Yesterday I was out on a motorcycle ride. I was litterally in the middle of nowhere when I noticed my rear tire was flat.
I did have cel phone service so I got ahold of my son in law and he was on his way to rescue me. but I was there for about two and a half hours.

This was in the middle of nowhere Wyoming. A car came by about every 5 or 10 minutes whitch is a long time compared to most places.

About a half hour into my wait a car went by and kept going over the next hill a couple miles down the road. about 5 minutes later that car came over the hill coming back.

As the car got closer I noticed they had a license plate from an eastern state and the two guys in the car were really sketchey looking. I had a really bad feeling.

I am the guy that ALWAYS carries. Always. Yesterday was in the high 90's and I think the high was 101 degrees. When I am riding the wind blows my shirt up exposing my gun in a IWB holster and it was hot and any other excuse I had to not carry yesterday. Anyway I wasn't carrying.

These two guys asked if I needed help and said something about having an air compressor and started to get out of their car. I told them I had help on the way and didn't need their help but they kept getting out of their car.

About that time a guy and lady rode up on a motorcycle and stopped and asked if I needed help. The two guys got back in their car and left.

I know in my mind that those guys were up to something. I was a long way from nowhere and very volunerable. All I had to protect myself was a pocket knife. I think at very least they planned on robbing me and taking my wallet. Who knows what else they had planned.

The moral of this story is NEVER I mean NEVER leave home without some way to protect yourself.

I learned my lesson and it turned out allright and for that I feel lucky. It won't happen again.

Thanks for listening
Wingmaster

Thank the heavens you're OK Wingmaster!

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Happiness Is A Belt-Fed Weapon

Wow!

It's too bad we must live in fear of those who look for their advantage over someone else.

Worrying about exposure to IWB carry and a shirt flying up?
That's why they make ankle holsters. It takes a little more time to get it out but at least you got it.

I walked a trio of ladies to their hotel from my restaurant on Friday night. I wanted them to have someone with them for the 4 block trip. Coming back I stuck my carry in my waistband for quicker access.

Because of my back problems my bike is sitting in my garage gathering
dust right now but I do hope to get back on it. But as I have gotten
older and more feeble I've become aware of just how vulnerable a lone
rider is out in the boonies on a motorcycle. The thought never entered
my mind when I was younger. But times are different now. Riding
unarmed is out of the question as far as I am concerned. We live in
a different world today.

Glad you are safe. Pocket carry works well as long as you are wearing pants while riding your motorcycle .

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Alan
SWCA LM 2023, SWHF 220

You were lucky that time. Put one in the tourpak and if/when someone approaches, lift the lid and stay on the safe side of the bike. Lucky for you another brother came by.

Could it be that they really just wanted to help?
Not all of us easterners are bad people.

My first ride home on my first bike was a mini disaster. I've never sat on a bike before that day. At the dealership they let me ride around the parking lot till I got comfortable enough to get on the road. The ride back was about 20 min. A few miles from home I took a left turn too sharp and the bike slid out from underneath me. I ended up on the grass (not hurt) and the bike had somehow rotated the shifter backwards. So instead of shifting with your toes you'd have to shift with your heal....if that was even possible. ..assuming if didn't actually break anything. Didn't know what to do, couldn't call anyone, kinda stuck on the side of the road. A few minutes later a group of mean looking bikers road by. All tattoo'd, patches, 1% ....scraggly looking mean dudes. They pulled over and a few walked over to me. Yep this kid on a Japanese crotch rocket is about to get beat! One guy was even tensing his fists by his sides. I'm thinking oh please let a car drive by...please please please! One guy asks what happened as the others circle me. ..I told him. He goes to his bike, gets some tools, the others stand around me. He looks at my bike takes out a ratchet and in 2 min my bike was fixed! I offer to pay but the decline and just tell me to take it easy the rest of the way.

I believe a big reason cowboys carried guns was to keep their most valuable possession-- their horse and saddle.

Shoulder holster under my Joe Rocket, then went to a small camera type pouch, so I could move it out of the saddlebag to my waist without exposing. Open carry solves a lot of hassles.

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Halfway and one more step

Glad it worked out for you. Living in this state where the population is just over a half million people, we sometimes forget that we may not be as safe as we think. It is standard procedure to pull over and try help out in this part of the world. That seems to have changed over the years.

