Wednesday, April 7, 2010

The History of Bike Bondage

5mmx50' Rope

In the beginning there was rope. And the rope was an evil slippery thing that would loosen and break where it would do the most harm. Many were the motorcycles that crashed in the backs of pickups and fell off of trailers because of the evil ways of the rope.
Ancra Original Tie-Downs - --/Red

And then there was the strap. And in all the lands of the strap the Ancra was the best and the strongest and the most trustworthy. Many were the pretenders and lesser straps. Some seemed to be cousins of the rope and were most happy to part at inopportune moments and lead to destruction. Even amongst the Ancra there was scratching and breaking of plastic panels. The world was not yet perfect.
M&R Soft Touch Protector

The soft strap arrived to join the Ancra to the motorcycle in harmony. A supple shape that many put on backwards, it kept the plastic whole and unharmed. And it came in many bright colors so to be easy to be found in the dark. Because it was separate and prone to wander off into the wilderness it always seemed to be singular when a pair was needed. It was rumored that the soft strap was a cousin of the sock which also was prone to be lost on the dark side of the moon.
MSR Hard Parts MSR SOFTHOOK TIES BU Tiedowns & Securing Tiedowns BLU MSR BLUE "SOFT HOOK" TIE DOWNS - 037-2270


And then came Malcolm into the land of the strap and he joined the strap and the soft strap into one. It had the strength of the Ancra and the suppleness of the soft strap. It was attached and was never lost. All who saw it rejoiced and praised Malcolm and added the MSR strap of many colors to their tool boxes.
Canyon Dancer Bar Harness II - Standard/Black

To protect the plastic even more there came the Canyon Dancer to the world and it was good. And then came the Canyon Dancer II which was even better because it understood that the plastic must be protected from all things evil and scratchy. It kept the pressure from the strap from cracking the plastic and held the motorcycle firm in it's place.
Pro Taper Tiedowns - --/Black

But still the land was not perfect. For in loading the motorcycle to the truck or trailer only a true magician could keep the bottom hook from falling off while attaching the top strap. It was the dance of the jester trying to get both linked up at once. Then, behold, a new strap appeared with the wisdom of the mountaineer. It replaced the bottom hook of the strap with a swivel carabineer that would not fall off and would not twist and tangle.  Lo, said the people who saw it. This is the most perfect strap yet. It is strong like the Ancra. It has the soft strap like the MSR. And it does not require a magician to attach. What could be more perfect than this? Well, a little better price perhaps but that will come in time.

3 comments:

  1. Nylon rope is more versatile and requires only that one learn to tie a few simple knots. Say; a binding hitch and a clove hitch.

    Less expensive too.

    PHM
    ----

    ReplyDelete
  2. Now where did I put my Boy Scout manual? And where will I get the third (and fourth?) hand to hold the rope, the bike, and tie the knot.

    I know it can be done, it's just that I can't do it. Especially when I'm trying to load more than a single bike on the trailer. If I drop a bike just once it will cost me more than the straps.

    ReplyDelete
  3. There is also chains with load binders. My dad had a friend that used those, what a pain.

    ReplyDelete