Traveling and camping off the Silverwing or any motorcycle

The forum headline picture is a great example of a solo camping setup.  Add a passenger and it all changes.  

Usually a two up over night trip on any motorcycle will involve a hotel and restaurants.  Few motorcycles or their tires have the weight capacity to ride two up and haul enough camping gear for two people.  

Even the Goldwing reaches it's recommended weight limits with two up riding with limited luggage.  Some people can ride two up and camp off the bike with back packing gear, careful planning and packing.  

I have yet to do any over night trips with the Silverwing by itself.  

When we travel / camp on the motorcycle, I tote my trailer with my Goldwing.  I just mentioned this but I don't want this to be the focus of this thread.   This was a trip I took from Seattle to Utah this past summer.  



Sometimes, if my girl friend is going along and it is an extended trip, we will travel via a mini van and tote our scooter behind the van.  We know the benefits of car camping and towing our Silverwing.  I don't want this to be the focus on this thread.  

I would like the focus of this thread to be about over night travel either single or solo and what type of luggage one used while doing so.  If camping was the focus, great!  Hotels and restaurants, great!  

Lets hear about it.  This is not about "the best way to do it."  This is about "how you do it."  Or how you plan to do it.  Include your gear if you wish.  

This past summer, we toted the Silverwing to Glacier National Park and Yellowstone behind the van.



This is Bears Tooth Pass, just east of Yellowstone.



This is the "Hiway to the Sun"  in Glacier National Park.



This shot was taken in Yellowstone just inside the park on the east side.  I felt a little vulnerable on the scooter while riding pasts these big buffalo.



Our campsite at Glacier.  We camped here for a week.  



We can carry quite a few creature comforts when we take the van and tote the Silverwing.  Even an inflatable kayak, which we used on a couple of great float trips.  



I am planning my first over night with the Silverwing, a 3500 mile round trip.  I am riding solo and will be traveling without companionship.  

I have outfitted the Silverwing with a set of soft saddlebags, and hump bag, my rear trunk and recently put a trailer hitch on the Silverwing.  I will put a small cooler on the rear trailer hitch and make a solo trip to Sturgis for the motorcycle rally.   I am planning on cooking my own meals and camping.  In addition to all of the additional cargo capable bags, I will be stacking gear on the rear seat.  I will haul my camp cot, my tent, my sleeping bag and my rolled cot pad on the rear passenger pad.  

I am anxious for my trip to begin and I am anxious to hear about your experiences, your suggestions, all about your gear and your destinations.  

No such thing as "over posting" in this thread.  Keep it positive.  There is no such thing as "the right way, or the only way."

I could take this motorcycle:



Or this motorcycle:



But I will be riding my Silverwing and obeying the law:

I have two bikes and my trips tend to be a week or so.  I tour on my Silver Wing and my Goldwing.  Not at the same time, of course...  I take turns, but usually if lots of 2-lane blacktop the scooter gets the nod, if lots of super slab is involved I prefer the Goldwing as with its cruise the miles just fly by...

On the Silver Wing I use a top-box and the under-seat storage and also a duffle on the passenger seat. I do not travel 2 up as my wife packs WAY too much stuff, would have to haul a 20 foot U-Haul behind either bike...  LOL

I use this on the SWing to hold the duffle:

https://www.amazon.com/Bungee-Net-Cargo-Black/dp/B00PIW17ZW

Got it at Cycle Gear.

With the Goldwing I have the custom Honda luggage that fits inside the cases, works awesome. Seldom need a duffle with this one.

I do not camp, preferring to use motels etc.  Much less gear required and the money is not a huge issue. If I had to take camping gear I would need loads more space... This works for me and probably could stretch out to two weeks with a friendly laundry close by!

GHM-PM wrote:

I have two bikes and my trips tend to be a week or so.  I tour on my Silver Wing and my Goldwing.  Not at the same time, of course...  I take turns, but usually if lots of 2-lane blacktop the scooter gets the nod, if lots of super slab is involved I prefer the Goldwing as with its cruise the miles just fly by...

On the Silver Wing I use a top-box and the under-seat storage and also a duffle on the passenger seat. I do not travel 2 up as my wife packs WAY too much stuff, would have to haul a 20 foot U-Haul behind either bike...  LOL

I use this on the SWing to hold the duffle:

https://www.amazon.com/Bungee-Net-Cargo-Black/dp/B00PIW17ZW

Got it at Cycle Gear.

