Mount ST from the right...

st1300r said:

Here's a random video explaining the high side option.
I'm mostly a lefty since there's usually tools, compressor, 1st aid, rain gear in the away from traffic panier and my helmet if stowed is in the left side.

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Video shows right side mounting works well for folks with long legs and/or low seat height. However, for those of us who have shorter legs to get on the ST saddle with both feet (or just toes for some) on the ground, the bike will have to be pulled upright putting it in a most unstable position as there is nothing to stop it from laying over on the right side.

Mounting on the left keeps the bike in a stable, 3 contact point position until you can get both feet on the ground.
I have a friend who cracked a leg bone dismounting on on the right when another rider pulled too close to him on his left, leaving him no room on that side. He was out of riding for over a year rehabbing the injury as a result of that as well as having to buy a new mirror and saddlebag cover on his FJR.

Thanks for the info LOL

Grabcon said:

I am guessing that the origin of left side mounting or what is referred to in the horse world the near side.

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ddemair said:

I always mount from the left. It's the low side (when on the side stand) so it feels more natural.

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As with many concepts is warfare the father of things...
Due the majority of mankind being right handed, long blades like swords and rapiers are worn on the left side... this creates the necessity to approach and mount your horse from the left...
(and as little anecdote: to make fighting your opponent more efficient, left hand side traffic came up first...)

For some reasons the "mount from the left" concept was taken on in the motorcycle world, thus side-stand and controls for the main-stand are on the left side of the bike...

Another argument for mounting from the left is a possible unintended retraction of the side stand, during which the solid placed left leg would provide support to keep the vehicle upright...
Try the same situation being placed at the right side, with the mount falling away from you... likely you'll only end up falling on top of the already dropped motorcycle...

Another anecdote would source "waving" in the "salute" ... up to medieval ages was raising your weapon arm to open the visor of your armour/helmet a gesture of peace...

ST1100Y said:

thus side-stand and controls for the main-stand are on the left side of the bike...

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For those of us who remember when they started leaving kickstarters off of new bikes...and people scratching their heads and sayin' what were they thinkin;...anyway, anyone attempting to kickstart an old British single or any Hardly appreciated being able to hang their weight on the footpeg on the sidestand and really romp on that old kickstarter....more interesting in a backfire situation (remember variable spark advance?).....So my opinion is sidestands left because of kickstarter right....if they would have been backwards that would've carried over............two cents..........ff

ditto!

STripper said:

It is my understanding that police officers are either trained or advised to mount/dismount their bikes from right side, away from traffic. I have found myself stopped on narrow shoulders and decided that I felt safer dismounting to the right. Otherwise, when safe to do so, I'm a lefty.

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In the garage, since there is a wall to the left when the bike is parked in its spot, I get on and off from the right. When out in the open, it runs about 50-50 depending on whichever side I happen to walk up to, or which side has more room when dismounting.

Another thing I've gotten used to doing with the ST on trips when the back seat and luggage rack are generally loaded with tent, sleeping bag, etc, and to prevent scuffing the hard bags even when the bike isn't loaded, when mounting from either side I lead with my foot over the seat (back of calf on the saddle) and slide on (and off) that way, generally without holding the handlebars to prevent inadvertently pulling the bike toward me. Long legs are a definite plus for that technique.

slmjim said:

i like a two-finger squeeze on the front brake while I mount/dismount. It's easier to accomplish from the R side. More basically it's muscle memory. I learned learned R side (dis)mount on a bicycle as a kid. Don't know why...

Good Ridin'
slmjim

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Usually I'm a lefty there don't know why either Less likely to to get a nerd mark from the big ring? I'm left leg dominant maybe it just felt better if I missed a clipless and had to go around again with one leg to get the other locked in without coming to a stop up a hill and falling over. It's a circus getting out of one if you do go over and the down side shoe is clicked in DAMHIKT lol.

