Pillion back pains

[pencil shavings]

My girlfriend has started coming for a few rides with me and is suffering from a bad back.
She is a good pillion, so I am struggling to give her any more advice on what to do other than sit up straighter - which makes her feel unstable.


Does anyone have pointers?


Cheers

[LiquidFlux]

I've a top box that functions as a sissy-bar ( I think they're called? ), apparently that helps on the longer rides. I know Givi also offer a little cushion attachment too, which I don't have but have also considered.

[garynortheast]

This is just a general observation but may have some relevance. I have found largely that the pillion footpegs on most bikes are too far forward for comfort, meaning that the passenger is often unable to use their feet effectively to take any weight or provide any support. Try sitting on the pillion yourself and you will probably see what I mean.

[pencil shavings]

She is quite vertically challenged and thinks that she hunches forwards to hold onto me because her arms aren't long enough.
I do have the grab rail at the back but she doesn't feel comfortable using it, especially around twisties when we are "making progress"

[dkid]

Oxford pillion grip belt or "love handles" are great. Your pillion only needs to reach to your sides rather than reach completely around your waist. My wife won't ride without them.

Also, try a triboseat grip of you don't already have one. They stop the pillion sliding around so much meaning that they expend less energy on trying to correct their posture every 2 minutes.

http://www.halfords.com/motoring-travel/motorcycling/motorcycle-accessories/oxford-rider-grips-pillion-grab-handles

http://www.triboseat.com/

[pencil shavings]

I have heard of those dkid, will ask her if she thinks that will help. cheers :)

[Littlepeahead]

Don't bother spending money on the tribo seat, instead go to pound land and buy a roll of the meshy grippy stuff. Cut a piece off and tuck it around the seat before putting the seat back on. It does exactly the same job at a fraction of the cost. If it works and you want something to go on the bike more permanently then you can invest in the tribo but I bet you won't even need to as the cheap stuff works just as well.

[ophic]

Don't bother spending money on the tribo seat, instead go to pound land and buy a roll of the meshy grippy stuff. Cut a piece off and tuck it around the seat before putting the seat back on. It does exactly the same job at a fraction of the cost. If it works and you want something to go on the bike more permanently then you can invest in the tribo but I bet you won't even need to as the cheap stuff works just as well.
This is true, but the triboseat does fit very nicely and is well made.

[Littlepeahead]

This is true, but the triboseat does fit very nicely and is well made.

Oh it is, but if it's only for occasional use and you first want to see if that actually solves the problem then better to spend a quid first to trial it. I used to use it on the Dakar as slipping was the problem and it solved that, then I bought a tribo for RavingMavis for his GSXR750 for when I went pillion. It stopped me slipping, but didn't make the backache I suffered any easier.

Now on the KTM I get Stu to put the top box on and make sure I'm wearing my back protector as this makes it much more comfortable.

[Red Herring]

You could always try swopping places every now and then...?

The belt handle affair is very effective at giving a pillion something to hold onto to stop them going off the back under acceleration, however they are not very good at stopping them from falling forward. To stop them from running into you every time you close the throttle/brake they either have to change their grip to push on the tank, or tense their lower body and grip the riders bum with their knees whilst pushing down on the pegs with their feet, and this is often the cause of the back ache.

An SV doesn't exactly have arm wrenching acceleration forces it might be worth encouraging her to ride with the palms of her hands on the back of the tank if that's possible (I note you comments about her being in proportion....) as that will lock her into the bike better, if not try riding with a normal (but strong) belt around your waist over the top of your jacket so she can put the fingers of both hands down through it into the small of your back and lock herself to you in this way.

The final solution is for you to revise the way you "make progress". The smoother your ride the more relaxed she will be and it's the continual tension that causes the problem.

[ophic]

On the other hand it could just be muscles she doesn't otherwise use very much and therefore a perfectly "normal" ache considering the activity. The solution therefore being to do more of it.

[Red Herring]

On the other hand it could just be muscles she doesn't otherwise use very much.......


Well, I don't really know her well enough to comment on that.....;)

[arfoll]

I think the best is to get the pillion to relax as much as possible, good gear seems to at least make my girlfriend feel safe.

The even better trick is to get a mate with an adventure bike with you so your pillion can switch for a bit :) Let's face it the SV probably isn't as pillion friendly as some other bikes!

[Jayneflakes]

I go pillion on my bike quite often if the wife and I don't want to take both bikes for some reason and I too used to suffer with horrible back pain even before I got hurt.

I don't know why or how, but the SV seems to transfer road shock to the pillion pad making road bumps feel more harsh than they do when piloting the bike. The cure I found was to adjust the rear suspension and ask the wife to ride more carefully.

The pillion pad is also painfully thin in places and makes moving around on the seat awkward at best. Even with my fat back side I find that I end up sitting on the front of the pad, which increases back pain due to the angle I end up sat in.

Using the grab rail does help a little, but if the pillion is larger than say a small bunny rabbit, it is hard to find a comfortable place to hold it when making progress. At slower speeds or when steady, the pillion can sit upright and not have to hold on that much at all. I think that I have even managed to read text messages when cruising like this.

Giving your other half time and space to move around will help her, if she is continually squatting behind you out of the wind, fighting to hold on, you will find very quickly that back ache leads to a lack of enjoyment and before you know it, she wont want to come anymore, which is a shame.

Finally get a rider to pillion radio, that way you can tell her to hold on when she needs to and to relax when you are steady. It also means that she can feel more involved and not just like a piece of luggage. Communication is great and although the back pain may never fully go away, she can at least warn you when she needs a five minute rest to stretch out.

Good luck.

[yorkie_chris]

Same as for back/arm pains as rider, you don't need to use arms... grip with the legs.

OTOH, go faster, the adrenaline sorts the aches. Always worked for us!!

[Specialone]

Oxford pillion grip belt or "love handles" are great. Your pillion only needs to reach to your sides rather than reach completely around your waist. My wife won't ride without them.

Also, try a triboseat grip of you don't already have one. They stop the pillion sliding around so much meaning that they expend less energy on trying to correct their posture every 2 minutes.

http://www.halfords.com/motoring-travel/motorcycling/motorcycle-accessories/oxford-rider-grips-pillion-grab-handles

http://www.triboseat.com/
My wife used to like these too, we don't bother anymore as my explorer is more pillion friendly.
She hated the SV pillion seat tbh.

I have heard of those dkid, will ask her if she thinks that will help. cheers :)
They will definitely help, I think I've still got mine I could sell you cheap?

The SV is not the best for pillions, most pillions will find them tolerable at best.

[maviczap]

Both the SV OEM seats are like planks, so any shock from the road is going to get shoved up the spine & cause aches and pains.

Along with the other suggestions, why not have a gel pad, or more foam put in the rear seat.

I bought a pair of SV seats for my curvy which had more foam incorporated by the trimmer. I haven't used the rear, but the front transformed my comfort on long rides. So it could do the same for your girlfriend.

At least it might help with one set of aches

[pencil shavings]

Thanks for all of the reply guys, very useful.


The problems are more when I am braking than when I am accelerating, she struggles to push off against the tank without having to contort her neck/back.
That's the issue when we have been riding fast, the change from power to braking.


Special One - yes what have you got in mind?


Janye - the coms set is a really good idea and something that I want to get, just so we can chat really lol Not sure how useful it will be in communicating that I can about to brake as usually I am concentrating on keeping it shiny side up. P.S. she is a little bunny, hence the short arms lol