With the Goldwing I have the custom Honda luggage that fits inside the cases, works awesome. Seldom need a duffle with this one.

I do not camp, preferring to use motels etc.  Much less gear required and the money is not a huge issue. If I had to take camping gear I would need loads more space... This works for me and probably could stretch out to two weeks with a friendly laundry close by!

On your Silverwing, at what mileage do you refuel when traveling? How many miles do you typically plan on the Silverwing?

Do you haul any tools with you on your trips?

I think I will get me one of those bungy setups like you showed.

Tent and other heavy stuff fits under the seat. Sleeping bag, & light stuff in the topbox. Bag on the back seat if I need it.
Camping two up on the sw would be a challenge though.
Two up hotels should be easy, but I would worry about the weight limit. Or just ignore it.

I used to do quite a lot of camping in my motorcycle years mainly touring, club camping weekends, and ralliies. It's fun to a certain extent, but get a few days of bad weather where you're stuck inside a small tent with rain hammering down on the tent fly sheet it soon loses a lot of it's appeal.

I've been riding exclusively maxi scooters for the last 20 years, and the last time I did the two wheeled pack horse thing was on a touring trip and a FIM Rally in Sweden in ’98 on a Helix.

Since then camping has been confined to using sites where instead of lugging a tent around, Mrs M and myself sleep in a fully furnished mobile home, or a large 'safari' tent with wooden floors, fridge, cooker, beds, lighting, heating etc. This has worked well for us in Northern Germany, Luxembourg, and various parts of France. We travel light, inclement weather isn't a problem, and it's a lot less hassle than carting loads of gear around.

On solo maxi tours, it's just a few emails to book ferries, and I'll let Mrs M sort out the best hotel deal for the town/city/area I want to go to. I also use the network of bikers hotels they have in Germany.

I prefer using one hotel as a base, no constant unpacking and repacking, where I can 'shamrock' out from on daily rides, and get to know an area. I can fill up the scooter so I've a full tank the next day, and because I travel as light as I can, do a bit of home laundry in my hotel room and dry stuff overnight.

I try and keep things as simple and light as possible, easy care clothing, small washing kit and toiletries, and last year I dumped the tunnel bag, something I'd thought essential for years.

First pulling bike behind car is not scooter touring.

Second trailer behind bike, really not good idea from safety standpoint----I have pulled trailer behind/ two wheel to AK ,think trailer like Unigo might be ok but not with SilverWing.My trailer pulling experience is 75,000 miles with bikes. Note: when I had sidecar outfits lots of junk could be carried and camping no problem.

Travel light---I always carry lite sleeping bag---so if I cannot find hotel, I can sleep along side of bike on ground-----have slept in bushes in Paris and Geneva, many rest areas on toll roads in Japan, picnic table tops US.

When I two wheel camp, I have one man tent/small stove with which I can make hot water for coffee and instant oatmeal---- Many cities in Europe have city owned camp grounds, not wilderness camping, but cheap.

In US, I like to use old style Motel 6 or others where you can park right in front of room door--that makes loading/unloading easy.

Proper "professional" quality riding gear nice or necessary-----when I rode to North Cap in Norway, early spring, still snow on ground, I left my Aerostich one piece on 24 hours a day----I carried 40 lbs of military MRE's......necessary as there weren't many places to eat. Bike Honda XBR500S with Pacifico fairing. I remained warm and dry---got real cold or wet Barbour wax cotton jacket over the top of suit.

For year 2017, I am thinking about 49 states again and maybe all Canadian Prov. Easy to do in stages---come home do maint./change tires etc. Take my time which usually equals spending less money.

Modernman1953 wrote:

GHM-PM wrote:

I have two bikes and my trips tend to be a week or so.  I tour on my Silver Wing and my Goldwing.  Not at the same time, of course...  I take turns, but usually if lots of 2-lane blacktop the scooter gets the nod, if lots of super slab is involved I prefer the Goldwing as with its cruise the miles just fly by...

On the Silver Wing I use a top-box and the under-seat storage and also a duffle on the passenger seat. I do not travel 2 up as my wife packs WAY too much stuff, would have to haul a 20 foot U-Haul behind either bike...  LOL

I use this on the SWing to hold the duffle:

https://www.amazon.com/Bungee-Net-Cargo-Black/dp/B00PIW17ZW

Got it at Cycle Gear.

