Lake Express Ferry

[miairhead]

Don't forget there is still time to take at discount.
http://www.lake-express.com/lake-mi...s&utm_term=Click for motorcycle offer details

Great way to avoid Chicago traffic.

 

[BMW Triumphant]

I've used this ferry twice. I like it a lot. I can leave from just west of Toronto in the early morning and check into a Madison WI motel that evening.

Last year I used the first class section and found it very nice.

 

[exgman]

I used this in 2012 riding to CA. A very pleasant ride, and the bike was nicely secured. There is an older, slower ferry which crosses Lake Michigan somewhat north of Muskegon where this ferry departs.

 

[lee]

I used this in 2012 riding to CA. A very pleasant ride, and the bike was nicely secured. .

Did they provide tiedowns? When I called, they said I had to provide our own.

 

[wisconsinkris]

It would be great if someone from the MOA head office could arrange a moto discount for the 2016 rally. I think Harley does it for their annual gatherings in Milwaukee

 

[exgman]

Tiedowns on Lake Express?

Lee - When I crossed in 2012 they provided the tie-downs. I had my own from prior ferry crossings, but they let me borrow four. They insisted the bike be put on the center stand, so I lived with that, and tied it down. Here is a photo of the RT sitting in the ferry, tied down front and back.



I have crossed on a conventional ferry from Lewes, DE to Cape May, NJ, and those folks instructed me to put the bike on its side-stand, in gear, up near the bow of the boat, and to park it ninety-degrees to the rail. That was a very rough crossing and the bike didn't move a bit. The New Jersey folks told me I could not tie down the bike and it was just fine.

 

[exgman]

It would be great if someone from the MOA head office could arrange a moto discount for the 2016 rally. I think Harley does it for their annual gatherings in Milwaukee

I imagine the fact that the Wisconsin port for the Lake Express is Milwaukee is some factor in that discount...

 

[lee]

View attachment 50985

I have crossed on a conventional ferry from Lewes, DE to Cape May, NJ, and those folks instructed me to put the bike on its side-stand, in gear, up near the bow of the boat, and to park it ninety-degrees to the rail. That was a very rough crossing and the bike didn't move a bit. The New Jersey folks told me I could not tie down the bike and it was just fine.

That's interesting. Any large ferry we've been on, we were told like you mention, to put the bike on the side stand and in gear. Most of the time the crew would tie down our bikes and sometimes they would give us tie downs and tell us to take care of it.
Right now I'm not 100% sure we will take the ferry, but I'll pack two tie downs and soft ties for each bike just in-case.

Thanks for the info John.

 

[exgman]

Lee- I was on another rough crossing from the tip of Long Island, NY to New London, CT a couple of years ago. The crew gave no instructions about where to park the bikes (there were 15 on that crossing...mostly HD products). Since I had tie-downs I was well-secured. Some of the H-D guys scrounged some rope from somewhere, but most of them spent the crossing (about 1.5 hours) sitting in the saddle with their feet planted on the slippery metal deck. No incidents occurred AFAIK.

Seems like ferry people are pleased to take your $$ but not interested in keeping you & bike safe.

 

[Nick6221]

Nick6221

ExGMan - I just did the Lewes to Cape May ferry last week on my RT and was parked as you were. But smooth crossings both ways. When I boarded I thought about tie downs. But did not see any anchoring hardware. BTW, is that a floorboard I see where your foot peg would be? If so where can I get them?


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

 

[exgman]

Nick - I did like my ride on the Lewes, DE ferry. I felt like it's a well-run organization.

As to your questions about the footboards on my 2008 RT, they're made by a company called Illium Works. If you Google the name you'll get taken to the website which has a lot of useful and I think well-made products for BMW motorcycles. The product I have is the "Driver SportBoards." Here is a link to the page for those: http://www.iliumworks.com/BMW_Motorcycle_Accessories.cfm?pn=30-300BL&pID=99

They're selling new for $450 or so (including a side stand enhancer), and I've had mine for six years on my just-traded 2008 R1200RT, which is what you saw in the Lake Express photo. I bought them used from somebody a long time ago, so didn't pay $450 for sure. I used them for 40,000 miles on my 2008 RT, took them off to trade the bike (yesterday), and have put them on my 2015 RT. The Illium website says there is a "NEW sleek design" for the boards, but from their photos they look exactly the same to me, and they're the same size, i.e. 9" long and 4" wide. Anyway, they fit just fine on my 2015 which means they'll work on any RT from 2005 to 2015, I guess.

I took some photos to show you the before and after the boards are installed on my 2015. The first is a photo of the boards ready to go on the bike with the associated hardware. FWIW, each of these pieces weighs 1 pound and 12 ounces. Heavy duty stuff for sure. They're hinged to keep the rider from levering the bike off the pavement in a deeply banked turn.

Here is a photo of the right peg of my 2015 RT so you can see the height of the peg:

Here is a photo of the Illium SportBoard in the same position after I removed the peg and put the Illium piece in place. You can see that it drops the foot location down about 1.5 inches, and gives a surface on which it's possible to move your foot forward and back quite a bit. I did not have any issues with shifting and braking, but some people have moved the position of both levers I understand:

I hope this is helpful to you. I have old knees and a hip-replacement and these have made those problems the least of my worries. When I get below 30 mph or so, I like to stand up to cool off and stretch my legs and I've had no problem doing this at 6'4" and 225#.

 

[nosdivadwd]

lake express

It would be great if someone from the MOA head office could arrange a moto discount for the 2016 rally. I think Harley does it for their annual gatherings in Milwaukee

They only do it on their terms - even HD don't have enough pull

$12 fares are available Spring 2015 (May 1st-June 30th)
and again in the Fall ( September 8th- November 1st).

 

[Nick6221]

ExGMan - Thanks for the link! When I bought my RT in 2012 I had the dealer throw in engine guards from Illium Works. A couple of lay downs since then has proven their worth!
The Sport Boards look a lot more comfortable for long highway rides.
Thanks again,

Nick


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk