At some point I'm going to tip over. Last time it was a few years ago on my Kawasaki Concourse. In the gravel between the gas station pavement and the highway, I put my left foot down into a pot hole and over she went. I could just pick Connie up. Now I'm older and not getting stronger so I'd real have trouble picking up a fallen FJR. I know there are portable winches the are designed to pick up fallen bikes but I cannot find any on line. Any suggestions?
Motorcycle Tip Over Winch
- Thread starter fasteddy
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Always ride with a young, strong passenger.
RossKean
Well-known member
Stevek
New member
I would suggest crash bars , it protects your bike, also stops it from going so far over. Use your legs to lift and walk it up.
I typically ride solo. I can pick up my T-Rex-equipped FJR in good conditions (e.g. flat, hard ground), but dropped it last summer on the side-slope of a steep asphalt incline (Hells Canyon Dam access road). It fell to the downhill side and I could not pick it up. On level ground, the crash bars hold the FJR up at about a 20º angle, so I only have to bring it up the last 70º or so. For this incident, the bike was close to horizonal, so I would have to raise it up from the 90º point. Just couldn't do it. I wound up dragging the back end around - rotating it 180º - to get it in position where I could get it upright. Fortunately, there was no damage that a file and a rattle can couldn't fix. But it made me think about what I'd do in less-ideal conditions. Subsequently, I bought a MotoWinch.
Two weeks later, I was riding my 450-lb Tenere 700 in the mountains and lazily dropped it in deep gravel on a logging road, right up against a steep hillside. Normally, the T7 is easy for me to pick up, but there was no room for me to get down low between the bike and the hillside so I could use my back and legs. My only grab-point was from the hillside above the bike. I did not have the arm and shoulder strength to pick it up from above.
I had just started dragging the bike out to rotate it like I had the JFR, when a truck towing a horse trailer came up the road. The driver stopped and helped me get the bike upright.
I hadn't thought I'd need a MotoWinch for such a (relatively) light bike, but it sure would have come in handy that day. I carry it on both bikes now.
Two weeks later, I was riding my 450-lb Tenere 700 in the mountains and lazily dropped it in deep gravel on a logging road, right up against a steep hillside. Normally, the T7 is easy for me to pick up, but there was no room for me to get down low between the bike and the hillside so I could use my back and legs. My only grab-point was from the hillside above the bike. I did not have the arm and shoulder strength to pick it up from above.
I had just started dragging the bike out to rotate it like I had the JFR, when a truck towing a horse trailer came up the road. The driver stopped and helped me get the bike upright.
I hadn't thought I'd need a MotoWinch for such a (relatively) light bike, but it sure would have come in handy that day. I carry it on both bikes now.
We used the Moto Winch on our Alaskan Tour up to the Salmon River. My friend lost it on a downhill section and the bike went over on the steep side. Try as we might the three of us couldn't lift the bike enough to pull it upright back onto the road. The MotoWinch gave us just enough lift of the fully loaded GSA to get the bike upright. It took us awhile to figure out how to make the MotoWinch work in our situation and using it the first time but it worked! Quite impressive piece of equipment.
RossKean
Well-known member
I have dropped a bike a few times (at almost zero speed) and have struggled sometimes to get it upright. I am 200 lb, reasonably fit and know the right techniques. One instance was at a campground when the FJR's sidestand sank in deceptively loose gravel. The bike ended out with the top tilted downslope and I BARELY was able to stand it up with boots and tires slipping in the gravel - adrenaline helped. (Not usually an issue for me on level terrain as long as the wheels don't skid on sand or dirt.)
Last summer, I dumped my BMW F700GS in deep loose sand (in the rain) at a pull-off spot on QC 389 on the way up to the TransLab. Despite the fact that the F700GS is 200 lb lighter than the FJR, it was well loaded (top heavy) and I could not pick it up until I unpacked the bike.
Still, I don't carry a winch but it would have been useful in both those situations.
2GENAE
Well-known member
https://ridermagazine.com/2019/01/24/motobikejack-gear-review/ I have one of these divided in three separate bags to even the 8 lbs weight.
One in each side bag and last one in trunk for solo long trips. I'm tall and 73 with arthritis in my hands and lower back reason I ride a AE no clutch lever
after 5 plus decades of riding. This jack works great when your fully loaded riding solo.
One in each side bag and last one in trunk for solo long trips. I'm tall and 73 with arthritis in my hands and lower back reason I ride a AE no clutch lever
after 5 plus decades of riding. This jack works great when your fully loaded riding solo.
NVDucati
Member
I do long rides by myself on heavy touring bikes.
This year I went X-country California to Cape Code and back to Albuquerque. My one worry was that tip-over on the side of a back road while stopping for a leak. I started carrying one of those inflatable lift bags that the Jeep crowd use. It folds up flat and thin and rides on the back seat under my dry bag. I carry my tire pump in that same dry bag so that both are available regardless of which side it falls on. Deflated it is about ~ an inch thick so it can get under the fallen bike and I don't think it will do any measurable damage using it.
_ They run about $125 USD. They are popular with the off-roaders because they pack away well but more importantly because they work in the mud or sand. A conventional bumper jack sinks. I haven't had to use it yet but I did test it on my Ford Ranger pickup. The common Slime pump lifted the truck (both wheels) in about 8 minutes.
OFF ROAD JACK on Amazon
This year I went X-country California to Cape Code and back to Albuquerque. My one worry was that tip-over on the side of a back road while stopping for a leak. I started carrying one of those inflatable lift bags that the Jeep crowd use. It folds up flat and thin and rides on the back seat under my dry bag. I carry my tire pump in that same dry bag so that both are available regardless of which side it falls on. Deflated it is about ~ an inch thick so it can get under the fallen bike and I don't think it will do any measurable damage using it.
_ They run about $125 USD. They are popular with the off-roaders because they pack away well but more importantly because they work in the mud or sand. A conventional bumper jack sinks. I haven't had to use it yet but I did test it on my Ford Ranger pickup. The common Slime pump lifted the truck (both wheels) in about 8 minutes.
OFF ROAD JACK on Amazon
