Why and When to Stand on Your Motorcycle

There are several motorcycle riding techniques that you must learn to become an expert rider. The most common riding techniques include leaning, cornering, hanging off, adjusting your weight, and swerving if you want to improve your riding skills and ensure a safe riding experience. Another important riding technique that you must learn if you are an off-road rider is standing on your motorcycle/footpegs. This technique is mostly used in extreme off-road riding and while tackling tough terrain with many obstacles. Standing on your motorcycle has several benefits while riding off-road. However, you must learn first when the right time to stand on your motorcycle is. Read this article to learn why and when to stand on your motorcycle.

Some riders are not familiar with standing on their motorcycle while off-roading. Meanwhile, there are riders who are standing on the footpegs the whole time while riding off-road. If you are standing on your motorcycle the whole time, it can cause you fatigue and you will not be able to enjoy the ride. Let’s get into why and when you should stand on your motorcycle and what benefits it has.

Riding a motorcycle, particularly off-road, can be very tiring. Sitting in a fixed position without getting to stretch your muscles can cause body aches. When you stand on your motorcycle every now and then, you stretch your legs and keep them active throughout the adventurous ride.

When you are standing on your motorcycle, your knees act like springs and take some of the pressure while riding off-road and the shock is not transferred to your back. However, sitting constantly as your bike hits bumps and other irregularities on the dirt trail, puts unnecessary pressure on your back, resulting in severe back pain. So, it can be beneficial to stand on your motorcycle when required.

During off-road rides, your bike may hit a huge bump or obstacle that causes the suspensions to load more than their capacities. Adventure bikes are usually installed with hard side cases and trunk bags which add a lot of weight to them. If you are not standing, your weight will also put pressure on suspensions. When the suspensions are loaded more than their capacities while hitting an obstacle, the kinetic energy causes the shocks to oppose the movement abruptly, causing the motorcycle to lose balance and control, which can result in a terrible motorcycle crash.

When you are standing on your motorcycle/footpegs and squeezing your motorcycle with your knees, it improves your flexibility and the motorbike’s maneuverability. You can improve cornering and take sharp U-turns easily while standing on your footpegs.

You can immediately change your direction if there is an obstacle ahead due to your athletic stance.

When you are standing on your motorcycle, you can ensure a good balance and a good command over your motorcycle. This is not true if you are riding an on-road motorcycle on a smooth and paved road and it can even decrease your capability to handle your motorcycle well. However, when it comes to off-road riding on an adventure, dual sports, or a dirt bike, standing on your footpegs ensures better handling. When you are standing on your motorcycle, make sure to squeeze the fuel tank with your knees to enable better control of your motorcycle. It can help you maneuver difficult terrain.

A good reason to stand on your motorcycle/footpegs while off-road or trail riding is to ensure a good view of the terrain ahead of you. When you are standing, you can see the obstacles that are right in front of you, which are usually not visible while you are sitting. It can help you judge the risks/threats and take immediate action to avoid falling from your motorcycle due to hitting an obstacle. You do not need to stand on your motorcycle if the terrain ahead of you is visible or you are riding your motorcycle on relatively even terrain.

Some motorcycles have large windshields installed on their fairings to block incoming wind. You can stand on your motorcycle to allow more air to flow around your body to cool off.

Make sure you only stand on your motorcycle at the right time as it is not always safe to be in the standing position.

• When you stand on your motorcycle, the center of gravity increases, resulting in a loss of handling capability of your motorcycle. 
• When you are standing on your motorcycle, you lose some control and grip on your handlebars. Meanwhile, when you are sitting on your motorcycle while off-road riding, your arms are bent and in a bench-press position to allow better control of your motorcycle.
• When you are standing on your motorcycle, you do not have comfortable access to the hand control, foot controls, levers, and throttle.
• When you are in a standing position, you are not in a good position to react in case of an emergency or if you have to apply brakes suddenly. 
• There are several instances when you have to tap your feet to the ground while riding on challenging terrain to gain balance and control of your motorcycle. When you are standing on your motorcycle, you are not in the position to tap your feet to the ground.

Note: Stand on your motorcycle when the road is too bumpy and full of obstacles. You do not need to stand on your footpegs while riding on flat, smooth, even, or gravel terrain.

Sitting on a motorcycle is the preferred riding position. Meanwhile, standing on your motorcycle/footpegs is a riding technique, mostly used by off-road riders to overcome challenging terrain and obstacles. There are several reasons why you should stand on your motorcycle as mentioned in this article. However, you must only stand on your motorcycle when required. If the terrain is even, smooth, flat, or only gravel, there is no need to ride your motorcycle in an uncomfortable pose.

If you are looking to improve the performance, look, and safety of your motorcycle, Viking Bags offer good-quality motorcycle parts, including sissy bars, sissy bar pads, crash bars, and comfortable seats. Viking Bags also has a wide range of luggage bags for your adventure touring motorcycles, including saddlebags, tank bags, tail bags, roll bags, and seat bags.