2-up on the Ninja 250
About a month ago, my friend came to visit me for a few weeks. It was definately the happiest time I have had for a quite a while. When she was here, I took her to my school a couple of times on my bike. Here are just a few observations I had. Keep in mind that I am not, in anyway, considered knowledgable about 2-up riding.
- The bike handled fine, just felt heavier and a bit more sluggish.
- With a combined rider+passenger weight of about 250 lbs, the stock suspensions were ok. Although the rear suspension was getting close to fully compressed. (the stock suspensions are definately one of the weak points of this bike, but for a rider under 150 lbs, it's perfectly fine).
- Try to accelerate and brake at a more gentle pace is a good idea when there's a passenger, especially if you are not experienced in carrying a passenger. I can notice my passenger moving back a bit due to the acceleration. And this was gentle acceleration on a 250! (you don't want your passenger to be caught off-guard and fall off, do you?)
- Anticipate your braking. I didn't really have much trouble of helmets hitting each other. Maybe just a couple of times. But gentle braking can easily solve this problem (I have heard it a lot from others).
- Having a passenger makes you drive more responsibly. And the ride is much more enjoyable too.
