Tips for Carrying a Passenger

Warmer weather practically invites guests and loved ones to ask for a ride on your cherished motorcycle. While you’re comfortable zipping down the interstate on your own, the thought of carrying a passenger may seem somewhat daunting. If you’ve never carried additional weight on your bike, the riding experience will be different. Today, we’ll look at a few tips to make riding with a passenger easier to handle.

Make Sure Your Bike Can Handle It

Not all bikes are able to handle more than one rider. The maximum load differs from model to model, so always make sure your bike can safely carry more than one rider. Best practices are to have a passenger seat installed on your bike. Otherwise, your guest might encroach on your part of the saddle, pitching you forward and changing your riding position. Further, you want your passenger to be comfortable, but you also want them to be safe. Having them in your driving space limits your ability to effectively avoid obstacles on the road.

Driver Gets On First

Never let your passenger get on the bike first. While it may seem easier to get them settled before you get on, it can be difficult to balance the bike. You can use a kickstand, but shifting it off the stand once you and your passenger are aboard is incredibly difficult. The driver should always get on before the passenger and straddle the bike. Make your passenger wait until you’re ready to brace against the added weight.

Securing the Passenger

Motorcycles don’t have seatbelts for the untrained rider riding behind you. Instruct them to hold on tightly to your waist. They should be able to brace against you as the bike turns or stops to avoid shifting weight as the motorcycle moves. Installing floorboards, like our Majestic Floorboards, specifically designed for your Harley, will make the experience more pleasant and improve your passenger’s balance on the bike.

Turning

Added weight changes the way your bike handles. If your passenger moves around as you drive, you’ll feel each shift of their weight and the change can alter how you’re steering and balancing. Tell your passenger to sit still whenever possible and be alert when you’re turning. They should lean into the turn with you. Remember to stress that they won’t fall off during a turn if they’re holding onto you. The more they move with the bike, the better the ride will be.

Stopping

While you can drop your feet to the ground when you’re at a stop light, tell your passenger to keep their feet on the floorboards. If they drop their feet, they may not pick them up when you need them to, throwing off your acceleration and making it difficult to stay upright. Stress the importance of balancing the bike and tell them they’re a passenger. They don’t have to be an active participant in the ride — they just have to enjoy it.

RC Components will help you set up your motorcycle for pleasant cruising this summer. Our line of Harley floorboards and aftermarket Harley wheels will let you and your passenger travel down the road in style. Order today!