Loading a bike into a tuck or trailer

[Nelly]

I will be taking my bike to a track this year and have read some good advice on this forum about not riding to the track as you will have more energy to enjoy the day.
I have never put a bike on a trailer or in a van. Some of you have experience in doing this. Please share ti with me and if you got any pictures that would be great to.

Neil

[grommit]

Not very helpful but...

Plumber was doing our bathroom and was there for a few days. I would be playing, sorry working, on me bikes in the garage, I had a small 125 SM style bike I had used to get my bike legs back some years ago. I wanted to get rid of it but had not done anything about it. I mentioned this to the guy in passing, he said that he was interested. So a deal was struck and a discount on the work he was doing obtained.

So to get it in his van we put a plank of wood up the back of the van onto the bumper I started the bike up and pushed it up the ramp till it got to the bumper and then used the engine power to get over the step while he dragged it in from the van and lent it against his stuff.

So a plank of wood and brute force then.

[reiobard]

just try to load it from a hill to keep the angle of the ramp lower, and for petes sakes don;t stop the bike while it is on it's way up the ramp... if you stop then it is easier to lose balance, also if you can get 2 ramps, one for the bike and one for you to walk up so that you are always on the same level as the bike.

[Fred]

Here's how I load bikes without any additional help into my 95 Nissan truck. It's a 2wd so it's nice and low to the ground. Some trucks may not be this easy, but that's the fault of the owners for buying the 13" lift kit!

First, park the truck so that the back wheels are in a ditch or low spot. It'll help a lot.

Your ramp should have a safety cable that connects to the truck. With the safety cable in place, it should be impossible for you to pull the ramp backwards and have it come off of the tailgate of the truck. This is important, since you'll be using the bike's engine to drive the bike up the ramp. The rear wheel will try and kick the ramp backwards.

So, with the bike running, stand on the left side of it and put it into 1st gear. Let out the clutch and ride/walk the bike up the ramp.

You'll have to stop when your knees are about to hit the tailgate. No problem. Pull in the clutch, squeeze the front brakes, and climb up into the truck bed by first putting your knees up on the tailgate, and then standing up.
Now keep driving the bike forward until it's all the way on the truck.

As far as tying it down, you want at least four straps holding the bike down. Two in front, two in back.

Attach the straps to the bike's frame in the back, and to the handlebars or even better, the tripleclamps in the front. With the FZ6 fairing it's a little tricky to get the straps in position where they won't rub the fairing. Try running the right front strap to the left fork tube above the lower tripleclamp, and vice versa for the left strap. Always make sure that your straps are not pinching any wiring. And secure the loose ends of the strap unless you want your paint to take a beating.

Don't be afraid to crank those straps down. You want to compress the suspension some. Once you're done, the bike should be standing vertically on both wheels, and rocking the bike from side to side should move the entire truck.

Lastly load the ramp and strap it into place so it won't rattle around and beat up your wheels.

Have fun at the track!

Fred

Originally Posted by Fred

Here's how I load bikes without any additional help into my 95 Nissan truck. It's a 2wd so it's nice and low to the ground. Some trucks may not be this easy, but that's the fault of the owners for buying the 13" lift kit!

First, park the truck so that the back wheels are in a ditch or low spot. It'll help a lot.

Your ramp should have a safety cable that connects to the truck. With the safety cable in place, it should be impossible for you to pull the ramp backwards and have it come off of the tailgate of the truck. This is important, since you'll be using the bike's engine to drive the bike up the ramp. The rear wheel will try and kick the ramp backwards.

So, with the bike running, stand on the left side of it and put it into 1st gear. Let out the clutch and ride/walk the bike up the ramp.

You'll have to stop when your knees are about to hit the tailgate. No problem. Pull in the clutch, squeeze the front brakes, and climb up into the truck bed by first putting your knees up on the tailgate, and then standing up.
Now keep driving the bike forward until it's all the way on the truck.

As far as tying it down, you want at least four straps holding the bike down. Two in front, two in back.

Attach the straps to the bike's frame in the back, and to the handlebars or even better, the tripleclamps in the front. With the FZ6 fairing it's a little tricky to get the straps in position where they won't rub the fairing. Try running the right front strap to the left fork tube above the lower tripleclamp, and vice versa for the left strap. Always make sure that your straps are not pinching any wiring. And secure the loose ends of the strap unless you want your paint to take a beating.

Don't be afraid to crank those straps down. You want to compress the suspension some. Once you're done, the bike should be standing vertically on both wheels, and rocking the bike from side to side should move the entire truck.

Lastly load the ramp and strap it into place so it won't rattle around and beat up your wheels.

Have fun at the track!

Fred

Dude, ride the bike up the ramp. You can ride it down the street and not vary your line more than 12" so why would you not be able to do the same on a ramp? Anyway you look at it loading a bike while riding is just a controlled crash anyway.

[DefyInertia]

Fred, good advice.

HavBlue, if you can't put your feet down at all times, I would not recommend riding it onto the truck. Although I've been tempted, this would not be a good option for me.

I have a 4x4 tacoma, so the height is more of an issue. I use a very wide 4' x 6' ATV ramp in conjuction with a 6' 2x12 board to load my street bike by myself and without engine power. I can push my dirtbike up on flat ground without the board (db has more clearance too).

I generally lock the steering column and place the front wheel against the back of the bed and with the bike in gear...it won't go anywhere this way.

[Fred]

Originally Posted by HavBlue

Dude, ride the bike up the ramp. You can ride it down the street and not vary your line more than 12" so why would you not be able to do the same on a ramp?

Two reasons.
1. My ramp is only 8" wide.
2. My balls just aren't that big.

Fred

[sportrider]

Originally Posted by Fred

First, park the truck so that the back wheels are in a ditch or low spot. It'll help a lot.

So, with the bike running, stand on the left side of it and put it into 1st gear. Let out the clutch and ride/walk the bike up the ramp.

You'll have to stop when your knees are about to hit the tailgate. No problem. Pull in the clutch, squeeze the front brakes, and climb up into the truck bed by first putting your knees up on the tailgate, and then standing up.
Now keep driving the bike forward until it's all the way on the truck.


Fred

+1 that's how I do it

http://www.fz6-forum.com/forum/how-s...bike-pics.html

as far as riding it up the ramp: I used to load my dirt bikes like that, but my CR250 only weighed 215lbs. and if I dropped it, it wouldn't do hundreds of dollars in damage. I still use my moto ramp to load the FZ into the truck. it's not rated for that much weight but it has held up good so far.
another option for getting your bike into the truck is. if you have some buddys(three) handy you can lift it into the truck, I have loaded my bike this way too.
1. line the bike up with the trucks tailgate as close as you can get it, lift the front end by the botton of the fork legs and the handle bars (one person on each side) put the front tire on the tailgate. have someone get in the truck and stabilize the bike.
2. lift the tail into the bike, by the swing arm. once you have the tail high enough walk the bike into the truck.

Guys, as mentioned above, it's that balls factor. You may be loading a 2 to 4 hundred pound bike but why is it folks with a 6 to 8 hundred pound bike ride it up the ramp not having the ability to touch the ground and they don't seem to have a problem. Yeah, and that bike they are loading costs 4 times as much as the bikes you are putting in. I know, it's just that Harley riders got no brains right? Maybe not but we apparently have some big balls....... snicker snicker....

[DefyInertia]

*rolling my eyes*

Loading a low and heavy cruiser onto a trailer to go to sturgis is much different than loading a sportbike onto a 4x4 truck after dragging your knee for 250 miles / 8 hours in 90 degree heat.

I prefer the slow but sure/safe method