With the Goldwing I have the custom Honda luggage that fits inside the cases, works awesome. Seldom need a duffle with this one.

I do not camp, preferring to use motels etc.  Much less gear required and the money is not a huge issue. If I had to take camping gear I would need loads more space... This works for me and probably could stretch out to two weeks with a friendly laundry close by!

On your Silverwing, at what mileage do you refuel when traveling?  How many miles do you typically plan on the Silverwing?  

Do you haul any tools with you on your trips?  

I think I will get me one of those bungy setups like you showed.  

My Silver Wing gets very good mileage usually between 54-60 MPG US. It always has so I am blessed, I usually fill up between 150 and 200 miles on the odometer. I have pushed over 200 miles but that can be nerve wracking, plus these days my bladder needs more stops than the bike does LOL.

I am not an Iron Butt rider! With the Silver Wing I usually travel 250-300 miles per day, I have gone over 400 but that is rare. With the Goldwing and the Interstates I usually go 350-500 miles. Remember I am retired and the goal is to SEE stuff, and stop and take pictures (look under Ride Reports and you will see what I mean).

john grinsel wrote:

First pulling bike behind car is not scooter touring.

Second trailer behind bike, really not good idea from safety standpoint----I have pulled trailer behind/ two wheel to AK ,think trailer like Unigo might be ok but not with SilverWing.My trailer pulling experience is 75,000 miles with bikes.   Note: when I had sidecar outfits lots of junk could be carried and camping no problem.

We toted the Silverwing behind the van from Seattle to Glacier then on to Yellowstone.  My girl friend had never been to either of those national parks.  She and I like to travel and when we do, we camp / travel.  We sleep better and we eat better preparing our own food and sleeping in our own beds.  We were gone three weeks.  I put over 1200 miles on the scooter during those 3 weeks.  That is significant scooter riding and we camped in comfort.  

Karla does ride a scooter.  She rides a Honda PCX125, but it is not highway capable.  



She is no longer interested in sitting on the back of my Goldwing while we travel 400 -500 miles a day getting wind buffeted and according to her, bored.  So, I have to accommodate her wishes, as it is her vacation too.  When we do travel, we have the option of bringing a Silverwing along, which is great.  There is no better way to visit a place than on a scooter.  

When we travel in the van, we can take turns driving.  We can travel in bad weather.  We can travel farther as there is less fuel stops.  We can travel at night. It is easier on both of us as we can listen to music, talk and if necessary one can take a nap while the van is moving down the road at 75 mph.  

One added feature while van camping:  We can do float trips with our inflatable kayak.  We simply drop the Silverwing off at the "get out point" along a river and then take the van back to the starting point.  When we get to where the Silverwing is, I jump on the Silverwing and go back and get the van.  We used this method leaving the McDonald Lodge area on Lake McDonald, paddled the shoreline til we got to the lake outlet and floated the outlet down to the Flathead River.  Stopped mid route and had a nice swim / bath in that stream.  

Three weeks of camping but we stayed in motels two nights.  Once when moving from  Glacier to Yellowstone and once when we were meandering home along the Colombia River.  

I am a disabled veteran so I have a National Pass that allows us free entrance to the national parks and 1/2 on camping.  Camping in Glacier costs me $10 a day and in Yellowstone it was $15.  We camped in the middle of Lolo Pass at a national park wilderness campground for $5.  

It really is all about travel adventure.  Is it a motorcycle adventure if one flies from Seattle to Phoenix and rents a motorcycle for two days, rides around the area and then flies home?  I will call it a motorcycle adventure.  It works for me.  That type of adventure would costs the same as a 3 week vacation on my own bike camping and cooking my own food.  

Being retired and on a fixed income, I too have to watch my pennies.  So our adventures can last longer if we camp and cook our own food.

One more note: This next riding season, she plans on moving up to a Honda Reflex 250cc or a Honda Helix 250cc. We will get out and let her decide which one she would prefer. Perhaps, we can do some secondary road travel and we can do some over night camping off of the bikes.

Eventually, I can see her on a 400cc Burgman or 400cc Yamaha. I like the looks of the 500cc Aprilla with the saddle bag setup. It will be whatever she chooses. I would like to see her ride the Silverwing, but so far, she has stayed away from it. She has had zero interest in trying to ride it so far.