Plenty of folks have declined my help or have gotten aweful nervous because I'm an unfriendly looking guy usually wearing well worn gear and clothes. Their loss. Folks have gotten so jumpy and so excitable I just don't bother any more. The wife always asks me to and I have to remind her why.

ETA: Some ladies have accepted my help and I've been offered dinner once or twice but decline in respect for my lady.

Guess I will never offer to render roadside assistance to a traveler in need in Wyoming.

Stopped to assist a motorist in the great state of Maryland the other day. Gentleman was grateful...and did not appear worried that I was going to harm him.

Reckon I must limit my offers of aid to those on the right side of the Mississippi.

Be safe.

I did the same on a Honda PCX 150 scooter. I rode around the parking lot and never really got comfortable with it. My ride home was about 10 miles and I was not enjoying that ride at all. Got home OK and then practiced in empty parking lots what I needed to do in the driving test. Took a week long class and got my license. Since then, I'm quite comfortable riding and it's a lot of fun. I bought this specific scooter because it's capable of reaching 65 MPH. I wanted something that could keep up with traffic and this scooter really scoots. I have had some thoughts on being vulnerable being in the "open" so to speak. I think it's a good idea to carry when riding, just makes good sense.

Hard to say if they were up to no good or not. But they may have been muttering about the inflation kit thingy that comes in cars these days versus even a doughnut spare. I felt deja vu when my kid got one of those things in his new car back in 2010. I fussed about not having a doughnut and then I remembered my dad who fussed to beat the band when his new car had a doughnut versus a full sized spare like he had up until that point.

Never have used it but I even have this air compressor thing in my rickety old mini van.

But you do have to go with your gut in situations like that. And then for those of us who remember the pre-cellphone days...whew, how did we survive!

Better to suspect trouble and act accordingly, than to not suspect and be proven wrong.


Glad you rode away safe.

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Stay protected my friends.

Trying again. The video ads on this forum crashed my browser.

First, I’m glad to hear you made it home all right!

Second, I’m glad to see that you are willing to remedy your mistake. I'm a little confused about the rationale you used to go out riding alone, far from help, without your sidearm.

You have many options in your state:

- Concealed carry on the bike or in a backpack.
- Indifferent carry (who gives a flip if your CC gets exposed?).
- Open carry.

If it were me I would much rather allow my shameful secret to be exposed (that I carry for self-defense) than to get carved up like a thanksgiving turkey for my wallet. Gunfight Rule 1: Have a gun.

Hey Wingmaster, If your moniker means you ride a Goldwing, how about using one of the fairing pockets (one is even lockable) or a tuckable IWB? As an easterner, I picture a western rider with a lever action carbine in a fringed scabbard wrapped in a bedroll on your trunk rack. Glad all went well and keep the shiny side up.

Just like the credit card add..."never leave home without it"

Always have a hog leg of some sort when I am out on the bike...

Long rides on hot days...I have a Kel-Tec 3AT that lays very flat in a soft Uncle Mike's pocket liner. Does not wear a hole in my leg or jeans even given the HD vibration.

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Randy
Provenance nerd

Just curious, what kind of knife did you have on you?

I've heard a primary reason was to shoot the horse if they were thrown and being dragged

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Retired Career Security Guard

Good advice buddy! As an LEO I always carry myself and I would suggest the same for all CCW holders.

There's a reason you got one.

First of all I in no way meant that people from eastern states are more likely to do something bad.

The thing is I had a feeling about these guys before they even got close enough that I could see them in the car. Something wasn't right.

I would like to add that in the time I was stopped their were probably about 30 cars that passed. (Not very many for a 2 1/2 hour period) Of those 30 cars their were only about 5 or 6 that didn't stop or at least slow down and ask if I needed help. Two of them even offered me a cold drink.

I didn't get any kind of bad feeling form any of the other people that stopped. Only this one car and I had that feeling as they were pulling up.



Their is plenty of places to put a gun if it's not practicle to carry it.

Thanks for the thoughts guys.

Wingmaster

I carry a Benchmade folder with about a 3 1/2 inch blade. More of a tool than a weapon.

Wingmaster

Glad to hear it all worked out ok. I ride a "naked" HD-FXDF-so no bags etc and always wear a jacket (as well as the other gear). If I'm not carrying on my waist it's in a holster inside the interior slash pocket.

Nice machine, ride safe!

