To cover or not to cover when traveling?

[ibike2havefun]

My bike lives on the street full-time, so he has a "permanent" cover to hide under. It's a full-shroud affair, leaving only the bottoms of the tires exposed, and rather heavy material, so it's pretty bulky. When I am out for a day ride, or commuting, the cover goes in the left pannier and more-or-less fills it. That's fine for day rides, but poses a problem when I want to put anything else in that space. So I am curious: when you are traveling (not just day-riding):

Do you cover your bike, specifically when traveling?

 

[ST-DocLizard1]

Re: To cover or not to cover?

Without fail while on tour overnight. It prevents people from having a seat on your bike or placing their toddlers on it for a photo op. I use one with a no brand logo. It is also a notice that there may or may not be an alarm on board to would be thieves.

 

[schlep1967]

Re: To cover or not to cover?

Half cover for me. It serves well to hide jackets, helmets, GPS, and also to keep the seat from getting up to 1000 degrees on a sunny day.

 

[SMSW]

Re: To cover or not to cover?

A bike called he? I think of mine as a she. And she has a half cover when I'm at rallies. Prevents the dew from soaking the bike - the cover ends up wet. Mine is a relatively cheap one made of thin material that stuffs in its own sack about 5" diameter by 7" long. It lives in one side case or the other after I pack the removable bags in.

I like the 'keeps kids off for photo ops'. Never occurred to me that it might suggest an alarm system. But that's a good idea, too.

 

[STony G]

Re: To cover or not to cover?

I have the Nelson-Rigg full cover. Use it everyday when parked at work and on road trips it becomes a back rest. The upfront cost is high, but it has a lifetime warranty, in 10 years they replaced it once.

 

[SteveST1300]

Re: To cover or not to cover?

I use a Nelson Rigg UV2000 packs small and covers all the stuff you don't want people to see.

 

[SourKraut]

Re: To cover or not to cover?

I have a half cover that gets put on once everything has cooled down. I like the idea of not exposing the top part of the bike to curious eyes.

BTW....in your poll, you forgot to provide a yes or no option, to answer the question.

 

[Mellow]

Re: To cover or not to cover?

BTW....in your poll, you forgot to provide a yes or no option, to answer the question.

Huh? I think he has it covered - been dying to type that - slow day...

 

[skipcurt]

I mis-clicked the "one cover for everything" button. I should've clicked the "specifically for traveling" button. I also have a Nelson Rigg UV2000. Sorry if I ruined the graph.

Skip

 

[lectricmojo]

I have a full cover for mine at home, dont take it when i travel, I have a sheet I use at work, and sometimes for travel, that I use like a half cover
(Arkansas poor boy half-cover)

 

[ToddC]

Full factory cover each night. To keep HER clean and prying eyes out. Cover goes in it's own bag and acts as back rest when not in use. Placed between duffle bag on rear seat and my lower back.

ToddC

 

[Reginald]

My home cover is my garage.

 

[cjames431]

I garage at home. Cover when I am at work.

 

[woodybelle]

I use a Tour King, http://tourking.us/shop/index.php/, half cover when traveling. Packs super small, about the size of a softball. It keeps the dew and sun off the bike. It is water repellent only but has kept my bike dry in some pretty good rains. I use a Dowco at home in the garage if she is going to be sitting too long.

 

[Svrdhd]

Have never owned a cover for any motorcycle.

 

[T_C]

I have a half cover for when I travel, for at work I just p[ut a cover on the seat. At home it's tucked in the garage. The bike did come with a big full cover, but I prefer to leave it off and just ride.

 

[Metalman]

Re: To cover or not to cover?

Huh? I think he has it covered - been dying to type that - slow day...

LOL!!

I use a full cover from OCS....it's very light, dries quickly and packs small enough to store in my small tail bag with room left over.

 

[Mick]

Do you cover your bike, specifically when traveling?

I learned from two incidents to always cover my bike when traveling. Once while parked at a motel in a small Texas town, I awoke to find that someone had cleanly snipped off my CB antenna. Another time I was at a motel in Farmington, NM and someone let all the air out of my rear tire during the night. After the second incident I bought a travel cover. No problems since. Anything you can do to keep drunks and other jerks from fixing their eyes on your bike, the more likely they are to just move on without messing with your motorcycle.

The brand of travel cover I've always used on my bikes is one made by EZ-Touring (Wanderer "M" model). They are very light, strong, and pack up very small so that they take up only a small amount of room in your saddlebag. A tad pricey but absolutely perfect for traveling and worth every penny:

 

[CruSTy]

I use a KwiKover
Stows easily, hides my stuff from view and keeps the dew, rain and some dust off. Covers the Pillion RDL seat as well.

 

[JohnK]

on my way to westoc, via the coast, she gets covered after about an hour when I get all the camping gear out and up. Oh i went up 112 to the cape flattery (far north west point) lower 48 - WA roads are mixed as quality - but this run was a hoot. like others it covers the eye candy for any who feel the need to touch. If yours is street stored - quality cover with ability to run a cable thru should be in order....we do what we can for them. Cover it at all times. go with a half cover when traveling