Basic Motorcycle etiquette and standards.

Being new to motorcycles, I've been wondering about a few things. They don't really teach you these things in the safety class....

Also, feel free to contribute with any knowledge you may have.

I have a few questions myself....

1 - Which lane do you ride in? Do you switch? Reasons?

2 - How do position your bike in a stall in a parking lot?

3 - Do you carry your motorcycle helmet (and wear all gear) into stores, restaurants, and shops?

4 - When carrying a passenger, what do they need to do? (lean?, stops? turns? getting on? getting off?)

Any insight would be helpful.....
I feel that I have some idea on what to do, but would like to hear your options.

Thanks,
Joshua

 

1- That's a BIG one. Varies widely depending on traffic and conditions; generally, the left one (or the left track of whatever lane I'm in.) But that's WAY generally.

2- "Backed in" and crosswise in the space (direction depends upon grade angle related to side/center stand deployment.) If you don't "cross off" the space a car will try to squeeze in too. *EXCEPTION* Tim Hortons' in the morning and I gotta pee. Then it's forward in (but still crossed up.)

3- Depends on the neighborhood. If it's an area where you will come back to find nothing but the neatly sliced-off strap hanging from the helmet lock, then I'd carry it. If it's a reasonably secure neighborhood, or a restaurant where I can SEE the bike, I lock the helmet on. I generally leave my jacket on, and put my gloves in a pocket.
*EXCEPTION* Events, like airshows, boat races, etc: Safety in numbers. I park with all the other bikes (90% Harleys but enough Jap HD wannabes) and put the helmets on the ground behind the front wheel and strap the jackets across the seat with a bungee cord. Gloves in my pocket or tucked in my belt, and no worries.

4- Passengers: NOT UNTIL YOU ARE EXPERIENCED ENOUGH to be 110% confident. Passengers need to relax and hold onto YOU, and lean when you do. NO SELF-LEANING. I had an ex-wife that used to "instinctively" try to stand the bike BACK UP in corners. Passengers wait until fully stopped to dismount; I prefer they use my shoulder as their grab rail. Passengers also wait until bike is pulled out of parking spot and running before mounting up. (This is habit due to 35 years of a kick-start British twin.)

Go to this thread and read through it; some very good stuff in there. Especially the posts by Hurst01, our resident MSF guru. http://xjbikes.com/Forums/viewtopic/t=11852.html
I started it because we don't have a "safe riding" forum per se and it's now 12 pages with some really good advice from our long-time riders.

 

With the exception of number 3, all of these questions should have been covered in your MSF safety class, as well as your riders handbook (at least they are in Canada) If they weren't, I'd be asking for a re-fund

But to answer them anyway.

1. Whichever lane you like. General rule of thumb is you ride in the opposite tire track to the lane you're in ie. Right lane/left track or left lane/right track. I never ride in the middle lane if I can help it. Staying to the right or left means you only have to worry about cagers on 1 side at a time.

2. If you stall in a parking lot from a stop, just like in the road, DO NOT MOVE! Try and restart ASAP. Odds are you have already got traffic behind you stopped. If you begin to push your bike, you place yourself into potentially fatal danger. If you still cant get started, push over to the side of the lot when its safe to do so. People will go around you.

3. Helmet/gear is a matter of personal preference. I Usually lock my helmet to my bike and lock my gloves under my seat. If I don't think it'll be safe there, I take it with me.

4. Passengers. I'm going to assume that because you're asking this, you're a novice rider. Don't carry passengers until you are 100% comfortable with yourself alone on the bike. You put the two of you at a serious risk to be very seriously injured. Nothing is the same when carrying a passenger.

Be safe, wear the gear and always remember that cagers are out to kill you (scary but true)

 

jhicks believe it or not, Rider Safety classes are NOT mandatory here in the US of A to get a motorcycle license.

Licensing here is state-by-state and very few of them have any "training" requirements for street motorcycles.

One of the reasons we started the "Be the Bunny" thread was to give advice and information to new riders, a lot of whom have never taken a class.

I'm just glad he asked.

 

Rider safety isn't mandatory here either, its just very highly recommended to the point where we get insurance and time breaks for taking it. Also, very few of our MOT facilities (Canadian DMV) are not equipped to do the full motorcycle test, just the scooter/moped test.

But he did say that these topics weren't covered in his safety class... and everything except for the gear etiquette is fairly basic and should have been covered day one IMHO

 

1 - I have been riding in the left lane....assuming it's the best for visibility. Rear view and drivers side mirror.....and I know better then to ride in the greazy middle.

