Hi everyone I thought I'd ramble on about my experience of carrying a pillion. I hope it doesn't bore the socks off you all. I have ridden bikes for 40 years....too many to list...some big and some small. I started to carry a pillion on a regular basis only about 5 years ago, my ex g/f. My wife hated bikes...so she got nowhere near. My ex however loved them and I had no problem with her as pillion except for one small problem which occured during our initial courtship and subsequent getting to know each other. I had a moto guzzi sport 1100 at the time(see photo on profile)and she wanted me to take her for a ride around Ladybower in Derbys. Of course I agreed. She attempted to mount the bike, using the stand on peg and swing other leg over technique. Well my Guzzi was not a lightweight and I only have littlish legs...she caught me off balance and we both nearly ended up in a ditch lol...not funny at time. She wasn't impressed. After that episode she agreed it would be safer for us and the bike if she threw her other leg over whilst keeping one foot on the ground. We continued adopting this technique for mounting purposes during our relationship. However her only grouse at this...was the fact that it wasn't ladylike to be seen getting her legover in public and she felt a bit self conscious which is very understandable. Even more hilarious when I bought a bike with panniers and topbox ie my BMW(see photo). I would like to hear from any fellow biker with a big heavy bike...not these dinky sports bikes....how they manage to get a pillion on the bike safely. In all other respects I consider myself to be a fine rider with or without pillion.....its just the getting ones leg over part that seems difficult. Ive tried counteracting the dynamic force of a pillion weight by leaning the other way but this merely exerts more pressure on a already heavy bike....does on sit on the saddle and hope ones feet reach the ground without having to be on tiptoes or does one stand straddling the seat holding the h/bars whilst the pillion mounts you. Any suggestion gratefully received.

Let the pillion get on first. Works for us when we have the throwovers on.                                                                                                                                                                              

Roachy

Hi....hows that work then?.....if you mean put the bike on its sidestand, thats a bit dodgy.....or if you mean centrestand.....i'd never get the bugger off with a pillion on lol                                                                                                                                                                             

I have seen people get on first with bigger bikes as Roachy says they leave it on the centre stand i think wouldnt trust side stands to hold still mind, and my old sazook was a bitch to get off the centre stand too  . surley if you are ready for the pilly to get on then standing on foot pegs shouldnt be a problem ??                                                                                                                                                                             

Well I must admit I'm not a big bloke in stature but consider myself to be fairly strong in the upper body...but I've always found it a problem to hold the bike up with pillion applying pressure to the pegs.

I suppose it depends on the weight of the pillion and bike weight combined.......my bike is 285kg and pillion about 65kg.                                                                                                                                                                             

B32 - we simply put the bike on the sidestand.  Roachy gets on as if she was the rider and then shuffles back.  I then throw my leg over, climb on and pick the bike up.

Never been a problem, done it loads of time and I think if the sidestand was going to give way, then after 60-odd thousand miles, I think it would have done so by now.

(Saying that, I haven't gone out to it today, so we'll see whether it's still standing when I go home lol!)

Not sure I'd want to try it with a lighter bike as it would tend to have a thinner stand, but big bikes tend to have stands nowadays that are very strong, far stronger than they need to be to allow a good margin of safety.  Indeed, sometimes on a long journey, if I need to stop for fuel and Roachy is on the back of mine rather than riding her own, I'll often get off and leave her sat there lol!                                                                                                                                                                              

Get Kage 237 and loononabike to ambush your pillion from behind and hoist on to pillion seat...a tad shocking for the pillion but very effective lol   I've got very short legs and really struggled getting on a R1100s, what with frame for panniers etc...just errr, not 'me' shaped. Having got me up there I quite happily stayed perched up there on my own at petrol stops.... Of course the rider then has to be able to get on without kicking the pillion in the guts lol                                                                                                                                                                             

rider first for me....just in case                                                                                                                                                                               

I think your pillion is being a bit cack footed in getting on, if she does in a flowing manner she will hardly put any weight on it.
Oh and at my age it does me no good to read all the bits about getting your leg over:-)                                                                                                                                                                             

As Geoff has explained, yep using the side stand. He always leaves the bike rolled onto 1st gear so the bike isn't going to go anywhere and he's pretty confident in the stands strength. Has to be considering that usually touches down just before or at the same time his left foot does!     Sumodwarf dismounts in a similar (but more so) fashion...don't know if he takes pillions but would be interesting to hear how he deals with it if he does.