Whenever I am riding my Goldwing or Silverwing, no matter where I am going, I am sad to get there. The ride is over.

Meldrew wrote:

I used to do quite a lot of camping in my motorcycle years mainly touring, club camping weekends, and ralliies. It's fun to a certain extent, but get a few days of bad weather where you're stuck inside a small tent with rain hammering down on the tent fly sheet it soon loses a lot of it's appeal.

I've been riding exclusively maxi scooters for the last 20 years, and the last time I did the two wheeled pack horse thing was on a touring trip and a FIM Rally in Sweden in ’98 on a Helix.

Since then camping has been confined to using sites where instead of lugging a tent around, Mrs M and myself sleep in a fully furnished mobile home, or a large 'safari' tent with wooden floors, fridge, cooker, beds, lighting, heating etc. This has worked well for us in Northern Germany, Luxembourg, and various parts of France. We travel light, inclement weather isn't a problem, and it's a lot less hassle than carting loads of gear around.

On solo maxi tours, it's just a few emails to book ferries, and I'll let Mrs M sort out the best hotel deal for the town/city/area I want to go to. I also use the network of bikers hotels they have in Germany.

I prefer using one hotel as a base, no constant unpacking and repacking, where I can 'shamrock' out from on daily rides, and get to know an area. I can fill up the scooter so I've a full tank the next day, and because I travel as light as I can, do a bit of home laundry in my hotel room and dry stuff overnight.

I try and keep things as simple and light as possible, easy care clothing, small washing kit and toiletries, and last year I dumped the tunnel bag, something I'd thought essential for years.

I am envious of the European motorcycle opportunities. I lived in Germany as a teenager almost graduated from high school there before we came back to the United States. I rode bicycles and had a Puch moped over there. We lived in Wurzburg but we traveled all over Germany. I took a two week trip to Holland as well. I would really like to go back and travel on a motorcycle. I just remember the camp grounds were well maintained and people seemed to have pride of their camping equipment and tents. I loved the small bakeries and my favorite is the bratwurst and brochen, mit sour kraut and a touch of mustard.

I loved touring the castles. Everything in America is not very old in relation to things in Europe.

My father jumped out of an airplane in Normandy and Holland. I would like to retrace his steps and visit the places he did as he served during WW2. I have relatives in Germany as my Mother was a war bride and her wedding dress was made from his parachute.

The International Brotherhood of Motorcycle Campers is a great organization dedicated to motorcycle camping. Although 99% of the membership is in North America, all riders are welcome regardless of where they live or what they ride. They have campouts all over the U.S.

Dues are just $20/year which includes a bimonthly newsletter and full access to their website containing campout announcements and membership directory. For more info, go to ibmc.org.

To my mind it's always a compromise but if you are travelling with enough equipment to be self sufficient re camping/cooking etc that gives you an extra option when in the back of beyond, I have been camping with my son (at 11 y.o) with no issues but I had a girlfriend who insisted on taking 3 different dresses to a long weekend trip to holland and germany a while back - that was a challenge on a honda 400/4 with only throw over panniers!
Solo on a bike I reckon I can take what I need for any length trip - of course you need to know how to get hold of specific spares and tyres etc if it's RTW or another extended trip.

I no longer camp. I spent more time camping from a Piper Super Cub in NW Alaska. My bride and I used to go fishing and hunting camping out of the Cub. It's almost like bike camping in that you can't take much and weight is a major consideration. For those that don't know a Cub's fuselage is just a bit more than 20" wide with a small baggage compartment so you have to be a minimalist. These days down here in the South 48 I like to ride from motel to motel. I carry minimal gear in case I have to spend a night on the road somewhere but I do like the comfort of a real bed and greasy spoon food.
I think all styles of touring are great if they fit one. My preferences aren't right or wrong, just mine. The important thing is being on the road on two wheels.

sctr199 wrote:

The International Brotherhood of Motorcycle Campers is a great organization dedicated to motorcycle camping. Although 99% of the membership is in North America, all riders are welcome regardless of where they live or what they ride. They have campouts all over the U.S.

Dues are just $20/year which includes a bimonthly newsletter and full access to their website containing campout announcements and membership directory. For more info, go to ibmc.org.

