Motorcycle load out

I have some time to kill at the motorcycle shop so I’m going to post about my decisions for how I packed for the trip.

There were three things of concern:
1) Gear that is actually necessary.
2) Load Triangle.
3) Avoid single points of failure.

#1 doesn’t mean I used everything I packed, but it does mean that the only things I did not use were for contingencies, e.g. tire repair kit, first aid supplies, and a couple items for colder weather that I never encountered.

#2 is this: picture a motorcycle with rider from the side view. Draw a triangle with vertices at both axles and the rider’s head. You want your load inside that as much as possible for best handling characteristics, and the heaviest components – engine, transmission, fuel tank and rider body – are. Getting all load in that is usually impossible but the principle of “close enough” is in play. My load out was like having a passenger of moderate weight and that weight was distributed immediately outside the rear upright of the load triangle.

#3 involved my choice of straps for the gear on the passenger seat. ROK straps than the tail bag atop that meant I could lose any one strap with little if any shift in my load. I had additional straps to use if such a failure happened.