Ultimate shoulder rides

its tough to gauge since many of the pics were taken from a distance, but while id be happy to carry almost any of them (i carried an old girlfriend in tandem waterskiing some years ago, and totally enjoyed it) there are two things that make a ride more secure, and more fun as a result for me. First, i prefer to have the rider sitting partially on the base of my neck (almost pushing my head forward) since this positions her better in line with my spine, and makes the ride more comfortable, more natural. In this case, someone like rider no. 5 is best. the second thing is i prefer to have the rider hook her legs lower down my back (like riders 12 and 13) rather than right under my armpits (rider 10) since this makes her move more in line with my torso and back, rather than just shoulders. this also makes for a more natural movement and better ride.

thanks for the photos/

ride me wrote:

its tough to gauge since many of the pics were taken from a distance, but while id be happy to carry almost any of them (i carried an old girlfriend in tandem waterskiing some years ago, and totally enjoyed it) there are two things that make a ride more secure, and more fun as a result for me. First, i prefer to have the rider sitting partially on the base of my neck (almost pushing my head forward) since this positions her better in line with my spine, and makes the ride more comfortable, more natural. In this case, someone like rider no. 5 is best. the second thing is i prefer to have the rider hook her legs lower down my back (like riders 12 and 13) rather than right under my armpits (rider 10) since this makes her move more in line with my torso and back, rather than just shoulders. this also makes for a more natural movement and better ride.

thanks for the photos/

It's a pleasure to read this excellent recipe for a natural and secure ride, with a minimum of strain on the carrier's spine.  I'm pleased to report that this technique, particularly the part about being astride the base of the carrier's neck, guarantees a great deal of pleasure for the rider.  The only detail I'd like to add is that the point where the rider's feet are hooked behind the carrier's back depends in part on how tall each of them is.  I'm short, and my boyfriend is tall, so my feet don't reach far down his back as they would if I were taller.  For me a basic objective is to hug my rider's torso with my legs with as much contact as possible.  That makes us stable and happy.  Adding to that the fact that we're both muscular and athletic, we're hard to beat in chicken fights.  

There are various ways of mounting, of course, but as long as the rider's center of gravity is directly over the carrier's spine, the effort is minimized and the fun is optimized.

Please forgive me if I sound as though I'm preaching to the converted.  I'm sure that all, or at least most, of the members of this club are perfectly aware of all this.

Liz