own bike, but one of my best buddies' slightly-new-to-him motorcycle. He lives a few miles from my family's house, and since I was visiting them for the week, figured I might as well bring all the gear "just in case." I must admit, I had very much hoped I would be long-legged enough to be able to ride it, just around the parking lot, even. Alas, twas not to be. ;-) I sat on it and could touch with my tippie toes. I decided (wisely, I think) that with more seat time and comfort on a bike, I could probably easily ride this one, but didn't want my first foray back into riding to result in dropping it...especially not dropping it on the foot I broke last time I rode!
So, it was passenger for me instead. Since my buddy is also a former autocrosser/track day-er, I figured I should tell him I was NOT looking for excessive speed, either in turns or a straight line, since we all tend to be a little adrenaline-happy (as a general rule).
Just a nice, easy return into the world of two wheels...
Since he had never ridden with a passenger before (but was definitely no stranger to two wheels), I was sure to suggest a nice leisurely ride around the small town first to get the weight transfer figured out before heading onto the 35-55 mph country roads around the area.
The last time I had been on a bike I crashed (oops, ouch! more on that in a different post), so I expected to be a little tense or stressed for the first little while. Thankfully, I was a little surprised to find being a passenger came back pretty naturally. Definitely not ideal -- passenger is not *really* where I want to be -- but better than no two wheels at all (under the right circumstances). First day we did a very short loop of about 13 miles. Overall, mentally calm during the actual ride, but I was very blunt with my friend and told him I didn't appreciate him speeding (despite the speed still being "reasonable") and following a little close (for my tastes) to cars. Definitely thought I was pretty much DONE with being a passenger...forever. But a few days later, I couldn't wait to do another ride. (sigh, call it an addiction) Second day, we added more specific communication signals, and did a loop of about 60 miles. Settling into a rhythm was much easier on the longer ride. :zen:
Oh yeah, the bike is a 2006 Ducati 800 supersport. LOVE the V-twin sound. Well, Love THAT V-twin sound. I don't know many V-twin sounds... yet :-D.
A few things I noticed about being a passenger (which might be a big reason why I need to give it up ;-) )...and please critique me the best you can and offer hints, tips, etc. Always trying to improve, even as passenger! I'll try to explain well...
I very much dislike sitting "back" on my seatbones, because it makes me feel less balanced as a passenger (more easily thrown off balance, I guess?), and less in tune with what the bike (and rider) are doing. Evan is pretty tall, at over 6 feet, so he isn't leaned very far forward, but even still, I found I preferred to lean at the same angle as him. That wasn't a surprise, since I was doing that as a passenger before. That's normal...right? :lol: What I kept changing, though, was the angle of my feet: sometimes feet super flat on the pegs, sometimes toes pointing down or up. Partly this was because I guess I was also trying to use my legs for extra stability, and would get tired of being in one position for longer periods of time. (Don't normally sit at those angles I guess? Awkward angle...?) I didn't really find that my back got too fatigued as long as I stretched back a bit whenever we were stopped for a few moments.
Honestly, I'm not sure what my question is... Maybe: What are your experiences as pillion and what do you do to be a good pillion? Do you stretch before riding? :ears: (I think I'm gonna hafta start that one!)
The most difficult part of being a pillion, though, was definitely the "I'm just along for the ride" feeling. Of course I would have never agreed to ride with someone I didn't trust very much, both riding ability and keeping their cool no matter the situation, but I think I'm becoming more and more of a control freak the longer I drive/ride. Maybe that just means I was meant to be the pilot and not the passenger.
:singingrain:
I feel like I should apologies for the ramble, it seems I don't know how to type short things! I just wanted to share, I guess! Also, if this topic has been discussed at length (all the passenger-y type things), Oops. I am just now returning to forum worlds and haven't seen a passenger discussion yet -- but that doesn't mean it's not there!
:roflmao:
Happy riding, everyone!
...even if it was "only" as pillion.