2 - I was just thinking the other day about a car trying to pull in and not seeing my bike (compact car mall parking syndrome). Do you park more towards the back of the stall crosswise or what?

3 - Helmet lock? I'm obviously a n00b.
(I did find some sort lock on the left side of the bike?)

4 - I agree! My wife wants a ride....but I told her I wouldn't be able to give her a ride until next season or when I feel completely comfortable. Which ever comes first. Risking my own life is one thing, but risking another person's is even more important to me. Gotta be extremely safe.
I mostly wanted tips and norms so I can explain to her what to do in most situations.

Feel free to ad lib and add anything you'd like.

 

Whichever lane gives me the best visibility and makes me most visible. Position in the lane determined by the same rule. I hate riding near the curb - you can't see or be seen by the people sneaking in from that side.

I try to back in so I don't have to back out into the traffic. Exception is if it's uphill into the spot, then it makes more sense to ride straight in. Block the space so no one tries to share it with me. Also park near the entrance to the space so others can see me before turning into the space.

I put the helmet and gloves in the trunk and the chaps and jacket in a side bag. It is nice to have luggage!

You get on the bike first. Side stand up, hands on bars both feet firmly on the ground and spread apart to give solid stance. Right hand holding brake. When you tell the passenger to get on the passenger sits straight behind you, does not EVER lean, feet never leave the pegs until you assume the stance mentioned above and tell the passenger to dismount. I prefer my passenger hold the grab rails if she wants to hold on at all.

(Your question about leaning concerns me. You should not be leaning either. While you can get away with it to steer small bike it doesn't do much on a larger machine or with a passenger. Also, when you need a quick move leaning is too slow. Leave the passenger off until you master counter steering.)

The passenger should not under any circumstances touch your hands arms or shoulders.

A good passenger will not adjust the radio or CB channel without advance permission.

 

Thanks for the info!

- I don't have luggage or saddle bags?

- I was asking the question for my wife in her terms. She thought she had to lean. (I obviously don't know either.) My impression is that she just needs to look over my shoulder in the direction of the turn?

 

I too made that mistake when I was a passenger, before I got my own bike. When I did start riding, and carried passengers myself, I found out why. It helps if the passenger has a backrest to lean against so they're not tempted to lean into the turn. Now, as for your questions...

1) I do most of my riding on four-lane interstates, so either one of the two right lanes. Usually which lane is used depends on traffic flow.

2) One side or the other of the space. This leaves room for another rider to share. I leave the back of the bike towards the rear edge of the space to hopefully make it more visible.

3) Yes. Earlier this year, in fact, I went through the USS Midway Museum. As I was leaving the ship, still wearing my heavy jacket with my helmet slung over my arm, a little boy asked his mother if I was a pilot...

4) See above, although I haven't carried a passenger in years.

 

Joshua,

Good questions, and can't really add much to what others have said other than to offer a few of my own observations.

Road conditions determine my lane just as often as traffic does. Some parts of the road tend to have more craters/tar snakes/oily spots than others.

I almost always carry my helmet with me, the helmet lock on my bike seems to position the helmet too close to the pipes. I did recently buy a tail bag that my helmet will fit into, but I don't mount it often (bought it day/over-night trips).

My wife sometimes rides with me and the one thing I have noticed is that if she shifts around on the pillion while we're moving it's not that big a deal, but if she does while we're stopped...well, it can tip the balance. Best advice: no moving while stopped. Having a passenger will make you a better pilot. If your take offs and shifting aren't smooth, you may feel it on the back of your head.

 

One thing that was not cleary stated in this thread on riding passengers. I have found that when I ride a passenger they should keep their body strait at all times. If I lean they should stay strait up, so if I am leaning right they should not lean right with me but instead actually lean just a little to the left enough to keep their body strait up as if I am not leaning at all. I always tell my passengers this. If it is done correctly it is like you are not riding a passenger at all. It is much more comfortable and alot less strain on the driver. Also I think it is a pain in the a55 to have to carry your helmet wherever you go. I lock my helmet on my helmet lock. If someone has the balls to steal my helmet off the lock then they can go right ahead, but if I catch someone trying to steal it, they are going to carry an a55 wooping. I like to ride in the right lane unless I know i am going to be driving wide open, so people wont have to continuously pass me, I feel it is safer to try to ride in the slow lane as much as possible.