I get on and off all bicycles and also my ST from the left. Always have. Bicycles get laid on their left side if they are laid down, because all of the fragile moving bits are on the right side and I don't want them on the ground.

st1300r said:

Usually I'm a lefty there don't know why either Less likely to to get a nerd mark from the big ring? I'm left leg dominant maybe it just felt better if I missed a clipless and had to go around again with one leg to get the other locked in without coming to a stop up a hill and falling over. It's a circus getting out of one if you do go over and the down side shoe is clicked in DAMHIKT lol.

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Everyone, and I do mean EVERYONE, I know who has ever ridden clipless pedals on a bicycle has had the zero-mph "Oh crap"moment when they realize they've come to a complete stop and are still all-too-securely attached to the pedals.

Years ago, long before I returned to motorcycling, an observant friend of mine noticed that I always unclip from the left side and put that foot down. She asked if I'd ever ridden a motorcycle, and went on to remark that (most) bicyclists who have been or are motorcycle riders tend to do it that way, where (most) bicyclists who have never ridden motorcycles tend to release the right foot. Had to do with using the rear foot to operate the rear brake versus using it to rest on the curb as a support was her theory, and it made sense to me.

flyfisher said:

For those of us who remember when they started leaving kickstarters off of new bikes...and people scratching their heads and sayin' what were they thinkin;...anyway, anyone attempting to kickstart an old British single or any Hardly appreciated being able to hang their weight on the footpeg on the sidestand and really romp on that old kickstarter....more interesting in a backfire situation (remember variable spark advance?).....So my opinion is sidestands left because of kickstarter right....if they would have been backwards that would've carried over............two cents..........ff

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Really?......guess you never had the pleasure of kicking over a 400cc two-stroke Husky, Bultaco, a 501cc two-stroke Maico, or 360cc CZ.

You're right about never kicking one over....never even seen them that I remember....did they have kickstarters on the left? I led such a sheltered life.......ff

dc112675 said:

Left-sider too.

One of the advantages to left side mount is that I use my momentum to upright the bike (to disengage the side stand) as I'm mounting.

If you put your right foot on the right peg and then swing your left foot to the left peg, then you're sitting on a bike with the stand still down! You then have to take both feet back off the pegs to put up the stand.

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This has been an amusing, interesting, intriguing, and thought-provoking thread for me. Mounting the bike from behind by doing a broad jump and watching out for the handlebars is one that comes to mind.

One that I haven't gotten a handle on yet is how the crown of the road is related to parking, mounting, and dismounting a motorcycle. I've only been riding ~39 years now, but I haven't yet encountered any necessity nor opportunity to park on the road. Only way I can visualize that happening would be a LEO or emergency responder at the scene of an accident, and I've never fit either of those categories, although I realize there are members of the forum that do.

I sometimes mount my ST from the RH side when it's parked in the garage. I have to park it on the CS because of space considerations, and it's often easier to mount from the right because I have more room to do so. When parked on the CS, it makes no difference to me which side I mount it from. I'm in the habit of always applying the front brake when I mount up, and can easily do that with my right hand from either side.

I found this post both amusing and thought-provoking, as it implies (at least to me, though I may be misinterpreting it) that one can put up the side stand with the right foot on the peg. Since one can't shift into gear with the side stand down, the only way I can visualize this achievement would be to tilt the bike upright, raise the side stand, quickly shift into 1st and take off before dropping the bike, all of which would require some really fancy acrobatics. I would like to see someone try this sometime (from a safe distance, of course). The outcome would either be amusing (although not to the rider who just dropped his bike) or amazing (if he/she actually succeeded).

Thanks to everyone who responded to this thread for the entertainment value,,,

Don B said:

One that I haven't gotten a handle on yet is how the crown of the road is related to parking, mounting, and dismounting a motorcycle.

