well I got to ride as a passenger on my own bike today. had to drop off a customer bike form the chopper shop I work part time in. so one guy road the bike there, and I road my gs along with him. then on the way back I said he could ride my bike and I would take the back. it was weird, but still kinda cool to experience the bike from that perspective. you sit higher and have a lot of control over the bike with just small body movements. I now have a new respect for how still my girlfriend keeps when she's on the back.
I think it must have been a funny sight seeing these two big guys riding 2up on this little red gs. (the guy I was with ways about 230pounds and is built like a house. I'm 6'4 and slim) plus the guy was wearing a half helmet and a Harley jacket, lol. we got a few whistles from some construction workers as we passed but its all in good fun. anyone else ridden there bike as a passenger?
When I bought my gs and later my zzr, I swore up and down that I would never be a passenger on my own bike....although sometimes i'm curious. I have a feeling I'll end up on the back of a different gs eventually though ;) I've made my dad, my not so lil bro, and an ex bf ride on the back. I was dropping said ex bf off at a bike shop to pick up his bike...then I smoked his ass :lol: silly hondas, twisties are for gs's
I rode on the back of The_good_guy's gs once. his is identical to mine. we had gotten together for one of our old gstwin group rides and my bike broke down. we were over an hour from my house, which was on the way to his house. Left my bike with another gstwin member and TGG dropped me off. I was his Buddha Loves You for the day...pretty boring to do 1+ hours on the slab as passenger if you ask me.
Being a passenger is cool. Done it before, commuting with my freind splittin' lanes, clipped my knee on a mirror...ow.
Now, if you can be a passenger on the back of a Fast person's bike (i.e.: a racer, or former racer turned track instructor), then you could be in for the ride of your life, and you might learn a thing or two.
My girlfriend and I are riding 2-up more and more recently. We use both bikes, my GS and her SV. Typically one of us gets to drive one way, the other drives home. So, equal time. I must say, easier on the SV due to the power, but both bikes do it well. My GS may also be lacking a bit of full power as it is an 89 with 53 K on it...
I've been the passenger on two Harleys and two '04 R1s.
The latter is pretty funny - I was headed to a friend's, and had my gear in case I got a ride on his bike, but I was waiting at the bus stop. A guy on a black '04 R1 offers me a ride. I take it. Coming back, waiting at the bus stop, a guy on a red '04 R1 comes by and offers me a ride. I take it.
Horrible bike to be a passenger on. The contact patch of butt with seat is about a square inch, your knees are by your ears, and you can't see jacksheeot.
I've never been a passenger on my GS, but I was a passenger on a guy's bike. I dropped my bike at Aurora Suzuki and a service guy offered me a ride to work... I took it 'cause I didn't want to take the bus.
I learned that I'm not a good passenger and that the slightest throttle twitch scares the crap out of me on 600 R bikes.
My first ride on a bike was on my friend's Gsx-R 750. Couldn't figure out what to hold on to so I didn't crush the driver. Not the easiest bike to be a passenger on. Got taken for a 100 mile trip for a cup of coffee. Got me hooked....
Also noticed it is tough being a passenger as a rider. You analyze each situation and how you would handle it. My girlfriend and I have different styles of riding.....
Quote from: jbeaberCouldn't figure out what to hold on to so I didn't crush the driver.
When coming to a stop, I reach around the rider to hold the tank with my hands outspread. It prevents "Sundae Syndrome" - crushed nuts with that?
An essential part of being a passenger is trusting the rider. If you don't feel comfortable letting go of control and allowing her/him to make the decisions, don't get on the back.
Quote from: RoadstergalI reach around
:lol:
That's what I had to do too. :oops: There was no grab handle in the back. :(
I agree with everything you said on that one, RG. I now have chilled out, but it took a couple times. And the wrapping around is what I did, both hands supporting me on the tank. /the SV and the GS are nice for 2-up as far as body position for the passenger. The GSX-R wasn't quite as nice, but, man, it was a great first ride....
I rode on the back of my dad's CBX for a while when he still rode it. This was back before I even considered riding a motorcycle. After I got into bikes my dad had his FZ1, and I rode pillion on that all through North Carolina; Deals Gap, Tail of the Dragon, Cherhola Skyway, all as pillion. It was a freakin' blast. Thankfully I'm skinny enough to fit on the back of that bike. My mother refuses to ride it now. I rode ONCE on the back of his ST1100 (the one he bought so he could go riding with my mom) and it has a sissy bar on it. It's gotta be one of the most awkward things I've felt on a bike.