Got a rear flat on the FJR today, about 15 miles from home. torn valve stem of all things. So I got a ride back to the house and got my truck. The problem is that the only loading ramps I have are shorty 5 footers which work great for dirt bikes with lots of ground clearance, but not so much for a low slung street bike with a flat tire (which further reduces breakover angle).
Enter: The Ditch.
The flat happened to occur along the interstate where there was a decently sized ditch next to the shoulder, so the truck got to experience some pretty good chassis flex.
Made loading the 600 lb bike much, much easier than if I tried to do it on the shoulder though. Tailgate ended up just over a foot off the ground.
I think the rear tire is saveable, I probably only got about half a mile on it after it rapidly lost pressure. No chunking or anything. It only has about 2,000 miles on it so I’d love to put another 6 or 7k on before tossing it.
The truck didn’t get completely stuck, but I did try a couple other spots along the ditch before settling on the area in the photos and I got a bit hung up on the bigly stones filling the bottom. I really gotta get on that Eaton TrueTrac diff. Also maybe an 8 or 10 foot humped ramp.