I decided to post since I saw the maker Softride come up, though my post won't relate to the original question. But if you have a pickup, the Softride tailgate pad is the best thing since sliced and buttered bread. $80 if you hunt around online - OK, e-trailer. Have hauled one to five bikes across the back of my truck
<https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-0dtixpmYtQA/UE9UGvdFqxI/AAAAAAAAAH4/Cna90iVRDOk/s1600/aaboardwalk1.jpg> easy on, easy off, secure and safe. When I first loaded bikes I couldn't believe this was enough, so a pair of kayak-hauling ratchet straps through the seat rails to further secure the bikes - but it wasn't needed - all it did was vibrate the straps. I've found for each bike, two velcro straps to the headtube - one from each side, and one to each side is all I need to securely hold the bikes and I can drive like - well, like I normally do. On Tuesday, September 25, 2012 10:16:20 AM UTC-5, Rob wrote: > > I went through this selection process a year or so ago. I settled on a > Softride Dura for my wife's station wagon, based on wanting something that > folded down to allow access to the hatch, and I thought getting the backs > on a rear rack would be easier than lifting them up onto a roof rack. I > found one on craigslist: > http://www.flickr.com/photos/robharrison/5969361080/ The Dura has an > adapter that allows it to fit both 1 1/4" and 2" receivers, but the 1 1/4" > adapter moves the whole rack back about 8", which makes for a pretty long > cantilever: http://www.flickr.com/photos/robharrison/5969363620/ The > rack is bolted on, very sturdy, and quite heavy. We leave it on all the > time. The bars that actually hold the bikes come off, so you can put those > in the back of the car. The rubber straps that fasten the bikes to the rack > arms are secure, but not at all easy to attach. There are provisions for > anti-sway straps too, which work well, but are also hard to attach. I > haven't had any issues with scratching of bikes with the rack. I take care > to slide the rubber straps under any cables. We've had two kids' bikes and > two adult bikes on the rack. I like the fact that the bikes sit behind the > car, which affords better mileage I imagine than having the bikes on top. > > That said, if I had it to do over again, because of the difficulty of > strapping the bikes on with this rack, and the versatility of being able to > carry other stuff too (skis, canoe) on a roof rack, I'd get a roof rack > with an arm like the KC Metro buses have instead, like this Thule Sidearm: > http://www.thule.com/en-US/US/Products/Bike-Carriers/RoofCarriers/594XT-SidearmAs > I understand it, Thule bought the rights to use this design from the > Seattle company which makes the racks for the buses. Sportsrack maybe? You > can still sometimes find the car roof racks they made on craigslist. > > Rob in Seattle > -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "RBW Owners Bunch" group. To view this discussion on the web visit https://groups.google.com/d/msg/rbw-owners-bunch/-/-F5jbv2xfUUJ. To post to this group, send email to [email protected]. To unsubscribe from this group, send email to [email protected]. For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/rbw-owners-bunch?hl=en.
