Honestly I think men are the culprits for over packing on a bike. My Ol' Lady packs less than I do on the bike but twice as much as I do anywhere else. LOL
I am a fan of riding underoos that can be cleaned in the sink & hung up to dry in the motel room. I have some compression riding socks that are the same theory that I got from Cycle Gear.
3 pairs of drawers & 2 pairs of socks.
2 pairs of regular socks & 2 pairs of regular underwear.
2 pairs of jeans.
1 pair of shorts
Sandals
Magazines (mostly ****)
3 pairs of riding glasses
2 pairs of gloves (fingerless & regular)
Jump pack
Following items in bag or strapped to luggage rack:
Hoodie, (sometimes) jacket (should be always), long sleeve riding shirt stuff to cover face.
My wife rides her own so I'm lucky to have more room than some. I used to ride a Dyna with either a tail bag or throw over bags. Now a Road King & her a Road Glide. We use those soft bags that fit in the saddle bags which are the best thing since sliced bread in my opinion. Super convenient!
I think with proper packing I could haul all of our items on just my bike.
That hitch rack by Kuryakyn is nice, I have one and it works great, just make sure what you put on there is protected from the exhaust...and not to high to block your lighting.
That hitch rack by Kuryakyn is nice, I have one and it works great, just make sure what you put on there is protected from the exhaust...and not to high to block your lighting.
I googled the hitch rack. Wow, I didn't think people would need to bring that much stuff. I guess if you're 2 up and camping?
I like this design, but towing a trailer versus the rack ... I dunno.
Options are nice. We added some cargo space with the sidecar. Its just a bit bigger than a tourpak [the trunk] and there is some space in the foot area if the dog is the "monkey". [I think that is what the passenger is called in hack racing...] We bought the sidecar for the dog. Check - My wife wanted the sidecar for the dog. I wanted to modify a tourpak for the dog. He's only 15 lb.
As far as trip packing - I plan on having 5 riding days of clothes, and one or two of non riding clothes. So 2 pr riding pants. 5-6 Tshirts, 1 pr shorts, 7 underwear... flip-flops [or running shoes]. My wife came up with bringing laundry supplies, just to have em. Use a zip lock and some pods [x4?] and drier sheets [x4]. Use the stuff you get at home, as you may / may not know you have a soap sensitivity.
I bring tools that I wish I had previously, ha ha, as well as the things I'd need for various repairs. [Adjust/tighten highway pegs, Wal-mart parking lot oil change, reinstall and tighten intake bolt...] As a Canadian, ensure my phone is on a USA plan. A roadside assistance plan, that will deliver fuel if needed. [9 miles north of Tonopah - so close, yet so far...] Air compressor [little HD one - cheap] and a good tire gauge. A good flashlight and a backup. Sure your iPhone has a light feature, but a flashlight is just better. CR2032 batteries - for the HD Fob. Or replace in spring, your choice... I also bought a Fluke 107 multimeter. It's nice and compact, and will do most jobs you'd ever need to at home. You shouldn't have electrical problems, but you never know. I have tire plug kits, but I would guess I'd call roadside. I'd look to see if it is repairable, but... I read you should practice on an old tire at home first. Maybe some Octane boost incase you're stuck with 87 as the only option. Some will say you don't need it, but I bring it.
It's nice to have a half helmet, but I bring the modular when space is tight. I use a Sena 20 for tunes / comms with my wife or riding buddy. I've ridden without a helmet in states that allow, but not usually all day riding. Arizona comes to mind. It takes motorcycling freedom to a new level, although it does make you feel naked...
Awesome Jacket - Fox Creek Leather was my choice. Less features than the FXRG it replaced, but better quality in my opinion. My rain gear came from Motoport. It is custom-ish. It's well fitted to me. Gloves are a bit of a mix, but one for rain, one for warm, and my favourite are the Rev'it vented for late spring-early fall. I don't care for a gauntlet style, but in the cold/rain... I have Gerbing heated gloves, but uncontrolled, they get too HOT. I actually had them burn my one hand to a 1st degree blister. I'll need a temp controller for them. A heated vest is good, a heated jacket is nicer... This one is Canadian made. Boots - I tried a couple HD boots. They came apart in a season or two, one pair was an expensive FXRG boot. I tried to get custom boots, but it was a bit of a disaster. I ended up with Danners. Sturdy, warm, and available in w-i-d-e. Ugly laces though. I replaced them with kevlar or paracord? laces with metal grommets. Once broken in, I can walk in them all day. They do get a little warm in summer, hence the flip-flops...
I don't really camp on trips. I would like to just do a camping trip, but when we went to the Chip in '15 - Buddy and I bought matching Redverz Tents. You can park your motorcycle in the garage bit, and stand up and drink beer next to it in a pinch in a hailstorm. Good piece of kit, that is in the garage not being used. I will try to use it more in the future.
Credit Card [US Dollar - for a Canadian, you get hit with a 1-2% for all US dollar transactions using your CDN Credit Card. Lots of people don't know this, but I suggest it to everyone visiting or shopping in the USA.]Cash - I like to have some cash incase the road takes us to Las Vegas...
