Riding Double?

Adjuster · 07-11-2015, 04:42 PM

How do you safely learn to ride with a passenger? My scooter is rated for two people. On the very few occasions, like twice now around the block. When I have a passenger I just feel very wobbly, unsure of myself and generally unsafe. I live in an area very close to the beach and we also have a huge Brazilian population. I see people, especially Brazilian girls riding around double heading to the beach like its no big deal at all. I know the Brazilians basically are born on a scooter. My Brazilian next door neighbor says they don't even have bicycles in Brazil, the go straight to the scooters. So if these girls can ride double whipping themselves around corners and doing u turns in the middle of the road etc etc why do I feel so uncomfortable? Is it just a practice, practice, practice thing? And if so how do I practice without killing my passenger let alone myself? Maybe I need to ask one of the hot Brazilian chicks for some lessons!!!

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MICRider · 07-11-2015, 07:54 PM

Yup, it actually is a just a practice thing

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The other thing is to get your passenger to stay seated straight behind you, it's hard to turn and stuff when your passenger is moving around, or worse yet leaning in the wrong direction! Once you both get more comfortable, the passenger can lean a little with you to assist in the turns. Another thing is that if I have to do any parking lot maneuvers like backing out of a stall or something, I get my passenger to wait until I'm done before they jump on.

All of this is with regular street bikes, but I'm guessing scooters would be about the same. Maybe even better due to their lower center of gravity and step through design? Still a bike I'd like to get someday, only two types of bikes I've never ridden are scooters and sportbikes. I'd love to try a scooter, pretty sure I'd kill myself on a sportbike though so I'll stay away from them!

Weldangrind · 07-12-2015, 12:44 PM

Scooters really tend to place the weight over the rear wheel, unloading the front wheel a bit. As Stew says, it takes practice. Brazilian girls might make excellent tutors.

MICRider · 07-12-2015, 03:42 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Weldangrind

Scooters really tend to place the weight over the rear wheel, unloading the front wheel a bit. As Stew says, it takes practice. Brazilian girls might make excellent tutors.

+1 on the female Brazilian tutors! Could use some brushing up on skills myself

07-11-2015, 04:42 PM	#1
Adjuster Join Date: Dec 2014 Location: Deerfield Beach FL Posts: 1,410	Riding Double? How do you safely learn to ride with a passenger? My scooter is rated for two people. On the very few occasions, like twice now around the block. When I have a passenger I just feel very wobbly, unsure of myself and generally unsafe. I live in an area very close to the beach and we also have a huge Brazilian population. I see people, especially Brazilian girls riding around double heading to the beach like its no big deal at all. I know the Brazilians basically are born on a scooter. My Brazilian next door neighbor says they don't even have bicycles in Brazil, the go straight to the scooters. So if these girls can ride double whipping themselves around corners and doing u turns in the middle of the road etc etc why do I feel so uncomfortable? Is it just a practice, practice, practice thing? And if so how do I practice without killing my passenger let alone myself? Maybe I need to ask one of the hot Brazilian chicks for some lessons!!! /
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07-12-2015, 12:44 PM	#3
Weldangrind Join Date: Mar 2009 Location: Sardis, BC, Canada Posts: 25,977	Scooters really tend to place the weight over the rear wheel, unloading the front wheel a bit. As Stew says, it takes practice. Brazilian girls might make excellent tutors. __________________ Weldangrind "I figure I'm well-prepared for coping with a bike that comes from the factory with unresolved issues and that rewards the self-reliant owner." - Buccaneer
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07-11-2015, 07:54 PM	#2
MICRider Join Date: Oct 2009 Location: Alberta, Canada Posts: 3,274	Yup, it actually is a just a practice thing . The other thing is to get your passenger to stay seated straight behind you, it's hard to turn and stuff when your passenger is moving around, or worse yet leaning in the wrong direction! Once you both get more comfortable, the passenger can lean a little with you to assist in the turns. Another thing is that if I have to do any parking lot maneuvers like backing out of a stall or something, I get my passenger to wait until I'm done before they jump on. All of this is with regular street bikes, but I'm guessing scooters would be about the same. Maybe even better due to their lower center of gravity and step through design? Still a bike I'd like to get someday, only two types of bikes I've never ridden are scooters and sportbikes. I'd love to try a scooter, pretty sure I'd kill myself on a sportbike though so I'll stay away from them!
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