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Badger Ferry suggestions

jademe

New member
I'm considering crossing from Ludington, MI to Manitowoc, WI on the Badger Ferry. I have crossed by auto before (and know the basic drill for reservations/ time/etc) but not with my RT. Can anyone offer advise/suggestions for tiedown instructions for the ferry ? thanks jim
 
road it last year, min two good ratchet style straps and maybe two pull straps(the kind that are used when the new bikes are shipped, some dealers give these away) soft ties are a plus. mainly using the front forks, watch the other guy we got to here and see a goldwing and a Lt get together because someone released one strap completely and the other pulled the bike over . clunk!!
 
Thanks, for the info and the warning !!

Do you use center stand or side stand? Do you back in (and does rear wheel rest on a "stop"?) or do you drive in (and does front wheel rest on a "stop" or wheel chock?) Do they have someone there to assist ?

With the Wing/RT incident......would that have been prevented by releasing part way on one side and then the other side ?
 
front wheel in, against a bulkhead(wall) using the side stand,(lots of HDs with no centerstand) our group put people between each bike and helped each other release the straps evenly, no need to rush they normaly have to move a bunch of 4wheelers before the bike can back out and get turned around to exit
 
Do bring your own straps. I was with another rider and we took turns holding each others bikes upright so we could tie them down properly - upright. I left the side stand down just in case it tipped that way, but with proper tie downs I wasn't really worried about that.
 
You may want to check out the high speed ferry: http://www.lake-express.com/

+1 on the Lake Express.
They have plenty of ratchet straps and bikes were 1st-on 1st-off (at least that was my experience last summer). However, I'm glad I had my own handle bar tie-down strap.

If you tend to suffer from motion sickness, don't take the night crossing in rough weather :doh . Trying to make a hard right and hit the off ramp with my head spinning was a real thrill.
 
Don't forget to sign up for the free pizza! I won it last year on the way to West Bend :eat
 
Badger Traveler 2

Jim, I will be a first timer on the Badger as well in a couple weeks. Good to see somebody else is checking it out too. We are doing a two up tour out to Omaha and back to Ohio through Wisconson and Michigan. Post an update here in and let us know how it goes.

Chris
 
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