I have been a member of the ibmc for three years now. I like the casual organization of their campouts.

exavid wrote:

I no longer camp. I spent more time camping from a Piper Super Cub in NW Alaska. My bride and I used to go fishing and hunting camping out of the Cub. It's almost like bike camping in that you can't take much and weight is a major consideration. For those that don't know a Cub's fuselage is just a bit more than 20" wide with a small baggage compartment so you have to be a minimalist. These days down here in the South 48 I like to ride from motel to motel. I carry minimal gear in case I have to spend a night on the road somewhere but I do like the comfort of a real bed and greasy spoon food.
I think all styles of touring are great if they fit one. My preferences aren't right or wrong, just mine. The important thing is being on the road on two wheels.

For years, my folks used to motorhome camp and pulled a big fishing / ski boat. We would ride our motorcycle to their destination as they would haul our camping gear. Once they quit motorhome camping, we started to do the hotel over night trips, but that is expensive to do. Now, the question is "How far can you go eating in restaurants and staying in hotels for $1000? At $200+ a day, not very far.

One other resource. I belong to the GWRRA (Goldwing Road Riders Association) The Gold Book, published every year has a listing of members who make their availability known to members about what they are willing to provide. Some list camp sites available, where they live in the country and would host an over night traveler. I have met some interesting people using the Gold Book.

Same thing has happened to me with motorcycle forum members too.

I travel hundreds of miles on a bicycle with all the camping gear I need; the only difference is the SW is faster. I'm retired, no hurry. harley

Hi GHM, I use the same web tie down. At present it is on my ATV. It works great and I recommend it too.

Greysilver wrote:

Hi GHM, I use the same web tie  down. At present it is on my ATV. It works great and I recommend it too.

In your signature:

2001 Honda ST1100 (9,000)
2003 Honda ST1300 (13,000)
2003 Honda Goldwing (115,000 miles)
2007 Honda VTX 1800R (4,000)
2011 Honda Silverwing. (2,500)

Are those all current bikes? Or are you listing the years purchased?

Travel and camping on motorcycles or scooters-----after years of doing this and over 75 new bikes/scooters----I think one of the great drawbacks are poorly designed/too high mounted saddle bags/no front luggage racks for plastic maxi scooters.

Some good things the worked for me in past:

Vespa front luggage rack....brings weight up front

Rubber Ortleib bags---trip with 100% waterproof luggage=nice

MZ, from when both DDR and MZ existed----side luggage racks, folded down to L shape, mounted load LOW, at or ahead of rear axle, not used, folded up, leaving bike still narrow.

Givi top box for liteweight stuff= they don't break and last a long time, but they bring weight up and behind rear axle. My Givi E-46 has over 500,000 miles and still does job.

Stuff that doesn't work:

Clam shell saddle bags---they tend to dump your junk on ground when open--Had this experience with BMW RT and K-75, Kawasaki ConCours, Givi bags on CB750 Honda

Any bike/scooter with no centerstand---worst feature of my TU250 Suzuki---hard to load up leaning over or wash, work on

Nice feature: In Korea, my Daelim scooter had factory accessary 360 degree big/strong bumper---protected bike, sturdy mount for top box, left lots of places to tie loads to bike. saved lots of plastic.

I look at the current crop of "adventure" bikes---all too heavy for me and they appear top heavy and are too expensive to get dirty.

Have had various experiences with tank bags for motorcycles and hump bags for scooters. With SilverWing, hump bag serves well to take lots of WalMart water bottles, other heavy stuff as trip progresses and water consumed, the bag is folded up.Put into one of my rubberbags or stuffed under seat. Dog can safely ride in it, too.-----prefer no hump bag as I like the step thru features of scooters.

Just some thoughts

john grinsel wrote:

Vespa front luggage rack....brings weight up front

Rubber Ortleib bags---trip with 100% waterproof luggage=nice

Have had various experiences with tank bags for motorcycles and hump bags for scooters.  With SilverWing, hump bag serves well to take lots of WalMart water bottles, other heavy stuff as trip progresses and water consumed, the bag is folded up.Put into one of my rubberbags or stuffed under seat.  Dog can safely ride in it, too.-----prefer no hump bag as I like the step thru features of scooters.

Just some thoughts

I would like to see some luggage mount for the front of the Silverwing.

I got a hump bag for the Silverwing. It doesn't hold that much stuff, but it can be very handy for travel holding the camera and stuff that needs to be at the ready. As you said, it ruins the step through. I think I would use it for a trip, but for every day errands.......... it sits in the closet.