Just a reminder: i stopped by the scene of a nasty bike/ car wreck a month ago, helping take a measurement. Found a small Glock on the ground. Turned it in.

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Halfway and one more step

I have the exact same bike. Mine is an 08 Classic, great ride. Just got back from a week long trip up north, lots of sparse area as well. Had my ccw with either, on me or when it got to hot in the saddlebag, but your story is a good reminder to all.

I don't personally ride motorcycles but my father always had Harley's around. Even when it's hot wear your jacket . He almost didn't on a 100 degree day but decided at the last second he had better. Dr. in the hospital told him it probably saved his life. At the least a whole lot of pain and recovery time. A newspaper woman ran a stop sign and hit him going 50 mph. Never forget that day i was 16 years old. He was out from work for 6 months after recovering. Always wear your helmets and jackets (for safety and help of concealment) riders.

I ride my motorcycle or bicycle with a short-barreled .38 or 44 caliber revolver in an outside-the-belt holster. In warm weather I wear a loose fitting, un-tucked denim shirt. If the wind blows my shirt up, it does not cause me any undue concern. I am not aware of any reason I should worry about it (I can carry open or concealed here with CCW).

+1000 regarding carrying ALL the time.

I can't quite picture being dragged along bumpy terrain and trying to get a bead on the horse for a kill shot. I sure wouldn't want to wound or graze him and make him any madder than he already was. Besides, nobody in the westerns ever did that!

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Endeavor to persevere. <><

I used to carry on my body pretty much anytime I was riding my Harley, though occasionally I'd stuff it in a saddlebag. Last year I was making a short run to a friends house and I placed my carry gun in the saddlebag and took off. Along the way I had an encounter with a big stray dog and ended up in the ditch, was thrown through the windscreen of my Ultra Glide, over the front of the bike when it hit the bottom of the ditch, and I bounced, tumbled and rolled to a stop on the opposite side of the ditch bank. Fortunately, I got up and walked away with only a few scraps and bruises but I am convinced had I been carrying on my body that day the nature of incident could have caused some serious injury to me had I been bouncing around on the ground with the firearm on my hip. As a result, I've rearranged my carry style so that I have quick access to my CCW in my right hand saddlebag instead of carrying on me while I'm riding.

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- Change it back -

That's the reason Agnes Morley Cleaveland gave for people at that time carrying a pistol. She carried a SAA of some kind in 32 caliber and grew up before WW I somewhere west of Socorro NM, about where the VLA radio telescope is now.

My thinking is just the opposite; I want the gun securely attached to me at all times.

Being a Harley guy I am hoping the Wingmaster refers to the Remington 870. Don

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USN Retired/VN VET
M&P X5

my LCP is a constant in my front pocket. i don't go anywhere i can't (legally) carry it, period. of course i'd rather have my Springfield TRP at all times, but a 5" 1911 just doesn't hide so well in my swimsuit... glad a fellow bike rider stopped to check in on you. seems a bit odd the fellers in a car had a compressor with them. work truck? sure. car? humm...

Yeah, I too had mixed feelings about the original posting. It's a heck of a world we live in when we can't tell who to trust anymore. On both sides of this coin. I've become much more reluctant to offer help too and much less trusting in general. Chances are those two guys were arguing about stopping to help and just as scared of the fellow broken down as he was of them. Hence their "coming back".

I once (like 1985) stopped to help a couple broken who ran out of gas. Turns out they were from Austrailia. They were so far out of the way (for PA anyway) that driving them to and back from the gas station took about an hour. But I'll bet they had good things to say about us Yankees when they got home!

But in all situations, I must agree, we tread much easier knowing that backup is at hand.

Int his case I think they wish they had been armed. Horrible situation!

http://www.nytimes.com/2015/08/01/us...DEVREMARK&_r=0

Years ago I used to ride 4 wheelers through the hills, several of us rode together quite often. We found that a fanny pack turned to the front worked really well to carry a handgun and a bottle of water. Glad all turned out well for you.

Wow bad nuff to have a flat pn a bike. Been rideing um since 1975. I do keep a gun in one of the saddle. Bags on trunk or in pocket. While rideing. Glglad you alright. Ride safe

Thanks everybody for all the replies.

I think the lesson I learned is to never go anywhere without some way to defend myself.
In my 50 years this is the first time I have ever had this feeling. I am greatful that it turned out the way it did.

I hope it's another 50 years before I have this happen again.

