Chuck, As I said, I love the duckbilll racks and for the three reasons you state. But I was also making the point that that it is not apriori clear that using the duckbill racks "*as they were intended to be used"* means putting your bike in front wheel first or rear wheel first. I say this because when I first came to the UW & Madison in 1982 at the end of a previous gas crisis, the bike shops and people at the UW were encouraging people to take their front wheel off and use a U-lock to lock it to the rack and rear triangle. This was touted as the intended way to use racks and shortly thereafter, the duckbill racks started appearing. Thus, another benefit of the duckbill racks is the ability to remove your front wheel and lock it to the rack and the frame with a U-lock.
I further think the ability to lock your bike to a rack in this manner needs to be a requirement in the new zoning code. When the proposed new code came before the Long Range Transportation Planning Committee, I specifically requested that approved racks needed to accommodate the ability to remove the front wheel and to lock it to the rack and bike frame with a U-lock. I used the UW's duckbill racks as an example of a rack that elegantly accomplishes this in a small space. Mark -- Mark N. Shahan ------ __o 607 Piper Drive ------- _`\<,_ Madison, WI 53711-1338 ---- (*)/ (*) (608) 274-9367 [email protected] On Fri, Aug 27, 2010 at 11:32 AM, STRAWSER, Charles <[email protected]>wrote: > Mark, > > My point is saying that I personally cannot use the duckbill racks **as > they were intended to be used** with two of my bikes was to emphasize that > I recognize that they do not work perfectly for everyone/every bike. > > But that it is still my opinion that duckbills are UW’s best option when > considering > > 1) How to maximize capacity, > > 2) Accommodate the widest range of bikes with a design that supports most > bikes in at least two places and accommodates a U lock, and > > 3) do it for the least amount of money that still meets the first two > considerations > > ...even though I personally have a hard time using them as intended with > the two bikes I ride most frequently. > > > > chuck > ------------------------------ > > *From:* Mark Shahan > *Sent:* Thursday, August 26, 2010 9:50 PM > *Subject:* Re: [Bikies] bike racks - more info > > > > I personally love the duckbill racks. For your bikes with front racks, try > backing your bike into the rack, taking off the front wheel, and locking the > front wheel to the rear fork > > >
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