One of these days, I am going to get my scooter blanket out and see how it fits on the Silverwing. This is the one I have.

When I bought  the Swing I also bought a camper trailer for us. It folds out and sleeps me and my wife in comfort. It has storage underneath so the anything we want to take (esky, cooking gear chairs ) all go under there. Wife takes the sleeping bags and clothes on her bike and everyone is happy.
Yes towing it affects handling and mileage but the looks we get from people when they see our set up is priceless.
This pic is on the HAY plains western NSW Australia.

shyted wrote:

When I bought  the Swing I also bought a camper trailer for us. It folds out and sleeps me and my wife in comfort. It has storage underneath so the anything we want to take (esky, cooking gear chairs ) all go under there. Wife takes the sleeping bags and clothes on her bike and everyone is happy.
Yes towing it affects handling and mileage but the looks we get from people when they see our set up is priceless.
This pic is on the HAY plains western NSW Australia.

Thanks for sharing your setup.   Nice looking rig.   This is the first I heard of someone toting a camper trailer with a Silverwing.  

Would you be so kind as to specify what hitch you are using?  Can you take a picture or two of it?

What does it do to your mileage?   How far do you travel with it?  So you are towing that and riding two up?   How many miles have you used it in this manner?

Did you wire it for the trailer yourself?

What does she ride?

It's a Tourlite Roadster. It weighs approx 115kgs and has a swivel hitch. The towbar is from Classic Industries in Queeensland.
I wired the electrics myself and I didn't have to take off the bodywork although it would make it easier.
My wife was riding a Honda CTX700D on our trip to Broken Hill from Sydney and return approx 3000kms.
Fuel consumption dropped down to around 18kms a litre.
It sat on the speed limit all the way which was mainly 110km/h

shyted wrote:

It's a Tourlite Roadster. It weighs approx 115kgs and has a swivel hitch. The towbar is from Classic Industries in Queeensland.
I wired the electrics myself and I didn't have to take off the bodywork although it would make it easier.
My wife was riding a Honda CTX700D on our trip to Broken Hill from Sydney and return approx 3000kms.
Fuel consumption dropped down to around 18kms a litre.
It sat on the speed limit all the way which was mainly 110km/h

Thanks. Sounds like an adventure.

For Americans.... that equals about 41 mpg. That is not too bad for towing a camper trailer.

Is the CTX700D an automatic?

Which is about 50 uk mpg, whch is about what get anyway.

These are some pics of our other adventures on scooters/bike.

What's the bike? Looks like it's got a cvt too. Never seen one like that before.

shyted wrote:

our scooters

That is great. Thanks for sharing your pictures.

steve_h80 wrote:

What's the bike? Looks like it's got a cvt too. Never seen one like that before.

Yes you are right it has a CVT. It was sold here downunder as a CF Moto V5. Looks like a cruiser but with a CVT. It has a 250 cc engine which I think was cloned from Honda. Wife has had it up to 130km/h which ain't too bad for the size of the engine and weight of bike.

You really have to invest in the best camping/outdoor brands available - hilleberg tents - rab sleeping bags - ortleib luggage - you get the gist the smaller and lighter the better - if you want headroom in a tent I suggest you buy a camper van or caravan alternatively ditch the camping gear altogether and pack your credit card in your wallet and stay in a hostel / hotel or the like

Modernman1953 wrote:

One more note:  This next riding season, she plans on moving up to a Honda Reflex 250cc or a Honda Helix 250cc.  We will get out and let her decide which one she would prefer.  Perhaps, we can do some secondary road travel and we can do some over night camping off of the bikes.  
Eventually, I can see her on a 400cc Burgman or 400cc Yamaha.  I like the looks of the 500cc Aprilla with the saddle bag setup.  It will be whatever she chooses.  I would like to see her ride the Silverwing, but so far, she has stayed away from it.  She has had zero interest in trying to ride it so far.  

The Reflex is newer than the Helix, has a little bit more ability and can do freeway speed. (up to about 75 mph... 70 mph easy all day long)
The Helix is a bit dated and struggles to stay at 65 mph. But for ride comfort, it is hands down the BEST scooter ever built in that regard. With a longer wheelbase than most scooters, it has a surprisingly decent ride for a scooter with wheels that are 10" at the rear and 12" up front. It also has a lower seat height than most scooters as well and so is easier for those of short stature to flat foot it when stopped.

