Has anyone carried a Gen 1 in the bed of a pick-up?

Me and my co-pilot want to travel and take the VR with us. I know people that carry their sport bikes in the bed of a pick-up. Has anyone here carried a VR in a pick-up? I sure would like to hear about how it worked and any problems that I should avoid.

 

Thanks in advance,

GaryZ

I've done it. It works fine if you have a long bed truck. The hard part is finding a place to load and unload it. It's a heavy bike to handle on a steep ramp. I found a low place, ditch or something, to back into so that the tailgate was close to the ground.

I've done it with my 05 RSV, but I used a Rampage lift and it loads the bike for me. First couple time it was pretty scary seeing that big bike go up and down like that but it works fine and my 2010 F150 with 6.5 ft. bed traveled well with it in there.

Well only issue we had one time my step dad had to rescue me because my Tripple A wouldn't cover a tow and we put it in the back of his Ford Edge so he backed up to some steps that just happened to be perfect size and height that I could drive straight into the back of his truck. Did not think of the weight on the back of his truck he ended up dragging off the step below the bumper. Kind of a chalkboard sound you know makes you cringe. But when we got back to town I had him back his truck up to a hill a couple blocks from my house that almost was perfect except for the tail gate was about 12 inches from the edge of the hill so that made it a little scary. With my step dad pushing back I managed where I couldn't touch basically when we got the rear tire back enough that his truck lifted some is where it got hairy. It worked pretty well tho, his truck bed was not that long I am thinking the rear tire was on his tail gate and wanting to say his bed was 6.5 feet also maybe 7 feet not sure the edge is kind of like a ford ranger.

I did a fair amount of delivering bikes I had built and sold back when I had my shop - both truck and trailering.. Also did a LOT of hauling during my MX days.. Personnally I would lean toward a stout little single place trailer before I would truck haul. The ease of loading and unloading off a low to the ground trailer compared to a truck bed would be HIGHLY beneficial IMHO.. Plus, if (heaven forbid) an accident did occur - not having 900 pounds of motorcycle wanting to come inside the truck with me would be hugely beneficial..

Something to consider is that Sport bikes are amazingly light (my 1000cc R1 is under 400 pounds dry).. Modern day dirtbikes are even less.. The weight of a full sized touring bike like our Ventures can easily work against you during unloading and loading.. Case in point - I remember reading rbig1 's story about loading his RSV into his Van - caused me pain just reading it.. Rodney - back me up here..

Gary,,if you do end up truck hauling - make sure your ramps are stout!! Make sure they fasten securely to the truck BEFORE you put any weight on them even if you have found a good raised spot to unload/load on as suggested.. DO NOT trust the ramps to stay put without being strapped or pinned down!! If the bike starts to get away from you DO NOT try to stop it = let it fall!!

What ever you folks decide - be safe and HAVE A BLAST OUT THERE!!

Mine was delivered to me from Ky. all the way to Newnan, Ga. in the back of a pickup!!

To sum up.

Its not the hauling that's the issue is the loading unloading. Even an older small truck like a Mazda B200/ford ranger or a Jimmy/S10 can handle the bike weight wise. You need a lot of hands balancing the beasty as it goes up and down the ramp. We had a small winch, that dropped into a pocket in the bed for snow mobiles, we used that truck for hauling my 1st gen when I snapped the drive shaft.

Well I bought ten foot ramps. when I tried to drive it in the back of van kept killing it at top of ramp. Its kind of scary going in a box with these bike. So after I had my boo boo I installed a winch. I also put a bolt in top of middle ramp permeant then drilled that size hole in truck bed. I could load and unload any where after that. The two outside ramps put 2x4 under as I have short legs. also strapped to hitch. Use a winch don't do what I did was not fun. TRUST ME.

All I can say is its going to hurt. I ended up installing a winch to control in and out. Put a bolt hole through ramp into latch hole on van then strapped ramps to receiver. Don't think I told any one but after going sliding down ramp backwards and loosing shoe and hitting the ground hard. I tried again got three fourths the bike in. The power on back wheel kicked ramp out with being tied to hitch. Had to hold bike teetering till my other son got there to help his dumb old man. Get a wench and pin ramps leave chance alone. The truck box end comes up real fast. O by the way can ya fly. After winch install think I loaded and unloaded like ten times by myself no problem. Be smart dumb hurts trust me.

I have hauled a few Ventures in the back of pickups and didn't have any problems. But I didn't use ramps to drive up on, I to would find a place to load so it would be as level as I could get to drive it in. Just watch some you tube videos of people loading their cycles in pickups.

If you look around you can find some good deals on a 8 or 10 foot trailer. It will take one time of the cycle taking a flop and you maybe getting hurt to make the trailer a cheap investment

Orlin

I thought I read on here many moons ago that when trailering a bike with a driveshaft you should leave it in neutral. Something about the drivetrain cannot take the shock of bouncing around. Has anyone else heard if this is true? :confused24:Also when hauling a Yamaha on a trailer or in the back of a pickup please cover it with a Harley cover so as to not shame it.

