Sidecar ballast is important to the rider new either to sidecar motorcycles in general or Ural motorcycles in particular. Getting the feel of riding a machine with a bunch of dead weight on one side – dead weight that loves to rise up and kiss the sky depending on the turn you’re taking – takes some getting used to, and ballast is how you get used to it.

Ballast was critical to me in my first weeks of riding. Here’s how much ballast I used in my Ural Patrol’s sidecar, where I put it, and how long I rode with it:

• 120 lbs. of ballast (3 40-lb. bags of stove pellets) for one week. 2 bags in the floor of the sidecar, one in the trunk
• 80 lbs. of ballast (2 40-lb. bags of stove pellets) for one week. 1 bag in floor of sidecar, one in the trunk
• 40 lbs. of ballast (1 40-lb. bag of stove pellets) for one week, 1 bag in floor of sidecar

Now I’m running with no ballast, and have been doing fine. For the first few days without ballast in the tub, I took it slow around the neighborhood, getting the feel for how the bike’s handling changed with braking, turning and acceleration. The bike handles very differently without ballast, and it takes getting used to. Finding an empty parking lot and practicing turns and braking is essential to knowing how your rig, and you, will handle and react.

It’s important to know how your sidecar rig will handle with and without ballast, especially when first getting used to your motorcycle. Find something you can put in the sidecar (dog food, pellets, potting soil, lead shot, whatever), and run a few weeks first around the 100-lb. mark and working your way down. You’ll feel much better about your rig, your riding ability and how you respond under different riding conditions.

For more opinions, ideas and recommendations about sidecar ballast, Soviet Steeds has a good discussion going: Best place for ballast,how much is enough:

“I started with (3) 40 pound bags of water conditioner salt on the side car seat and floor. try to keep the weight in the triangle (tip lines) between the 3 wheels. You take one out each time you get confident. about a week each. It took me about a month of regular riding to get to a nice comfort level with the transition from 2 to 3 wheels”

Read the whole discussion: Soviet Steeds Message Boards - Best place for ballast,how much is enough