Helped a KTM rider

[jeffkruger]

Last week, heading towards home through a rather remote part of Montana I came upon a KTM rider alongside the road, rear wheel removed. I won't pass by another rider that is having problems anywhere, but especially this far from other help. I carry a compressor and quite a few tools with me and stopped to offer help. Turned out he was a heck of a nice guy. Was heading towards home after riding in Manitoba and ended up with a flat rear. I helped him get his old tube out, and we found the damage very close to the valve stem. This rider was well prepared and had another tube. His rear tire was stiff, and there wasn't much drop in the rim, and having two sets of hands to get the new tube in, the valve stem through, and getting the bead re-seated definitely made it an easier chore. It was hot and it took us a total of about two hours by the time the wheel was back on and his bike was ready to roll. We decided to ride 60 miles or so to the next town and have lunch together, and I followed him to make sure everything looked okay as he was going down the road.

This fellow had problems with fuel filters the day before and had spent most of the day putting new filers in, which he thankfully had with him. At lunch he told me he was hoping to be closer to home on the Oregon coast, but the problems had obviously delayed him a bit. I told him I already had a room in Missoula and he was welcome to bunk with me. He said he would decide when we got to Missoula if he was going any further or not. After a couple of construction stops and some thunder showers it was about 8pm when we pulled into Missoula and he decided to take me up on my offer.

A couple of times this nice fellow mentioned that I had changed his opinion of BMW riders a bit. He said that most that he had met during his extensive travels were somewhat snobbish and not very friendly. That sort of surprised me. I am very much a solo rider and enjoy riding alone or with one of my kids or spouse as pillion. Most other BMW owners I have met while traveling have been very nice, and quite a few like me were enjoying some solo travel. Maybe it was just perception on his part, thinking that since he wasn't on a BMW other riders looked at him differently. As a whole, I have found most BMW owners to be friendly folks, willing to at least engage in some friendly conversation or share a meal. I can't imagine many of them not stopping to see if they could help a fellow rider, no matter what brand of bike.

I do have to say that talking about the maintenance on his bike and what it took to do it made me even more appreciative of my GS with it's simple to maintain boxer motor. Having owned an adventure bike with tube tires, his tube changing experience also made me appreciate my spoked tubeless wheels/tires.

 

[weschmann]

Two years ago, coming home from the Salem rally, I was stopped at a rest area where there was only one picnic bench available in the shade. A couple of Harley riders and passengers pulled up and I invited them to join me at my table in the shade. After talking for awhile, one of the riders said that I didn't fit the mold of BMW riders because I was friendly enough to invite them over to my table and share stories. They mentions almost the same feelings that your KTM rider pointed out so I guess the label is kind of accurate. Turns out, they were Canadians who had just come from riding through Glacier National Park, and when they found out that I was on my way there, gave me their park entrance ticket (including their charge card receipt) so I wouldn't have to pay for my entrance. For my part, I took it as a huge complement to be one of a group that to the best of my ability, works at trying to promote the sport of motorcycling, and not any one particular brand type....

 

[Omega Man]

Nice!

OM

 

[jeffkruger]

Maybe there is some truth to the stereotype then. There is certainly some of that with riders of other brands, and no doubt BMW riders aren't exempt from such behavior.

My personal feeling is that as consumers we are lucky to have a lot of great choices of motorcycles. Everyone has their own criteria and reasons for making the choices they do. For someone that likes riding long distances and wants a comfortable bike, the choice made by someone that places aesthetics first and wants to ride rolling art may seem strange. It's all so personal and subjective. In the end, especially among those of us that choose to travel on our bikes, we have some common threads with other riders doing the same thing.

I think my GS is a beautiful motorcycle because it does what I like to do very well, and it's easy for me to work on and do routine maintenance. To many folks it's probably hideously ugly and looks like a Ewan McGregor poser bike. We all make a certain amount of assumptions when we see or meet another rider I suppose. I will say that some of the best conversations I've had with other riders while traveling have been with other BMW riders. That's my personal prejudices showing up a bit though. I like to meet other travelers that enjoy working on their own bikes, no matter what brand, but from my experience it seems more of the BMW riders tend to work on their own bikes.

I really dislike riding in any type of group, and I don't like encountering big groups of riders that ride close together. Last week when crossing Minnesota I came up behind a group of riders with probably about 30 bikes. They were riding close together in such a way that to pass them safely you would have to pass them all or risk some of them not making room for you if you had to get back over for oncoming traffic. I finally came to a stretch of road where I could safely pass them all at once and did so. I remember thinking how riding in such a group had absolutely no appeal to me. I do wish they would consider the safety of other motorists, on bikes or not, when deciding how to ride together as a group, but they all obviously get something out of being part of a big, rumbling group. To each their own.

I will continue to stop and see if I can offer any tools or help if I see a bike having trouble alongside a road somewhere.

