How To Trailer A Motorcycle (Or Not)

Trailering a motorcycle can be a convenience or a necessity. Some folks choose to trailer their bikes to a large rally, then ride the bikes around town once they're there. (I call that CHEATING! But that's another story.) Other times, when a bike breaks down it has to be transported to a mechanic, or back home to your own shop to work on it.

I've trailered a few bikes over the years, and I've made mistakes along the way. From my experience, here's a list of what NOT to do.

1. Don't try this alone.

Bikes are heavy. Unless you can pick it up with one hand, you shouldn't try loading it on a trailer by yourself. Get help. At a minimum, you'll need someone to stand on the other side of the bike. If a bike starts to fall, it's easy for the person on the downside of the bike to position themselves to keep it from falling -- provided it hasn't tipped too far. It's almost impossible, and actually dangerous, for the person on the high side of the bike to try to stop its fall.

2. Don't forget the chock.

Expensive chocks are available to immobilize the front wheel. Inexpensive alternatives are available on eBay or your favorite dealership. Even a few blocks of wood fastened to the floor would do. Chocks keep the front wheel from moving, keeping the bike centered and upright. It's the foundation.

Adequate: Basic Motorcycle Chock

3. Don't use the kickstand.

A center stand might be okay to use, as it stabilizes the bike and centers it. But don't use the kickstand. Given the other stresses on the bike and the bouncing that will occur, the kickstand could bend. Or worse, could force the bike to tip with repeated bouncing.

I actually use neither the center stand nor the kickstand, because I personally believe that the bike's suspension is better able to absorb the bumps in the road.



4. Don't skimp on tie-down straps.

The best kind of tie-down straps are the ratcheting variety. Unless you're a body builder, you'll find it very hard to secure the bike using the "cam-buckle" straps, which rely on your own strength to tighten the strap. The cam-buckle prevents the strap from slipping lose, but offers no assistance in tightening the strap.

Bad: Cambuckle Tie-Down	Good: Ratcheting Tie-Down

The ratcheting strap, available at Walmart, at most Automotive Supply as well as specialty stores, uses a little lever handle to tighten the strap.

5. Don't under-tighten your straps.

Your objective in strapping down the bike is to compress the front suspension and place enough tension on the straps that the bike is held fast. A bump shouldn't loosen the straps. There should not be enough play in the strap that a bounce allows the strap hook to come free from its
anchor.

6. Don't over-tighten your straps.

Compress the forks with your tie down straps, but leave some room for more shock absorption. The bike will still compress the forks further when it hits the bump. If you remove all the travel from the shocks by compressing them fully, the shock of the bump will be transmitted freely to the bike. This will place undo strain on the shocks themselves, and to the bike. This is a good way to destroy your fork seals, and is completely unnecessary.

7. Don't hook the handlebars.

It might be tempting to use the handlebars as a place to secure the straps. Don't do it. They're not built for this. Depending on the bike, the handlebars could twist or bend under the strain. Better to attach to the lower end of the triple tree, around each fork. This is much more able to withstand the strain, and won't bent or shift.


8. Don't put a metal hook anyway near your bike.

Find yourself a set of "soft loops", sometimes called "soft straps", which are also available at trailer supply shops and some automotive shops. Harder to find than the cam-buckle or ratcheting straps, but a necessity if you care about your paint. These loops can loop around your triple tree, and extend perhaps a foot from your bike. Hook your ratcheting straps to these loops, and you're keeping the hard metal hooks well away from your bike.

This photo shows the soft loops attached to the triple tree as described, and metal the hooks a safe distance from the bike. 

9. Don't forget the back of the bike.

The primary means of securing the bike is by compressing the front forks. For the rear of the bike, you need to minimizing bouncing and keep it from shifting from side to side. Resist the temptation to use a luggage rack as a tie down point, as it's not built to withstand that kind of force.

Better to attach to the body of the bike, the wheel itself, or the swingarm.




10. Check Your Work!

Take your time to secure your bike before moving the trailer. After driving a mile, stop and recheck everything. Things shift on the trailer as you hit bumps and make turns.

Stop again after 10 miles and recheck your work. Once you've made it ten miles, you can ride for hundreds of miles if necessary.

If it rains, and your bike and straps are exposed to the weather, check them again. Water may loosen the straps or cause them to stretch.




Follow these tips and you'll have many miles of safe trailering, and your bike will arrive unscathed.