I use my Honda Reflex to pull a custom built singlewheel trailer that holds more than it should be able to... Seriously, it can hold more than what the bike is safely capable of carrying. Had to turn around a mile away from home once to unload about 1/4 of what it was carrying as it wallowed like a pregnant whale when doing lane changes... not good. Too much inertia in the heavily loaded trailer when leaning for turns. I have also used it with the Silverwing but have to watch my speed as the little 10" scooter tire on the trailer would fling up and rub on the fender from spinning too fast.

I have also gone camping without the trailer, but would use the Silverwing to carry stuff on the passenger part of the seat and would just go to restaurants for meals; with the trailer, cooking gear could be carried for doing meals on my own. I have also put the Reflex on the back of my pick up truck to haul it for camping down in Florida to get away from the snow and ice cold of Michigan winters... OOOH, so nice!!! Always use my "Great Blue Palace" Sierra Hulu 4+2  2 room tent. Bigger than what I need, but I really like all the extra room to move around in and be able to stand upright. It's just too claustrophobic for me in a small tent on days when it is just too miserably wet, windy and cold to venture outside. I prefer camping, but on occasion will do the hotel/motel thing.

Loaded up the Reflex for Florida trip.


At the campground in Cedar Key FL. Dec. 29 2014  for the IBMC Bringing in
the New Year 2015 (went to Naples and Key West too on this trip)


Camping at the "AMA Vintage Motorcycle Days" in Mansfield Ohio.

Odd, but only one pic that shows just the front of my Silverwing near my
tent... not worth posting

bandito2 wrote:

The Reflex is newer than the Helix, has a little bit more ability and can do freeway speed. (up to about 75 mph... 70 mph easy all day long)
The Helix is a bit dated and struggles to stay at 65 mph. But for ride comfort, it is hands down the BEST scooter ever built in that regard. With a longer wheelbase than most scooters, it has a surprisingly decent ride for a scooter with wheels that are 10" at the rear and 12" up front. It also has a lower seat height than most scooters as well and so is easier for those of short stature to flat foot it when stopped.

I use my Honda Reflex to pull a custom built singlewheel trailer that holds more than it should be able to... Seriously, it can hold more than what the bike is safely capable of carrying. Had to turn around a mile away from home once to unload about 1/4 of what it was carrying as it wallowed like a pregnant whale when doing lane changes... not good. Too much inertia in the heavily loaded trailer when leaning for turns. I have also used it with the Silverwing but have to watch my speed as the little 10" scooter tire on the trailer would fling up and rub on the fender from spinning too fast.

I have also gone camping without the trailer, but would use the Silverwing to carry stuff on the passenger part of the seat and would just go to restaurants for meals; with the trailer, cooking gear could be carried for doing meals on my own. I have also put the Reflex on the back of my pick up truck to haul it for camping down in Florida to get away from the snow and ice cold of Michigan winters... OOOH, so nice!!! Always use my "Great Blue Palace" Sierra Hulu 4+2  2 room tent. Bigger than what I need, but I really like all the extra room to move around in and be able to stand upright. It's just too claustrophobic for me in a small tent on days when it is just too miserably wet, windy and cold to venture outside. I prefer camping, but on occasion will do the hotel/motel thing.

I like how you blended car camping with scooter riding.  Sometimes we have to tote our bikes with us and that puts the bike on a trailer.  Some don't call that scooter riding and we know that, but in order to bring along a scooter, it needs to be on a trailer.  My name is MODERN-MAN and I approve this method!  

I have had a couple of Helix scooters but never had a Reflex.  I believe the Reflex will be a stepping stone for her to a 400cc Maxi scoot.  Maybe even to a 600cc Silverwing.  

So it is show and tell on that trailer.  Who makes it?  How long have you had it?  Do you feel it changes your mpg or your performance of the scooter?  How is the braking?  How much weight do you feel comfortable towing?

With the trailer in tow, along with the storage of the scooter, one can haul enough creature comforts to get along well out camping.  

It would be fun got to an organized scooter tramp camp out and meet other scooter riders who camp off the bikes and compare equipment and swap travel stories.  

Wait, that is what this forum is for:  To remove the time and distance between like minded scooter riders.

I just got my new solo cot tent delivered yesterday.  