 

[rad]

good job, good for stopping. I also ride bicycles and I stop foe all bikes powered or not that look like they may need help.

As for a KTM. I helped/watched/bleed as part of replacing a tube on a buddies KTM 950 and I have never seen a more difficult tire/rim combo to deal with.

 

[jeffkruger]

good job, good for stopping. I also ride bicycles and I stop foe all bikes powered or not that look like they may need help.

As for a KTM. I helped/watched/bleed as part of replacing a tube on a buddies KTM 950 and I have never seen a more difficult tire/rim combo to deal with.

True that! His rear tire had a very stiff sidewall, and without much drop in the rim it was a real bugger. There were some bloody knuckles involved. I had a Dakar that I thought was a chore, but this one was tougher yet

 

[rad]

True that! His rear tire had a very stiff sidewall, and without much drop in the rim it was a real bugger. There were some bloody knuckles involved. I had a Dakar that I thought was a chore, but this one was tougher yet

We were on the side of the road without a bead breaker and had hshorty tire irons. We used the weight of a GS side stand to break the bead.

I was riding my 640 KTM Adventure when my buddies 950 flatted. Mine is no picnic but it is doable on the trail. I would never travel alone off road with wheels like that 950 had.

 

[David13]

I'm a snob. And I'm not friendly. (Well, I have no friends, nobody likes me)
But I talk to any and everybody along the way. A lot of the car drivers talk to me also.
And on those few occasions where I have been able to help someone, I have. I thought all bike riders were like that, or at least most of them.
I talk to a lot of people, and some of them don't say anything.
dc

 

[greenwald]

Nicely done Jeff. You don't have to wear an 'Ambassador' patch to be an MOA ambassador!

KTM, like BMW, makes nice bikes but breakdowns happen.

Less common is the gentleman like yourself who extended an extraordinary amount of time and assistance to a rider in need.

You made all of us look better.

Thanks!

 

[jeffkruger]

Rad, I do have to say I was surprised at how prepared and well equipped the KTM rider was. He even had a torque wrench. The side stand bead breaker is a great method. I remember seeing that in a Helge Pedersen video years ago.

Thanks for the kind words greenwald. Like David13 I hope that most riders would at least stop and offer assistance and believe the majority would.

David13, especially when I'm on a ride I don't seek out any social interaction. I enjoy the time alone. Every now and then it just happens and I've met some great people and had some fantastic conversations. Some have been brief, some longer and I've enjoyed some meals with a few folks. Of the other riders I've met and really enjoyed, the majority of them have also been on a BMW. That's probably because more BMW owners are out there traveling and enjoy the same kind of places that I do. Though BMW owners, like any group, are comprised of a wide variety of folks, it's my personal belief that many of us share some common traits and beliefs and I tend to enjoy their company.

 

[av8rpaul]

We were on the side of the road without a bead breaker and had hshorty tire irons. We used the weight of a GS side stand to break the bead.

I was riding my 640 KTM Adventure when my buddies 950 flatted. Mine is no picnic but it is doable on the trail. I would never travel alone off road with wheels like that 950 had.

I had a 2004 950 ADV and those are thee toughest wheels ever to get a tire on and off. They had virtually no drop center to the rim.

 

[Paul_F]

Back in April coming home from southern Illinois, a gas hose came loose and was spraying gas everywhere. At a service centre, I took off the panniers, the seat and the right side faring, the side facing the parking lot. A group of eight riders, from a Chicago club were there at the time. When they left, each smiled and waved as they rode by. I didn't need their help, but laughed to myself at this "biker camaraderie".

Your response was much better, Jeff!

 

[rad]

Once I had the dreaded stripped clutch splines on my S and was stuck on a small mountain road with no cell service. A group of sport bikes came screaming past, then the lead bike hit the brakes, u turned, came back, put me on the back, left his buddies, took me all the way to my house and would not even accept any gas money.

Had a buddy with a broken clutch cable on a KTM heading home from a Death Valley run. He was stopped at a rest stop and a pickup hauling a KTM pulled in. The pickup guy pulled off his clutch cable and gave it to him....pretty darn cool I'd say.

 

[jeffkruger]

Once I had the dreaded stripped clutch splines on my S and was stuck on a small mountain road with no cell service. A group of sport bikes came screaming past, then the lead bike hit the brakes, u turned, came back, put me on the back, left his buddies, took me all the way to my house and would not even accept any gas money.

Had a buddy with a broken clutch cable on a KTM heading home from a Death Valley run. He was stopped at a rest stop and a pickup hauling a KTM pulled in. The pickup guy pulled off his clutch cable and gave it to him....pretty darn cool I'd say.

Hearing things like that always puts a big smile on my face. As a group I believe most riders would stop to help a fellow rider. Of course it has always seemed to me that the riders of certain brands are typically more likely to be carrying tools and know how to do some work on their bikes.