Pillioning. Is it discussed enough?

[GravelRashKid]

Well the pillion handle has arrived. Now lets hope he has a bike to put it on!!!!

Pillion handle attached and thoroughly tested!!

As for Tigger. The bike shop only replaced a fouled plug, which did sfa for her health. She did well enough in the weekend though, and we hope a carb strip will sort her out.

Enhanced with the tank mounted pillion handle, we are getting our groove as a pillion pair, especially through Mangamuka Gorge a few times in the last couple of days!
On Sunday morning, Tigger still had chicken strips front and rear...

[GravelRashKid]

Nothing like a pillion to ruin a good ride.

You just need to find the right pillion....

No such thing. It's just ballast that turns a motorcycle into an ill-handling wheelbarrow.

LOL, yes there is such thing as the right pillion!
Sure my riding position and style has changed recently. However I (we) are currently riding my bike a lot better 2-up than I had previously ridden solo over my 20 year riding career.

[Juniper]

LOL, yes there is such thing as the right pillion!
Sure my riding position and style has changed recently. However I (we) are currently riding my bike a lot better 2-up than I had previously ridden solo over my 20 year riding career.

I think the best thing I've heard over the last wee while is "I don't know how you guys even have any chicken strips left!"

That was after the experienced rider caught up with us.

It takes practice and communication. And lots of it.

[GravelRashKid]

Update on our 2-up riding progress:
As a solo rider, I'm learning new concepts and developing new skills (many of which I probably should have established 20 years ago). My solo riding is getting smoother and quicker. Cornering harder and faster, yet ending up with more in reserve than previously.

In spite of this, or perhaps partly because of this, as a 2-up unit we occasionally are cornering harder, faster and smoother than I ever have solo riding. As I've said in another thread (sorry to those who read both) I imagine it comes down to innate and intuitive skill (and a lot of hard work) from Juniper as a pillion. We both have pretty sore muscles at the end of a good stretch of road!

I've been looking around, although not found an opportunity for advanced 2-up training. Something equivalent to ART, on a track 2-up, would be great. I can't find any opportunity for us to be 2-up on a track, is there anything in NZ?
Perhaps we just need an instructor to follow us, maybe film us, and critique us.
We are doing pretty well, although can always become smoother and better. Any thoughts out there?

[rustyblade]

done thousands of k's pillioning through all weathers (carrying, not being.)

just found it's easiest to take it easy until they start to get less scared, tell them to go slow and watch what I'm doing.


When you've got someones life literally in your hands, it's not the time to misbehave.
I'm always VERY smooth and give my pillion a quick briefing before heading off:

hold on tight (don't break my ribs)
tell them my bike accelerates faster than they think it will, even slowly.
Move with me (don't go wild now)
if you want to stop, tap me twice on the back or side
if you want to slow down, tap once
If i hold my hand out and clench it, hold the hell on, I'm gonna take no prisoners.
If I tap your leg - I'm just checking you're still on the back.

Also I sit pretty tall on my 'blade so the brave soul on the back doesn't get blown off.

[GravelRashKid]

A brave soul indeed, up on the back of a fireblade.
Nice set of hand signals. I like the clenched hand. I tend to tap her leg, to wake her up for this next set of corners.
We also use shoulder taps, one tap - turn up ahead or change lanes, two taps - turn here, three taps - turn around fool it was back there.
She also employs the kidney punch, although I generally know when I've made an error, and don't really need that reinforced lol.

[cowboyz]

I have done a lot of pillioning and the only.. oh I fucked this up moment was getting enthuastic in a set of 55 chasing a lad and with my pegs on the ground I got a swift slap across the back of my helmet.. dam near shit myself

Sent from my GT-I9505 using Tapatalk

[Juniper]

A brave soul indeed, up on the back of a fireblade.
Nice set of hand signals. I like the clenched hand. I tend to tap her leg, to wake her up for this next set of corners.
We also use shoulder taps, one tap - turn up ahead or change lanes, two taps - turn here, three taps - turn around fool it was back there.
She also employs the kidney punch, although I generally know when I've made an error, and don't really need that reinforced lol.

