Pillion / Seating Arrangement

[adamv]

Hi,

I took my wife out for her first ride the other day on my 2009 VFR. It went pretty good for a first time, but she had a bit of a problem with the seat.

When I ride, I ride roughly half way between the tank and the seat 'lip'. This leaves a gap both for my family jewls as well as between my butt and the rising lip.

My wife wanted me to move my but back further as she found she was slipping forward off her seat and half way down the lip which was uncomfortable, however for me - putting my butt back that far feels like I'm arching my back over and not doing my lower vertebrae any favors.

I was just wondering if we're doing something wrong. Should I be sitting back, or is my wife too far forward. Is there some laterral thinking required (ie, would moving footpegs do anything), etc?

Just wondering where most riders ride with their butts on the seat, and how it affects pillion passengers?

Thanks

[Duc2V4]

To be honest even though the VFR has a passenger seat, it really isn't that comfortable for passengers, even wives who are petite! I have a Sargent seat which has more of defined rider/passenger seating arrangement but is still not comfy enough for the wife and she has the same problem of sliding forward too. If you plan on doing more trips with the wife look into a custom seat by a local upholsterer, you'll be able to get a more defined, comfortable, and better shaped seat for your wife and yourself too for that matter. I thought it was mostly a lack of cushioning that bothered the wife, so I bought an Airhawk seat cushion but ultimately it was the sliding forward that really was more of a nuisance for her. I'll be looking at getting a custom seat made for us, as I want the wife to do more traveling with me but she won't go if she's not comfortable.

I'm sure others will chime in soon but if it was my wife typing this, should would recommend the same thing...a better shaped cushier seat.

Cheers!

EDIT: I should have also mentioned that I have a GIVI top case with a back rest pad on it and that helped tremendously as she can push herself against the back rest and not have to worry about sliding off the back!

[Guest Recalcitrance]

VFR isn't good for passengers. Get a back rest for the wife so she doesn't need to prop herself up against you. Should be a lot better.

[RoystonRocket2]

Custom seat is the answer, you shouldn't compromise your own comfort, the rider's comfort and fatigue levels are the most important thing. I ride a lot with my wife on pillion albeit still with the standard seat on my 800Fi (sorry, 5th Gen) but a lot of people favour a custom modified seat, I just haven't got round to it yet. One thing that did make a big difference though was changing her textile trousers (pants ) as she was sliding around a lot with her last pair, the new non shiney ones solved that.

So far no issues at all on the 1200 7th Gen as the seat design is much better than the old bikes.

[NRSPTR]

My wife has logged many miles on the back of my '08 with stock seat. As you said, this was her first motorcycle ride. You need to tell her to squeeze the bike with her legs, and hook the heel of her boot on the pillion foot pegs. Also, my wife typically rides with one hand around me, and one hand on the passenger grab handles. The handles really do a lot for keeping her from sliding around too much. Third, be sure to blip the throttle when downshifting to minimize her sliding. Also, you want to use more rear braking than front to keep the nose from diving. If she is still moving around, you could always order a triboseat seat cover http://www.triboseat.com/ They are super cheap and work pretty well. If you don't mind do it yourself, tool box drawer liner from Home Depot is the same material as the triboseat cover and can be wrapped around the seat and stapled to the bottom. Best of luck!

[FJ12Ryder]

The wife fell in love with the Sargent seat when I installed it. She puts it right up there with sliced bread. I also have the Sargent backrest/luggage rack, and she likes the feeling of something that

will keep her from going off the back. She doesn't really use it, it's more just the idea.

[RoystonRocket2]

Yes my wife much prefers the top box being there too. On the 7th gen we have the back pad too which helps. She doesn't feel the need to cling on much either, she rarely even holds on to the pillion handles even and never hangs on to me. She does hold the handles if we're 'making progress' but for us we both find it best if we just take up our own natural positions on the bike.

[adamv]

Thanks for the suggestion guys.

My wife won't be doing any significant riding with me (at least at this stage). We're talking 20 minute rural trips to a cafe, and back again maybe once every couple of months. I'm a little hesitant to justify a few hundred dollars that otherwise we wouldn't need just for such a rare occasion without being able to try something out first. Obviously if we end up riding together more this might change, but at this stage we want to make it a rare occasion and not do any touring together because we have just started a family and don't have the time, and want to limit the amount of time we're exposed to crazy drivers on a bike together. :)

Those triboseat covers look like the way to go!!! (And you're not wrong about them being reasonably priced). I thought I was going to get stung something shocking with international freight (you'd be surprised how many times I go to order something small worth $30 like a camera lens filter, and they want to charge me $50 for freight) but this was less than 3 pounds, so that's pretty good. I've ordered this and will see how it goes.

I'll also suggest to her the tip to hook her heels into the back pegs and the leg squeeze thing to see how that goes first. Good thought on pants too. She borrowed some friends (I believe they were textile), so maybe some draggin jeans or equivalent might help there as well.

I guess she's used to wanting to cuddle up to me while we're riding, so might be pulling herself towards me - so it might be something that she needs to learn not to do too?

Thanks again for the tips!