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My best guess is that without a crown on the road the area of the road adjacent to the curb on which we park would be ruler flat and there'd never be any consideration about how to park so the bike is completely stable. As motorcycles traditionally park approximately perpendicular to the curb the length of the bike puts them on the roadway.

Don B said:

Since one can't shift into gear with the side stand down

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I didn't see any qualifier that this thread was limited to STs. Even though this is an ST forum people do ride other bikes. I've only been riding for ~48 years so I 'm fairly new to all this as well and was unaware that all modern bikes had this safety interlock. I've been able to do this on all my previous bikes but usually not when turning to the left from a start.

LOL! :lol:

Historical it would be interested to know if the very first bike with a side-stand even had a kick-start and vice versa... ;-)
Anyone living near a motorcycle-museum?


Another, yet untouched aspect of this issue is where to place the sockets/outlets for the intercom and other accessories...

Since I (as well as any potential GIBs are getting trained to) usually mount from the left, are my Autocom leads placed on the LHS of the bike...
(an additional safety-reason is that they'll never interfere with my throttle/brake hand when routed at the left... so also my PTT switch-pod and the GPS are located at the left)

If one installs FM or radio aerials, he might as well rather place them at the right side of the bike, so their out of the way while mounting...

ST1100Y said:

LOL! :lol:

Historical it would be interested to know if the very first bike with a side-stand even had a kick-start and vice versa... ;-)
Anyone living near a motorcycle-museum?


Another, yet untouched aspect of this issue is where to place the sockets/outlets for the intercom and other accessories...

Since I (as well as any potential GIBs are getting trained to) usually mount from the left, are my Autocom leads placed on the LHS of the bike...
(an additional safety-reason is that they'll never interfere with my throttle/brake hand when routed at the left... so also my PTT switch-pod and the GPS are located at the left)

If one installs FM or radio aerials, he might as well rather place them at the right side of the bike, so their out of the way while mounting...

Click to expand...

My Autocom leads come out between the seat and gas tank. I run my cable under my jacket. I have zero leads to get in the way of the bars.

Brant said:

Really?......guess you never had the pleasure of kicking over a 400cc two-stroke Husky, Bultaco, a 501cc two-stroke Maico, or 360cc CZ.

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Still remember my old Norton...if she didn't start after 2 kicks...might as well take off all the gear, 'cause you were going to be at it for quite awhile... <sigh>

I have enjoyed reading this all six pages. It has been very entertaining, and sometimes just plain funny. I tend to mount and dismount from the left, on Motorcycles or Horses. In my garage due to lack of room, I have to get on and off from the right. Although way back in my Rodeo days I would Dismount my Roping Horse from the right when roping a Calf.

Truthfully, this is the only way I get on...........
http://youtu.be/aEXqhTX0meI

Interesting fashion. What ever works I guess! LOL

Sent from my 831C using Tapatalk

fnmag said:

I thought I was the only rider to mount my ST like that.

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Horses have neither handlebars nor horns. Try this too many times and your voice will go up an octave or two.

ST1100Y said:

As with many concepts is warfare the father of things...
Due the majority of mankind being right handed, long blades like swords and rapiers are worn on the left side... this creates the necessity to approach and mount your horse from the left...
(and as little anecdote: to make fighting your opponent more efficient, left hand side traffic came up first...)

Click to expand...

Now this makes more horse sense to me than anything else. So why don't any of those desperados in all the westerns with big hoglegs strapped to their right thigh mount their horse from the right? Since there was often no restraining loop over the hammer (watch some of those 'authentic' westerns) seems to me if you tried to swing your right leg up and over the horse, your ahhhhhhh, roscoe would fall to the ground (to borrow a term from a later era). if this happened to a cowboy, he would be laughed out of town.....

As for that anecdote, either the warriors on the continent were lefties* or they were equally adept slashing and mashing on either side. Ambidextrous we call it.

*Danged if I can figure out how they got the sword into their left hand, hanging it from their left side belt.......