Uh sorry wht? I fell asleep lol.

I've been thinking about this lately. I think I make it "better" by going with the flow. Use your body to go with the flow of the forces. It helps with not falling off the back when going off at the lights or knocking helmets.
If you just sit like a sack of potatoes you get a lot of jerking around. Think fluid like dancing with a dancing partner.

[george formby]

Uh sorry wht? I fell asleep lol.

I've been thinking about this lately. I think I make it "better" by going with the flow. Use your body to go with the flow of the forces. It helps with not falling off the back when going off at the lights or knocking helmets.
If you just sit like a sack of potatoes you get a lot of jerking around. Think fluid like dancing with a dancing partner.

When I got my G/F on the back of me bike she was tense, expecting immature heroics & sphincter cramp. Less like a sack of spuds & more like a gyro going in the opposite direction to the corner.
As has been stated smooth, considerate, riding & plenty of talking at each stop relaxed her no end. Prior to getting her own bike it had reached the point where I only noticed her when braking, if I had misjudged a corner slightly or had to brake a little harder due to a hazard. She learned to look ahead & anticipate what was going to happen next, right hand corner, look right, left, look left, need to slow down, lean back etc. We never used signals, she knew an overtake was coming up by the situation & my behaviour (that's a lean forward..). She just relaxed & went with the flow.

Oooooooooh! Knocking hemlets rips my nightie no end.

Any hoo, like yourselves I was no slower two up than on my own, regardless of road conditions. I think that riding more considerately & smoother with a pillion emphasises good technique & results in a surprisingly quick average pace. The bikes don't really care so it must be rider & pillion input.

[Drew]

Has it been mentioned, riders with pillion shouldn't use the clutch on up shifts? Maybe 1st to 2nd the clutch should be used, but the rest of the time it's smoother not to...unless you're retarded, in which case you should not be carrying a passenger on a bike.

[BMWST?]

Has it been mentioned, riders with pillion shouldn't use the clutch on up shifts? Maybe 1st to 2nd the clutch should be used, but the rest of the time it's smoother not to...unless you're retarded, in which case you should not be carrying a passenger on a bike.

Unless you re tarded using the clutch on any shift on a motorbike should be smooth as

[george formby]

Has it been mentioned, riders with pillion shouldn't use the clutch on up shifts? Maybe 1st to 2nd the clutch should be used, but the rest of the time it's smoother not to...unless you're retarded, in which case you should not be carrying a passenger on a bike.

I'm retarded. I use the clutch. Funnily enough, now that my G/F has her own wheels she struggles to figure out how I can change up with no jerkiness, just a change of engine note & constant acceleration. Problem is, I can't explain it.

Any hoo, Drew. Please educate me, in all seriousness. A day I don't learn something is not a good day.

[GravelRashKid]

it had reached the point where I only noticed her when braking, if I had misjudged a corner slightly or had to brake a little harder due to a hazard.

Did you ever get the nudge in your upper back meaning "come on, let's play!"?

[george formby]

Did you ever get the nudge in your upper back meaning "come on, let's play!"?

First time we went over the Mangamukas I was politely & with a "come hither" smile, told to do it again but faster. Yeah, pace was never a problem in the end. Well, lack of perhaps. Rides were measured by lean angle x velocity + acceleration on exit = She still badgers me for a lift somewhere on the bike.

You get my Gymkhana links? T'is the mutts nuts for handling skills.

[Kickaha]

Back in the good ole days we used to have a crate of piss resting on one leg on the way home from the pub or heading to the beach, leaning the wrong way for corners or putting the hand not holding the beer over the riders eyes, moving back as we took off from intersections so it'd lift the front

You can have lots of fun on the pillon seat, of course we may have had the odd off road excursion but no crashes