[Visionary]

So this may be stupid but here it goes anyway. I have never ridden 2 up other then being a passenger riding on the back of my dad's bike as a kid some years ago. I have set my suspension to setting 7 in anticipation of riding 2 up with my wife, without giving away anyones weight I'm thinking between the two of us I will be holding up about 550 pounds. So my question is, do any of you have any tips for riding two up? Should I practice with smaller people on the bike? What should I expect? Any and all input is greatly appreciated.

 

[Mentat Ix]

Not much different. At cruising speeds, no different at all really. At slow speeds the bike will feel a lot heavier; that u-turn gets a bit trickier. Only part that sucks is when your passenger decides to whip around to look back or some stupid crap. No big deal, just get out and do it.

 

[BOOLSHOT]

Visionary, I am in the same boat you are, pretty much. I had a Suzuki DRZ400s that I traded in for my Stryker. In case you don't know, that is basically a dirt bike that you can ride on the street, and believe it or not, it had passenger pegs. The only one I rode on the back was my 20 tear old daughter, and that was once, to the grovery store. I got my Stryker to be more comfortable on the street, and to ride with my girlfriend. She is a little nervous, as am I. I will be watching the posts on this thread for advice. My passenger back rest should arrive at the dealer in about a week. Come on all you experienced riders.. help us out.

 

[The_Joker]

I've taken my kids and wife for a couple rides.....the wife really thinks it needs a backrest......

As for riding, I've taken it extremely easy with them, since it's the first times they've been on a bike. Took the oldest daughter on some slight twist's......seemed to handle fine, again at slower speeds than usual and not much leaning......be careful with braking.....certainly will take more time to stop....

As for 550lbs........the manual lists the max load on a stock bike as 450 (reference section 2-3 in the manual) ......so best to be extremely careful.....probably not wise to exceed the limits......

 

[11Stryker]

#1 !!! when you lean, the passenger must lean with you no matter what. Other than that, use 2 feet when coming to a stop. Tell them when you are ready for them to get on and off the bike. My wife only weighs 130 and I can feel her every move- When she turns to see where son is riding his bike, or adjusting her helmet.

 

[Mentat Ix]

To add a bid of advise to my previous reply:

Before you add a passanger, make sure you're entirely comfortable riding the bike by yourself. Because there will be situations, and you will have to correct for a bunch of extra weight moving around. It is good advise to always use both feet when stopping with a passanger, because inevitably your passenger will wait until you're just about to touch a toe down at a stop sign and decide to look around or shift their weight, and then your whole bike jerks around.

 

[ronin]

I always set some ground rules with new to motorcycle pass angers

1 you do not get on until I give the thumbs up
2 you do not get off/ put feet on the ground until bike is turned off
3 keep your body with me, if I lean you lean
4 (if she's hot) hold on to me (if not) use back rest and rest hands on me for balance
5 if you need me to stop tap right shoulder

Its really not that much different and the stryker handles great. Just take some time getting use to it and for first time motorcycle pass angers don't push the turns to hard until YOU know they are going to lean with you. New pass angers have a habit of getting scared and leaning away from the turn which throws balance off.

 

[StrykerLiker1]

#2 Allow more space in front of you and other vehicles because it is much harder to stop/slow down.
#3 Tell passenger to lean forward when starting out from a stop so your front wheel stays down.

 

[Frag]

Hi Visionary,

The most common incident I saw with the passenger …believe me I am serious here (saw that 4 times with friends) … not dangerous at all but VERY frustrating.

The passenger try to climb up when you are not ready, concentrating on something else. Bang, a brand new bike on its side.

Same thing for climbing down …

Rule:

#1 The passenger never climbs up or down without the signal of the driver.

…and as the others said, use a backrest if you are planning to ride with her a lot. It makes a waaayyyy funnier experience for her. This could make a difference between : “Naaahhh I do not feel like riding today” and “YES!!! Where are we heading!!!”

 

[nogard]

Truth be told, starting off with a lighter weighted passenger is going to be much easier to learn. There is not a huge difference, but the lighter they are, the smaller mistakes they make you won't be able to feel. My wife and I have taken many, many trips together on the Stryker. I'd say over 900 miles or so, so far(not huge i know).

1. Can't stress enough how everyone has said - ONLY get on and off when I say it's time. The passenger has no idea if you are going to a complete stop to put into Neutral or waiting for them to get off. You have to be very vocal.

2. Just let them know that the only time to fix that wedgie or stand up on the pegs(meh some like too to help their ass?), is while moving at a decent speed. OR tell you they are going to fidget at a stop light. I can be going 65 and not even notice the wife is moving around, but at a stop light i can almost dump the bike.

3. You aren't a bad ass. You have someone elses life in your hands behind you. The bike is going to be extremely heavy, and they are completely vulnerable. They have zero power to change any outcome of a wreck or oncoming traffic.

