How to be a good pillion?

[Keystone19]

better get mr keystone on a bike real soon......frisky and 19!LOL

Well I'm trying, but I can't see it anytime soon. WIll have to make do in the meantime...

[SixPackBack]

Well I'm trying, but I can't see it anytime soon. WIll have to make do in the meantime...

Stay as an owner operator

[Beemer]

I have always loved being a pillion - probably because I get the chance to go faster than I am capable of riding, and don't have to pay attention to the road surface, other traffic, etc!

I was taken over to the Wairarapa once by a friend and she said afterwards that she had forgotten I was there, I was such a good pillion! My husband says I do all the right things - lean the same way he does, not thump him too hard when he goes too fast!

I think education is the key - tell your pillion how you would like them to act. Don't forget that many may never have been on a bike before so when you lean, they instinctively lean the opposite way. And when you are pillioning, ensure the rider knows when you are getting on and off (NOT in the middle of a corner...) and try not to move around too much. If I need to change position slightly, I wait until a straight stretch of road before doing so. Learn a few signals too, in case your pillion needs to tell you something while on the road - simple things like toilet breaks, drink, slow down, speed up, etc!

[c4.]

Ahh Pillion....
I've only ever been the pillion twice on-road, facing forwards.
However I've covered Ironman type events many, many times facing backwards, carrying a camera (big, bout 10kgs) + a bag with batteries and tapes worn on my front (bout 8kgs)
WHAT a RUSH.
You meet the bike riders (usually 3-5 of them) you have a chat about the footage you're after, you assess their bikes, demeanor, knowledge, experience,etc. Then you pick/are picked. Then you go to sleep early coz at 6am you are going to hop on a 1000cc plus m/c (facing backwards) with someone you hope can do your positioning for you.
You start off not knowing this riders technique at all. Thats usually the
trippy-est part.
The only thing you can do as pillion, when you cant look forward is to be completly neutral as possible, don't fight the turns, become one rider thru touching backs. We get up to speeds of 100 + something ish? (Who said ton???) The hard part is doing you job (filming) without fu8king up the rider too much, and still getting the product out that will get you the next job.
I think you should all find someone you trust, and ask them to take you around the block facing backwards(no hands remember), then you will know the art of the perfect pillion.( Just a note,have special foot rigs so that we don't need hands, so don't be heros)
Or don't if its against the law(never asked, never been told)

[Beemer]

Wow, C4, you get my respect! Whenever I see those guys covering cycle races and similar from the back of bikes, I think "shit, how do they do it?" I am happy to stand on outside corners and get showered with rocks and mud covering car rallying, but I'd think twice about this kind of work! You certainly wouldn't want a tosser for a rider who tried to drop you off the back at every opportunity. You're a god...

[yungatart]

I only ever pillion. Make sure you trust the rider, relax and enjoy. I often sing! I have a terrible voice and am banned from singing even in the shower. With a helmet on ( and no intercom) I can sing to my hearts content and no one ever complains! I don't usually bother to hold on, just rest my hands on my knees- then if you need to grab on in a hurry his waist ( or whatever) isn't too far away.

[c4.]

"You certainly wouldn't want a tosser for a rider who tried to drop you off the back at every opportunity."
Yeah beemer, I try to weed out the heros before the race.
Usually there are 3-5 shooters on the bikes, so as the senior, I try to talk to the senior of the bikers, and we 'negotiate' the best matches.
Unfortunately the smartest thing to do is to put the best rider with the least best shooter and vice versa.
Still, I only have good stories about my riders, they've all been great.(had the odd bike probs but)
Now chopper pilots are a different story

[Beemer]

Now you're talking, C4! Hanging out of choppers is HUGE fun! But then snapping a mob of sheep released for a photo shoot (they swarmed all around a large hotel being moved from Masterton to Martinborough) is probably a little different to following a race!

