Checking The Bike Before The Ride
Excerpt from You and Your Motorcycle: Riding Tips
Who knows when Murphy’s Law may strike or what nail your
tire might have picked up just before you pulled in the other
evening. It’s not fun to have things go wrong on a motorcycle,
but if you spend a minute before you go off on a ride, you can
increase the chances that nothing will. Any information you’ll
need, such as correct tire pressures or chain adjustment,
you’ll find in your owner’s manual. You will be much more
acquainted with all the specifics of your motorcycle, since it
might be slightly different from some other make or model.
#1 Check the tires. They are the most important parts of
your bike. If your engine quits, you roll to a stop. If a tire quits
– trouble! Make the effort to check the surface of the tires,
looking for cuts in the rubber or foreign objects – like a nail.
Check the tire pressures with a good gauge. If a tire is low
every time you check it, even though you have added the
proper amount of air each time, you have a slow leak. Fix it
before it becomes a fast leak.
#2 Check the controls. Cables are quite strong and rarely
break, but look for kinking or stiffness or anything unusual in
their operation.
#3 Check your lights, including brake light, headlights, and
turn signals to make sure everything works. Also check your
horn and adjust the mirrors. Know your Motorcycle
#4 Check the oil and fuel and, if the bike is liquid-cooled, the
coolant levels.
#5 If your motorcycle has chain-drive to the rear wheel,
make sure that the chain is properly tensioned and in
good shape. Chains do need an occasional cleaning and
dose of lubrication.
#6 Make sure the side stand and center stand fold up
properly, and stay up. If one of the retraction springs is weak
or broken or missing, replace it.
#7 As you roll off, check your brakes. Just to make sure
they haven’t gone away.
Now, go enjoy yourself.
r Team!
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16 Thunder Roads Magazine® Colorado
March 2015
www.thunderroadscolorado.com