4. Lately this is the most important, other than number 1. If you scrap the pegs as often as I do, let them know it's normal. My wife still has the urge to jolt up and grab ahold of me. That is something I do not need. A sudden Jerk could mean a holy **** moment in a turn. It not only scares me, but makes me lean out of the turn sometimes. We are working on it, but she just isn't used to hearing us get that low to the ground.

edit:

Passenger relocation pegs and a backrest were a MUST for my wife.

 

[bekohlko]

Funny story for me... The first passenger I ever had on my bike was a good friend of mine because my girlfriend was too afraid to be my first passenger. This kind of goes against what others are saying, but I always tell my passengers not to physically lean their body one way or the other. The first corner we took, my friend leaned into it and started turning the bike before I was ready. I told him not to do that, and the next corner he tried to keep his body straight up and down (ie: perpendicular to the ground). Then I figured out that the best thing to do was tell him to stay straight up and down relative to the bike.

Basically your passenger shouldn't ever have to lean. Tell her to keep her butt flat on the seat, keep her spine straight, and simply let the bike lean her.

 

[atspence]

Same here I tell my passengers just to sit and enjoy. They do not have to help drive.

 

[elle]

A passenger just needs to look over your shoulder in the turn. This will allow them to naturally lean with you. And definitely let you know when they are going to fidgit.

 

[Visionary]

Sounds like all great advice, thanks everyone. Guess now it's just a matter of growing a set and giving it a shot, lol.

 

[Mentat Ix]

Funny story for me... The first passenger I ever had on my bike was a good friend of mine because my girlfriend was too afraid to be my first passenger. This kind of goes against what others are saying, but I always tell my passengers not to physically lean their body one way or the other. The first corner we took, my friend leaned into it and started turning the bike before I was ready. I told him not to do that, and the next corner he tried to keep his body straight up and down (ie: perpendicular to the ground). Then I figured out that the best thing to do was tell him to stay straight up and down relative to the bike.

Basically your passenger shouldn't ever have to lean. Tell he to keep her butt flat on the seat, keep her spine straight, and simply let the bike lean her.

You're actually saying the same thing as everyone else, by a different route. New passengers tend to want to keep their body perpendicular to the ground, and so they end up leaning away from turns.

Personally, I don't usually tell passengers much of anything unless they're doing something silly. It's not rocket science.

 

[canyon1]

I gotta be honest here...I do not enjoy riding with a passanger because I worry too much about the safety issue. I can't ride like I would without the extra weight and the bike handles differently. For you younger folks, however, it can be fun to pack a picnic lunch and take off with your sweetie. Just be extra careful.

 

[safetydanny]

I must share my side as I am fairly new to riding street bikes and specially with a passenger (which I do now 90% of the times). The most important technique which has helped me not only to ride with a passenger but on my own is understanding and the constant practice of counter steering. I have found that regardless of the leaning or passenger adjustments, with counter steering you can adjust your bike to where ever you want to go. For the most experienced riders, they just do it without knowing. For the biker who want to understand the physiques of a motorcycle, counter steering is a great way top learn about your bike, build confidence, and gives you the ability to react if need be.

I watched the six videos someone had posted on the forum about counter steering early this year but those videos have been removed from you tube so the link is dead. I really recommend not only all the advise from the other members on this forum but also find videos on this topic on you tube, understand what they are speaking of and then practice, practice, practice.

Good Luck!!!

 

[toby]

Everyone has givin you sound advice but let me ad a couple of things.
First and most important is the weight capacity of our bikes is max load of 450 lbs. I wouldn't exceed that without adding air assisted shocks or some other form of shocks to increase the load capacity.
My wife and I have a combined weight of 380 lbs and we have packed 50 lbs of gear and the Stryker handled it fine.
I now have the preload set at #7
The other thing I think is important is a back rest for the passenger because it gives them a sense of security and a way to stay with the lean angle of the bike. If they stay relaxed and against the back bar they will always be at the right position with the bike in corners. Also when you roll on the throttle they wont hang on and squeeze the life out of you ;D
Like everyone said only let the passenger on when you are ready. And it's important that they don't step on the peg first to lift them self up over the seat as this can pull you over. Tell them to keep their feet on the pegs at all times while riding and coming to a stop.
Before letting your passenger off the bike I even put the kick stand down first and have her always get off on that side.
You should be fine as the Stryker has one of the best passenger riding positions I have ever felt.
Riding is the easy part. The hardest thing is getting on and off and stopping and going. And definitely try to avoid stopping in gravel.

 

[BOOLSHOT]

What is the pre load set at from the factory? I am waiting for my owners manual, as the dealer lost the one for my bike. Does the owners manual explain adjusting this? Thank you in advance for the help.

 

[50ccRdRash]

Stock preload setting is Notch 4.