How do you ride your motorcyle for several hours?

Spark

Spark

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Man, I spent the afternoon driving up and down the coast here and after 4 hours I made the decision that my back would much prefer not to ride for that long - at least on this seat.

How do you guys ride for long distances without being crippled at the end? Do you wear kidney belts, or have some sort of back support or something?

Kevin
 
The longest I've ever been on my bike was about an 1 hour. I couldn't stand it any longer. Of course, my bike is a serious POS. I nearly melted to the seat after that ride!

'82 Kawasaki 750 Spectre 4 cyl.

A friend of mine took his Honda CR500 to Pennsylvania (about 4 hrs) and when he got there and tried to get off his bike..he couldn't walk :D ...he couldn't even stand up straight - poor guy.

Of course, another friend took his 2000 Anniv. Spec. Honda Goldwing all the way from Northern Virginia to Daytona. Took him a week to get there. Had some serious saddle-soreness, but made it ok.

A lower back rest makes all the difference. Plus, you gotta have a relaxed riding position - not hunched forward, slouched, or leaning too far back.

I'd be interested to see if anyone else has done any cross country trips...

Dan
 
I had been riding for over 20 years. The pain that I was experiencing was just too much to overcome. In fact, it was also taking its toll at work.

I began riding in the dirt, moved up to enduro's and finally switched to street bikes. My street bike stint was pretty much focused on Honda's, Kawi's, and Suzuki bikes.

After battling severe back pain, during and after riding, I gave it a break for approx. 5-years. I had tried everything. . .kidney belts, back supports, stomach strengthening exercises, back strengthening exercises, etc. . . Absolutely nothing helped ! I was heart broken ! !

Towards the end of my 5-year hiatus from riding bikes. . .a friend of mine had just purchased a custom V-twin and offered it to me for a weekend (I had already owned a Harley Sportster and it too gave me back problems). After riding my friends custom. . .I was re-hooked.

Absolutely "no" back pain !

The next weekend. . .I possessed a new custom V-twin.

I currently have 2 customs (one soft-tail and one chopper) and "Livin' Life ~ Full Throttle !"

Pretty much found that the lack of back pain was due to. . .

1) The way that the bike sat
2) The way that I sat on the bike
3) The bikes are heavy

Simply. . .Ergonomics !

What ever you do. . .don't wear any type of kidney belt or back support ! They actually do more harm than good.
 
I've done 800 mile days on my ST1100A several times. Granted, it's a tiring day, but not crippling.

The main thing is how the bike is set up.

A good saddle is a must (Russell, Corbin, etc.) as well as having the reach to the bars and pegs set up properly for your anatomy. (Or as close as possible.)

I use risers on the bars of the ST to prevent the numbness that comes with the pressure of riding the bars too heavily.

Also, I changed the grips to something better than stock.

Motorcycle Consumer News has produced several articles on just this sort of thing if you care to delve into past issues.
 
Kevin

I rode an 60s FL Pan Head from Melbourne FL to Atlanta to Dallas to Colorado Springs to Las Vegas to LA to San Deigo and back when I was 20 years old. Hitting Atlanta I bought a small sofa pillow to sit on. Other then that I had few pain issues.

I rode a Custom Hardtail Evo Wideglide for a few years and that worked my spine over.

No real answer for ya.
 
Most of us take a break every hour or two. Some ride from one coffeeshop to the next, others ride from one bar to the next.... :)
 
I'm finding as I get a little older (ugh) that all the ugly "junk" I ripped off my Shovelhead (windshield, comfy seat, upright handlebars, mid-mount footpegs, etc.) 12 years ago are starting to look pretty good again (well, kinda). I don't know what you ride, but an upright seating position and a good windscreen would be a real good place to start.
 
I've ridden H-D Electraglides to Daytona from my home here in Upstate SC three times and the best money I've ever spent on a motorcycle was purchasing a Corbin Dual Touring saddle for my Roadglide. I'm on a '01 Goldwing currently and was considering riding it to Atlanta for the show, but reconsidered when I thought about how tired I'd be after spending the day walking and standing. I may return Sat. with my girlfriend (she said she'd come along only to go shopping in Atlanta while I go to the show) but don't plan to stay overnight Friday.

