Riding with a passenger?

Well, I can only tell you what I know from being the passenger.

First, go over all the basics with her before you get on - no moving around, the turns will be leaning, don't put her feet down.

When I go to get on, I always put my left hand on the rider's left shoulder and wait for a head nod. That means he's got the bike steady and is ready for me. Have her mount the bike like a horse - left leg on left peg, weight up on it, then swing the right leg over.

Once she's on, she settles in and then taps both your hips to signal her "ok" to go. She can hold on or not, it's up to her. On the Strom, it's so comfy on the back you really don't ever feel like you're going to fall off or anything.

If she needs you for something while moving, left shoulder or arm tap again. If you need her, pull over and tell her. You're in control.

When going through turns, have her look over your shoulder in the direction you're going. Have her keep her eyes up and looking all the way through the turn just like you are. It makes her body lean with you naturally.

When you stop to get off, you stop and steady the bike again - then she gives you the left shoulder tap and waits for you to give the head nod that she can hop off.

You might also want to keep it relatively calm while she gets used to how it feels on the back. Over time, she'll start to enjoy it and then you get a ride-along photographer for trips!

Few suggestions

Talk about your route before u leave. If its familure she will kinda know what to expect. If not she can keep her eyes open. I usually cant see above the drivers head so i have to really pay attention for upcoming curves. So ill usually be peaking around the drivers shoulder.

Work out a signal for "DONT YOU EVER DO THAT AGAIN" With the people i ride with a slap to the back of the helment is usually sufficiant for them that i didnt appreciate trying to drag my knee around that curve. (just a hypothetical,thats only happened to me once

Last have a great time. I have my license but for now i am comfortable ridding pillion. Its a great time when u trust your driver cuz u know they are doing their thing and you have time to enjoy the sights

Dan,
with only 800mi experience, that is kinda early to start carrying a passenger. normally I recommend at least a year's riding (about 3k mi) but if you're determined to do it, here are my suggestions.

give a safety briefing. the exhaust pipe/muffler is hot. the chain will mangle. keep feet on pegs at all times unless otherwise instructed. hold onto either the pilot or the grab bars at all times. if there is a seat strap, never use that for stability, they can pull out without much effort. tell her to look over your shoulder in the direction of the turn. keep her eyes up to the horizon else she may think you're falling and snap upright in the middle of a turn. she should lean with the bike and not with the pilot. the increased mass will be easier to control if it remains constant with the bike.

set the spring preload to the highest setting. increase damping if adjustable. increase the tire pressures to the recommended for max load (check owner's manual, never exceed sidewall maximum)

start with short trips in low traffic situations. keep the speeds and acceleration moderate. if you don't have a passenger backrest, she may feel like she's gonna slide off the back when you accelerate.
pay extra attention when stopping and slow speed turning. the bike will behave nothing like you're used to. it will want to fall into turns and not come out without more throttle than you're accustomed to. increase your following distance and try to be super smooth with all your actions...shifting, braking, turning.
ride like you have precious cargo aboard because you do.

too many signals may be confusing to both of you. keep it simple to start with. only the most important ones like "pull over and stop", "slow down", and "put your foot down" (because we're tipping over!).

do this right and you will set yourselves up for years of riding enjoyment together. do it wrong and she may never get on the bike again.

good luck.

Get a quality intercom system. Nothing gives the pillion more confidence than beinng able to communicate. Makes it more fun, too.

We've ridden over 40,000 miles 2-up without incident. A couple of suggestions not previously mentioned...

1) Get a backrest if possible. My wife will not ride without our topbox on. She says the backrest makes it easy to lean with the bike correctly. She just stay with the backrest. If she is surprised (on occasion) by a curve, she can lean with the backrest/topbox while trying to get re-oriented with what is happening. Backrest also helps on the occasional rabbit starts. (Be careful here- wheelies are MUCH easier with a pillion.

2) On anything but wide-open spaces with nothing around, have your pillion hold onto the rear hand rails. One sudden stop and your pillion's body can slide forward into yours rather hard. Slapping helmets can cause you to become a little disoriented or completely out of control. Having a grip on the rails will allow him/her to pull rearward keeping him/her in his/her seat during a sudden slow down or stop.

3) We highly recommend an intercom system. Do some homework. There are small systems that can easily installed/removed if you don't want something permanent. If you don't go that route, keep communications (by hand signals) simple and to a minimum. Pull over where it is safe to talk.

4) HAVE FUN!!!!!! Some of the best times I've had in my life was while riding 2-up with my SO. Great way to see the country-side. Only way IMO.

