Review: Baxley LA Wheel Chock
My childhood memories with wheel chocks revolve around helping my dad place them between the wheels of horse trailers. During my teenage years, we hoisted dirt bikes up on those traditional center stands they make to work on them. We could sit on the bikes between motos and dial in cockpits and imagine we were in motion on them.
Fast-forward into adulthood and a BMW R nineT Urban G/S that I nicknamed Von Trap found its way into my garage. Like most of us, I spend a good amount of time just looking at my bike, remembering the past and imagining future adventures.
During a recent service visit, my mechanic extolled the virtues of wheel chocks and how they can preserve a motorcycle’s mechanical integrity when compared to a side stand. I agreed that an upright motorcycle would be happier over the years, thanks to the tires resting evenly on concrete and the internal liquids remaining balanced.
Imagining how the upright stance would accentuate Von Trap’s design features while creating a cleaner space in the garage also got my wheels rolling. My mechanic showed me the red Baxley wheel chock he’d been using for years, and I ordered one immediately for $295.
Von Trap has a 19-inch front wheel and weighs 487 pounds. I ordered the LA chock with its extended legs that make it very stable when used as a freestanding floor stand.
In my case, the chock arrived preassembled and ready to fit Von Trap’s front wheel right out of the box. Maybe I got lucky, or maybe it was thanks to the excellent customer service agent on the other end of the line, who assured me that my chock was fine tuned behind the scenes for my bike.
The box was heavy, but that’s to be expected from quality engineering. The capture mechanism cradled Von Trap’s front tire so securely that I had no problem dismounting and walking away in confidence.
The LA chock can be adjusted to accommodate any front tire size. According to the owner’s manual, the freestanding floor chock can be used on a truck bed and doesn’t need to be bolted down, as long as it’s against the front of the bed and the bike is strapped down properly.
Baxley manufactures a variety of chocks in several colors, alongside relevant accessories. It was refreshing to discover a company such as this in a fellow Southern state (Baxley is located in Alabama) that still makes everything 100% in America.