My wife and I are planning our first cross country trip on the Road King this summer.

Solo, I've done some pretty masochistic rides: multiple 1000 mile days, fuel cell, the whole nine yards. My wife on the other hand has done one 300 mile day in her life...yesterday. All things considered, she handled it pretty well and was reasonably happy at the end of it.

I would assume that all requirements for rider comfort are exactly the same for the passenger. But maybe not. Thoughts anyone?

Douf

 

To me, it's the same as in a car...just sitting there and riding/driving make the miles go by differently. A passenger needs something to occupy their time and mind, so they don't see every mile maker or how far it is to the next town. In a car, that's a whole lot easier than on a bike.

How to fix that...radio, intercom and of course, seat comfort. And just stopping when they need or want to. Don't "force" them to ride as far as you can or you might lose your riding buddy.

That's all I have.

 

I would say to mix up your long days with some short ones, Also to maximize your time "off" the bike with some things she enjoys too. Perhaps a little extra attention thrown her way....
I do know this...if she gets unhappy, especially early in the trip....it's gonna be a long trip!
Remember the number one goal.....FUN!

 

It helps if she has a nice hotel with hot tub waiting at the end of each day. My wife and I like to plan our trips so we end each day near a Red Lobster and have a tavern within walking distance of the hotel.

 

What we as riders sometimes don't get is that the passenger is out of the "bubble" of still air behind the windshield or fairing. Because of that, their comfort needs are a little different than ours. Cheryl wears a heated liner much of the time because even at 50 or 60 degrees, the wind takes heat away from the body. I also added a wider windshield to help her out a little and it has no "flare" to it, which can send turbulence back to the passenger.

We bought some foot board lowering kits to give her a little more room. They work ok, but at the expense of crowding into my calves when I put my feet down at a stop. We're still working on solutions that will work for both of us.

Boredom is definitely a factor. We have headsets and listen to music and talk, which helps. We're going to up our game and get some better full face helmets to protect her face from the elements more, and provide a better venue for listening to music and voice hopefully. Cheryl is also in charge of taking pictures, which occupies a lot of her time in the saddle.

One story that illustrates the difference in comfort - We were at a hotel somewhere and I noticed a black wash cloth that used to be white. I admonished Cheryl for using the hotel wash cloth to clean her boots off. She angrily responded that she had, in fact, NOT washed boots with the wash cloth, but her face. There were a few expletives in there as well. I had no idea she was getting that much exposure sitting behind me.

 

You cannot create memories with iron butt legs.

 

It isn't uncommon for my wife to ride with me several hundred miles a day.

Make sure her seat is comfortable. Pillions are rarely as comfortable as the driver's seat. I put an extra folded small blanket under the sheeps wool for her.

She has her own pair of compression underwear.

When you feel your wife moving and switching seat position, her butt is tired and uncomfortable, stop. I never stop for "her". I stop for fuel, to stretch my legs, to get a drink, to make sure the T-bags are riding well, etc. I stop for any reason I can think of, but never put it on "her".

If she will wear full face or modular helmet, get her one.

If you don't have an intercom, work out a system of communication. 3 taps on the ribs from her means I need to stop right now (even on the highway shoulder), something may be going wrong. When I hold up a hand with a number of fingers I am telling her we will be stopping in that many miles etc.

And most importantly:
You have your wife aboard! BE CAREFUL!
When I ride alone I don't get too bothered that at sometime I may put my bike down. (been there, done it, got the cool ride to the hopsital)
When my wife is aboard I think of it continually. There is no way I want to be reponsible for injuring someone that important to me.
Slow down and increase your gaps.

 

I replaced my rear boards with Gold Wing style boards from Kury. They have a fold out peg that let's her reposition her feet and she really enjoys that

 

My wife loves the adjustable passenger footpegs I Don't know if harley makes them for your bike but they do for 14 limited kurynln makes them I know I spelled that wrong

 

1. If you can afford it, invest in a better seat for her comfort. You don't have to keep it forever but for those occasions when she might be going longer trips. A pillon pad with a towel might sound "okay" but I wouldn't even attempt that for a trip that long. It won't take long for the towel/blanket/whatever folded on top of it to compress and be of no use.

2. Stop A LOT. One of the 1st long trips(400+ miles in 3 days - hey, long for the wife) we took on the last leg I was stopping every 30 miles because stock seat was killing her butt(see #1 above). She kept apologizing & I told her I would rather stop every 30 miles with her than ride 100 by myself. If you've been with her a long time, you pretty much know the limit of how long she can go before she needs to take a bathroom break, stretch her legs or get something to eat.

3. Make sure she's cool/warm/dry/whatever. Once she gets too hot, too cold or wet, the fun starts to diminish rapidly. Also, hydrate, hydrate, hydrate. Drink plenty of liquids. Water is great with the occasional Gatorade(if she likes it) or Diet Coke(my wife's drink) thrown in. Riding with wind whipping at her constantly will dry her out same as you.

4. You can get a intercom system but we just would ride and if she wanted to talk, she'd tap my shoulder, I'd lean head a little so she could talk. When I wanted to talk back, I'd tap her left leg a couple of times. It wasn't ever any problem because I would stop very often.

5. If you can, take some large Zip-loc baggies and put some wet washcloths in them. Stopping on the side of the road and being able to take one & wipe some road grime/sweat off her face, neck & arms will make her feel a lot better. And when you stop at a store, you can always get a bottle of water and recharge them.