Thanks again
Wingmaster

YES. Indeed and anonther 50 on a flat tire on a bike. Only one flat for me on bike

Come to think of it, me too - only one flat on a cycle - knock on wood. I was on my way home from Lock Haven PA college on my Yamaha RD350. It was probably 1982 or 83. Near the Mile Run exit of RT 80. Nothing at that exit but dirt roads to hunting camps. I went back west a few miles on the flat, to a rest area. Got off the pay phone, turned around and bumped into a girl I knew from high school! We threw the cycle into the back of her Ford Bronco and she took me back to my Frat house as she was going out to State College.

Talk about dumb luck!!!!!! I wish I had that RD350 now.

I used to keep my KelTec P32 in my pocket whenever I rode. I replaced it with either my LCP or PM9 recently. The P32 was only reliable for 3 or 4 shots at best before jamming. Still, way better than nothing. I assumed, wrongly, that an LCP would be equally unreliable based on reports online. Mine, luckily, has been 100% so far after many rounds of FMJ and Fiocci Extrema XTP, as has my PM9 with HST. And Ranger T. I do worry about the PM9 adding injury to my leg if I should ever go down and land on it since it's so much bigger.

They make biking vests with a concealed carry pocket in them. I haven't tried one.

Is this a possible solution?

Attached Images

Motorcycleholster.jpg (50.4 KB, 99 views)

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Stay protected my friends.

I suppose, but running and gunning would be out since the gun is mounted for right hand use but your right hand would be on the throttle!

Why not put it in the saddlebag ? Put it on your person when off the bike, that's what I do.....Sad, but in this world today, you just can't take the chance of not protecting yourself....Too many wacko's around.

Glad you got home safe! I ride a lot in South Florida, and normally carry while riding, even if it's just a pocket pistol in a vest pocket. On most days, I also carry a BM 943 with a wicked sharp 3.4" blade. I've always thought of it as more of a weapon than a tool, though it has been abused as a tool on more than one occasion. I don't think it's unusual to feel more exposed on a motorcycle in certain situations than in a car, even if the difference is largely psychological. Not being able to roll up the windows and lock the doors can make you nervous if you find yourself in the right place at the wrong time.

I made the mistake of pulling off the side of the road around noon about 20 miles east of Twentynine Palms. It was November, but the midday sun was still intense. The loose sand of the Mojave is nothing like the hard packed stuff I often park on in Florida. Lesson learned! I dumped the bike at low speed and several cars blew right by me within the first 15 minutes. I couldn't believe it. I mean, who leaves someone stranded in the freaking desert? I might have looked a bit ragged after 10 days on the road, but I don't look like a 1%er.

Fortunately I didn't have to wait long. The first motorcycle stopped to help. Lucky me, because I would never have gotten my bike upright in that loose sand without that woman's help – even after removing the trunk bag and one saddlebag. The carb was flooded, but it started up after a few minutes. I let it idle while I put the bags pack on the bike and was soon on my way – another 90 miles to the next town if memory serves. I was carrying both pistol and folding knife at the time, but a helping hand was my lifesaver that day.

I've found myself in several "iffy" situations over the years while riding (mostly with my wife) in which I was very glad that I was carrying at the time, even though I never had to draw my gun. Better to have it and not need it...

Wingmaster:

Even while riding in hot temperatures a Stainless M60 in a DeSantis Nemesis holster is not a big deal to pocket carry. Stoked with either Buffalo Bore 158 +P's or Speer Gold Dot 135 grain +P ammo is serious medicine.

Wingmaster: Usually, your "spidey senses" are tingling for a reason. We are often only subconsciously aware of all the non-verbal cues we receive. Maybe something just didn't "smell right" with those dudes.

As to your cover garment riding up, I'm reminded of something I saw some time ago, not advice, just and interesting story. I was driving down a busy street on my way to work. I noticed up ahead that there was a motorcycle, and everyone was giving the guy a wide berth. Usually people in this town tailgate and cut off motorcycles mercilessly, but not this guy. As I got closer, I saw that his shirt was flapping up revealing a Glock at 4:00. Funny how some drivers claim that they can't see motorcycles, yet they can see a 20oz piece of plastic.

I used to carry a glock while riding my bike............But not any more!



Carry a Colt Defender in 45ACP now.

I'm one of those folks that jest don't care if'n my shirt crawls up over it....I'll pull it back down.

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"IN GOD WE TRUST"