Wheel Jockey® a Handy Tool for Safer Motorcycle Rides

The anticipation of a well planned ride almost always makes the ride more enjoyable. The riding season arrived early in the Carolinas and I looked forward to getting my gear on and heading out into the chilly morning air—away from the traffic for some fun in the “twistys” just outside our little town. Tank is full of gas… tire pressure checked…heart racing just a bit… all is good! While rounding the first left hand bend, the rear end of my old BMW suddenly wants to be in front! The dreaded “tank-slapper” makes my heart rate jump instantly. Thanks to no cars coming from the opposite direction, we stay upright and head for the shoulder. A sheet metal screw buried in the tread close to the tire’s edge is found to be the culprit.

Virtually every motorcycle rider has had a close call—a close call that might have put them on the pavement with little or no warning. With motorcycles having only two wheels, both of them need to be in proper working order if the bike is to maintain an upright position on the road. A flat tire leaves only half of your wheels functioning properly and decreases the odds of keeping control, avoiding disaster. Suddenly, the riding gear you (and your passenger) are wearing may be the only thing to prevent an ugly injury…or worse.

Flat tires on motorcycles usually come from road debris—nails, glass, screws, staples etc. This is the same kind of debris that flattens car tires. An underinflated tire can also cause an unanticipated loss of control. Every motorcycle manufacturer recommends that the tire pressure be checked before each ride. When the air pressure is checked, it does give the rider a quick look at the tire while getting the valve stem in place. However, unless the bike has a center stand that elevates a wheel so it can be rotated, it is extremely difficult to do a full tire inspection. To make matters worse, the fenders on many bikes can cover up to 75% of the tire. That means having to stand up and roll the bike slightly forward 6 or 7 times to expose another small section of the tire. Needless to say, this is a hassle and keeps most people from doing a proper inspection very often—if ever.

Wheel Jockey is a compact portable tool that many riders carry with them when traveling. It allows them to easily get the wheels slightly off the ground on ball bearing rollers so that the wheel can be turned for checking air pressure, cleaning, and maybe most important of all, inspecting the tire for hazardous debris; debris that could be forced into the tire while leaning into a curve, puncturing the tire and leaving the rider in a serious bike control situation.

Cleaning the chain, inspecting the tires, and even checking the air pressure is, to many riders, like cleaning toilets or windows. You do it when you have to—not one minute sooner. Whether a bike is brand new or ten years old, if it does not have a factory installed center stand, (the vast majority don’t), the compact, patented design of Wheel Jockey Sport and Big Boy models take a painstaking, but risk reducing, job and make it easy for men and women riders of all ages and experience.

Wheel Jockey’s owner, Bill Kniegge, shares that while leading a private tour of German enthusiasts for (www.bluestradatours.com ), a casual look at the rear tire of a guest’s bike while lubing the chain revealed that a large staple had pushed its way almost clear through the tire. “I was just spinning the wheel around several times, checking both sides and the middle, when it jumped right out at me. A freshly installed Stop & Go (www.stopngo.com ) plug and an occasional check of the air pressure turned what may have been a bad day into a great day. Several of our Wheel Jockey customers have shared similar instances that also, turned out fine.”

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Source: Motorcycling (AP, 1/10)