Advice for a new passenger

[vicco27]

Mrs. Vicco here. Saturday we went for our first ride together. To put it mildly, it didn't go well. No, we didn't go down or anything like that. The problem was, I was a nervous wreck. To begin, I'm claustrophobic so putting on the helmet started a panic attack. I couldn't see, hear, or breathe. Opening the visor helped on the breathing, but the reduced vision stayed a problem. Vic said he thought we worked very well together when it came to stopping, cornering, etc., but I was in a state of terror almost the whole time we were out. So...any advice out there to help a newbie relax? And don't say, "Just relax," that doesn't help. I know I'm supposed to relax. What I'm looking for is advice and explanations that will help me relax. Cornering/leaning was especially frightening. Right hand turns were worse than left for some reason. The odd thing is, we rode together many years ago and we went through corners, leaned, stopped, all that. But I don't remember any of it. BTW, we're going shopping for a different helmet before we go out again.

[Iowawegian]

Don't know what the rest of the passengers and or drivers, here will say....but here's my 2 cents for what it's worth.

As far as the helmet.....I feel the same way as you with a full face. I've changed to a half helmet and that made a world of difference. I don't know enough about helmets to know if a full is a lot safer than a half...but someone else can speak on that.

As far as leaning....we used to ride a V Star where I helped "lean". We purchased our Venture this spring and I learned really quick, that the best way to ride behind the driver is to stay put. Don't lean at all. Let the driver do the driving and just stay in an upright seated position. Your upper torso should mimic his and he won't do much leaning with the Venture. Even going around curves he wants me to stay upright. The bike is top heavy and leaning could throw his driving off.

You have to be able to trust his driving in order to not panic. I ride my own my bike on short trips, so it's an adjustment for me to ride behind him on long trips, because I don't feel like I have the amount of control as when I drive. It will take a little getting use to riding it, but keep at it and in no time you will feel a lot more comfortable!

[Jethroish]

Full face helmet will reduce your peripherial vision. I can see how it would make you claustrophobic. Half or 3/4 helmet might be best for you.

As for leaning, when I rode years ago with my dad, and my wife does the same now, just sit comfortably and "relax."

 

Unless the bike is leaning too much, you, driver and bike will all move as one.

Just takes a little getting used to.

[tooldood]

I always tell my passengers "If you get scared, do what I do... close your eyes!"

[Venturous Randy]

I think what Iowa was saying as to stay in the same line as the bike. When you are sitting straight up and down with the bike either stopped or going in a straight line, you will keep this same relationship with the bike when you go into a corner. If the passenger tries to stay straight up and down with the road when the driver is leaning with the bike, the driver will have to lean the bike even more to compensate for the passenger not leaning and this is NOT and good thing. Just pretend you are a mounted stuffed animal and just lean as the bike leans. Got it?

On the helmet, I also can not stand a full face helmet, but some people swear by them. I use what is called a 3/4 helmet as it covers the ears, but the chin is not covered.

I hope this works out for you and your husband as it will definately enhance his riding experience to be able to share it with you.

RandyA

[halfwitt]

Fear not! You are not alone. My wife is very claustrophobic and cannot/will not wear a full face helmet. She wears a 3/4 with a shield and has not had any issues since. You might even go 3/4 with a visor and have nothing at all in front of your face.

 

As for leaning - DON'T! Stay where you are and enjoy the sights. If you do anything at all, just look over the drivers inside shoulder. But don't lean or otherwise be shifting your weight. If you stay relatively still in corners, Vic will quickly learn to adapt to the extra load on the bike.

 

Get a communication system. You can talk and point out the sights along the way. Don't talk too much though - Vic needs to focus.

 

Put on your favorite radio station and sing along. If you're a bad singer, don't sing too loud. Vic won't like that. Or, better yet - get XM/Sirius or MP3 music.

 

Don't look down. The road zooming by at even 40 MPH can be intimidating.

 

Enjoy! My wife and I love our riding time together.

 

I hope things improve for you.

[Bill in NJ]

When my kids started to ride with me I told them to act like it was a comfy chair in the livingroom. just sit back and enjoy the ride. I also had them look over/around my shoulder and not have them right behind me so they could see. That way they could see things coming such as an upcoming corner, a stop or trouble. It also helped with any incidental helmet to helmet contact if I had to slow down. Besides if you had no trouble before when you used to ride it might just take a few rides to get "back in the saddle again"

 

[dr_bar]

For the helmet... The number one impact zone on a full faced helmet is the jaw area... use your own judgement when picking out a new one...

 

As to riding pillion, The best way to deal with cornering is to look over your riders left shoulder in a left turn, and over his right in a right turn. Your body will follow the angle of the bike that way. No, you don't need to lean your body, the bike will do that for you.

 

Don't move around on the bike without letting your rider know, and that includes at stops. A sudden movement could really throw a kink into starting off from a corner.

 

As to telling you to relax, I would suggest that you take a few deep breaths just before mounting up. Maybe going over the planned route before leaving might help as well. Try starting out on some easy routes, then moving up to the more challenging routes as your confidence improves.

