Message-Id: <199808202318.AA05310@world.std.com>
To: nedod@linus.mitre.org
Subject: Re: tie-down tips 
In-Reply-To: Your message of "Thu, 20 Aug 1998 08:56:15 EDT."
             <18760.903617775@foxharp.boston.ma.us> 
Date: Thu, 20 Aug 1998 19:18:47 -0400
From: gayathri <gayathri@world.std.com>
Sender: owner-nedod@linus.mitre.org
Reply-To: nedod@linus.mitre.org
Precedence: bulk


I've been doing this too often in the past few weeks...

	see, I bought a new bike. which didnt stay new for too long,
 as it was crashed on the crest, so I got to learn how to put a
crashed bike into a truck

First, one goes and begs the hardware store to stay open 10 more
 minutes so that one can buy a 8 foot long board. Then one calms down
the crasher of said motorcycle (since it wasnt you, but the one you
lent it to to break it in... (I said, "BREAK it IN! not break it!"))
and then get them to help you. We had three people for this one - one
to hold the board, one to be in the truck and one to roll it up into
the truck...

Side stand down only until the bike is tied. If it fits, you dont even
have to tie down the back, tho I do it for my own minds peace. I have
two of those brite pink tie straps (which come in useful for
hookingstuff to your bed) and two fairly heavy tie down straps to the
handlebar on the bike and to the tie down points on the truck.

Once its tied down - I dont like to compress the front shock all the
way, so you will see it bounce up and down a few times, I push the
side stand out of the way...

Then one does this a couple of times having to take it to two bike
shops in two weeks to finally hear "We're going to total it."

	*damn. brand new '98 t509 in bugsplat green goes to the
wreckers*

so now I have no bike, busted or not, and head down to another triumph
shop to see if they have one in bug splat green (Roulette green,
sorry)

Talk to South Bay Triumph, after they call me 4 months after ordering
apart for my sprint to say, 'um, well, I dont have that bike any
more. In fact I dont have ANY bike.'

Owner offers to do a deal. Buy the T595, since there arent any t509s
left in his shop, but he has parts available to make the t595 look
like the t509. Take the body work in trade for labour... hell, 'we've
never done this before, it should look pretty trick.'

Okie, how long to get this bike? Crasher has lent me his bike since he
can't bend his knee enough to ride now anyway, so I'm not in such a
hurry to get a vehicle to get to work, but I do want something to go
riding now that its getting cooler...

	10 days.

cool. So this past saturday, I go pick up the bike. and end up loading
it into the truck 'cuase it was almost 10 pm by the time I left the
shop..

	this was more exciting.

	Park truck in the street, in a little dip. Get a small ramp,
designed for 300 lbs, and the tire tread being dirtbike width. Bike
shop owner waits for my clear signal, runs across the street with my
new bike and pushes it up the ramp, where the mechanic catches it...
(and my heart sits in my throat, 'cause thisis a lovely yellow t595
hybrid)

	pink straps around the handlebars, compress the front forks a
little, catch on the rear footpeg holders for the rear two tiedowns
and drive it home..
 Getting it out of the truck is easier with the 8 ft board, as we've
got a severe dip in the driveway that meakes it almost a straight line
to walk the bike out..

Take thebike, the boy with his BoB, and head up the crest to break it
in... get up to newcombs ranch, all happy and just estatic at how this
bike runs... until it wont start.

damn.
 wait for boy to ride his bike down the hill, get his truck and load
the bike back into the truck. We almost dropped it this time - couldnt
find a dip so had to  lift the bike mostly into the truck. A Triumph
Bonneville rider comes by while I'm waiting for the tryck to say,
"Curse Lucas, Prince of Darkness" while I wondered if the computer was
designed by microsquish...

I've named the bike Huckleberry Hound by now, since its a dog that
likes to ride in the back of trucks...

Got it back from the shop last nite - turns out there had beena recall
on that version 'cause a fastner that holds a hose to the fuel pump
had a habit of coming undone... this one came undone with the recall
fastener.

It was wired into place this time. :) I didnt put the bike into the
truck, I just rode it home, leaving behind my two roomies who were
busy chewing fat with the owner. 

I think that's the trick. I ought to ride the bike..
	:)

well, I'm off to ride the bike - have to get those breakin miles
asap...

Gayathri
 ------------------------------------------------------------------------
 gayathri@world.std.com   		Calamari Club #002, SquidWannaBe
					'98 t595, Huckleberry
			Serenity through viciousness.