| Hee Hee, welcome on-board - yep using the strap method id exactly the one I preferred to employ for changing my steering head bearings. Using the type with rachets built-in makes the job much easier.
Failing that - the front end can be lifted by VERY CAREFULLY putting a bottle or trolley jack under the front exhaust but I would only recommend this for emergency checking of head bearings.
I guess ultimately to do the job safely there are the quite expensive heavy duty stands that mount to the side of the bike and lift BOTH wheel off at once but the cheapest I've seen are around the £120 mark for a universal one.
Good Luck - Frank |