[Iowawegian]

"Just pretend you are a mounted stuffed animal and just lean as the bike leans. Got it?"

Thanks Randya...I didn't quite know how to explain it and that's as easy as it gets.

[RoadKill]

Mrs. Vicco here. Saturday we went for our first ride together. To put it mildly, it didn't go well. No, we didn't go down or anything like that. The problem was, I was a nervous wreck. To begin, I'm claustrophobic so putting on the helmet started a panic attack. I couldn't see, hear, or breathe. Opening the visor helped on the breathing, but the reduced vision stayed a problem. Vic said he thought we worked very well together when it came to stopping, cornering, etc., but I was in a state of terror almost the whole time we were out. So...any advice out there to help a newbie relax? And don't say, "Just relax," that doesn't help. I know I'm supposed to relax. What I'm looking for is advice and explanations that will help me relax. Cornering/leaning was especially frightening. Right hand turns were worse than left for some reason. The odd thing is, we rode together many years ago and we went through corners, leaned, stopped, all that. But I don't remember any of it. BTW, we're going shopping for a different helmet before we go out again.

 

My wife has never been nervous, but she does do something that might help you. She takes pictures on our rides. She will pic a topic before we start...Barns, churches, horses and then try to take pictures of as many as she can. Really makes the time pass and then we go through them togehter on the PC later. This might help you concentrate LESS on the ride which will let you enjoy it more.

[CdnDave77]

It may sound silly, but what you need to do is practice. With the helmet and sitting on the bike.

 

Try wearing the helmet indoors, just watching TV (sounds silly, but it will work). Get used to it being on your head. There's no need to panic in front of your TV, right ? Once you are more accustomed to the helmet, you'll be much more relaxed on the machine.

 

Which brings me to part two :What I did with my younger ones before we went for the first ride was to sit on the bike with it stationary. Not moving. Not even running. Just to get the feeling. The progress to it running, and the occasional engine rev so you get used to the noise.

 

Having the passenger look over the inside driver's shoulder on the corner is a great idea. It certainly keeps them from leaning the wrong way or remaining upright. These bikes are top heavy, but still incredibly stable. Relax, enjoy the air, trust your pilot and everyone will be just fine.

[mini-muffin]

I wear a 3/4 helmet. As for the nervousness on the back, might want to just take some short trips for a while to get use to it. The more time on the bike you should start to relax. The full face helmet might have just set you off in a panic from the get go and then you couldn't relax. I'd say if your that uncomfortable with the helmet you have get a new one before you get back on the bike.

Hope you can relax and enjoy the fun. See you in chat whenever you get to come back.

 

Margaret

[BOO]

I really don't have much to add to what has already been said. I'm sure the 3/4 or 1/2 helmets will make you feel a little better with the enclosed thing.

The thing I want to do is relate what my wife did. I have been riding most of my adult life but my wife always refused to ride as she was scared of the bike. Mostly she didn't like the leaning part, as long as we could have rode a straight like she could tolerated that. After being married for 38 years she announced she wanted to try and ride with me. The first summer was a little shaky but she hung in there and after getting confidence riding behind me she not is pretty comfortable behind me. She actually falls asleep from time to time and she really likes to ride. BUT she sure missed a lot of good riding through the years.

Hang in there and ride every chance you get, it will get easier and soon your fear will just be a thing of the past.

Jerry

[Marcarl]

My wife started riding with me in 2005, I rode my first scoot in 2004 and needless to say she was a little apprehensive. There was some lean when she got on, opposing lean when taking a corner, movement when we were stopped,,,,,,,,,,,,,all the good stuff. This year we rode Northern Ontario, hard packed roads, wash outs, sinking sand, and you name it, and every time she said,, wow, that was different,,,,,,not that she was looking forward to any of this,,,but as it happened she took it in stride, rode it out and enjoyed.

I attribute this to the fact that I gave her time to catch up to me, we have an intercom so I can tell her what I'm about to do if it's out of the ordinary,, she has experienced things that were not within our control and came out smiling (called experience), she loves riding, and she sits like a bag of wheat in the back.

Keep riding, get a new helmet, look over the proper shoulder, enjoy the scenery, and trust your rider.

Oh by the way,,,,,,,the only time the bike will fall over is when it is stopped or almost stopped,,,,,,,not saying it can't fall down when pushed or shoved, but to fall over when your are moving is not about to happen,

Tell Vic to slow down for the corners and then to throttle up on the way through, sure makes this leaning thing feel a lot different.

[Yama Mama]

Marilla, I think the helmet was the big part of your problem. I am claustrophobic too, so I really do understand. I will not even try one of those on, so you did better than me.

I would try again, ride with the bike. Do not be constantly aware of turns and bends, just ride with the bike.

Oh and breathing in and out is good too. Remember it is supposed to be an enjoyable experience. Look to the sides, look at the scenery, listen to your favorite music. Try all of the above.

You will be fine I know.

Mama:thumbsup2:

[tmodel]

There is lots of good info here. I agree about the helmet might be a big part of the problem. The driver and the bike will take care of the leaning through curves and turns. You sit back and enjoy the smells, scenery and the rumble. Trust your driver. Let him know if you need to "shift" positions on the seat while going down the road.

