Mounting Up With Luggage in the Passenger's Seat

[smilinkyle]

Since I do my riding solo I want to add a travel bag where the passenger sits. (I've seen a platform that sits on the back seat that supports a travel bag and it looks like a great idea.) This is going to sound like a dumb question but here goes: How will I mount up with the bag on the back seat? I weigh 230 pounds and I don't think I can step up on the left peg. Would it tip the LT or break the peg?

I see BMWs loaded to the hilt and the riders have to mount up some way! Maybe it's time to lay off the barbecue.

[NOGILLS2]

If my bike is on the side stand I throw my right leg over the seat and mount. If it is on the centerstand I step on the left peg and swing my leg over. I have a Bakup backrest so it is like having something on the seat all the time.

[paalao]

Since I do my riding solo I want to add a travel bag where the passenger sits. (I've seen a platform that sits on the back seat that supports a travel bag and it looks like a great idea.) This is going to sound like a dumb question but here goes: How will I mount up with the bag on the back seat? I weigh 230 pounds and I don't think I can step up on the left peg. Would it tip the LT or break the peg?

I see BMWs loaded to the hilt and the riders have to mount up some way! Maybe it's time to lay off the barbecue.

I have same problem, I am 6`2" and 330 so it is even worse for me + bad hip some times, wich lock up. But I stand a bit from the bike`s left side and I swing the right foot up so it land with foot on the edge of the seat on the right side before I jump on left foot and kind a slide over. It must look stupid but I dont care. The bike with it`s driver backrest is to good to change due to what others may think.

[DavidTaylor]

Since I do my riding solo I want to add a travel bag where the passenger sits. (I've seen a platform that sits on the back seat that supports a travel bag and it looks like a great idea.) This is going to sound like a dumb question but here goes: How will I mount up with the bag on the back seat? I weigh 230 pounds and I don't think I can step up on the left peg. Would it tip the LT or break the peg?

I see BMWs loaded to the hilt and the riders have to mount up some way! Maybe it's time to lay off the barbecue.

Park on the centerstand, step on the left peg and mount the bike. The LT pegs, and the ret of the BMW fleet for that matter, are way stronger than you give them credit for. I mounted my LT this way when I weighed 330 (weigh around 245 now) and never had a problem. I mount my 08 GT and my 95 GS this way every time I ride them.

[cws]

Maybe it's time to lay off the barbecue.heh, heh... they showed some US BBQ cookoff show on Foxtel here a little while back... no wonder you guys are stacking on the lbs... if all you're barbies are the size of a small truck so you can "smoke a horse or a whole cow"....
(just foolin') ;)

[Big_E]

It's like this,
Picture the door knob of a door you want to kick in is above the seat. Go for it & land on the seat.

[MikeERideWNC]

I also have a backrest and just throw my leg over.

If I had the problem that the two of you have, I would try this first:
http://www.jennycraig.com/ :histerica

[STARFIGHTER]

I'm 225 and stand on the left peg to mount when karen is on the back...
no problem

[ibbones]

It's like this,
Picture the door knob of a door you want to kick in is above the seat. Go for it & land on the seat.That's how I get on the bike. I am long legged but I have some hip and leg problems so I stand facing the side of the bike, do a high kick to get my leg on the seat and then hop forward on my left leg and then slide into the seat.

[dwsdad]

If the bike's on the sidestand, I found it easier to mount from the right side. Just hoist my left leg up and onto the seat and let it slide down. It's much easier to let it slide down using the slope of the bike than try to push it up against the slope of the bike.

[Patric]

Well , ... without running out to the shed to make shure this is how I do it .... I think I stand a little to the left of the bike . Grab the left grip with my left hand ,Then squat just a little , & lean just a little to the left . Take my right leg with my right hand ,and raise it up as far as I can get it ( kind of like a Su-mu wrestler ) . Then stick my right leg over the seat . If I don't squat & lean a little I can't get my leg up enough to get over the seat . I have to get on my GS this way when it has a big pack on it ( see http://www.bmwlt.com/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=15467 & http://www.bmwlt.com/forums/showthread.php?t=26917 ) . With my big honking 28" inseam it is a long way up to the seat on my GS .

[c00k1e]

My pillion gets on first sometimes, and it is NOT worth giving her a flying motorbike boot! So I take a run up and at the last second do a can-can leg kick.
And NO I will not video it for you!!

[george_falcon]

Since I do my riding solo I want to add a travel bag where the passenger sits. (I've seen a platform that sits on the back seat that supports a travel bag and it looks like a great idea.) This is going to sound like a dumb question but here goes: How will I mount up with the bag on the back seat? I weigh 230 pounds and I don't think I can step up on the left peg. Would it tip the LT or break the peg?

