Keeping Your Motorcycle Secure

The sad reality of motorcycle ownership is that it’s fairly easy to steal a bike. They’re heavy, but if someone’s determined to take it, it’s easy to just lift it off the ground and into the back of a truck. That’s why motorcycle security is an important part of your responsibility as a rider. To help you keep your motorcycle safe, North County Indian Motorcycle® has provided you with some of our best motorcycle security tips. Check them out and let us know if you need any more advice by stopping by our location in San Marcos, California, near San Diego and Oceanside. Plus, as your trusted Indian Motorcycle® dealer, we’re happy to show you our motorcycles for sale, so visit us today!

Your Strategy for Crime Prevention

Good security starts with a good strategy. The idea is to make the bike as difficult as possible to steal, and to have a way to get it back if something does happen. That’s partially what this article is about. We’re giving you the opportunity to sit down and think about how you’re going to keep your motorcycle safely in your hands. Keep in mind, the difficult factor matters. The longer it takes to steal something, the less likely it is that it’ll be targeted. You can also try to increase the risk of getting caught stealing, which is another great deterrent. 

Your Living Situation

Where you live will play a big role in your theft-prevention strategy. For example, if you own a house with property, you can simply pull your bike into the driveway, onto the lawn, or into the garage to keep it close. If you live in a complex, or don’t have a lot of property to spare, you’ll need to get more creative. You might need to look into separate storage units or ask your landlord about rentable spaces. Remember, even if you have the advantage of living in a secure area, you don’t want to let your guard down.

Parking Your Motorcycle

The first line of defense in protecting your motorcycle is to simply be smart about parking it. As we mentioned, understanding your living situation can help you find a spot that lowers your risk of theft. On your property or close to you is one of the best options, but you may also want to consider parking it in view of security cameras, so any thieves are easy to identify. 

Locks, Chains, and Physical Security

Now to look into security you can invest in. Again, this is about making your bike so difficult to steal, that it’s not worth the effort. Steering locks and disc locks can keep a thief from being able to ride off with your bike. Locks and chains can also help, but make sure you attach them to a part of the bike that can’t be removed.

The best investment is a chain, lock, and ground anchor. This is how you’re going to prevent someone from physically picking up your motorcycle and loading it into a truck. They can be bolted into the ground, sealed by concrete, or temporarily screwed into the dirt. Because of the invasiveness of the installation, you might be limited in what you can get, so think carefully before buying. 

Check Up on Your Bike

This is particularly important if you’ve parked it in unfamiliar territory. One way to help find a thief is to narrow down the window of time in which the bike could have been stolen. Look out a window or step outside every once in a while to make sure it’s still there. If you’ve put your motorcycle away in storage, swing by the place you’re storing it every once in awhile to make sure everything’s still as it should be. 

There are lots of other ways to improve security for your motorcycle, but the point is to have a strategy and to be actively thinking about these kinds of concerns. To learn more, or to check out our Indian® motorcycles for sale, stop by North County Indian Motorcycle® for a chat with our experienced staff. We proudly serve San Marcos, San Diego, and Oceanside, California.