What should I look out/expect for when riding with ..

[Rippa_MD]

like the subject says, any tips

What should I look out/expect for when riding with passenger?

Oh and with me alone gas mileage is about 108-14 before I hit reserve it should be less with passenger...any other things I should keep an eye for?

[scratch]

Getting banged in the back of the head by the passenger's flipped-up visor or helmet on a sudden stop or one that the passenger wasn't expecting.
Feeling the head bob back and forth while going through the twisties (not so bad).
Sliding into you at a stoplight and making the tank meet your little freinds.
If you are prone to excessive throttle inputs, expect a tighnening about the waist, squeezing the breath out of you, and potentially breaking your sternum; usually followed by a slew of blows on the back at the next stoplight accompainied by rhetorical question like "What the...?!" and maybe some expletives.

[Jundie]

ROFL  :lol:  :lol:  :lol:

that is a very good description

[Rippa_MD]

Great cann't wait..for the head bops.
What about the balancing aspect?

This board ROCKS!

[Kerry]

What about the balancing aspect?

* The passenger always gets on last and off first.

* The passenger should NOT try to "help" by putting their feet down at a stop.  Keeping the bike vertical is the pilot's responsibility.

* The passenger should try hard not to fight the turns.  Many try to lean opposite of the turn, and this can really freak you out / make it hard to control the bike.  They need to lean when you lean.  Looking over your shoulder in the direction of the turn helps.  (Right turn = look over right shoulder, etc.)  Holding on to YOU tightly also helps, but they may not get to see much that way!

* If you have a tall or heavy passenger, they can help during abrupt or hard stops by reaching around you and pushing on the gas tank.  This will keep most of their weight off of you, and allow you to concentrate on stopping.

[Rema1000]

Try it in a parking lot first.  Do a few nice start/stops and easy turns, then shut off the bike and talk to the passenger about it.  If they are uncomfortable about something, then you want to know about that before you meet traffic.  Follow that up with a nice slow ride through a park.

Once you venture into traffic, ride like the temp. is 0 degrees C and you're worried about ice.  Don't bother trying to show a new rider how exciting riding can be... just being on a bike is a thrill, even just tooling around (remember your learner's course?  The first time you hit 10mph felt pretty cool!).  In time, you may learn to take turns a little faster, etc., but if you feel the urge to show off now, just be cool.

[Wrencher]

Having a passenger lean against a turn is spooky but manageable. For some reason my wife decided she was going to help in the leaning department and leaned into the turn BEFORE I did! I think she got used to riding her own bike and got bored as a passenger on mine. I have found that its generally not a good idea to tell a passenger to lean one way or the other, but to simply do as you do and equally important....when you do.

Having a passenger brace themselves against the tank is also very beneficial. Soft tender bits slammed into hard metal bits is not a good combination.    

[Ringo]

This might be obvious but I still see some passengers do it. Your passenger should be leaning toward you and not leaning backwards grabbing that bar on the tail. And as some members pointed out below, try not to sit too close to the tank when braking or your cojones might get pushed inside your body

[Turkina]

When I tried riding with a passenger, when I braked and she'd slide forward, I'd get close enough to the tank that I had a very hard time shifting.  With my long legs, I sit towards the back of the seat (well, the rider's part of the seat) and so my legs and feet were at all the wrong angles, resulting in missed shifts.  Eventually we figured that she should move back, give me the room I need to brace my knees against the tank like normal, and so at stops, she'd slide into me but I wouldn't move.  Turns and leans went very well, she stayed upright like a part of the bike, and never held on too tight.  It does really help if you can ride smooth, unlike me :lol:

Oh, and never never put Armor-All on your seat if you take passengers along!    :mrgreen:

[Jundie]

and if you do a good corner expect that your centerstand meets the ground, it gives lots of sparks and looks cool but its very dangeroues because the middlestand does not flip up like your pegs do

[Changemanager]

I try to remind my daughter that I do not require the Heimlich manuver while riding and to be aware of the hot muffler when getting on & off.  I need to remind myself that braking may require a little more distance because coming down harder on the brakes is more uncomfortable for both of us.

[alerbaugh]

not sure if anyone has mentioned this but if they get uncomfortable have them prewarn you to a change in balance.  Rider-passenger headsets are really good.  Thats what i use.

[richard]

depending on the passenger, some tend to fight the turn, try to stay upright.  warn them to relax, and follow your lean no matter what.  make sure they know that it makes it hard for you to turn if they don't.

Different people have different levels of difficulty with this one.