Hello: I recently bought a 1993 Goldwing with Champion Escort sidecar from a post on this website. It's currently in transit and I should receive it in 5-7 days. As a novice, I plan to sign up for the sidecar training course in Louisville, KY, but it isn't until October. So I'm trying to learn all I can to avoid making any dumb mistakes (espec. anything that could cause an accident or wheel to lift) in the interim.
So I have two questions:
1) I've seen a rule called "2/3-1/3" rule. This ratio suggests the sidecar should weight half that of the bike (2/3 divided by 1/3 = 2). But I've also read where the sidecar should weight 1/3 that of the bike. Which is correct? I know this is only a rough guideline, but it sounds reasonable to use until I gain some experience.
2)How much ballast would you use in my case? The 1993 Aspencade weighs 800 lbs dry. Adding 50 lbs for 6.3 gal of gas and another 50 lbs for fluids and minor cargo brings it up to 900 lbs. Now, I weigh 275 lbs and my wife weights 125 lbs. If she cannot fit comfortably in the sidecar with my little boy (and thus must sit on rear of bike), the total bike weight will be 1300 lbs. Now, the Champion Escort only weighs 190 lbs. Adding 50 lbs for my little boy gives a total of 240 lbs. If the sidecar should weight 1/3 that of the bike (1/3 of 1300 lbs = 433 lbs), I guess that means I will need almost 200 extra pounds of ballast (433 lbs - 240 lbs) in the sidecar. That seems like an awful lot of extra weight. Does this seem correct to you? I know it would be best to put my wife in sidecar, but my little boy is too young to ride safely and legally on the back of the bike.
Thanks for the advice!
Gary
1) The 2/3-1/3 rule means the bike with gear and rider should weigh no more than 2/3 of the total vehicle weight.
I prefer saying that the sidecar needs to be AT LEAST 1/3 of the total weight. I emphasize that because I feel that's a good rule of thumb for an experienced sidecarist. I would err on the side of a heavy sidecar until you feel you can call yourself experienced. Likewise, although I have no problem carrying a passenger on the bike, I would recommend against it until you have ten or fifteen thousand miles under your belt. I expect your wife and son would be able to comfortably share the Escort until he puts on another 50 pounds or so and you gain a bunch of experience.
Thanks Mike for clearing that up!
You're right. I just asked my wife and little boy to sit side-by-side and measured them at the hip: 23-24 inches. So they both should fit within the 26 inch hip width dimension of the Champion Escort. That gives me more peace of mind about the weight distribution.
Thanks again
Gary
