Bikes All Home
As I mentioned before, months ago I put in an order for a new Royal Enfield Himalayan 450. Last week, it finally arrived and just in time. My Triumph was due for its 20K service (I am at 22k+). I was hoping it would work out this way since I can ride my Triumph to the dealership, leave it, and ride the new Himi home. And that is what I did. This gave me at least a week to ride the Himi. The goal was to get enough miles on it for IT's first service. Mission accomplished.
So this past Saturday, I put the Himi on the trailer and rode up to the Select Cycle. The goal was to get the first service and also take my Triumph home (hence the trailer - cannot ride two bikes). I got up there and they were slammed for service but they were able to slip me in (thanks guys!). Per usual, I went and ate lunch at The Sage Mule. Love this place. Had a light lunch and a beer.
I was almost done and got a text that the bike was ready. I finished up my lunch and headed back to the dealer. After paying (need to take out a new mortgage), it was time to load them up. I brought up my bag with all the straps, etc I would need. While loading up the bikes, the owner brought me a very nice set of Triumph / Select Cycle straps. Not only are they heavy duty but they have built in loops on one side for wrapping around the forks. Quite nice indeed.
The fit on the trailer was tight but I knew they would fit since I have carried two Triumphs on this trailer before. We got them all strapped down. Before I left I checked the lights again and noticed they were intermittent. Oh well. Not much I can do now. I got in, rode home knowing aware that the lights may/may not be working. I was just very careful.
Once home, I had the fun task of onloading by myself. Usually not a big deal but in such tight quarters, it was interesting to slowly unstrap the bikes. I was just careful and got both of them off the trailer with no issues. Using both the front brake and clutch for the rear tire allows you to very slowly descend off the trailer. Once off, I put them in their garage.
Next, I decided to fix the lights. I figured since they were intermittent, the issues was the ground. I looked it over and noticed that the safety chains had been rubbing the wire connection. I decided to move the ground entirely. Basically, I removed the old ground wire and attached a new one to another location. Tested the lights and they were all working again.
The next challenge was the safety chains. I NEVER liked how they were attached so I did a small modification and attached them in a new location. Much better and I should have done this years ago. Double checked all was good and then parked the trailer.
Loading my Himi, driving to the dealer, getting service (and lunch), loading, coming home, and re-doing the trailer took most of the day. It was a well spent 6+ hours and now I have both of my bikes back home and ready to ride.