There are numerous benefits to owning an off-road motorcycle. Beyond hours of thrilling rides, these bikes can be configured as bugout and off-highway vehicles for additional escape routes or optimized for hunting.
I recently helped a friend upgrade his Yamaha TW200 with enhanced suspension and racks for hunting. Honestly, my buddy’s bike convinced me to get a hunting bike for myself. They’re a godsend for those hunting on public lands because hunting bikes significantly extend your reach and speed up packouts. Sure, you won’t ride directly to your hunting area, but the bike allows you to cover an additional 10–20 miles and hike in.
Enter The Pakmule Motomule
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No matter how convenient a hunting bike may be, one of its main challenges is transporting it to the correct destination. If your bike is street-legal, you could ride it. But nevermind that long hauls are uncomfortable and storage for gear and equipment will be limited.
Pairing a truck or SUV with a bugout-style bike offers versatility. It also combines substantial hauling capacity with access to more remote areas.
Trailers or loading a bike into a truck bed are common solutions, but trailers often lack the ground clearance and turning radius needed for rugged terrain. And unfortunately, if you have a truck topper or SUV, a truck bed isn’t an option.
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This is where hitch-mounted moto carriers come in. They keep your vehicle agile, while allowing you to transport your bike without a truck bed.Hitch-mounted moto carriers are basically extended platforms that mount to the rear of a truck or SUV to provide an external space that lets you strap down a bike. Conceptually it’s not different than those luggage carriers you see on the vehicles of road-tripping families, but these obviously support motos instead.
The Pakmule Motomule, is a good example of a hitch-mounted moto carrier.
Motomule’s Versatility
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The Pakmule Motomule specifically counts on a defining feature: an integrated 64 inch loading and unloading ramp.
Other motorcycle hitch carriers require detaching or reattaching a separate ramp to use every time, but the Motomule’s built-in ramp spans the carrier’s full length and deploys in seconds. Not only does this convenient feature make loading and unloading your bike significantly faster, it reduces the ramp angle making it easier to load your bike.
The integrated ramp also saves space because it eliminates the need to store a separate ramp on the carrier altogether. In addition, this also makes it easier for you to get around your bike to strap it up and opens up space for a gear tray.
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Pakmule offers optional regular (21.75″ x 13.5″) or XL (45.75″ x 13.5″) gear trays for fuel canisters, coolers or any other equipment you can imagine. These trays boost hauling capacity and keep gasoline odors out of your vehicle, further enhancing the practicality of this off-road motorcycle carrier.
The Motomule’s sleek design includes Pakmule’s Stablelok technology, which consists of a built-in anti-wobble system that eschews traditional U-bolt stabilizers. U-bolt stabilizers require alignment and tightening, but instead, the Motomule’s Stablelok threaded hitch pin ensures a rock-solid connection in less time.
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The Pakmule Motomule weighs only 62 pounds and is significantly lighter than other motorcycle hitch carriers. Despite that lighter weight, the Motomule isn’t some flimsy sheet metal style carrier, it features 100% solid aluminum construction and is also bomb proof. Keep in mind too, that not only is having a heavier moto-carrier more of a hassle to carry and install on your vehicle, but the extra weight also plays into your total payload capacity.
Closing Thoughts
At this point in time, I’ve put well over 5,000 miles on my Motomule hitch carrier and its performance has been impressive. I’ve driven my vehicle off-road, from crawling over rocks to ripping through mud puddles–and the unit has been reliable.
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As a testament to its reliability, I’ve hauled my bike from South Carolina to Colorado. When I got to Colorado, I went off-road for 6 days without once needing to retighten the hitch. I have to admit, I was skeptical that the hitch would stay secure after so many miles, especially with off-roading. And not to mention: the constant loading and unloading of the bike. But in the end, I was pleasantly surprised by the Pakmule Motomule’s rock-solid performance.
Price wise, the Pakmule Motomule is more costly than other hitch-mounted moto carriers. But given its performance, the Motomule’s extra cost brings me some peace of mind knowing that I won’t have to see one of my prized possessions falling off the back and flipping down the road.
This applies more so to outdoorspeople that tend to haul your bike down intense and technical off-road trails. And there’s also that speed and convenience of being able to simply load up and go ride. It’s a major plus because I’m sure we’ve all had times where we’d love to go riding, but don’t feel like the hassle of loading everything up. The Motomule definitely cuts down on that. Furthermore, from that bugging out perspective, the speed and convenience that the Motomule affords is crucial for survival.
And lastly, Pakmule manufactures its Motomules here in the United States. Overall, beside that lighter weight, ease of use, security, safety and convenience, I think it is worth investing in companies that make the effort to produce their products here in the USA too.
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