I see BMWs loaded to the hilt and the riders have to mount up some way! Maybe it's time to lay off the barbecue.I weigh 480, have owned three K1200LTs (two model year 2000s and one 2005), and have never broken a peg. I have tipped the bike over only on soft earth. If the centerstand is down on a hard level surface, it's going to be O.K. for you to mount.

[WildBil]

Yes, sadly tipping the scales well into the 230's after too many RTE's, it boggles the mind why it does not, but the peg neither breaks to does the bike tip over when you have it on anything solid.

Regards,

[dmatson]

I have and use a BMR flatbed for the back seat which is great. I Mount by standing on the left peg and put my leg over, the pegs are very strong.

[ArthurKnowles]

I'm not the type that is willing to stand on a peg to mount the motorcyle. too many chances of a problem in my mind. For both my RT & LT (and every other motorccyle I have owned) I just through my right leg over the seat from a straight forward position. It ddoesn't swing over the rear of the motorcycle, over the rear seat, over the back rest, etc. It's just stright up and then over. Every time.

[rspyder]

I am 255 pounds and my LT has a backup backrest. I stand beside by LT, grab my right ankle and pull it up toward my butt. Then I swing the right knee over the seat and slightly over the tank and then unfold my leg as it goes over the seat.

My seat position is always high and I had Ron build the Kontour seat up another inch or so. then I added a sheepskin cover and a beadrider. At a stop, it is very difficult for me to have the feet flat on the ground.Usually I am on the balls of my feet.

This position allows me to ride distances without the dreaded knees hurting. I can't use the suburban lowering pegs because I grind them on turns. As it is, I usually scrape something on a curve.

[smilinkyle]

heh, heh... they showed some US BBQ cookoff show on Foxtel here a little while back... no wonder you guys are stacking on the lbs... if all you're barbies are the size of a small truck so you can "smoke a horse or a whole cow"....
(just foolin') ;)
Hey, my barbecue is just the right size! I can feed about 50 to 80 folks, depending what I'm cookin'. It's not the barbecue that's the problem, it's the plate!

Thanks for all the suggestions; I don't feel so silly askin' now.
http://www.skitsap.wednet.edu/14682066135615303/lib/14682066135615303/Bevo_and_Kyle.jpg

[cws]

... so it WAS you I saw on telly!!
thats serious BBQ!

Is the LT towing that thing....????? :rotf:

[smilinkyle]

... so it WAS you I saw on telly!!
thats serious BBQ!

Is the LT towing that thing....????? :rotf:
At 2400 pounds of quarter inch steel, the LT's good, but it isn't that good!

[Steve_R]

I mount both ways on the side stand, either flat footed and flip the rght leg up over the seat or stand on the left pet and flip the leg over. On the center stand I always stand of the left peg to get on. This is riding solo with the bike loaded or unloaded for travel.

Traveling two up, I never let my pillion get on the bike before I'm mounted and have the bike straight up with both feet on the ground. Last think I need to do is drop the bike with her on the back after neck surgery. :eek2:

[browad]

The luggage shelf that fits over the passenger pillion looks cool, but a bit redundant (at least to me). I use an 80L SeaLine wide-mouth duffel bag (linky (http://www.rei.com/product/737952)) on the seat, bungied/strapped down via nylon runners (more linky (http://www.rei.com/product/722354)) that are attached to the frame rails under the passenger pillion. The runner is a loop of nylon climbing webbing, and is rated ~22kN. Much more than you need, and they can be tucked under the seat when not in use and fished out with a stick when needed. That's high-tech :) . I've got a photo somewhere, but if you take the rear seat off you'll figure it out very quickly. Thanks go to other members for that tip.

For mounting/dismounting with a load, much like everything else it requires practice. It's not too different from having a driver's backrest, so if that is in your future then you will adapt quickly. One word about practicing: use a big bag and not your significant other. Helps keep everyone all friendly-like.

Cheers,

[Ghost55]

I have a Bakup backrest plus when I travel have a BMW duffel crossways on the back seat. No need for a platform of any kind, fits perfectly. I have a right hip that gives me problems, and I use a step thru method to mount. Face the side of the bike, put the right leg over the seat as you rotate to the left. Easy.

[jhsonderb]

I have a Bakup backrest plus when I travel have a BMW duffel crossways on the back seat. No need for a platform of any kind, fits perfectly. I have a right hip that gives me problems, and I use a step thru method to mount. Face the side of the bike, put the right leg over the seat as you rotate to the left. Easy.I agree that a platform is not necessary. I use the Helen2Wheels bags with the K12000LT tie downs and extension straps. Although I have a Bakup backrest, I will probably take it off the next time I take a trip when my bike is fully loaded so I can access some storgage pouches I keep beneath the seat. The bags alone will provide me with suffient back support.

When I mount the bike from the side stand, I place my right leg on the seat and in one motion bring the bike vertical using the momentum of getting on the bike. The momentum helps when the bike is not on a level surface (which seems to be everywhere in our beautiful western states).