Advanced Sidecar Training

I have to admit I'm getting a few butterflies in my stomach over our impending road trip and it's reassuring to hear someone else vocalize the "fear of right hand turns" thing. I'm in NYC and as far as I can tell there really isn't much around here in the way of specialized training. Anyway, in a week I'm off for the adventure of a lifetime and that will include a few right hand turns. 😉

Part of the sidecar class is to fly the car. Check with Marcus in Lufkin Tx. 1 sidecar class a month. Phone 936-637-7555 J.R.

If you know what to do in a panic braking situation, and can fly the chair controllably, and snap slide left away from the hack, The only good training left is miles. Lots and lots of miles on differing road conditions, cross winds, head winds, tail winds. rain, snow, black ice, etc.
There is no better school than that. It is your advanced school. Your graduation ceremony is staying alive and unhurt regardless of the efforts of other motorists.

BeemerBob - 5/25/2014 6:26 AM

... I would like to find a class that specializes in sidecars and experienced sidecar riders. Additionally, it would be fun to find a class that would sharpen my off-road skills as well....

Hi Bob: , Marcus offers a refresher portion of the S/TEP Class over in Lufkin. Jena & I both took the refresher portion a year+ after completing the first time. We did understood the drills better with experience under out belt. The panic stops, swerves, left/right turns all made more sense the 2nd time around.

On my Sportster rig, the right hand techniques of shifting weight inside the triangle and the art of "trail breaking" are necessary to help negotiate turns at anything more than a sedate pace. Also, the finesse art of "driving the bike" around the sidecar in right turns and letting the sidecar help "initiate" the left turns take lots of dedicated practice.

One thing I've learned is, with the exception of the low/wide HP rigs in skilled hands, most of our rigs will not keep up with 2-wheelers running a spirited pace. This is even more true with long travel rigs more suitable for dirt/gravel roads. Trying to keep pace with 2-wheelers can lead to lots of trouble.

I don't avoid curvy roads, but rather enjoy them at a sidecar pace. My goal is to keep the sidecar tire on the ground. The anti-sway bar on the GS/CSM rig goes a long way in helping that, so that is one thing you might consider as you move forward.

As for as off road training, getting with a couple of experienced TURD's for a 1/2 day of dedicated ride & discuss techniques should be quite beneficial. Altho Vernon the Red-Menance no longer offers dedicated classes, I'm sure he would be willing to offer some one-on-one training if you ever travel to the Pacific Northwest. And, drats, you missed an opportunity a few weeks ago to meet up with Mr. Cob up in Arkansas - I'm sure he could've helped as well.

I'm new at off-pavement riding, but have found the general hack skills carry over pretty well, but I tend to travel at sedate to moderate pace at best. And I've already discovered that weight shifting is an integral part of uneven terrain.