Parking your motorcycle - tips and your stories

[FCBH]

I have read quite a few threads over the years about guys coming back to their bike after work or shopping and noticing the bike has been tipped over, many times without a note left on the bike. These folks even tried to catch the perpetrator by looking at surveillance tapes but often the cameras were not pointed the correct way.

I have even read about someone else's kids playing on their motorcycle as they walked back to the bike.

For me, based on several bad experiences, I try to park close to the entrance of the slot, backed in, so that my motorcycle can seen by other cars trying to pull in. If they do bump it, the center stand or side stand doesn't just buckle. This also helps if you have a heavy bike and can't roll out backwards....try backing out on a declined parking spot on a fully loaded ST1300.

I also will place my reflective jacket on top of the windscreen for added visibility. However, if you plan to be away from the bike for an extended time, you risk the jacket being stolen in certain areas, but then again, who wants a faded day-glo jacket.

Another issue is when I parallel park between two cars and given no other options (especially a small dual-sport) I will definitely leave the reflective jacket on the highest point of the bike. Of course, if you park between two large cars in a parallel fashion, you risk that they'll back into your bike assuming the parking slot is empty.

Let's face it, besides a motorcycle specific retailer like Cycle Gear, there are very few place that have motorcycle parking spots....even Home Depot and other retailer lack them. Given these options, some folks will park on either the sidewalk or in the fire zone.

Let's hear your motorcycle parking woes and lessons learned.

RB

 

[cdc]

On some large stores, I park on their sidewalk which is usually used to display equipment, or is simply deep enough. Examples: Lowes, Bestbuy, HEB...

 

[charrito]

A vehicle is a vehicle. Regardless of what I'm on/in, I use a parking spot. Parallel parking, same thing.

Sent from my SM-G900H using Tapatalk

 

[Yeeha! Stephen]

My bike got nailed in a National Park this summer but their security cameras were pointed toward the visitors center, not the parking lot.

The lot was very crowded and I assume someone thought my parking space was empty and just wheeled in at speed, nailing my bike in the back, and launching it over the curbing and onto the sidewalk.

Though there were hundreds of people gong thru the visitors center, nobody reported a thing and the offender just ran off.

I try to park shallow in the spaces so drivers can see my bike sooner rather than later in their attempt to take that space, but I guess this person was in a real hurry to get their kids out to see the Bison.

I still park that way, I just use the more remote areas of the parking available... weighing the chances of bike theft vs bike smash!

Good luck on your future parking!

 

[gixxerjasen]

If you own a MINI Cooper in Texas, these problems also face you. Just like the MINI I park my bike towards the back of the parking spot so the back end is in line with the other vehicles around it. That way, someone coming down the row will see it before they ever start to pull in. The FJR with the big top box is pretty visible and no problems so far.

Thankfully though, work has designated motorcycle parking.

 

[SparkyBlue]

A vehicle is a vehicle. Regardless of what I'm on/in, I use a parking spot. Parallel parking, same thing.

+1 good advise

And I knew this guy once... On a hot day, never use the center stand on new asphalt

 

[one Wolf]

Yes try to make sure you are visible to someone cutting across the lot at 30 mph cause they see a good spot. Lots of folks think it just a motorcycle and not an expensive vehicle. They're probably driving a *** that's pre-disastered.

 

[Ghost Rider]

I work on Fort Hood which is very good about having motorcycle parking in most work areas. I tend to catch a lot of flak off post when I park the bike in handicapped parking. In a previous post I mentioned how I get the stink-eye on a regular basis when I get my mini-me from school. No one ever bothers to look at my license plates before opening their mouths. Ignorant comments abound at the beginning of the school year. Once I've verbally put them in their place, they back off.

I literally had a guy flag me down while he was waiting in the drive up lane of the school to retrieve his minions and ask if I was disabled. I explained that he should stop being so lazy and get out of his car to check my plates before saying a single word to me.

When I park the bike in a standard parking space, I always leave it parked so the bike is on the center stand and facing out from the spot for the very reasons mentioned by others. If I cannot back into the space, I'll park shallow. Once the temps get close to 90 degrees, I'm always looking to determine if I should use a kickstand plate to keep from sinking in to the asphalt

 

[Meriden]

I've had no problem parking despite, or because of, being quite particular about getting a space where people can see the bike and not parking on the sidewalk or in a no parking zone.

As for leaving gear on a bike, I don't like to do it. When I lived in Fort Worth decades ago, a guy I rode with was in a pool hall we frequented. There was a little youthful exuberance between him and another patron, so when we left he found the helmet he left on his bike soiled.Obviously this is an anecdotal example, and the risk of having your gear tampered with or stolen is low, but the idea of leaving up to $700 worth of gear hanging on a bike when I can easily stow it is hard for me to do.

m

 

[tshelfer]

In parking lots, I always leave the bike toward the front of the space, and angled across the space. This makes the bike more visible, and also it's less tempting for somebody to try to squeeze their rusty 1988 Corolla in, and "share" the space.

As for parallel parking, Roger Lovin offered this advice in his 1974 book, "The Complete Motorcycle Nomad". He suggested you always park well away from the curb, angled toward the street, for the same reason. If a car decides to share your spot, your bike may get knocked over. And if it isn't knocked over, a friendly meter maid will likely ticket the bike for double parking.

 

[Windmill]

At Big Box stores I park furthest away from entrance, tight parallel to curb. #1 few people park far from entrance. Walmart I park next to yellow poles near Garden Center, much safety
I was eating my lunch in a mega fitness center parking lot, and notice this lady I know driving around and around the parking lot. When she drove near I got out to say hi. I ask her what she was doing. She said she was waiting till someone pulled out of a parking spot near the entrance, so she didn't have to walk so far to go exercise, plus it was closer to Wendy's, and she liked to get one of their chocolate shakes afterwards to enjoy after her weekly regiment.
Point, I park away from the entrances, and always back in, easier to get out, especially if the law is after you.

 

[KenH]

At box stores I look for yellow stripes at the end of a strip of parking spots and lock the bike to a pole. If parallel parking I back in the middle of the spot and turn the bars to the right. I never park near handicap because the yellow strips are often a way to provide space for wheelchairs and such. If no yellow stripes I back in, 45*angle showing side of bike to left, front wheel turned right, hang jacket on left handgrip, helmet on right handgrip, and run a bicycle security cable through a sleeve of the jacket, the face shield hole of the helmet, and under the triple tree between the forks. That way the high vis jacket works as a warning cone, and the collar is the only part exposed to a vertical sun location, so fading is not much of a problem.