BUNGEES AND BAGS

YOU CAN TAKE IT WITH YOU - BUNGEES AND BAGS

Pamela Collins

Though as much as we two-wheeled travelers enjoy long, wandering excursions, when our meanderings lead us merely cross-town as opposed to cross-country, we can appreciate the opportunity to pack lightly. Cortech, the sportier sibling of Tourmaster motorcycle luggage, makes a Super 2.0 L 12-Liter Magnetic Tank Bag and Super 2.0 Tail Bag hit that Goldilocks sweet spot, providing enough, but not too much, motorcycle stowage.

CORTECH TANK BAG

The tank bag, constructed from tough 1680D ballistic polyester and 1800D triple-layered twill Jacquard fabric on the outside, holds a fairly spacious 12-liters. It features an internal organizer in its top ap with slots for two pens, has one larger and two smaller pockets that secure with hoop and loop closure, and a key clip. The inside is lined in a soft, eecy, red material that prevents scratches on your cargo and makes it easy to see what’s inside the bag. What do 12-liters mean in real-world items? Well, I have had at various times a small water bottle, a small purse, an extra pair of gloves, and occasionally my Sony smaller-sized mirrorless camera, along with a small tablet, pens, lip balm, and hair ties. With all that I nd the tank bank suits the bill for my daylong or even multi-day rides. The bag also features a removable, exterior map pocket. Now, most road maps have to be folded pretty small to t in it, but at least we old-fashioned paper map types have something to which we can easily refer. However, I have found that when I need to use modern-day portable navigation, I can slip my cellphone into the map pocket and see the directions pretty well. Also, the map pocket exterior does allow a certain degree of touch sensitivity to operate the phone’s screen. Not to worry in wet weather, either. The Cortech 2.0 tank bag has an integrated stowaway rain cover that quickly appears when the weather turns foul, and it has a clear window so the map remains visible. Another external pocket holds various other small sundries you might need to carry, and the tank bag also offers exit ports for headphones and sip tubes. Phoslite® re ective piping maintains visibility when the ride gets dark.

Underneath the bag uses a protective non-slip, non-scratch mounting base with a rubbery diamond pattern to protect a motorcycle’s paint from damage, and its one-way zipper neatly tucks into a “zipper garage” to keep it from rattling. A sturdy carrying handle and hideaway backpack straps assist carrying duties when taking the bag off the bike. I used the magnetic model, which holds securely and looks great on my Yamaha FZ6R motorcycle. Cortech also offers a strap-mounted version, as well as 18-liter, 10-liter, and micro 2.0-liter options. The 12-liter variant runs about $110.00.

Overnight or multi-day trips require a bit more cargo room (at least for me), and that’s where the Cortech 2.0 Tail Bag lls the bill. The 24-liter bag uses much of the same exterior and interior materials as its tank bag counterpart, the same weight denier nylon, the same lining, the same type of integral lid organizer with hook and loop fastener pockets, and key clip, and the same re ective piping.

Whereas many other tail bags fall “ at” when empty, looking misshapen and ugly, the Cortech 2.0 Tail Bag retains its smart, handsome pro le. Cortech has imbued the pack with more rigid materials in its sides and top to prevent that de ated look other packs wear when empty. On each side you see a zipper running the bag’s circumference. Unzip and the sides expand, bringing the bag’s capacity to a generous 24-liters, enough for several days’ worth of clothes, camera gear, picnic supplies, or whatever. A separate zippered pocket resides on each side, providing more storage options, and another zippered compartment holds a rain cover. The bag mounts to a luggage rack or the bike’s rear pillion seat and comes complete with a mounting pad/base to prevent scratching the motorcycle’s paint, as well as nylon straps with neoprene covers to secure it to the bike. Should you need more cargo room, Cortech sells matching saddlebags and the tail pack easily attaches to those with a speci c plastic connector system.

When off the motorcycle it’s easy to quickly disconnect the tail pack from the bike to take the pack with you and its heavy, rubberized handle and included shoulder strap add to the portability factor.

Cortech also offers a smaller 14-liter size tail bag. The 24-liter retails for $125. You can nd these bags at helmethouse.com or your local dealer.

Sometimes, motorcycle luggage attachment presents a puzzling dilemma—just how to best strap and secure your carrying system without scratching your paint but also ensuring the load stays put?

Enter the ever-present, lowly though functional, bungee cord. Essentially heavy-duty elastic cords, available in multiple sizes and colors, often frayed and stretched from use, they have strapped down many a motorcycle rider’s loads.

A New Jersey company has elevated the bungee into something, well, better. The Perfect Bungee® company has ditched the elastic and replaced it with a product called Flexa-Pure®, a proprietary material that doesn’t contain rubber, plastic, or latex. This material lets the cord stretch to two times its original length but still return to its original size. They are UV-resistant, chemical, fuel, and oil resistant, and saltwater and fresh-water proof. They are also made in the USA.

I have used two of their products to secure waterproof roll bags to my motorcycles and nd they work quite well. One is called Adjust-A-Strap, and it eliminates the problem of requiring multiple length bungees for varying needs. It is a three-foot-long strap with six holes, giving you seven different lengths in one bungee…it can work as a foot-long cord up to a six-foot cord. It is molded to be at, not rolled, so it creates a rmer grip on whatever it secures. It doesn’t use metal hooks but integrated nylon plastic hooks, and can stretch two times its length with 34 ft. lbs. of force.

I have also tried the company’s Flex-Web, which looks like a spider with multiple legs that stretch to cover your gear and replaces the more common bungee nets. Manufactured from the same material as the Adjust-AStrap, you can get it with four, six, or eight-arm attachments varying in 12, 18, or 24-inch lengths. Each arm has the nylon plastic hook on one end, while the other end clips to a plastic-coated metal ring. Each arm can