Picking up Yamaha Ténéré 700: 4 methods, ±53 lifts, some tips

In this video I try to summarize experience I learned while picking up (or lifting) Ténéré 700 53 times over last 2 days. It turned out to be the most complicated video to make so far.

Everyone needs to find their own method to lift a motorcycle which is comfortable and safe for them, it will depend on the rider, bike and environment.

Check the links bellow for the original/detailed videos for each of the methods.

Chapters:
00:00 Intro
00:05 Ténéré 700 specifics
00:42 Correct technique?
01:02 Before I start lifting…
01:18 Changing position
01:50 Engaging front brake & side stand
02:40 Correct form for lifting (any heavy things)
04:29 What it it’s too heavy?
04:43 Methods I pickup motorcycle
05:04 Back lift
05:54 Crawl lift (Mototrek)
06:50 Handlebar lift (Chris Birch)
07:47 Can’t pick it up alone?
08:43 Monkey lift (Mototrek)

Resources/Links:
Three Great Ways to Lift a Motorcycle - That you don't already know!

Ways to Easily & Safely Lift Any Motorcycle

Handlebar Lifting Technique by Chris Birch

How to Flip a Tire - Musical Edition

Episodes from Yamaha Ténéré 700 10k:
1. Yamaha Ténéré 700 10k: Intro
2. Yamaha Ténéré 700 10k: Damage & Rust
3. Yamaha Ténéré 700 10k: OutEx tubeless
4. Yamaha Ténéré 700 10k: Honda CB500X vs Ténéré 700 - why did I upgrade?
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[NK-dlnc]

Good advice. A tip. When you are lifting anything heavy, look up, it will help you keep a safe posture while lifting. I learnt this from weightlifting and it works.

[alexakkers]

Great video! As a tenere lover, i also find lifting this bike particularly difficult, but you make it very clear

[williamstones]

Thanks for that! Also good to remember to turn the key off and on after a fall because the tenere shuts off the fuel pump when it is on its side.

[ruffleschips]

The best detailed lifting demonstration I've ever seen. Thanks to both of you.

[beetle]

One of the best tutorials on how to lift a heavy bike. Thanks!

[Britishshooter]

Another factor is the amount of bend you have to do to lift. A good way to reduce this angle and increase you leverage advantage is to carry a length of strong webbing pre-prepared to the optimum length to loop over the foot peg on the opposite side to the lift, pass under the bike and come to your hands in such a manner as to allow a higher start point for your lift. Obviously it has to also to still be long enough to allow you to lift the bike up but the higher grab point will reduce a lot of back injury risk. In most cases adventure bikes have open enduro style foot pegs in which case you can if you want, you can actually hook into the peg on the lifting side by threading the loop through it and then passing the main length through that loop (warning this can fail if the footrest breaks hence why it is always safer to use the mounting point on the peg on the other side rather than the open peg on the lift side itself). In practice you are seldom going to be able to lift the bike through the entire 90 degree ark of lift just on this strap, but what it does is bring up the bike to 45 degrees so you can then grab the bike and finish the second 45 degrees with a exactly half the effort.

[johnnaughton]

I was faced with similar issue with a KTM 790 adventure. I was fortunate that it was in sand. I dug holes beneath where the tires touch the ground and it made it easier to transition the weight from the side to the tires.

[dogphlap]

Thanks for the food for thought. I dropped my bike, a Royal Enfield 650 twin and could not right the thing. Lucky for me a couple of guys on another motorcycle stopped and helped me. Since then I've done what I can to lighten the bike, so far I've removed 23kg (50 lb) from the 200kg (dry weight) bike (mostly replacing the heavy exhaust system and the 12V lead acid battery which is now Li-ion but also dozen of other smaller changes). I'm not sure if I could pick this bike up now as I am reluctant to risk damage to the bike by laying it down even on grass for some trial lifts. It has a lot of ground clearance for what is a road bike which raises the centre of gravity to make a lift that bit harder when it is down.

There are commercially available lift assist devices that basically consist of a two piece telescopic tube (the upright) plus a ratchet and strap. I have not tried one of those yet.

I'm 163cm tall, so a couple of inches shorter than the narrator, I weigh 66kg, I've lowered the bike 3cm (which should reduce the chance of me dropping the bike at traffic lights a second time).

[sukhoi]

Great video and well explained tips!
Thanks for the effort and sharing

[acpgiga]

My favourite method is the dog assist (9:00) ... It's mainly just standing and watching and I can do it all day long ... 😂

[mihr]

wow, done. Thanks. Michal from the Czech Republic

[frosty]

You guys are awesome. I thought I couldn't buy the T7 before doing some serious weight lifting training. I'm otherwise fit, so using these techniques, I should be good to pick up the T7 all day long. Thanks so much!

[danbraden]

Great job!!! Just ordered a T7 yesterday...

[LMH]

Dropped my Ninja 1000sx at the flooded river crossing. Not able to get it up as the floor was so slippery. My feet constantly slid and I didn't come out the idea of locking the front break. I was there for about half an hour in knee deep water until an elderly lady came by and helped to hold the break and pull. Great tip on how to secure the break. 1000sx is a truly amazing machine. Ran as if nothing happened afterwards.

[armweak]

I’m surprised you didn’t mention the gasoline leakage that comes from the Tenere 700 gas cap when tipped over. Got to experience that firsthand yesterday :(

[mart]

Really well done video. As a friend says "good on ya, I vote yay"

[tonylosasso]

Thank you for the video. I am getting my first adventure bike and I know some day I will have to do one of these lifts. Hopefully later than sooner lol. It makes me a little nervous though, I injured my left arm and it is only about 50% strength 💪. Thanks again!

[Jnolet]

TLDR, its a dead lift....But your holds and positioning can be weird so there's a much heavier emphasis on core stability and also don't be afraid tp drag the thing to a better spot so you don't fuck your back. Throw some deadies into your training program before your next outing

[thetubelesschannel]

Great video. Tried all that to lift my Tenere. Did not work, the bike is just too heavy to lift alone so I sold it. That the bike rests so flat makes a big difference, I never had problems to lift my R1200GS.

[jameshart]

If the side stand is on the wrong side, just flip the bike onto the other side, and then you'll have things the way you like it before you start.