 

Once my wife learned to not move around when coming to a stop or driving very slowly, stopping became easy. Pull up... stop and I put one foot down most times. She does not move her head or shoulders while stopping. That makes it easier for me to control my 800 pound Yamahorse.

 

Hang in there. You will be fine!

[BEER30]

As far as the helmet , try the Scorpion EXO-100 . It's a shorty and has a built in 1/2 visor that flips up into the helmet , great padding and it usually wider than other helmets to absorb any impact if it should occur . It has great visibility to not cause you much claustrophobia in my opinion .

As many has mention , watch your posture . My wife felt much better after I put armrest on the scoot . Gave her a little bit more sense of security ! She made the comment it made her feel more lazy sitting up there on the throne . Hey , if it gets her on the back of the scoot more , It was worth the money getting them . The armrest also gave her something to balance her more upright , not leaning as we made our turns .

In time , you will get right back into it . Just take it slow and easy . Enjoy the ride !

 

BEER30

[eazyduzzit]

I just started riding again after taking a 25 year hiatus. When I got on the road the first few times, I was a nervous wreck. I thought every car I met was going to swerve into my lane, and every car pulling out of a side road was going to pull right out in front of me.

 

I think you will relax after you've got some more miles under your belt. My wife and I just got back from our first over night trip and we both had fun. She had never ridden a motorcycle ever!

 

We did take a rider safety course together which I recommend to anybody. She said that it helped her feel more confident in my ability as the rider. I'm sure that if you 2 rode together before that you will be able to do it again.

 

My wife and I like to take long slow scenic rides together, out in the country. I find it relaxing. Good luck!!

[Gray Ghost]

A lot of good suggestions here. I would especially recommend taking the safety course. If you go through that, learning how to handle a bike yourself, it will give you more confidence with how your husband is handling the bike.

[GigaWhiskey]

Interesting concept on using a helmet other than a full face and I can see how it may effect someone. Personally for me, it is a full face helmet or my chrome dome (no helmet). To me, if it is not full face, you ain't wearing a helmet but that is my own personal opinion.

 

Try giving yourself some thing to do as mentioned in one of the previous posts - have camera, take pictures. Intercom system is kewl also. You get to listen to the radio, talk to each other and chat with other riders.

 

Here is a suggestion that I have not seen mentioned yet. Go get your motorcycle license. There are classes that will provide a bike and usually only costs about $180. No, I am not crazy. Mrs. GigaWhiskey was weary with riding on the back and had a few issues. It got better after a few short 1 hour rides to dinner and then improved. Here is the kicker, she got her motorcycle license for my birthday as a surprise (it was between 20 to 30 degrees). She totally enjoyed the course and riding the bike. She is now far more comfortable on the bike with me, enjoys it much more, understands what I do when and where and she has become a far better passenger for me to control in addition to the bike. We are still looking to purchase a bike for her. Btw, she will schedule rides too.

[BEER30]

XANAX !

 

 

BEER30

[TEW47]

As for riding without a full face or flipup helmet, I would not ride a bike with anything but a full face helmet!!! I have seen the results of wearing a half helmet so I'm wearing a flipup helmet. My side ato side vision is just as good as someone not wearing a helmet. Just lean back on the backrest and look over the driver shoulder in the direction of the turn,relax and enjoy the ride.

 

tew47

[juggler]

I and my wife swear by full face helmets. Your chin is one of the most common places that hits the ground IF you ever go down. I know that does not help your fears, but realizing that crashing can happen and preparing for it with the proper equipment is the smart thing to do. My wife was also afraid of wearing as full face helmet. She still can't even put some of them on her head. She did find that she can wear a flip face helmet. We have the HJC Symax helmets. They are full face helmets but the front flips up (chin bar and all). This allows my wife to put the helmet on with out panicking and then close the face when she is ready. Other brands allow the filp face to fold all the way over the back so it can be worn as a 3/4 helmet if desired.

 

I really believe in the full face helmets and I will never use anything else.

 

As for the rest of the passenger experience, once you get over the helmet fears your ride will improve with practice. Then you will enjoy the ride.

 

"Cornering/leaning was especially frightening. Right hand turns were worse than left for some reason."

 

If your left handed this makes sense. People seem to naturally lean better on corners the same as their primary hand.

 

 

Cheers and safe riding,

 

[Squidley]

Here's the most important thing to me that I believe will help you....have total trust in your driver. If you are nervous about the drivers abilities it will compound your fears. I wear a half helmet as does my wife, after wearing full faces all my life. I'm not into how supposedly a full face will save you, but by hearing more and having no periferal vision impared can make it more enjoyable.

It will take time and effort to overcome it, but the rewards are huge when the Zen moment hits you

[timgray]

I gave my wife a very good tip that solved all the issues she had riding.

 

I told her she needs to look over my shoulder on the side we are turning.

 

If I turn left she needs to look over my left shoulder, turn right look over right shoulder.

 

works great and I have no problems as it forces her to stay mostly with what the bike and I are doing.