Had to purposely lay my bike down at GGP

[razorgamez]

this evening sucked...I was driving through golden gate park and out of no where my engine just randomly shuts down. I immediately started to look at all potential probs and found that the spring on my stand came loose and the kill switch in the stand was activated. Found the spring on the road and the only way to make sure the stand was back up properly was to put it back on...ended up laying my littly 2 fiddy on its side to fix the stand...now the fairings has 4 scratches...its the first bit of damage on the bike since I got it...annoyed.

Any way to make sure the spring does not come off?

[lgk]

get a different spring while your at it.

my spring is under some good tension. it should be impossible to come off while riding, unless something caught it.

[setasai]

Oh ouch. That totally stinks. You can use some pliers and wrap the ends of the hooks around the pegs a little tighter.

Was there nobody around that you could ask to hold your bike up? Carry zip ties next time. At the very least you could get it home onto a stand.

[TeamGreen]

This happened to me not long after i got my bike. I was riding along leaving my neighborhood maybe 35 mph and could hear something weird if i weaved to the left. I looked down and saw my sidestand was hanging down. I managed to get the bike home in 1st while holding the stand with my left leg. Went back in the truck and found the spring in the road. I bent the hooks on it a little tighter and it's been fine since.

Bummer about the scratches.

[Motofool]

Maybe you could try some safety wire and regular lubrication.

Eliminating the center stand has been a big back step for the Ninja 250 line, IMHO.

[koenigcitizen]

wow, learn something every day!
Sucks it happened!
I guess I will add some zipties to the huge "trunk" of my ninja

[razorgamez]

It really did suck and whats worse was it was around 7:30ish (pm) so there were only a few joggers (women) and they were all freaked out of their minds when I asked for help...prolly because there were 2 homeless dudes screaming at me from the other side of the field I was beside. Finally after laying it down an old lady did stop by and help but I didn't want to bother her so I told her its fine and thanks for the offer. Later on a guy in a bmw x6 stopped and helped me out with lifting the bike back up. When I layed it down, I left it on an incline thats greater then 50 degrees and had loose soil on the hill...so ended up not being able to pick the bike back up from the left side. Over all it was a really annoying 30 mins of my evening.

[greenaero]

Sorry to hear about this. One thought and it may not be applicable: I would have looked for a tree or some other large vertical object to prop the bike up with , then just secure your kickstand until you got back home and could repair it properly. I always try to carry some wire and duct tape with me whenever I ride for situations like you encountered.
Gotta agree with Motofool, eliminating the centerstand on the newgen bikes sucks.
Failing to prepare is preparing to fail. wise words to live by.

[250rr]

I'm sorry you had that situation happen while idiots were yelling at you. I had something similar happen to me after a traffic accident (I was in a cage). It just doubles the stress level. I kept my cool. But I wanted to do something besides keeping my cool!

[Motofool]

Originally Posted by koenigcitizen

I guess I will add some zipties to the huge "trunk" of my ninja

"One only needs two tools in life: WD-40 to make things go, and duct tape to make them stop." ~ G. Weilacher

[blink]

Wait... whyd you have to lay it down then?

[razorgamez]

So i could put the spring back on, its almost impossible to put it on with the kickstand in use, and since no one was willing to help hold the bike I had no choice but to lay it down so I could put the spring on. I usually carry a bungee cord with me which is what i used last time this happened (5 months ago)...forgot it at home this time...

Originally Posted by blink

Wait... whyd you have to lay it down then?

[akima]

In my mind I can picture it being possibly to lean the seat against a tree so you don't have to lay the bike down. Did you consider that or try that?

Originally Posted by Motofool

Eliminating the center stand has been a big back step for the Ninja 250 line, IMHO.

Originally Posted by greenaero

Gotta agree with Motofool, eliminating the centerstand on the newgen bikes sucks.

I guess you're function over aesthetics kinda guys, because the 2008+ ninjette would look pretty silly if it had a center stand. That sleek, shapely, ninjette body would be ruined!

[razorgamez]

Im adding zipties to my tool box, also bent the hooks on springs so that it wraps around more tightly.

[Firehorse]

Adding zip-ties. Thank you and glad that worse things didn't happen! Sometimes, you just do what ya gotta do. Clear nail polish on the scratches if they're only on the clear coat, that will at least keep it from getting worse until it can be repaired OR it will just be a good story. Either way, thanks for the tip.

[gilmorec61]

Wow man, sucks to hear about that Its a bummer there were not trees or even a sign around to prop it up on...

[bluepoof]

Originally Posted by razorgamez

they were all freaked out of their minds when I asked for help...prolly because there were 2 homeless dudes screaming at me from the other side of the field I was beside.

Gotta love Golden Gate Park!

[razorgamez]

Yep...theres a wide range of activities ranging from gawking at hot ladies who are out for a jog to being chased by homeless people because they think youre better than them Golden Gate Park is AWESOME!

Originally Posted by bluepoof

Gotta love Golden Gate Park!

[razorgamez]

Its all fun, the mcdonalds by GGP is worse...went there once, saw hippies making out and never ever ever went there again. The end.

Originally Posted by trixter

I tend to avoid that park and anything in about a 35 mile radius of it.

[nest0r]

I know the topic is old already. I've never been to the park before, being from FL, but could you not at least roll it into some grass?

[razorgamez]

yes...i could've...but I did not think of that....my first thoughts were...oh **** what do I do....second thoughts were "damn...how do i get those 2 homeless dudes to shutup"....and third thought..."damn stupid place to lay it down...."