Man's best friend
Posted: Sun Jul 08, 2007 3:27 am
I've always wanted the ability to take my dog on rides with me. Except that he's a bit big. And a bit excitable. He's a Border Collie. Enough said. But - He does love climbing on the bike and going for slow rides around the block. Ex-farm dog. Quite familiar with bike rides. So I started thinking ...................
Why not fit a transport crate to the bike? With this setup we've done a few short test rides of about 50 to 100 kilometres in recent weeks. He seems to enjoy it, and loves coming back for more. So today, in between some very cold showers, we did a 350 kilometre loop around some back roads. Bit more of a test for some much longer 'outback' rides I have coming up.
If anyone has a medium dog that they want to take for a ride - This works. The bike's lines get ruined of course, and it all looks a bit ridiculous, but I can guarantee you will be the centre of attention at every stop and refuel! And your best mate will love it!
These are the minor link roads we travelled. Easy going. Not much over 100 kph as it was too rough and too narrow in places, with lots of standing water after the rain we've been having.
Close shot of the airline transport crate I bolted to the Givi rack. Solid as a rock. All-up weight with Kipper on board is 20 kg. Less than a small pillion.
This is Kipper in his 'Drizabone' oilskin coat to keep the chill factor down. Note the BMW patch on the tail. Just like the R!
Hmm - Not happy Mick - Can we get going?
Locked and loaded (as they say).
More threatening weather ahead - We dodged storms all afternoon, but the storms didn't dodge us!
An old church for Gypsy! This one is special as it lives on an old property that belonged to the in-laws family. Out near Breadalbane.
This is us hiding from the rain for a while. Damned cold as well!
The big old trees give an indication of how old this place is. Can't recall the date, but it goes back to the 1800's.
Another rest stop for a run around. Kipper always seemed keen to get back in his crate.
More storms to be dodged, and heading our way!
Ready to go - Or just ready to have a snooze on the back!
The crate is just big enough to allow Kipper to stand and turn, but not move around too much. It doesn't upset the bike's handling at all. It's a good solution for those with dogs who want safer travel than an open box, but I'm eventually planning on removing the white top half and using a bow harness to keep him on board. Not just yet though.
Another rest stop for coffee at Lake George. Kipper got many pats and was able to lick a lot of people in return. Anyone would think it was unusual to see a dog on a bike!
Finally getting some water into the lake that's been dry for many years. I think Kipper's had enough. Time to go home.
So that's how to carry a medium dog on the Roadster. Not a permanent thing - Three bolts take it off pretty quickly - But it allows for safe transport of your mate over long distances. That's assuming you have a four-legged mate that likes bikes!
Why not fit a transport crate to the bike? With this setup we've done a few short test rides of about 50 to 100 kilometres in recent weeks. He seems to enjoy it, and loves coming back for more. So today, in between some very cold showers, we did a 350 kilometre loop around some back roads. Bit more of a test for some much longer 'outback' rides I have coming up.
If anyone has a medium dog that they want to take for a ride - This works. The bike's lines get ruined of course, and it all looks a bit ridiculous, but I can guarantee you will be the centre of attention at every stop and refuel! And your best mate will love it!
These are the minor link roads we travelled. Easy going. Not much over 100 kph as it was too rough and too narrow in places, with lots of standing water after the rain we've been having.
Close shot of the airline transport crate I bolted to the Givi rack. Solid as a rock. All-up weight with Kipper on board is 20 kg. Less than a small pillion.
This is Kipper in his 'Drizabone' oilskin coat to keep the chill factor down. Note the BMW patch on the tail. Just like the R!
Hmm - Not happy Mick - Can we get going?
Locked and loaded (as they say).
More threatening weather ahead - We dodged storms all afternoon, but the storms didn't dodge us!
An old church for Gypsy! This one is special as it lives on an old property that belonged to the in-laws family. Out near Breadalbane.
This is us hiding from the rain for a while. Damned cold as well!
The big old trees give an indication of how old this place is. Can't recall the date, but it goes back to the 1800's.
Another rest stop for a run around. Kipper always seemed keen to get back in his crate.
More storms to be dodged, and heading our way!
Ready to go - Or just ready to have a snooze on the back!
The crate is just big enough to allow Kipper to stand and turn, but not move around too much. It doesn't upset the bike's handling at all. It's a good solution for those with dogs who want safer travel than an open box, but I'm eventually planning on removing the white top half and using a bow harness to keep him on board. Not just yet though.
Another rest stop for coffee at Lake George. Kipper got many pats and was able to lick a lot of people in return. Anyone would think it was unusual to see a dog on a bike!
Finally getting some water into the lake that's been dry for many years. I think Kipper's had enough. Time to go home.
So that's how to carry a medium dog on the Roadster. Not a permanent thing - Three bolts take it off pretty quickly - But it allows for safe transport of your mate over long distances. That's assuming you have a four-legged mate that likes bikes!