Here is the youtube video:



I like how much faster the new tent is over the old one.  The old tent had sleeves on the tent and had to slide poles into the sleeves.  

Here is the old tent setup at the Grand Canyon.



I like the new one as it takes only a minute to setup.

Modernman1953 wrote:

I like how you blended car camping with scooter riding.  Sometimes we have to tote our bikes with us and that puts the bike on a trailer.  Some don't call that scooter riding and we know that, but in order to bring along a scooter, it needs to be on a trailer.  My name is MODERN-MAN and I approve this method!  

I have had a couple of Helix scooters but never had a Reflex.  I believe the Reflex will be a stepping stone for her to a 400cc Maxi scoot.  Maybe even to a 600cc Silverwing.  

So it is show and tell on that trailer.  Who makes it?  How long have you had it?  Do you feel it changes your mpg or your performance of the scooter?  How is the braking?  How much weight do you feel comfortable towing?

With the trailer in tow, along with the storage of the scooter, one can haul enough creature comforts to get along well out camping.  

It would be fun got to an organized scooter tramp camp out and meet other scooter riders who camp off the bikes and compare equipment and swap travel stories.  

Wait, that is what this forum is for:  To remove the time and distance between like minded scooter riders.

I had to put it on the truck... No way I was going to be able to ride in sub freezing/snow on the roads kind of weather... especially that far.

I had it custom built from sketches and dimensions I provided to a welding shop. They took too long and I eventually took it to a custom car/bike building shop to get the build completed. I did the paint and wiring myself. Here's a link to the ADVriders site when it first got done.
http://advrider.com/index.php?threads/trailers-pulled-by-motorcycles-heres-mine.755586/


The build was finally done and was first used in August 2011. It had a few modifications since then; rubber trim around the hard edge of the splash guard, better fitting bolts and sleeves to remove slop from the pivot connections and a 1/2" lip added to the part that bolted to the rear spoiler for stiffness. Without the closer tolerance fittings and the stiffener, the part could bend down and flex which would allow the trailer to wag pretty badly. No troubles since then except for a noise that some times comes from a spacer at the rear axle which is wide enough, but can move around a little because the inner diameter is a tiny bit too big... I don't worry about that though.

It dropped the mpg from mid 60s down to low 40s which is pretty significant but not unexpected... and it was run WOT to maintain 70/75mph. Naturally faster downhill or with tailwind. But the one thing that made it worthwhile was that it would stay planted and not sway very much at all from the gusts of passing trucks. All that drag from the trailer would make it difficult to pass trucks sometimes when hitting the wall of wind being pushed off the front of the truck.

Naturally the acceleration rate is less, and even a little more so for me because I was using a car tire on the rear of the bike which is a little taller effecting taller gearing than a scooter with a stock scooter tire. No trouble braking... naturally takes longer to stop. But I ALWAYS made sure I had room to stop, so would slow down sooner as needed.

The trailer frame was built with material the welder had on hand which really was more heavy than necessary, but it is built like a tank and should last forever. It weighs around 50 to 60# and I don't feel comfortable adding more than another 60/70# or so. The handling becomes nervous because of the inertia of the trailer leaning from one direction to another if loaded too heavy. There is a little bit of a lag between initiating a turn and stopping the movement of the lean. The trailer first resists the lean, then wants to keep going over once it is in motion for the lean. Happens much less so when loaded more proper but can still exhibit the wobble if the turn is initiated rather quickly. This would be of less consequence when traveling at slower secondary road speeds but would be a concern at freeway speed. I'm not sure if users of other single wheel trailers would be willing to admit such things, but I'm sure the physics are the same for them too. Things are different for 2 track trailers, but keeping speed and separation distance sane helps keep things safe/r.

carrying lots of lighter but bulkier stuff in the trailer IS really nice for more camping comfort.

I camp with motorcycle camping folks... I have only seen one other example of a scooter pulling a trailer and camping. (Silverwing towing a 2 wheel cargo trailer) I suspect I am one of a rare few that tow a trailer with a scooter and use the set up for camping. There are more that use the back seat/top case/saddlebags to carry stuff on their scooter for camping, but still, not even many of those kind of folks either... around here anyway.
Best group for that sort of thing is the Maxi-Scooters group out of ST Louis MO. ... A really great bunch of scooter riders. Been on several of their camping trips; neat things to see and do and really nice planned rides.