Lazy Rider Backrest Bag

I've been looking at these bags for almost a year but just couldn't bring myself to purchase one. The $185 price tag is reasonable but only if you have $185 around to spend.

Last week, I got a bonus from work (yea me) and decided I'd break down and get one. I searched Ebay first (that's always a mistake for me) and found a guy in Amarillo that had two listed. I won bidding on one of the bags.

This post is the preamble to a review of the bag when it arrives. If you ride a cruiser and are looking to replace that rolled up sleeping bag on the back seat (like I was), keep watching.

The link to the original bag is www.lazyrider.com

Looks like a sweet idea! Only caveat for me is a sissy bar. I do not have one and don't reallywant one, but I have been thinking about one to keep my passenger from hunching on my back so bad! That looks really cool for long distance cruising though and would serve 2 purposes!

I received the bag today. As soon as it STOPS RAINING, I'll get some time with it to see if it's all I'm hoping it'll be.

The Review:

For those with short attention spans:

Great bag. Good price. Lots of room inside and nice feel for a backrest.


For the more in-depth:

I saw one of these bags about a year ago on a friend's bike and inquired about it. I've been riding around with a sleeping bag on the pillion seat as a backrest and although it's effecient and cheap, it's getting old having folks ask me "you just passing through town?" when I stop for gas on the way to work.

I got a little ahead on my cash flow a couple of weeks ago and although the price on the bag ($185 with free shipping) is very affordable, I'm an EBay whore and found one on there for a good price. It came from a rider in Abilene Texas (nice guy by the way) and was exactly as he described it. I thought I'd received a bonus when I found a toolbag inside but it turns out he'd forgotten to check the bag before shipping. The tools are for his bike and I'll be mailing them back to him today.

With the purchase of the bag, I went from Hillbilly chic to RUB authentic:






The bag attachment is very easy and straightforward. There are 4 D-rings (two on each side, naturally) for the included bunjie cords. The cords have normal snap rings on the ends, not hooks. This helps ease my mind with the safety of the attachment and elimates the chances of tearing the simulated leather cover.




The backrest is composed of two seperate parts. The pad that velcros to the bag and the lumbar roll which snaps to the pad. The lumbar roll has a zipper so you can replace the foam insert if it ever loses it form. With this arrangement, you can move the pad and lumbar support up or down as you need to put it where you need it most or remove the whole contraption.










The sides of the bags used to be secured with zippers but after some of them failed (with time, zippers tend to do that), he replaced the zippers and now uses turnbuckle type fasteners. They seem to function well and keep the endcaps secure. (Sorry for the over-exposure on the picture. Shooting in the garage).





On each end of the bag is a nice, deep pocket that is kept closed with firm snaps. These pockets can hold a multitude of items but the one on the left end of the bag will be used to carry a water bottle for me.




The interior of the bag is very roomy. The core of the bag is a pvc pipe that has grooves all the way around (inside and out but you can't see them on the outside due to the material). The grooves provide "bite" so things don't shift around inside. This pic shows the bag with my rainsuit consisting of pants, jacket and boot covers. You can see there is plenty of room for a lot more.



And there you have it. I haven't had a chance to put many miles on the bike since I got the bag (friggin rain) but from what little I've used it, I can feel the relief in my back from the lumbar pad and the stability of the bag itself. I hope to put 100 or so miles on the bike today to give it a good shakedown and see if it supports better than the sleeping bag (which shouldn't be hard).

The bags are available in a 12" or 10". The one on my bike is the 12". I was worried that it would be too large and would push me too far forward but with my riding position, it seems to fit just perfect.

Go to www.lazyrider.com and check them out. He also sells leggins if that's your style. In the pictures the bags have a blue hue to them due to the flash. They're a very nice, deep black and you can't tell that they're not leather unless you're really a leather fanatic. My leatherlyke saddlebags are nowhere near leather but look good all the same. Keep in mind, the bags were born and bread right here in Texas and are still made by Texans in Lubbock.

I love having a driver's backrest, so for those of you without one for long trips, this seems awesome. Nice looking unit too.

I need to get a sissy bar. I really want a backrest and don't want to buy a new seat to get one.

A little over a year ago I bought one simular to yours from http://www.bikersfriend.com/
But I paid a little more.

Large enough to stor a ff helmet and jacket or jacket and riding pants. I really like it, keeps things dry and it stays on the bike full time.

So, which one was first? Looks like one copied the product of the other. I saw one guy who made his own out of a 3 gallon water jug. Plugged the whole where the valve was, removed the handle and painted it black. He had some eye bolts that he mounted in the sides to attach it with bungee cords. He said it cost him about 40 dollars. Cheap alternative and didn't look bad. Not as good as the Lazyrider, but not bad.

I looked at both the Lazy Rider and the Biker's Friend and it came down to the price and the fact the Lazy Rider is designed and made in Texas. I'm Texan through and through.

As for helmet size, the website says the Lazy Rider bag will accomodate a half helmet and not a full-face. All I have are full-face so I'm outta luck on that portion. But I have a bar-end helmet lock so it's all good for now.

I considered the homemade version....finding a piece of pvc and just make my own but I've done enough southern engineering on my bike as it is. My bike's all about function and very little about styling. This bag is the first thing I've purchased that was made for a bike.

I have an add-on taillight that I got from Home Depot that was made to put on the lower unit of a boat on a trailer. Nice led's and it's slim. Modified to work on the bike. My driving lights are mounted on angleiron. My gps mount was designed for an atv. The tank bra was custom made by a guy doing mockups for the Virago and he added a pocket at my request.

Just a quick update.

After putting a few miles on the bike, I'm finding this bag is nice but I think I should have sought out the 10" version. This one pushes me forward to where my junk is almost riding on the gas tank.

If I can talk the financial analyst of the house into sparing a little change, I might go ahead and purchase the 10" from Lazy Rider and put this one on the market for sale. In the meantime, I'll enjoy the bag and be glad the sleeping bag has been retired.