Plan your trip... I usually make a Google Sheets trip log to estimate my time / distance / fuel. It's not required, as you can "just go" but if there are some points you wanna see, and you need to keep in mind fuel stops, and distance. I use Google Maps and see what Google estimates the distance / time will be. I -can= ride X per day, but same some for incidentals. We were stuck at the welcome to Louisiana on the south side of I-10 fro like six hours. I splurged on a nicer hotel in Baton Rouge, only to arrive at 23:30. Disappointing to say the least. Planning takes effort, but if you are in a snow area, you have all winter to plan...
Anyhow - good to see the options out there. You can always mail it home, buy new underwear, or get that oil changed. I wish I got sponsored by these companies, but no - I do not. Biggest thing is to have fun and enjoy.
This my bike all packed and ready to leave on a 6 week trip, with my wife. T-Bag rack bag has a rain cover when needed. As stated previously, we packed for 8 days, did laundry on Sunday. Not a fan of lots of bungees and crap hanging all over the place, this is neat and weatherproof. Good luck.
If you go the way of a luggage rack in the trailer hitch make sure anything heavy that you have goes in the saddle bags or tour pack. You think the weight on the tour pack is bad, overload the cargo holder from the hitch, your front end gets really light in a hurry. I have this trailer hitch box, it offers just enough extra space and an additional luggage rack but I only pack the lightest bags in there. If you go this route move your rain suits and the like to the rack and keep the weight in the saddle bags.
If I was doing serious touring 2up, it would have to be a trailer. Before we get to that we will try to get a Trike and then learn to pack smarter. Having something that changes the balance and makes a bike handle differently is always tricky...It will be a while because I have to retire first. Maybe 10 years.
Honestly everything changes the handling of a bike, from a passenger to luggage. Weight is weight. An experienced rider can adapt to the change in weight distribution and still have a safe ride. The problem I see with the trailer hitch rack is the distance from the center of gravity of the bike. Moment = Force X Distance. So the farther back it goes, the effect becomes exponential to the bike.
22 years ago we were packed very heavy, riding two up, on a 1200 Sportster. Trying to get up an entrance ramp onto the interstate. Ever time I gave her any significant throttle, the front wheel was lifting off the ground. The day that happens on my Roadie, I know I have over packed, or me and the wife need to go on a serious diet. Carry on.
I live in Australia and have been traveling to the US for many years riding around. I've done a heap of coast to coasts and been to Sturgis multiple times from the west coast and the east coast. I've crossed the US on a Wide Glide twice, on a Fatbob, a Street Bob, a Road Glide and a few times on an Ultra Classic. Every single time I've taken more stuff than I needed. Anybody who takes more jeans than 2 pair including the ones you're wearing must be sleeping in the mud. There are places in the US called laundromats where you can stop and wash stuff while you have a feed and a coffee. I've never done a trip where I haven't bought a few t-shirts so go light on them when you leave home. 3 not counting the one you're wearing is plenty. I saw some bloke says he takes a couple of good shirts for going out to dinner. Farkme. It's a bike trip. If you going out to dinner to somewhere that doesn't accept t-shirts, buy one on the road but I always took those shirts home unworn. Now I never take them. Raingear is essential. At home I change my shorts every day but on the road? Not so much. I find 4 or 5 pair at most will get me to a laundromat in plenty of time. Socks the same. Just make sure you have a jacket and gloves that can cope with the morning cold and if you wear a sweater under your jacket take ONE or buy one on the road. Also a pair of sneakers or slippers or whatever you want to relax when you get out of your boots. There's your wardrobe. Walmart has cheap clothes if you need anything else on the way. Take your medication, your tooth brush and toothpaste and keep a bottle of water on your bike at all times so the toothbrush works. I also take wipes or buy them on the road. I also take those waxy earplugs to shut out the noise of passing trucks when I'm trying to sleep but if you forget them. Walmart also has them. 4 pairs of jeans? Take a bloody tuxedo in case you get invited to a wedding. Bugger me.
I travel solo, but the concept is the same for two-up. I pack two pairs of pants and enough shirts, socks and underwear for 3-4 days. I usually find a laudromat and wash my clothes as needed. I collect HD t-shirts, and I pick them up as I go along, so I also have those to wear. I carry rain gear, a small laptop, personal items (toothbrush/paste, shampoo, deodorant, etc.) I also carry some major league pain reliever, anti-diarrhea pills (hey, there's nothing worse...), and an anti-histamine, like sudafed. I have my boots and a pair of shoes for walking around, etc. I also pack a sidearm and a couple of magazines of ammo. I also have my cell phone charger, laptop power supply and other electronics type items. I have a mesh HD armored jacket, and carry a waterproof and windproof jacket I can wear beneath it, as well as a hoody for insulation and carry light, medium and heavy weight gloves. I wear sunglasses , and carry a spare pair as well as some clear glasses for night time.
I carry a tire plug kit and a small inflator and a small set of basic hand tools and my shock absorber pump.
01-05-2019, 12:36 PM
Boots - I tried a couple HD boots. They came apart in a season or two, one pair was an expensive FXRG boot. I tried to get custom boots, but it was a bit of a disaster. I ended up with Danners. Sturdy, warm, and available in w-i-d-e. Ugly laces though. I replaced them with kevlar or paracord? laces with metal grommets. Once broken in, I can walk in them all day. They do get a little warm in summer, hence the flip-flops...
