Ride Three

For Ural Sidecar Motorcycle Enthusiasts

(Not mine, by the way.)

From Soviet Steeds - Front tire flat

What do you do if your front tire goes flat while you’re riding? It’s a harrowing situation. Offhand, I’m not sure how I’d deal with it either, other than not hitting the front brake. Will need to consult the manual and see if there’s any advice…

The folks on Soviet Steeds throw out their tips on how to deal with a flat front tire:

“I would appreciate any advice as to how better manage (under total control) such a sudden flat of the front tire”

Follow the whole discussion: Soviet Steeds - Front tire flat

A possible maneuver… or just a really bad idea

One thing comes to mind (as I ponder this while finishing the post). I’m not suggesting this, do not recommend you try it, and say it fully understanding it may completely wrong.

You could give the bike just a bit of throttle. This would cause inertia to make the sidecar drag, tilting the front of the bike to the right and, hopefully, off the road to a safe spot. Once bike was tilted, roll off throttle and gently apply rear brake to bring the rig to a halt.

What do you think?

Looking to get a Ural? Good on you. Here are 3 things you want to do before laying your money down.

1. If you don’t already, read and follow the Soviet Steeds message boards. Great discussions on all things Ural, and a big help to give you an idea of what folks things of their Urals, common issues, that sort of thing.
2. Find your nearest Ural dealer. Good dealers will be there for you for warranty, parts, and even some wrenching advice. Soviet Steeds is also a good place to turn for opinions on different dealers. If you’re in the Pacific Northwest, check out Raceway Services, Salem, Oregon, and Ural Northwest, Bellingham, Washington (near Seattle).
3. Have you ridden a sidecar rig before? If not, I highly, highly recommend the trike and sidecar motorcycle training Vernon Wade in Hood River does with his Adventure Sidecar courses. It’s a 3-day class (and a good reason to take a trip to the Columbia Gorge).

I hope that helps you get started on buying a Ural. Other questions about Urals? Ask below, or contact me.

Sidecar ballast is important to the rider new either to sidecar motorcycles in general or Ural motorcycles in particular. Getting the feel of riding a machine with a bunch of dead weight on one side – dead weight that loves to rise up and kiss the sky depending on the turn you’re taking – takes some getting used to, and ballast is how you get used to it.

Ballast was critical to me in my first weeks of riding. Here’s how much ballast I used in my Ural Patrol’s sidecar, where I put it, and how long I rode with it:

• 120 lbs. of ballast (3 40-lb. bags of stove pellets) for one week. 2 bags in the floor of the sidecar, one in the trunk
• 80 lbs. of ballast (2 40-lb. bags of stove pellets) for one week. 1 bag in floor of sidecar, one in the trunk
• 40 lbs. of ballast (1 40-lb. bag of stove pellets) for one week, 1 bag in floor of sidecar

Now I’m running with no ballast, and have been doing fine. For the first few days without ballast in the tub, I took it slow around the neighborhood, getting the feel for how the bike’s handling changed with braking, turning and acceleration. The bike handles very differently without ballast, and it takes getting used to. Finding an empty parking lot and practicing turns and braking is essential to knowing how your rig, and you, will handle and react.

It’s important to know how your sidecar rig will handle with and without ballast, especially when first getting used to your motorcycle. Find something you can put in the sidecar (dog food, pellets, potting soil, lead shot, whatever), and run a few weeks first around the 100-lb. mark and working your way down. You’ll feel much better about your rig, your riding ability and how you respond under different riding conditions.

For more opinions, ideas and recommendations about sidecar ballast, Soviet Steeds has a good discussion going: Best place for ballast,how much is enough:

“I started with (3) 40 pound bags of water conditioner salt on the side car seat and floor. try to keep the weight in the triangle (tip lines) between the 3 wheels. You take one out each time you get confident. about a week each. It took me about a month of regular riding to get to a nice comfort level with the transition from 2 to 3 wheels”

Read the whole discussion: Soviet Steeds Message Boards - Best place for ballast,how much is enough

It’s all about the feel

The other night, I had a horrible time finding neutral. Just could not do it — it was like my first days on the bike all over again. The next day I spent some time just working on neutral, and I think I figured some things out. These are just my observations and what seem to be working for me and my 2007 Ural Patrol; YMMV (your mileage may vary).