I agree with Dukey33 about the experience thing. I would wait until you have at least 3-4K miles under your belt. At this point, you are still learning and getting used to your bike. Adding a passenger to the equation ups the stress level. It also changes the way the bike behaves.

That said, if you cannot wait, be extra careful! I would suggest doing some parking lot time at speeds of 25mph and under. Just get used to starting, stopping, and low speed turns with her weight on the bike. It will feel totally different than when you are alone. The backrest is a definite good thing. I found it made me more comfortable as the driver in addition to making the passenger comfy. I have done the intercom thing and without, either is fine with me. But I do recommend getting a few basic signals down. If possible, I always try to just pull over. Better to talk on the side of the road than be distracted while riding and end up all over the side of the road...

As others have said, riding two up can be a real blast. Beth and I have logged a lot of miles two up. The key is NOT to scare her! She will be nervous and will have to build up her confidence in your skills. As you both get more comfortable and know how the other person reacts, you will relax and really start to enjoy the rides.

Smooth is the name of the game.

...you can also have her ride as a passenger with someone who has lots of experience. That way, you aren't both new at it.

Oh yeah that reminds me... Some passengers have been known to fall asleep Just something to watch for as the driver

That's only because they had such high respect for the driver's abilities.

Really good advise has already been given by the group so I can't add much.

One thing I would add is that you may want to stop and talk about things after you have riden only about a mile or so. If will let you practice the get on/off drill in a controlled enviroment that you choose.

Also, let the passenger know that they are not without control. If they want to stop or go slower you should do so right away; as soon at it is safe.

Great advice has been given here. Learning to ride two up was something my Dad helped me with, and I've logged maybe 1000mi two up since I returned to from Iraq in January. The only thing I can add is that where having a passenger ride with an experienced rider to become more comfortable being a passenger - the opposite works well also, find an experienced rider to ride as a passenger for you while you're trying to learn. My Dad was my first passenger, and he gave me plenty of tips and advice afterwards. Most importantly though, he knew what to expect from a motorcycle ride.

Hi, Dan,
Take it easy. I didn't say slow, because maybe both you and she are comfortable at speed, whatever "at speed" may be. But DON'T scare her. Don't do something stupid. You may turn her off of motorcycling altogether or she may just not want to ride as pillion. My wife learned to ride a street bike while we lived in Spain in 1981, after she complained I was leaning the bike too much, e.g., going too fast (for her) through the twisties. Since we left Spain in 1981, Harriet has had 7 bikes of her own and has, only on very rare occasions, ridden pillion with me.
Ride Safe,
Phil Marvin - El Paso, TX
'95 K1100LT (his)
'94 K75A/3 low seat (hers)

Looks like every thing that I could have said has already been said.

I'll second the comment about the pillion falling asleep. My reaction was something to this effect nearly scared the ever-loving snot out of me!

A Comm system has to be the top rated addition that i've done to the bike. They really are quite small and don't interfere with the bike at all. I can remove mine and nobody would know it was ever there.

good luck and be safe!

There are good comments here. As of hand signals. If the passenger needs for me to stop. I have them touch both of my shoulders at the same time. If they need to go left I have them touch my left shoulder. Right then they touch my right shoulder. Take it slower out there when she is riding with you. Do Not go down gravel roads till you feel very comfortable with each other. Also she my be fine with riding with you. But always know matter what Be ready to react. She for instance might get scared if you take a turn faster then normal. She will react different if you do. Be safe have fun.

All the advice given here is priceless!

However i as a young rider would just like to say that i think you as a new rider with a bike of that weight and size 1000cc, i would'nt have some one i love to get on the bike with me. All i suggest is you riding a little more, say just a few more weeks, put on atleast 2500 miles or so and then take short trips with her.

She is only 130lbs, and where as that may not sound alot, but even the slightest of 50lbs has a great affect on the bikes handling, specially while accelerating and even more so while braking. The latter is what you want to watch out for.

However if your confidence level is up, go for it - in the end nobody knows your skills or your bike's skills better then you on the bike.

I did two up riding after putting on 1500 miles on a ninja 250, at the time i was 175lbs and my friend was 105. So not alot of weight but for a ninja 250 that's alot and i only did it to see how the bike would handle and it sure was a very very big difference.

I highly doubt you will feel what i felt on the 250, only coz of your bike's size and type of bike.

But just remember you know best, and make sure she has a good time! And i would highly suggest taking shorter trips initailly!