After over a year of being away from motorcycles (I am not counting my little ds-guy in pieces since I haven't ridden it yet), I finally had the opportunity to get back on the horse, so to speak. No, not my own bike, but one of my best buddies' slightly-new-to-him motorcycle. He lives a few miles from my family's house, and since I was visiting them for the week, figured I might as well bring all the gear "just in case." I must admit, I had very much hoped I would be long-legged enough to be able to ride it, just around the parking lot, even. Alas, twas not to be. ;-) I sat on it and could touch with my tippie toes. I decided (wisely, I think) that with more seat time and comfort on a bike, I could probably easily ride this one, but didn't want my first foray back into riding to result in dropping it...especially not dropping it on the foot I broke last time I rode!
So, it was passenger for me instead. Since my buddy is also a former autocrosser/track day-er, I figured I should tell him I was NOT looking for excessive speed, either in turns or a straight line, since we all tend to be a little adrenaline-happy (as a general rule).
Just a nice, easy return into the world of two wheels...
Since he had never ridden with a passenger before (but was definitely no stranger to two wheels), I was sure to suggest a nice leisurely ride around the small town first to get the weight transfer figured out before heading onto the 35-55 mph country roads around the area.
The last time I had been on a bike I crashed (oops, ouch! more on that in a different post), so I expected to be a little tense or stressed for the first little while. Thankfully, I was a little surprised to find being a passenger came back pretty naturally. Definitely not ideal -- passenger is not *really* where I want to be -- but better than no two wheels at all (under the right circumstances). First day we did a very short loop of about 13 miles. Overall, mentally calm during the actual ride, but I was very blunt with my friend and told him I didn't appreciate him speeding (despite the speed still being "reasonable") and following a little close (for my tastes) to cars. Definitely thought I was pretty much DONE with being a passenger...forever. But a few days later, I couldn't wait to do another ride. (sigh, call it an addiction) Second day, we added more specific communication signals, and did a loop of about 60 miles. Settling into a rhythm was much easier on the longer ride. :zen:
Oh yeah, the bike is a 2006 Ducati 800 supersport. LOVE the V-twin sound. Well, Love THAT V-twin sound. I don't know many V-twin sounds... yet :-D.
A few things I noticed about being a passenger (which might be a big reason why I need to give it up ;-) )...and please critique me the best you can and offer hints, tips, etc. Always trying to improve, even as passenger! I'll try to explain well...
I very much dislike sitting "back" on my seatbones, because it makes me feel less balanced as a passenger (more easily thrown off balance, I guess?), and less in tune with what the bike (and rider) are doing. Evan is pretty tall, at over 6 feet, so he isn't leaned very far forward, but even still, I found I preferred to lean at the same angle as him. That wasn't a surprise, since I was doing that as a passenger before. That's normal...right? :lol: What I kept changing, though, was the angle of my feet: sometimes feet super flat on the pegs, sometimes toes pointing down or up. Partly this was because I guess I was also trying to use my legs for extra stability, and would get tired of being in one position for longer periods of time. (Don't normally sit at those angles I guess? Awkward angle...?) I didn't really find that my back got too fatigued as long as I stretched back a bit whenever we were stopped for a few moments.
Honestly, I'm not sure what my question is... Maybe: What are your experiences as pillion and what do you do to be a good pillion? Do you stretch before riding? :ears: (I think I'm gonna hafta start that one!)
The most difficult part of being a pillion, though, was definitely the "I'm just along for the ride" feeling. Of course I would have never agreed to ride with someone I didn't trust very much, both riding ability and keeping their cool no matter the situation, but I think I'm becoming more and more of a control freak the longer I drive/ride. Maybe that just means I was meant to be the pilot and not the passenger.
:singingrain:
I feel like I should apologies for the ramble, it seems I don't know how to type short things! I just wanted to share, I guess! Also, if this topic has been discussed at length (all the passenger-y type things), Oops. I am just now returning to forum worlds and haven't seen a passenger discussion yet -- but that doesn't mean it's not there!
:roflmao:
Happy riding, everyone!