Larry
 
I can't tolerate riding a 'custom' style bike. The road shocks are transmitted straight up my spine, and make long rides impossible. I can do long distances on a cafe-racer style - my '85 FJ1100 Yamaha has been to the west coast (from Colorado) several times, and I was fresh enough to ride the twisties the day after arriving. I figgure that the low bars, high pegs setup lets my back flex with bumps, so so low back pain thing doesn't happen. It's not, however, for everybody.

My longest one day ride has been Steamboat Springs to Reno in one long day. >1000 miles, mostly on Interstate (I80).

Not my own bike, but a pic of same:
fj1100.gif


FWIW, I've been riding since 1965.

db
 
I never had any trouble with Shovelheads, but the Sportsters were a bit much. I had a 1980 Goldwing, and it didn't matter how far I rode. The 1979 CBX was just scary even for brief rides.

But the all out worst ride I ever had was a 1976 Kawasaki 903 LTD. It was one of the fastest bikes in those days, but the seat was just for looks. An hour or two and you felt like you were sitting on the frame rails. With a woofy it got uncomfortable even quicker.
 
Just bought my 16th motorcycle this past Saturday. A 2002 FXDWG 3. The farthest I've ridden was a trip from Kansas out to the West Coast down Hightway 1 about 300 miles into Mexico and back to Kansas on the southern route. 8500 miles in two weeks.

All the advice above is good. I believe the most important is how the bike fits you, along with a good back support, whether that's leaning up against a seat pad, or a rolled up sleeping bag. It's also important to have handlebars that are comfortable, and ones that don't cause you to lean forward too much which strains your arms. Include a set of highway pegs so you can stretch out your legs comfortable with heel rests so you don't have to put tension on your legs to keep them on the pegs and you're good to go. - A wind deflector is extremely important also to keep the bugs from hitting you in the face.
 
Originally posted by Ichabod Poser
I never had any trouble with Shovelheads, but the Sportsters were a bit much.
Click to expand...

Well, all I can tell you is drag bars, forward controls, and a one inch thick La Pera cobra seat don't make for a long haul mileage eater...;-)
 
Russell saddle. I have one on the Beemer (R100RT) after riding the old HD that came with a Russell from Colorado to Iowa, Missouri and back. I take that Beemer for a day long ride and still have the back to stand at a bar for a few hours... the tequila helps, I suppose...
 
I ride an ST1100, and tour a fair bit. If it's a long journey I wear a kidney belt, a real big tough MotoCross one with an armoured back that adds a bit of crash protection too. Also wrist straps (sometimes tennis ones, sometimes thick leather weight-lifter ones, cos I've got small girly wrists and they turn to jelly on long trips.
A custom saddle made locally, and lots of leg stretching, and I can usually cover a days riding without aches and pains.
 
It never cease to amaze me of the multitude of places to voice my opinion on this forum.
I've been ridin' since I was 7 years old, rode all over the east coast, out to the mid west, Houston, to be exact. The biggest secret to endurance riding, more than a few hours is to ride a bike designed to ride in comfort over long distance. Most sport bikes on the market are designed to go fast and handle accurately, this is a trade off to comfort. Think about it for a minute, cafe racer style sport bikes have you stretched out and leaning over to present a low drag profile with a low center of gravity, you ever see these kids on the hiway layin' down flyin' down the road at a blistering 120 mph bet ya not many of them can run coast to coast without gettin' stiff.
Now look at a cruiser even a sportster, low slug ya sit in the seat like a saddle back straight, legs extended instead of tucked under ya, you could ride for a while that way. It all comes down to form and function. Crotch Rockets are fast and handle superbly Cruisers have lots of power and are meant to be ridden long distances.
The old britsh bikes especially the Norton Commandos were a nice compromise, but of course no one remembers those.


1974nortoncommando.jpg
 
Like copfish, I ride a R100RT BMW with a Russell seat on it. My longest day was 1,324 miles in 22 hours from upper Minnesota to Alabama. The bike also has handlebar risers, foam grips, and a 10-gallon gas tank. Prior to that, I had a ST1100 Honda that was good for 1,000 mile days. The keys, other than basic personal health, are good wind/weather protection, a good custom saddle, ergonomics correct to you, comfortable protective clothing and helmet, a hydration system and some granola bars. Every now and then some gasoline for the bike. - Lee
 
Get a copy of this month's American Rider magazine. Very good article on different custom seats. I believe a good aftermarket seat with a rider backrest lets you ride for much longer in comfort.

Dean
Green Bay, WI
 
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