I have a 5'x8' utility trailer I bought from Lowes that I have hauled my bikes with. I tie the front wheel securely to the front rail and the bike does not move. Then of course I use 4 tie downs on the sides of the bikes. I had to load my Gen I diagonally to keep the tail gate from possibly touching the bike. I could have removed the tail gate and that is what I would do next time I think. I suspect it would be a good idea to put the tranny in neutral though.

I have had my RSV on a trailer three times in the past 14 years. First time was a 5' x 8' trailer it was a little too small for the bike, tail happy going down the road. Second time a friend brought it home when I had a high side crash in 06. Third when I had a flat while on a group ride. If I was going to be hauling it a lot I would get a Rampage unit for the truck.

Here is the loader I use. I like the fact I can leave the tailgate on and close the back on the truck up after the bike is off.

http://www.mountainmaster.net/motorcycleloadingsystem.html

Here is the loader I use. I like the fact I can leave the tailgate on and close the back on the truck up after the bike is off.

http://www.mountainmaster.net/motorcycleloadingsystem.html

 

Looks like a great idea. And it looks like you could still pull a travel trailer with that setup if you wanted without having to buy a toy hauler model.

Looks like a great idea. And it looks like you could still pull a travel trailer with that setup if you wanted without having to buy a toy hauler model.

 

With the tailgate down you could run into a problem when towing a travel trailer, depending on the length of the tongue, especially when doing a sharp turn. Now without the tailgate and a longer box where the bike isn't hanging over the back of the truck as much this would be less of a consideration. I have had trailers that I couldn't drop the tailgate down without it hitting the tongue jack.

Here is the loader I use. I like the fact I can leave the tailgate on and close the back on the truck up after the bike is off.

http://www.mountainmaster.net/motorcycleloadingsystem.html

 

Beware! That site kicked on my AVG said it was infected.

I thought I read on here many moons ago that when trailering a bike with a driveshaft you should leave it in neutral. Something about the drivetrain cannot take the shock of bouncing around. Has anyone else heard if this is true?

I could be wrong and though I just naturally leave any vehicle in neutral when strapping it down, to me that makes no sense. If it was true than we should never ride on anything but perfectly smooth roads. My reason for leaving a vehicle in neutral when strapping it down is so the vehicle, natural settles during the tightening of the straps. Leaving the vehicle in gear while tightening the traps leaves the drive train under tension. If the vehicle shifts during transport causing this drive train tension to relax, the straps could become slack.

Back of the pickup is too scary for me.....a LOW trailer is all I personally do with these big bikes......learn from these unfortunate individuals:

 

Back of the pickup is too scary for me.....a LOW trailer is all I personally do with these big bikes......learn from these unfortunate individuals:

I normally use a trailer or drop the back wheels of the pickup into a ditch. I have run bikes up ramps and had no issue. Trouble with the guys in your video is some of them set there ramps ups with no real thought and failure is already predetermined. Walking along the bike is another predetermined disaster. Last don't hang your feet down if your going to ride it up the ramp and don't be overly cautious. Get your feet on the pegs and ride with the same determination and control you would up a slope. Feet on the pegs is the only way to properly maintain balance and control. and make sure your ramp is either long enough or curved to avoid bottoming out on the way up.As said earlier though a Ditch or low trailer is still my preferred

I had to carry one in the back of a P/U once. I used my engine hoist to pick it up and set it in the bed and then loaded the hoist in the truck for the unloading at the destination. Very safe and uneventful.

 

The hoist that I have is rated 4,000 lbs so the weight of a venture is no issue and it can break down or be assembled in just a few minutes.

https://www.harborfreight.com/2-ton-capacity-foldable-shop-crane-69514.html

Edited January 2, 2018 by Flyinfool

My trusty 1997 Ford Ranger has been carrying my 1993 Royale around for about 15 years. (Wow, who is that young guy???)

 

I use multiple straps for a measure of failsafe-ness. One from each fork just above the lower pinch point to the front tie-down hardpoint in the bed corner. Then another strap through the triple-tree in case one of those primary straps breaks.

 

I also learned not to compress the front forks too much but rather to let them compress and decompress as they wish. I think over-compressing them left me with a leaky seal one time. I ratcheted them down maybe a third of their normal travel length. Each of the two independent straps on each fork, then, was enough to hold it in place. When I went around corners, one strap would tighten and the other strap would loosen as the forks compressed. Then the forks would decompress and both straps would share the weight. The whole setup sorta lets the bike float comfortably in the bed.

 

I've never had an issue with the load itself. As others have said, the hardest part is finding a place to load and unload it. I've used ditches, train loading ramps, motorcycle shop ramps, and commercial riding lawnmower shop ramps (the big concrete ones, not the independent metal ones used for ATVs, etc.).

Edited September 15, 2018 by Bob K.

I got my 89VR home in the bed of a big honkin dual-wheel Dodge diesel.

We hand a nice hill to back up on and aluminum ramps.

Strapped her down and had no probs.

 

Kudos to the guy haulin his Venture in the bed of the Ford Ranger!!

I used to transport my Vulcan 1500 in my pickup. With a heavier bike I would be very leery of being able to tour while depending on finding acceptable places to load/unload. I’d be more comfortable if I had a 4x4 bc then I wouldn’t have to worry with getting stuck in a ditch.

 

Do do a search for motorcycle loading fails on YouTube for cautionary tales and laughs.