The Art of Passengering
The Art of Passengering
There's More to being a Passenger than Sitting. Done Right, it's Even Fun.
C.F. Michaels
Ah, touring. After weeks of planning, the moment has arrived. The motorcycle is carefully packed, your man is at the controls and you feel that familiar knot of excitement as you swing your leg over the bike and signal that you're ready to go.
After a couple hundred miles, you begin to feel like part of the baggage; useful when the motorcycle reaches its destination, but totally worthless while on the road.
Yet it need not be this way. As a passenger you may choose to be merely one more piece of essential gear for a tour, but you can also become involved in the ride itself, a practice that not only makes touring more enjoyable, but can be crucial to your driver at times.
After nearly 2000 miles of being a ho-
hum passenger, I learned the importance of paying attention. An unseasonably early storm had dusted the mountains with snow, and about halfway to our destination in Vermont my friend at the controls pulled off the highway to thaw out his hands. Glancing idly at my boots, I noticed that the left one was covered with oil. Because of a leaking gasket, the Triumph had leaked oil not only on my boot, but also on the rear wheel of the bike, creating a potential hazard in cornering.
My friend, being a resourceful type, improvised a sort of diaper for the engine, which would in theory catch the oil, keep the rear wheel oil-free and allow for a zippy run.
I didn’t give the diaper another thought
until I smelled smoke. My first reaction was to look around in the woods for a cabin with a fireplace. Nothing but trees there. Yet I still smelled smoke. I leaned over to the left and looked down at the engine and found the source; we were riding a Triumph with a burning diaper.
Using the prearranged signal, I poked my friend in the ribs. Because he couldn’t see or smell the fire from his position, he assumed that his driving was scaring me and. in utter disgust, ignored the signal. I poked him harder, frantically trying to remember where on the Triumph the gasoline lines were in relation to the flames. When the second signal was ignored I put my helmet as close to his as I could manage and screamed, “PULL OVER! WE’RE IN FLAMES!”
He couldn’t ignore that. The next few cars down the highway were treated to the unlikely spectacle of two people wildly throwing snowballs into the engine of a burning Triumph with a diaper.
Fortunately the bike wasn’t damaged but the incident pointed up to me two important aspects of being a good passenger: be alert to anything unusual, and make sure the driver understands that when you signal, it’s definitely for a reason. Though there’s no signal for your diaper is on fire, there are lots of others. Hand signals are commonly used by riders to talk with other riders and passengers to talk to riders.
When the turn signal is left on, the signal is a hand opening and closing as if the hand were operating the mouth of Kermit the Frog. A point down on the left side says the sidestand is down and a pat on the stomach means it’s time to feed the tape worms. A lot of wiggling, you’re not surprised, means find the next gas station.
Of course, most tours come off without serious incident, and it’s easy to be lulled into thinking that you, as a passenger, are not important on the road when in fact you are. You can be a great help to the driver. There are small ways in which you can make his job easier, safer and a lot more enjoyable for both of you.
Chances are you will be touring with someone you know well: your husband or a good friend. In this case one hopes you have learned to trust his ability with the motorcycle and can relax somewhat. My own first tour was behind a man I did not know all that well, but had ridden with on a few occasions. During the tour I was nervous, so much so that I nearly spoiled the trip for him as well as for myself. I finally reached the conclusion that he wasn’t going to take any chances with his own safety, so I was probably going to survive the trip intact. Eventually I became so relaxed when riding with him that I fell
asleep on the back of his cafe racer on a mountain road (Not a recommended practice, incidentally). A little faith can go a long way in motorcycle touring, but there are concrete things you can practice as well.
All men love mountain roads. Most of the guys with whom I have ridden these roads also liked to ride them at what they called a “sporty pace.” Loosely translated, this means at a speed guaranteed to scare you into fits. After several of these “sporty” runs when I was sure my hair was standing straight up inside my helmet, a friend with a Ducati suggested I make use of an unlikely tool: the gas tank.
By leaning forward slightly, I found I could put one or both hands against the tank without disturbing the guy up front.
While the design of some touring bikes makes this impractical, I found there were several advantages to doing this on mountain roads. You are less likely to lean the wrong way in curves, as by having your hands on the tank you automatically lean with the driver to the angle he chooses. You get more of a feel for what the bike is doing and have a greater sense of balance, which in turn helps the driver. And, you are securely braced against the bike and won’t knock the guy over the bars in the event of a sudden stop, for a deer in the highway or a tourist taking pictures, for example.
I found this practice so effective that even on flat highway I still leave one hand loosely on the tank, especially in heavy traffic where unexpected situations might arise suddenly. Since this is not a common practice, however, I suggest you explain your intentions beforehand since he might otherwise be startled into inattention when he sees you groping with both hands around his lap.
How one holds on is a matter of mutual preference. Any method that allows the passenger to remain steady with the motorcycle will work, and that includes gripping the rider, gripping the bike with the legs or reaching around and holding the gas tank, if the shape of the bike (and rider) allow it.
Staying alert is possibly the single most important aspect of being an effective passenger. This is more easily said than done on long rides, I know, but it can be accomplished.
When you stop for a break, take your helmet and jacket off, and walk around a little bit. It doesn’t take that long to put everything back on, and the fresh air will make a big difference. The walking willtake the kinks out of your knees and back,
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so when you get back on the bike you will feel ready for the next leg of your trip. On a long trip a wiggle keeps the fanny fresh, something we’re not going to discuss in more detail, except that the bar behind the seat is convenient for a passenger to lift herself up on. Normally, any movement by a passenger disturbs the motorcycle and care is called for so as not to disturb the guy in front. Wiggling is okay on the straights, but not in the corners. A big part of touring is seeing new places, and certainly on an open road in new territory I spend a great deal of time watching the scenery. However, when there is traffic, I watch the road. If the need for a sudden stop arises, even at low speeds, you will find that the clanging of helmets, while not harmful, can become irritating. You are on this tour to have fun. right? You don’t necessarily have to train your eyes on the road with the same degree of concentration as the rider does, but general consciousness of the traffic conditions won’t hurt anything and will also keep you prepared for evasive maneuvers. Another trick for staying alert is one that veteran tourers all seem to know but never reveal: singing. Whistling is out. since, like sneezing in your helmet, it tends to have unpleasant effects on your face shield. However, I've found that you can do the entire Top Forty between Los Angeles and San Luis Obispo. If you’re a good singer, you'll be amazed at the resonance and tonal quality created by your helmet; if you can’t carry a tune, who’s going to know the difference? There are times when passenger concentration is hardly called for. During a 600 mile cruise on a straight interstate, passengering can be boring. If the bike is equipped with a fairing, there are lots of activities possible, like reading or even knitting. Yes, it can be done safely on long trips if the wind isn’t too bad. There’s even more entertainment possible if there are two or more bikes with other passengers along. Impromptu acting or charades are easy. The possibilities are limitless. Alertness has its own rewards as well. With all of your senses heightened in the interest of scouting possible hazards, you also become aware of more subtle aspects of touring: the steady, soothing hum of the engine, the changing scents as you pass from meadows into forests, the reflection of the sunrise in your man’s helmet, all things you might miss if you resign yourself to being part of the gear. Besides making your tour safer, alertness will also make the trip a lot more fun for you and your companion. And fun is what touring is all about. 0