 

I am the same about lanes.... slow lane, right hand side. if I have to pass, I look twice, signal, look again. I can't count how many times a cage crept up and didnt see my signal. I guess we have one advantage in that situation: lots of throttle to accelerate with. It has saved me from getting clipped a couple times on my way home.

the only rider I ever have is my sis-in-law. I pick her up on thursdays for pool league, and I tell her every wed. night to pack light. just hold on tight to my waist and I will do all the work. she is all of 120lbs, and I am 230 so I have more than enough weight to do the work. she even has this big yellow bag that she normally carries, but I wont let her have it on the bike in case it shifts in a turn. I am afraid if I am leaning too much it might send us over.
honestly, learn the in and outs of the bike and how it behaves with you on it before throwing someone else into the fire. also, when you do put her on, take her for a short cruise in the neighborhood. slow cornering and stop/starts will help a lot in the beginning. just tell her to hold on and dont move. once you adjust to her weight being there, it will be much easier.

 

I've been riding around a bit with my brother and I was wondering about the proper group riding etiquette.

Also what about the etiquette when you end up riding behind or in front of another random biker on the road? Basically do you move into the position where you'd normally ride if in a group or do you just treat the biker exactly as you'd treat a cager?

 

If you come across another bike in the same lane, make sure you're in the opposite tire track to them so you can be seen in their mirror. Maintain usual following distance. If you have to pass, switch lanes. If at a stop light and you want to have a conversation, I find most guys dont mind, some get pissed though.

 

Everyone is saying to not have your passenger lean with you. I dont know about street bikes but on all of the sport bikes i've ever owned my passengers have always leaned with me. If they fail to lean it makes it harder for me to take a corner. Is there that much of a difference in street and sport bike riding with passengers? The only street biked i've ever owned was a 82 cb650 that was made into a monster one seater so I never had a passenger

 

I ALWAYS have my passenger lean with me. But I also make them hold closely to me when we go into a turn so that we actually move as one person. That is my preference. I like the way the bike handles and I love when my wife holds closely to me around the turns.

 

I've always told the passenger to match me. As if we were one body. They don't have to "lean" to do it, as turning is accomplished by counter steer and what most people call "lean" is just sitting perpendicular to the seat and the bike leaning. If you are getting off the side of the bike and dragging a knee, you shouldn't have a passenger on at that time...

 

I find that half the time when I’m listening to friends explaining to the passenger what they should do there is usually some confusion about what is meant by lean or not lean. It seems that half the people think that to lean means to lean deeper into the turn then the bike and the other half assumes that it means to simply lean with the bike. It is something that you probably want to keep in mind when your explaining things to a passenger as the misunderstanding could be a problem.

I personally just tell them to keep their back inline with the bike just as I will be and then I just counter steer to turn the bike (that and make sure that they know not to put their feet down at red lights).

 

I ride in the middle of the appropriate lane, as if I were a truck or a car.

This way other road users treat you as such. If you ride in the gutter - like you've just got your 1st 50cc, then cars and trucks will try to squeeze past you.

On the gear subject, I carry my stuff with me - after all it's expensive! But as someone who has returned to biking I still remember being asked to take my leather jacket off in the pub as a young man - perhaps it frightened the other customers??!!

I remove my helmet when paying for petrol (Gas) so I don't look like a thief and it's good manners too.

One of my work friends took me to pick up my current bike and I hadn't ridden for 20 years - he was joking saying he had taken an attractive girl out and said it was "Like wearing a backpack, she held on so tight"!

The guys etiquette, of course, is you mustn't touch the rider, even accidentally!!!!!

 

Excellent question. A number of us commented on lean without describing it.

In my case I mean lean relative to the plane of the motorcycle. If the motorcycle is leaning the body should go with it. Any other position tends to change the path of the motorcycle.

Someone who tries to remain straight in a curve is a "climber" and will tend to make the motorcycle under steer. Leaning into a curve makes the turn tighter, over steer.

Other than certain low speed maneuvers steering control should be via rider input to the handle bars. In no case should the passenger do the steering.

 

When I took my rider safety course we were told to tell the passenger to look over your shoulder in the direction of the turn and that was all that was needed and not to lean at if any. I am assuming that when the passenger does this is will automatically put them in the correct position when going into a turn.

 

A lot of guys say that experience is the best teacher. I agree 100%. But close calls are precisely that, and you don't want to have to ALMOST die to know what to expect and watch for.

