How to load a bike into a pickup without ending up on YouTube.

[kevin_stevens]

After twenty or so trackdays, I've got this down. It requires a bit of investment, but reduces the odds of compound fractures, bike drops, and pickup damage to an absolute minimum. And you can do it yourself. And loading/unloading the bike no longer has to be the scariest part of the track day.

Ramps - I don't have even close to the skills necessary to balance a bike on a 6" ramp while I push or power it up and step onto a cooler and then the bed of the pickup. Disaster waiting to happen. If you can do this reliably and repeatedly, give up trackdays and get a job on the high wire in the circus. Instead, I use a *real* set of ramps.



These are 9' arched ramps. They fold in half, are aluminum, and in three sections so you can lift them easily. They are wide enough that you can sit on the bike normally and slowly walk it up under power. The ridged rungs are not wide enough apart to worry about your foot slipping through and having a catastrophic fall. The pad prevents tailgate scratching, I will eventually glue rubber pads to the ramp lips.

You should *always* strap a ramp to the tow vehicle before use. If you don't, sooner or later it will fall off the tailgate along with you and the motorcycle. Not good. The ratchet strap is run parallel to the ground to a hard point on the truck frame, in this case the safety chain mount on the trailer hitch. You see in the second photo that I connect the three sections of the ramps together at the same time, this prevents them from sliding apart.





The final piece is how to hold the bike in place once it's in the bed. You can do this by simply running tiedowns to suitable low/forward locations and pulling the front wheel against the front of the bed. However, I always worry about the wheel cocking during travel when I do that, and since I don't have my own truck, I have to adapt to whatever tiedown points are available. Because of this, I highly recommend a wheel chock. Shown is the Baxley Sport Chock, which is superior to all others in reliability, fit, weight and size. It is, however, expensive. A cheap substitute from Harbor Freight or Cycle Gear will work just as well, it's just not as nice. In the picture I have a yellow piece of poly in front of the chock just to be sure it doesn't touch the bed of the pickup since it's a rental. Not really necessary.

Here's how it looks all ready to go. Confidence-inspiring, isn't it?



Now we just ride the bike slowly up the ramp and into the chock...



Once it's in the chock, it isn't going anywhere. However, the whole shooting match can and will still fall over during the dynamics of cornering, braking, etc. So you still need to tie down, though not with the vigor and concern required if you don't use a chock. I use a Cycle Cynch to provide tie down points at the bar ends. Other people use other methods, that's fine. I use the CC because the original Canyon Dancers pulled on the switchgear and throttle and damaged them on one of my bikes. The Canyon Dancer 2 has supposedly fixed this, but I bought the CC before the CD2 came out, so I'm already set.

Bike in Baxley chock. Note the positive hook latch.



With Cycle Cynch and tiedowns in place.



Lastly, I tie the rear of the bike down. This serves two purposes. One, if you are carrying two bikes, or have limited clearance to the side of the bed, the rear of the bike will bounce around somewhat and can hit something. And if it can, it will. Second, if you are in an actual accident, you don't want the bike to flip over forward and crash into the top of the cab that you are sitting under. I do this in a couple of different ways, but my standard is to run a ratchet tie sideways across the rear of the bed, with a wrap around the rim/tire of the bike. Pad this with a rag and cinch it down only mildly tight. Sorry, don't have a pic.

Load the ramps, strap them down so they don't slide into the bike, and you're good to go. Should look something like this when you arrive at your destination. If the bike isn't still in the bed of the truck, vertical, you've done it wrong.



Enjoy the track!

KeS

[NeedinJustice]

Very useful, Kevin!

[Alawicious]

Well done sir

[kevin_stevens]

This is how to NOT do it, as far as I'm concerned.

YouTube - How To Load A Motorcycle Alone

Consider - this guy is *really* good at this. He's good enough that he wants to share his technique with people on YouTube. There's no flipping way I'd do this without dropping the bike four out of the first ten times I tried it, and I bet he couldn't do it 95% of the time - which means he'll drop the bike one out of every five trips to the track.

Maybe I'm either uncoordinated or a coward, but... so be it.

KeS

[GreyWolf]

I usually just ask someone at the track to help me load up 'cause I got one of those skinny 6" arched ramps too! The other way I've found is I inadvertently purchased a ATV ramp which is wayyyyy different (doesn't have the arch as I found out after high siding my bottom fairing on it without anyone around to help out. That was my first pair of fairings I had to buy!). So, putting that side by side to the bike ramp I can now walk it up. I also use the straps from the ramps and hook them to the hooks in the back of my pickup. got pics around here someplace. When I get back home (I'm on a business trip right now) I'll dig 'em up and post.
But with a beauty of a bike like yours, sir, I would indeed invest in what you have come up with!!! Nicely done!

[Electrical_Tech]

I tried using my ATV ramps to load my ZZR to bring the bike to my road test. Sadly with the bike being lowered at the time, and the ramp angle being too steep, the lower fairing got scratched when the bike bottomed out .

So I ended up taking the 250 instead as it had the clearance required to get up in the truck.

[Joe]

Another how not too. actually this is how always loaded dirt bikes in my younger days, just a bit slower

YouTube - KTM Crashes into back of 93 Dodge

[NeedinJustice]

Tard!

[Electrical_Tech]

Originally Posted by Joe

Another how not too. actually this is how always loaded dirt bikes in my younger days, just a bit slower

YouTube - KTM Crashes into back of 93 Dodge

Is that the one where he jumps the bike into the back of a cargo van? That had to hurt ...

[GreyWolf]

Originally Posted by Electrical_Tech

I tried using my ATV ramps to load my ZZR to bring the bike to my road test. Sadly with the bike being lowered at the time, and the ramp angle being too steep, the lower fairing got scratched when the bike bottomed out .

So I ended up taking the 250 instead as it had the clearance required to get up in the truck.

Yeah, mine highsided and no one was around so I just went ahead and forced it up. *Crack* and there goes the bottom (which meant both side fairings needed replacement!). I use the ATV ramp as my ladder and the Bike ramp for the bike now. Ahhhh, life's little lessons, eh?