loading FJR in a pickup

[Aasland]

If I were you, I'd get a good friend to ride on the back of the FJR to the dealership and drive the truck home for you.

 

[NMRoadRunner]

Don't know how strong the tailgate on the Av is, but I wouldn 't do that with my work truck which is a full size Tundra, the tailgate is a POS! It buckled with a 300lb material lift sitting half way on the end. Hit a pothole, and the lift was hanging on by it's straps. Take someone to drive the truck. And another thing, Dallas traffic blows

 

[ahchiu]

Take the Bus and have someone from the dealer pick you up at the bus depot.

 

[Abercrombie FJR]

Don't know how strong the tailgate on the Av is, but I wouldn 't do that with my work truck which is a full size Tundra, the tailgate is a POS! It buckled with a 300lb material lift sitting half way on the end. Hit a pothole, and the lift was hanging on by it's straps. Take someone to drive the truck. And another thing, Dallas traffic blows

+1 on POS Tundra tailgate. I hauled my 999 to the twin cities two weeks ago and slightly dented my tail gate where the rear tire sat. I usually use a capturing front wheel chock mounted to a 3/4" piece of plywood to distribute the FJR or Tenere weight over the tailgate but I loaned it out and figured the light little Ducati wouldn't hurt the Tundra. Wrong!

 

[aharper]

I used to have an Avalanche... the height sucks as it is a long walk up a ramp to get in the bed. I've seen people use a 2x8 under the bike to distribute weight. I borrowed a trailer. In your case you can't really take a ramp or board with you... renting a trailer may be your best bet. I never worried about the weight on the tailgate...

 

[Big Sky]

I'm surprised re: the Tundra. I hauled an FJR in my old Tacoma from Montana to Las Vegas and back (long story) with the rear wheel on the tailgate - no problem. I would also note that some (most?) tie downs will stretch significantly when they get wet, leaving your bike too loose and moving around to much. Conversely, tighten all when they're wet, and when they dry, they shrink, adding far more pressure than you might want on strapped components such as handlebars or forks.

 

[JoBu]

A little embarrassed I didn't mention to check/recheck your tiedowns. I've never had an issue with the ratchet straps in front but have snugged up the cam-lock straps just a tad. I've transported quite a few bikes in the back of the Avalanche though the FJR was the heaviest. My vacations typically involve mountain biking, kayaking, and motorcycling...so my poor truck ends up being quite loaded but has served me extremely well.

I also forgot to mention my ramp of choice. I prefer the Ready Ramp https://www.readyramp.com/ It is a tri-fold ramp that acts as a bed extender when not in use. Easy to transport though it does weigh a ton. The flip side is that it is extremely stable. At home, I use the swale in my driveway, putting my rear wheels in that and the ramp is nearly horizontal. When I reach my destination, I try to find a rise, small hill, or even a pronounced dip in which to place my rear wheels.

After reading this thread, I will use a board to distribute the weight of the rear wheel in the future. I still feel confident but think I'd be foolish not to try a little additional insurance.

Cheers,

Joe

 

[CopB8]

I also forgot to mention my ramp of choice. I prefer the Ready Ramp https://www.readyramp.com/ It is a tri-fold ramp that acts as a bed extender when not in use. Easy to transport though it does weigh a ton.
Joe

Do you load the FJR on your own with that single track ramp? Or do you typically have some help? I'd hate to do it on my own.

A couple years ago my wife and I were walking down a side street in Telluride and came across 2 guys loading an adventure bike with a single ramp. Something had gone wrong and it was semi off the ramp and leaned way over. They were just struggling to keep it up. I ran over and lent a hand and we we got it up into the truck, but if I hadn't come along they'd have been screwed.

 

[flagstaff]

NEVER use either the side stand or centerstand when strapping a bike down in a truck or trailer...

100% in agreement. There is nothing wrong with using the side stand while you get your straps loosely attached just be sure you put it up as well. Placing the bike on the center stand raised the center of gravity and makes it much more likely that the bike will move around. The two small steel contact points do not provide the stability that the tire patch does. Another issue is that the bike is much more likely to bounce around when on the center stand. When sitting on the tires and held in place with the straps, the suspension will absorb most of the movement caused by bumps and turns.

As previously mentioned, double check the straps after a mile or so. They seem to invariably loosen no matter how well you have them initially set.

Now back to your original question. The best method is for your front anchor points to be as far forward as possible, as low in the truck bed as possible, and as spread as possible. Soft straps work well to make a connection to the bike. You can even make your own with a piece of webbed strap. To make the loop be sure to used a square knot!!! The square knot will tighten down on itself and will not slide loose.

The rear tie down points are pretty much the same as the front...as low in the bed as possible, as far back as possible, and as widely spread as possible.

All that being said, I think you would be smart to take the suggestion to rent a u-haul trailer. It will cost you, but it eliminates the problem of getting the bike in the Avalanche in the first place, and then getting it off back home. I've self loaded and unloaded my FJR into my 2500HD 4x4 pickup with a high tailgate height but only after lots of experience loading and unloading dual sports and smaller road bikes. It is not as easy as you might think, requires several important steps, and can actually be made more difficult when others are "helping".

 

[bradd]

I had 2 Avalanches and as been mentioned before they are high. Most frequent bike in mine was my CR250 and I used a 9' 2x12 with a metal cleat on the end to level it to the tailgate. The CR is the only bike I could load myself. My R6 took 2 people and I didn't have an FJR when I had the Avalanche but if I did I might want more than 2 people to load. The R6 didn't sit on the tailgate but I have had a lot of weight on the tailgates and they seem very strong. They are fiberglass, they won't deflect, when they fail they will just break. I worried more about the steel cables than the gate itself.

 

[SigepKat]

Well, due to the rain all day yesterday, all the way up i35, I made it as far as Temple (where my folks live) and convinced my dad to drive me the rest of the way. Since it was still raining when we got back, I kept going to SA in the truck and he's riding my bike down today (they were planning on coming down this wknd.) I think by the time he gets here, he'll regret his recent Vrod decision.

 

[lnewlf]

I used to have an Avalanche... the height sucks as it is a long walk up a ramp to get in the bed. I've seen people use a 2x8 under the bike to distribute weight. I borrowed a trailer. In your case you can't really take a ramp or board with you... renting a trailer may be your best bet. I never worried about the weight on the tailgate...

try transporting a Feej in this motorized spam can