Yes I know passengers are prohibited on atv's unless specially made for them (what is it the bombardier?) but what fun is riding alone? Anyway on my 04.5 sp500HO i have a rear seat bolted down, it has padded armrests and a high back but no handles and the seat is so far back that the passenger can't reach the floorboards. I saw these fender protector bars online that bolt to the rack and floorboard and have a good solid structure to which a pair of bike footpegs could be bolted on nicely however they only went up to the 03 model. Does anyone know of a company that makes such a thing for the 04.5 models?

 

i saw those fender bars with pegs mounted to an '05 SP at my local dealer a month ago so i'm sure '03 was not the last year.

-MT

 

Im not tryin to poop on your passenger seat parade but, it sounds like you need to get rid of that seat. If you roll it to either side, the person in that seat isnt going to be able to get away from the quad as it rolls because of the high back and armrests.

 

i couldn't agree more! i can't understand why Polaris came-out with REAR FOOTPEGS in the first place. what were they thinking! rear pegs encourage 2 person riding.
and i'm quite sure that it will lead to a lot of 2 pass riding.........and DEATHS!
-MT

 

Bryan,
You gotta know when you mention a mortal sin like riding double around here, you're gonna set off a few nervous Nellies. No offense fellas, but are you the guys I seen riding your lawn tractors with helmets on? Seriously, I don't want start a barrage of safety lectures, but most people who do ride double do so sensibly and at very slow speeds on relatively even terrain. It's alot of fun to throw your wife or girlfriend on the back and go out for a nice leisurely little cruise if she's not the type that likes to drive herself. In Canada where they apparently don't feel the need to protect everyone from themselves and trust people to have common sense, 2-up riding is commonplace. I have rear seats for both of my Sportsmans. For my 05, I have the Kimpex Deluxe Trunk Seat that I attach using the new Lock and Ride expansion anchors. I used to mount the same seat on my 04 too, but I didn't use the steel U-bolts that came with it because it seemed they would eventually break the plastic racks. I attached it to the rack with 1/4" cable ties, which I'd just cut when I wanted to remove the seat. 7, I think I used. As for the foot pegs, they are an absolute neccessity. They make the passenger feel much more safe and secure than if their feet were just flying around everywhere. I fabricated my own out of aluminum and just bolted them to the front of the rear fenders right through the plastic, with backing plates behind. Very simple and plenty strong, and they don't really even seem to get in my way at all. This is one situation where the weight of the Sportsmans is a definite advantage. The way I have my seats anchored and footrests placed, riding with a passenger feels perfectly safe and solid. I cannot think of one instance where I had even the most remote feeling that we might tip. I believe this to be largely attributed to the heaviness of the Polaris. Again, the key being to use common sense and know enough not to ride outside your or your machine's limits, which I think most of us grown-ups do.

 

Ours is anchored with ubolts into a sheet of half inch plywood which is bolted down into the bolt holes that are in the rear rack, being that i just got it last year im not too keen on drilling into the fenders, this may sound kinda off the wall but there is that open spot on the front of the rear rack, almost looks like a handle, I was thinking of trying to find an old abused saddle, rob the stirrups from it and make a sling that runs from there just to be able to brace yourself, plus if i take them off they fit in the compartment on the seat. Believe me i have to ride careful, any time i forget there's a smack on my helmet just to remind me [img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-wink.gif[/img] Maybe i'll try to make the fender extension/footpeg mount myself, i've basic handtools and a drill press, i think the hardest part will be making equal bends in the bar as i dont have a pipe bender but we'll see what i come up with. Skunksquasher Bryant is actually my last name, then my first two initials [img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-tongue.gif[/img]

 

Sorry about that, JT.
Hey, any way you can make your passenger feel more comfortable and secure is a good thing. I leave my footrests on all the time, so I didn't really mind drilling the holes. I painted the things black so they almost look like they came from the factory. Put some of that sticky-backed sand paper stuff on too to prevent slippage. I can relate to the smack in the helmet thing too. If my speed creeps up, my wife threatens to "get out her punching fist"! Her words, not mine. Nice, huh? Where in NY is Winthrop? We're headin out to NY to ride at the end of the month. Hartwick-Cooperstown area.

 

Im about 30 minutes from Canada[img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-tongue.gif[/img] Not sure what towns you'd recognize nearby but Watertown and Plattsburgh are both nearby, well hour and a half away from where I am. Dunno if you are familiar with the colleges in upstate or not but I just graduated from Clarkson University in Potsdam (20 minutes away) with a BS in Mechanical Engineering. If you want a better look, heres a link to google maps of cooperstown as compared to winthrop Click me