When I started, I had a buddy with a 125cc motocross that he used to practice airiels and such. So it was a junker. Donned the full safety set up, and went out in the pasture and laid it down half a dozen times or so... then he suited up, and pretended to be a poor passenger. Once you feel what the bike feels like when you are losing it, or it is about to lose you, you NEVER forget it. (Granted, you probably don't want to try this w/ your 500+lb XJ)

While I got a lot out of the safety course, experience is the best teacher. So I guess the point is... RIDE... RIDE... RIDE... you never get to let your guard down, but you start to see things long before they have a chance to even start to happen...

 

I always ride in which ever lane someone is not tailing me. I try to keep my distance from other cars cause they like to gawk at my bike and have a tendency to drift into my lane. I usually travel one lane roads anyway. I'm more comfortable on them
I always park my bike in a spot nose first, in the very center. One, so no one squeezes in, and two, the best view of my bike is from the back You can see my tank and my sissybar bag with all its rasta stripes and my Pungo Board House and WRV stickers on my 50 cal saddlebag.
If I'm going into a resturant I bring my helmet with me. Its a status thing in VA beach. Bars, stores, and such I lock it to my 50 cal box on its top handle.
Passengers.... Well.. Each is different. I've had numerous passengers and each has a different way of riding with you.
I always tell each girl that rides with me a few basic rules:
Most important #1: RELAX! Steering is much easier if you relax and trust the driver. We're driving this bike for a reason and if you're comfortable enough to have a passenger on the back you know what you're doing and you know your bike well.
#2 No SUDDEN moves please. If you got an itch, gently shift your weight to get it. Sudden moves puts the rear tire in odd postions and could cause an unexpected lane change.
#3 My father told me this one and it seems logical, but I've never been a passenger and cant tell if its worth anything or not, but my father is a smart man so i tell them this. While turning, dont clench super tight with your knees, relax and keep your body level with the ground. If I'm leaning hard to the left your head and torso is still like you're standing upright.
Anyone wanna concur or critizise?
-SLKid

 

passengers are dangerous, don't want them don't even have passenger pegs
something might happen that i would instinctively do something that would throw a passenger off
how fast can you stop with someone pushing you up the tank ? if they hold you what stops them from going forward ? no thanks, they walk
you guys that leave your helmets with the bike, please thoroughly check the inside before you put it on your head

 

Lol, care to elaborate Polock?? Sounds like you've had an experience

 

lets just say 12 oz of beer can hide in a helmet without any problem

 

Passengers should stay inline with you. Your two spines should be pointed in the same direction and that should usually be perpendicular to the motorcycle seat.

 

So this is where i get to prove my dad wrong. Gotcha! It makes a lot of sense now MiCarl!
If the passenger leans Too hard, way harder than the bike is leaning during a curve, that sounds like disaster. I think thats what my dad was getting at. Lean with, but not too much. I'll be sure to revise my Lasy Rider speech
-Golds

 

On a group ride once I was I was in the curb side of the lane. We were approaching a tight curve to the right and there were trees so I couldn't see around it at all. I decided to go a bit wide of my normal track so I could see around a bit. My wife went ahead and leaned us into my usual track - so I went around the curve blind. She won't do that any more.

 

First time I rode on the back of my dad's bike he told me to not try to lean in any direction and let the bike lean you. Now that I have passengers on my own bike I tell them the same thing and it works out well. Even when the passenger weighs more then me (which is most of the time since I tip the scale at 130).

Proficient Motorcycling by David Hough is a great book that answers a lot of those questions. My Dad gave all his kids copies when they got their motorcycle licenses. Its an easy read and teaches everything from lane positioning to how to deal with deer and dogs.
http://www.amazon.com/Proficient-Motorc ... 152&sr=8-1

As far as the gear goes I usually leave it on. Out here in Kansas I usually take my helmet with me if I have a good place to put it at my destination. If not I usually leave it on my mirrors. In larger cities I will lock it up.

I usually leave me gear on over lunch just because it is easier. One day while I was eating at home some Mormon Elders came evangelizing to my. Note that Mormon Elders are general men in their early 20's maybe younger that go door to door evangelizing in a suit and tie even when it is 98 degrees out (I'm sure they have other responsibilities as well but I'm not Mormon so I don't know.) I answered the door in my armored pants and armored jacket. They both looked a little scared and it took them about a minute or two to get their little spiel going. I was very amused.

 

In this weeks MCN, I read that you can buy a "Batman" suit. It's biker gear with the armouring on the outside.
It reall does make you look like Batman - I wonder what they would have made of that?

 

When I took the safety course in 1993, this is EXACTLY what I was taught as well. Turning left - look over my left shoulder. It works.

Like others in this posting have said, I waited months, put many miles on the bike, and mastered counter steering, before I even though of passengers.