[zoomzoom]

It might be hard to justify spending the money on a different seat for just the wife's comfort, but IMHO either a Sargent seat or a custom seat might be worth it just for your own comfort. On my 5th gen I always seemed to find myself slipping a bit forward whenever slowing down and, well, squishing certain anatomical bits on hard braking and I found it annoying to say the least. I had a friend who had a Sargent seat on his 5th gen and we swapped bikes for a ride one day and man, the difference was amazing. Just after purchasing my 2000 VFR I found that I could ride about 250-300 km's before I started squirming around a bit, but after purchasing the Sargent seat my first ride was 500 km's with nary any discomfort. The Sargent seat is slightly wider (not much, maybe a half inch) but since it is shaped better I found that when slowing or braking hard my butt stayed in place on the Sargent seat. The Sargent seat seems to be angle upwards ever so slightly toward the tank so I no longer slide toward the tank and the extra marginal difference in width and seat shape makes the riding THAT much more enjoyable. The passenger portion of the seat is FAR more comfortable according to my wife and it too has a (for lack of a better term) more defined seating position for the passenger. I'm sure having the stock seat custom shaped to fit you would be THE way to go as far as comfort is concerned, but IMHO the Sargent is an excellent choice. Even if you purchased a Sargent seat as example and found you did not like it for whatever reason, you could probably sell the seat and recoup most of the expense. Just a thought......

[vfrcapn]

Corbin makes a seat that extends the whole pillion section forward about an 1.5"+, making the dished rider section that much narrower front to back. I have one on my bike and like it even riding solo.

[mk2davis]

I 2nd the seat covers. Or if your skilled you can make one out of non slip kitchen shelve covering as they seem to be the same material. It will be a little harder for her to slip left and right for the corners, but she will also not slip forward or back.

For full disclosure, I also have a Corbin, but I bought that for me and not her.

[adamv]

Thanks guys. I'm going to go with the non slip cover to start with (already ordered), but I think I need to find out more about these Sargent seats and Corbin seats. Fathers day is still a few months away. (Might be a bit hard to justify it as a mothers day gift for the misses :) )

I've got time, but may have to read up on these seats after all.

[zoomzoom]

Thanks guys. I'm going to go with the non slip cover to start with (already ordered), but I think I need to find out more about these Sargent seats and Corbin seats. Fathers day is still a few months away. (Might be a bit hard to justify it as a mothers day gift for the misses :) )

I've got time, but may have to read up on these seats after all.

Here is a link to a post you may find useful

http://www.vfrdiscussion.com/forum/index.php/topic/76346-sargent-vs-corbin-a-6th-gen-aftermarket-seat-comparison/?hl=%2Bsargent+%2Bseat+%2Bcomparison

[vfrcapn]

BTW, here's a pic of the Corbin. The extension of the pillion seat is exactly 2", for the 5th gen obviously. I'm sure Corbin has a similar setup for the 6G.

[vulgar1]

Scrap that seat. I had a Corbin. Heavy, not at comfortable for me, and wife didn't like it at all. Same thing. Any braking she slid forward. It sucked. I finally convinced her to let me get a custom seat (proof I'm married, having to talk the wife into spending some of my money) and we ordered a russell day long. Night and day difference. They built up the front of her portion so she doesn't slid forward, plus they use different materials so the seat isn't as slippery in the first place. They also widened the seat a lot. Probably close to double the width for her so it is way more comfortable. We both love it. Check them out. I think the website is day-long.com.

Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

[Dutchy]

Pillion Monaco style...

[VFROZ]

My wife had the same problem when she started riding with me, it took a while for her to relax.

First thing I did, was tell her to stop trying to hold on to me, and use the grab bars.

I'm much more comfortable that way, and she has a lot more control.

I also modified my seat, by reshaping it to suit me, and used a non slip material for the rear portion, I still like the front to be slippy so I can move around on the tight stuff.

After redoing all my suspension, front end dive was nearly completely eliminated, that has also helped.

We now go for 3, 4 day rides and she has no problem.

I can also ride fairly aggressive and fast on the windy stuff, and I no longer feel her on the back.

That is mostly because she is relaxed, and no longer has to work hard at holding on. As a matter of fact, she mostly doesn't hold on at all, just goes with the bike and only holds on in traffic or bendy stuff.

The last bit just takes time, but the most important part in my opinion is: Don't hold on to me.

[Mohawk]

Most of the problem is the new person lack of feel for what is happening & lack of body control. The penchant for side mount grab bars does not help as it puts your arms in a useless position, comfy when stationary but not much use for push/pull during acceleration & braking ! I find the across the rear bars much better as you can brace yourself & stop yourself sliding around, which is great.

Also if your pillion slides then they have the wrong rear gear on, as passengers should not slide on the seat. Honda's vinyl covers are useless with textile clothing, either wear leathers or fit some non slip to the saddle cover. Now I think of it, surf board wax might be an answer ! It's non-slip, non-tacky & waterproof !

more practice is what she needs firt & get her to use the grab handles NOT you as an anchor.

[MaxSwell]

I'd suggest telling a pillion rider to brace hands against the tank, temporarily, to prevent crushing the driver when the possibility of a emergency stop seems imminent. Comments? (I have not had a pillion rider in years.)