The quest for neutral, the gear of no-gear

• Shift all the way into first gear
• Put nearly even pressure on both the toe bar (down-shifting) and heel bar (up-shifting) of the Ural’s heel-toe shifter, with just slightly more pressure on the heel up-shifting bar
• Tense your calf muscles
• Press down, slowly, on heel up-shifter
• Pay close attention — feel for a “slip” of the gear into… nothing. Neutral is like the zen of motorcycle gears — it is the “no-gear” of motorcycle shifting. You’re feeling for not being in gear, of feeling between gears, because, well, that’s exactly what neutral is
• If it feels like you’ve shifted and suddenly the shifter feels like it’s come to a good stopping place, you’re in second gear, not neutral. Let out the clutch a little, bring it back in, downshift into first, and start over
• Continue until you consistently are feeling that “slip”, the feeling that you are out of gear, that the shifter is just hanging off in its own zennish nirvana nothingness. That’s exactly where you want it to be. Hint: it will always be less movement than you think it should be. If you feel you’ve moved the shifter enough, you’ve probably just moved it too far and are in second. If you’re confident you’ve hit neutral though…
• Prove it: Go on, let out that clutch all the way. Don’t worry if you stall, just go back to the beginning and try again. If you did get neutral, do a quick couple of fist pumps, pop the rig back into first gear, and continue on your way.

Repeat a few, oh, dozen times, and you’ll just be starting to get the hang of finding neutral on a Ural.

Ready to Hit the Town?

This week’s rides have been pretty similar and marked by a common theme: I’m feeling ready to start taking my Ural Patrol around town.

• Did have an interesting evening with finding neutral. I’d been riding around for about an hour, and suddenly I just could not find neutral. Kept slipping into second, and stalling whenever I thought I had neutral. Went home, tried a few more times, and gave it up for the next day. Began to wonder what I would do if something was wrong with the clutch…
• Next day, no worries. I spent some time just practicing neutral, and had no problems. I just hadn’t been feeling it out right. See “The Key to Finding Neutral on a Ural” for more.
• Down to 40 lbs. of ballast in the sidecar tub, and have had no problems. If anything, it’s been more fun to remember to shift my body weight a bit more.
• Found an area where a housing development is going to go. Streets are paved, but no houses yet — perfect area to practice some techniques. There are some good but slight curves, plus a long straight stretch perfect for accelerating, shifting and braking exercises. There’s also a turn-in that’s handy for working on steering in reverse.
• Some of the stop signs are on some short but pretty steeply angled slopes. The streets have all been residential, with virtually no traffic. They’ve given a great low-pressure environment to come to a smooth stop, shift into neutral, and then work on shifting into first, releasing the front brake and working on that sweet-spot combo of rear brake, clutch and first gear, for a smooth transition from full stop to pulling into traffic while on a slope.

The Patrol Loop

I haven’t been back up to 55mph on the Northwest Expressway yet, but will be soon. I’d like one more day of practice in clear weather and light traffic before getting out there more “for real”. However, I have been getting in more kms at higher speeds, 35-45 mph, and that’s been a big help to work on smoother shifting, handlebar grip and body position.

I’ve also been doing a big loop for more experience at different speeds, stoplights (and finding neutral at them) and riding in traffic:

• Neighborhood streets at 25mph, in second gear mostly, to work the engine and warm up the bike, then
• River Road at 40-45mph, leveraging third and getting some quality time in fourth), plus stoplights, changing lanes, checking mirrors, looking over my shoulder but keeping the rig in a straight line, etc., then
• Maxwell Road at 35-40 mph, nice straight stretch when I can lay the throttle on healthy, then
• Back to the neighborhood and soon home to whip up some grub

This wee “Patrol Loop” has been a big confidence booster. It’s real-world driving, at rush hour, on some of the area’s busier roads. Stack it all up, and I’m feeling more and more all growed up, and ready to start taking the bike around town.