Getting your motocross bike to the track: trailer, van or pickup?

01The three transport options

1. The flatbed trailer (the most common)

Price: €400-1,500 (used to new) Upsides: no need to modify your vehicle, easy to store, carries 1-3 bikes Downsides: a category B licence caps you at 750 kg trailer GVW, and reversing takes practice

2. The van

Price: €3,000-15,000 (used Renault Master, Fiat Ducato) Upsides: total protection from rain and thieves, storage space, you can sleep in it Downsides: bulky day to day, thirsty, a pain to park

3. The pickup or small commercial vehicle

Price: already own one, or €80-120/day to hire Upsides: does double duty (weekday work, bike at the weekend), no special licence Downsides: the bike is out in the weather, and you have to sort the strapping yourself

02Strapping down: the safety rules

1. Four straps minimum — two at the front compressing the fork, two at the rear pulling down and back 2. Solid anchor points — bars (not the levers), frame, subframe loop under the seat 3. Fork compressed by about a third — the suspension should be working in compression, not bouncing 4. No tension on indicators or bodywork — strap straight to the frame or bars 5. Side stand up — it can fold out and punch through the case

03French regulations

• Category B licence: trailer GVW ≤ 750 kg, or vehicle + trailer ≤ 3,500 kg combined
• B96 (a 7 h training course): vehicle + trailer between 3,500 and 4,250 kg
• Signage: a wide-load panel if the trailer is wider than the towing vehicle
• Speed: speed limits when towing depend on the weight of the combination and can be lower than the normal limits — check the current rules for your setup before you set off, and note they differ in other European countries

04Protecting the bike in transit

Transit is one of the moments your bike is most exposed:

• A stop at a petrol station, a restaurant, a motorway services — five minutes is enough
• HOROTAG GPS spots the bike moving outside a trusted zone and alerts you straight away if someone helps themselves while you're paying for fuel

Worth knowing: HOROTAG GPS tells normal transport (you're driving the vehicle) apart from theft (someone is moving your bike without you). It works from GPS position, not from vibration — so the van shaking down a motorway doesn't set it off, and the "I'm riding" mode keeps it quiet on the days you're the one moving the bike.

Hours, by the way, are entered by hand in the HOROTAG GPS logbook. If you want them counted automatically, that's HOROTAG RUUVI (€129), the Bluetooth hour meter for motocross and enduro.