[MSTRS:Me]

From the rider's perspective, the ideal pillion should do nothing to 'announce their presence'. Obviously the type of bike will make a difference in terms of performance, but apart from that, the rider should be almost unaware that there is a body on the back. As a pillion, imagine that you are a sack of potatoes & you can't go wrong. There is nothing worse than a 'helpful' pillion.

[c4.]

Hey, you're doing it.
Its all good.
They're all good days, some are just better than others.

[DingDong]

From the rider's perspective, the ideal pillion should do nothing to 'announce their presence'. Obviously the type of bike will make a difference in terms of performance, but apart from that, the rider should be almost unaware that there is a body on the back. As a pillion, imagine that you are a sack of potatoes & you can't go wrong. There is nothing worse than a 'helpful' pillion.

100% correct, If the pillion is not experienced i make them wrap their arms right around me so they cant move, ballance is everything and if it helped I'd even turn their helmet aroud so they could'nt see
My brother lent the opposite way to me once... just to be a pain in the arse, we crashed on a straight gravel road, it must have looked funny... i didnt care, It was his bike.

[myvice]

My son is an excellent pillon, totaly relaxed and easy to forget he's there, bit too easy sometimes.
But some tips, if you have to move dont shuffle, put even pressure on both foot pegs to slide back.
Try to look through the corner (bit hard to explain here, but your other 1/2 will be able to), the same as when your riding, this will help with the bikes stability when cornering.
My son, wife, and I tell every one else, "If you arn't happy, need something, whatever, give me a good HARD wack and I'll pull over as soon as I can"
And thay do, a soft tap means little through leather and armor so make it count!
And relax.

[chickybabe]

There is a definately a technique to being a pillion. I don't have my own but live on the back of a mates bike. I find that it all depends on the speed that your going. I am big on the stretching out and resting my hands flat on the tank to prevent you from squashing the driver. secondly it really does help to peak over their shoulder and see whats coming...like red lights and stuff. I find the grab rail useful around town when breeking but I wont touch it at high speed. The main thing is to have a play around and after a while you'll get into a groove with it.

[Beemer]

I'm pretty short so I don't have much other option than holding on around my husband's waist ("oh, if I must!") or resting my hands on his thighs (he likes that!) because I can only just reach the tank - and that would only be with one hand. Grab rails are usually behind the pillion and I find my arms ache after a very short time. I relax so much as a pillion I have been known to fall asleep! My husband knows when this happens because every time we go over a bump, he gets thumped by my helmet!

I love being a pillion on roads that I am not that confident on because I get an idea of how to ride them myself and I also get to see the scenery - I don't do that much when riding over the Paekakariki Hill on my own bike!

[Eurygnomes]

I haven't pillioned much but I LOVE it!!! Just recently a mate took me out through town on his GS1200 (?) and it was the first time on the back of his bike. Apparenlty, I'm a versatile pillion (who knew!?). I always make sure to tell the rider that I'm not a 17-year-old boy, nor does he need to behave like one to impress me. And I've learnt to grip with the thighs while putting hands out and around on the tank. I love leaning with the rider - feeling the bike a little through them (no responsibility - all fun) - and learning as I go.

I found on this last ride i could actually rest my elbows on my thighs as well. I hope this doesn't make me sound as though I have gorilla arms! It did provide a little extra stability, but I only needed it on the straights.

When they pull away from the lights, I found that my hands naturally came off the tank and around their chest/waist but that it wans't a problem for the rider. When we stopped, if he shuffled his arse - I realised it was probably because I'd slunk down on the seat and was jamming his, er, delicate parts into the tank...so took the hint and shuffled back myself.

Probably the more body contact - the better (doncha hate that?) as you can get more feel as to what the body/bike is doing and instinctively do the same. But yeah - I also always ask what the rider wants me to do on his bike (minds out of gutters please), and how they'd like ME to behave - as I realise it's a privilige for me to be on their bike...

...and sorry to all the angels who take pillions on a regular basis...I just haven't ever pillioned with a chick. Yet. So no sexist comments intended - merely observation. {end PC comment}