Why do they ride one-handed?

[Stig / Major Tom]

I understand why sport riders ride with only one hand on the grip -- because they thought these bikes look coolest, now find out it kills their back to hunch over the tank like a racer.
But Harley riders? A bunch just passed through town as I  sit here having coffee ......4 of the 5 were riding one handed. Two of them with their throttle hand off.
If a person darts out between some cars....?
Is it that tiring to keep boths hands on the bars?

.....just stig grousing over his coffee...

[CROSSBOLT]

On a Harley one hand goes to sleep from the vibration!

[GLV55]

Most of the handle bars are so high off the fork that it has to affect blood flow to the hands and arms. Just my .02 cents worth...

[ophelia]

I ride one-handed sometimes to change my body position and stretch, and other times I do it to revisit what I know about counter-steering. Anything to keep my mind stimulated and focused on riding.

I've rebooted Bluetooth headsets and waved at other riders before. One time the curve tightened up halfway through, so I stopped waving and returned my left hand back to the grip for a bit more leverage.

One of my instructor friends suggested crossing arms and trying to counter-steer in wide circles in a parking lot as a trickier mental exercise.

[ScooterWolf]

I’ve dropped a hand when waiting at a light, but never when riding. If they drop the left hand, so won’t that slow or impair their reactions in an emergency or panic stop if they need to pull in the clutch?

- Wolf

[stuo]

Maybe they don't have enough brain power to control two hands at the same time?

[Viper254]

It's so they can fully embrace the horror of the situation when it tank-slaps

[Stig / Major Tom]

Sitting at my coffee village at 6:30 this warm morning watched an expensive looking all black bike come through town.....noisily clanking through the gears with his hands above his helmet.
Looked so comfy....
Stig

[ophelia]

I’ve dropped a hand when waiting at a light, but never when riding. If they drop the left hand, so won’t that slow or impair their reactions in an emergency or panic stop if they need to pull in the clutch?

- Wolf

I assume that if for you pulling in the clutch is going to make or break an emergency stop, then likely you're travelling at pretty low speed to begin with and should probably have both your hands on the bars anyways. Otherwise, there should be enough range of available engine speed to let you brake hard without stalling until your hand gets back onto the left grip.

Unless you mean a situation where your engine or transmission undergoes catastrophic failure, in which case I heartily recommend checking over your bike every few months for safety! I put maintenance into my machines, so I don't rely on faith alone. It also makes me uneasy riding other people's bikes.

Otherwise if I am misunderstanding you, please elaborate.

I'm used to having a certain level of engine braking and downshifting as I go for hard deceleration too, so I don't tend to clutch in and hold for emergency stops until I'm near stopped.

[hypophthalmus]

Is it bad to stall during an emergency stop?

[Stig / Major Tom]

What's a clutch?

Stig

(Son forced me to ride his CB500X the other day. What an adventure....not been on a motorcycle since taking that safety riding class from the State a few yrs ago. His Honda is so easy to ride. Ease off the clutch and it pulls away with no throttle needed. Put a lowering kit on it...I might let him sell it to me. Comfy upright riding position. Lovely build quality.)

[ophelia]

Is it bad to stall during an emergency stop?

It can be quite unsettling if you aren't prepared for it. The sudden lurch may cause you to lose your balance and drop the bike.

CB500X is an awesome bike. Although I have friends that really enjoy the NC750X DCT for their twist-and-go action.