Riding Related

People carry way too much. I use to, but don't anymore. If you start with two rules it will guide you to a reasonable carry.

1. Am I carrying the part or can I get the part that would allow me to change/fix it while on the side of the road.
2. Carry the tools that allow for #1 to come true.

I carry a Nealy Tire plug kit which I have used to get home...a slime compressor, a set of Torx, a mutitool, small quantity of metric wrenches, small safety kit, and some tie wraps. All together it fits in less than one side case.

I've been broken down far from home just 3 times in decades of BMW riding. Twice I had to get help. One required removing the fuel tank and changing the fuel pump which I would not do on the side of the road. Even If I could have I would have been out of fuel. The second time was bad fuel after fuel up, and the third was piece of steel that flattened my rear tire in about 45 seconds. Plugged it up, air it up, rode it to safety and had new tire put on.

Don't overpack. You will need the room on your trip.

AMEX, Visa, hidden key, and cash.

I carry an extensive list of tools, though I've made every effort to minimize the volume and weight associated with those. To me, there's no difference between breaking down 5 miles from home or 500 miles from home ... and unless you trust a non-BMW shop to repair your BMW, you better be able to fix it yourself.

Here's my list:

Compressor

Tire Gauge

Plug Kit

Tools

Jump Start Battery

Jumper Cables

Hand Cleaner

Water

Paper Towels

Drop Cloth

1 qt Oil

2 Ratchet Straps

The tool list itself is quite long, but it all fits in one of the flight bags airlines used to give to business and 1st class passengers. In terms of ability, I can (and have) pulled the front and rear wheels, dismounted / remounted the radiator, changed front and rear brake pads, fixed flats, jumped batteries (mine and others) and a host of lesser chores.

Mark's link doesn't work because it is a direct link to the document which is not stored on the website. Interestingly, they appear to be using Amazon Web Services (AWS) for their content. But you can't link directly to it because of the security permissions. Here is an indirect link that should work: https://bmwclubofhouston.com/content.aspx?page_id=86&club_id=968552

But good point about being able to fix a flat or change a tire. If you have never changed a tire by yourself that is a highly recommended experience. Everyone should do that once. Even if you have tubeless tires. A great way to experience that is to bring a tire you need to change to the next club "Tech Day" where you have lots of resources and people to help (read: 'supervise'!). Next Tech Day is currently Sunday, March 20, 2022.

But most of the time you won't need to change a tire, just plug it. So as a minimum you need a tire plugging kit and air compressor. And, again, the experience of using them at least once.

Other than that I carry a minimum of tools but other various kinds of things like duck tape, safety wire, zip ties, JB weld, roll of 1 inch Velcro strip and other assorted "McGyver" type materials. Things to patch things up until you can get to civilization and more help. Most of those things are small and very light.

Jerry

"I ride because it frees my mind from the tyranny of petty things."

In the club's Resources tab for Riding Related, there is a sub-folder of "Various reading documents" with an 8-page listing of items and advice called "How To Pack for Your Motorcycle Trip".

Link below.

Personally I'd be real curious about how often club members have had to fix a flat (or change a tire) on the road.

Wondering if I'm carrying too much emergency gear (electric pump, etc).

Probably most important for at least one person in a group to have that gear.

https://s3.amazonaws.com/ClubExpressClubFiles/968552/documents/How_To_Pack_For_Your_Motorcycle_Trip_1230148025.pdf?AWSAccessKeyId=AKIA6MYUE6DNNNCCDT4J&Expires=1645444123&response-content-disposition=inline%3B%20filename%3DHow_To_Pack_For_Your_Motorcycle_Trip.pdf&Signature=9uWuouIMR1D%2Fd3pCVyzyNYxVKns%3D

Mark

Mark Szara

713-534-9056

MarkSzara@Yahoo.com

The best advice I got before my first big trip was to take only one riding suit for rain and shine. In my case it's a Klim Latitude. It's game changing in the rain and when you come upon rain and all you need to do is zip things up.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fmkw5GgKeC4

Jerry

"I ride because it frees my mind from the tyranny of petty things."

I am planning to have several weeks rides this year.

Any recommendations for minimum equipment to have a safe ride are welcome. like what will be a good tool kit, etc

I have a R1250 GS

Thanks

Horacio