When it comes to riding with a sidecar, forget all you’ve learned about riding a motorcycle—or almost all of it. When you hook a sidecar to a bike (and we’re talking about traditional sidecar rigs here), the bike is transformed into a whole other animal.
Unless you're in the UK, Japan, or New Zealand, your sidecar will most likely be mounted on the right side of the bike. When you speed up, the combo will tend to turn in the direction of the sidecar; when slowing down, it will want to turn away.
Most sidecars have (or should have) a separate brake for the sidecar wheel linked to the rear brake of the motorcycle. Applying the rear brake will want to make the rig stop in a straight line—great if you’re going straight, but maybe not so hot if you’re trying to stop in a turn. Get your braking done in a straight line, whenever possible.
Within thirty seconds of your first ride, you’ll find that you can’t lean your traditional sidecar in a turn as with a bike. Forget countersteering, but do lean in the direction of the turn, as you would on a normal bike.
Sidecars handle best with weight in the chair. If you don’t have a passenger, put as much weight as you can in the sidecar, and set it as low as you possibly can. About 50–100 lbs (23–45 kg) is good—that's about the weight of a couple of big bags of dog food. The worst thing you can do is ride with an empty chair and a passenger behind you.
Lifting the sidecar wheel in turns, known as “flying the chair” is an advanced technique that looks spectacular—as long as it’s intentional. To practice, find a large, empty parking lot and ride some figure eights, starting out slow and gradually increasing your speed until the chair lifts. You’ll immediately notice that you’re now riding a large, unbalanced motorcycle that responds like a traditional bike.
When it comes to riding with a sidecar, forget all you’ve learned about riding a motorcycle—or almost all of it. When you hook a sidecar to a bike (and we’re talking about traditional sidecar rigs here), the bike is transformed into a whole other animal.
Unless you're in the UK, Japan, or New Zealand, your sidecar will most likely be mounted on the right side of the bike. When you speed up, the combo will tend to turn in the direction of the sidecar; when slowing down, it will want to turn away.
Most sidecars have (or should have) a separate brake for the sidecar wheel linked to the rear brake of the motorcycle. Applying the rear brake will want to make the rig stop in a straight line—great if you’re going straight, but maybe not so hot if you’re trying to stop in a turn. Get your braking done in a straight line, whenever possible.
Within thirty seconds of your first ride, you’ll find that you can’t lean your traditional sidecar in a turn as with a bike. Forget countersteering, but do lean in the direction of the turn, as you would on a normal bike.
Sidecars handle best with weight in the chair. If you don’t have a passenger, put as much weight as you can in the sidecar, and set it as low as you possibly can. About 50–100 lbs (23–45 kg) is good—that's about the weight of a couple of big bags of dog food. The worst thing you can do is ride with an empty chair and a passenger behind you.
Lifting the sidecar wheel in turns, known as “flying the chair” is an advanced technique that looks spectacular—as long as it’s intentional. To practice, find a large, empty parking lot and ride some figure eights, starting out slow and gradually increasing your speed until the chair lifts. You’ll immediately notice that you’re now riding a large, unbalanced motorcycle that responds like a traditional bike.