Quote:
Originally Posted by JonMN
Greetings from Minnesota! I did not need to use the extension. I have approximately 9-10 inches between the handlebar and the window. Just back from Florida, and the rack worked great. Even after hitting some huge divots in the freeway at 75 MPH! A little bounce but not much. They have a unique wedge design on hitch insert that really stiffens the mount.
Just a couple comments--the rack will probably not work with bikes with fenders. It might work with a back cargo rack if the distance between rack supports is wide enough (it worked with my bike cargo rack).
The nice thing is it only holds the bike by the tires, so no rubbing on the frame.
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I am a 50+ year serious cyclist so have pretty much seen many of the various mounting methods over the years, some OK, so not so OK I would say.
The wheel clamps on the rim are not new at all and go back to at least the 1970s when I was a very serious rider and occasional racer of road bikes.
Back then, none of the serious riders had much money and what they had they spent on their bikes (unless of course they came from money, but there were only a couple of them around then).
Because of the the lack of funds, small cars with roof racks of various types was the norm, and wheel clamps were part of that group. I was an exception because I bought a beat up Saab 96 (jellybean) that had a hatch and fold down seat so the bikes would fit inside it.
Single clamps at the bottom of each wheel weren't adequate so we started to see multiple clamps, usually two, at each wheel maybe 30* apart. They held much better without much tilting or buffeting, but created their own issues. They were pulling on relatively fragile aluminum rims that had no support, just air, under them and would tend to pull the wheels out of round. Curse of death for a high end road bike.
Designs then migrated to roof racks that clamped the front fork with a quick release clamp like used to hold the wheel in during riding. Front wheels either went on another similar clamped spot or were put inside. It was hugely better and could get by with a single rear wheel clamp at the bottom, but still moved around some.
The best back then gravitated to a front fork clamp and a single vertical tube with a clamp for the seat tube. Making it high enough to be in an area where the seat post engaged made a really solid clamping surface and the bikes held rock solid. The seat post clamp did not scuff up the frame because it was solid enough not to move around.
If I were to make a rack now, I would use the fork clamp for sure and probably the seat tube clamp setup unless the tube was an odd size or shape like many are now. Carbon fiber is easily damaged so you have to careful if you have one of those very pricey frames, they can even be damaged by some bike stands. Mountain and cross frames can be pretty much any shape. A rear wheel single clamp at the bottom would do the trick, particularly with rack on the rear without the full wind on it like on the roof. This type can also be done vertically pretty easily, I think.
I used to take a folding, full size mountain bike that was converted to mostly road components with me on camping trips but I found very few of the places we go to were very bike friendly. It fit easily under the bed in our Roadtrek 190 even though it was a full size frame 26" fully geared bike. To much traffic, particularly campers, narrow roads, few easily accessible bike trails ect. I don't carry it anymore unless we are going to a known bike friendly place like Perrot State Park in Wisconsin which is right next to several major bike trails. I am very hesitant to ride two lane roads without wide paved shoulders these days because of the huge problem of distracted drivers around now. Cyclists are getting hit regularly these days, and I don't really want to be one of them.
For many campers the bikes are more for short trips around the campground or maybe to a nearby town, so don't need to be picky on area as much, but if you like to ride 30+ miles at a time or more safe areas in places you are unfamiliar with can be hard to find.
New bike rack: RockyMounts "AfterParty"
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