rack system

[bentforlife]

Here is a site for the carrier I plan to get for a recumbent and DF when I pay down my credit card. It might be what you are looking for.

http://www.cyclesimplex.com

Donna

[ragbrai40]

Count me in for a mini-van vote! Stays dry, clean and I don't have to worry about theft. The bike rack sits in the garage, gathering dust. We use it when hauling more than 2 bikes. I can get two bikes inside the van.

Works for me, but not an option fo everyone.

[Adventure Girl]

Originally posted by waterlilli
I have also tried top of the car trays, and do not like them at all

What is it that you don't like about the car trays? I have Yakima trays on top of my beetle. When I first got my roof rack I had a little trouble getting my bike on it. I'm really short, and I have to stand in the door jam to reach the rack. After a few tries, I figured out the technique that works for me and it's second nature now. I think it's funny because guys always offer to help me with it. I guess I look kind of helpless--how is that short woman going to get that bike on top of that car!

[Steph_in_TX]

We had a roof rack...until it was smashed into the roof of the garage! My husband's boss called him while he was driving home from a Saturday ride and he was distracted enough that he forgot his baby was on top. He really didn't hit it that hard, but it totaled the rack and put about $400 of dents in the roof of the car, but thankfully, only caused a small bit of cosmetic damage to the brake lever.

We thought about putting the fork mounts inside of our Honda Pilot, but we've still got a carseat and it was going to be a big pain to have to take it in and out when we needed to haul two bikes. We got a Yakima Hitch Fork. The bikes attach on the front fork so we don't have to worry about the bikes touching. It's been extremely stable. If it looks like it's going to rain, we put plastic grocery bags on the seats. Looks goofy, but keeps them dry.

[Irulan]

Originally posted by Steph_in_TX
We had a roof rack...until it was smashed into the roof of the garage!

Whenever I have bikes on top, I always (always always) take my garage door clicker down and put it in my glovebox. That way I have to think twice about even opening the garage with bikes on top.

Irulan

[Trek420]

Adventure Girl sez "I have Yakima trays on top of my beetle. "

I'm unfamiliar with the term car tray, but then you all know I'm technicaly challenged ;-)

you mean those things like look like they are for barbequeing fish on the grill? Like a big mesh tray. Thought that was just for luggage, duffles and such, never thought of putting a bike on that, duh. How do you keep it from messing up the paint job (of the bike)?

"...I guess I look kind of helpless--how is that short woman going to get that bike on top of that car!"

Yes, how do we do anything! How do we manage to survive being so low to the ground. Brush our teeth and so forth ;-)

[Adventure Girl]

Originally posted by Trek420
I'm unfamiliar with the term car tray, but then you all know I'm technicaly challenged

I don't normally use the term "car tray" either, but that's what waterlilli called it... I just meant a roof mount rack.

[Irulan]

my trays are for a bike with both wheels on. I prefer not to take the wheels off - too many stories of wheels left in parking lots or garages.

Irulan

[Biking Chick]

Originally posted by waterlilli
Well ladies I need your help. I am looking for a better way to transport our bikes.

Hi Waterlilli,

We have a couple of different ways to transport bikes depending on whether or not we are also transporting kids/friends and their bikes. We are also a Ford family ... two Mustangs, an Escape and a '91 Ranger (that still turns heads!), two of our son's also have Ranger pick-up's, the third an Explorer.

We have a Yakima roof rack system that we have used for hauling our bikes but found that after a long day of riding it was very tiring to have to remove front tires and lift the bikes onto the roof. We looked at a number of the different attachments but did not like the way the bikes were attached to the hitch systems allowing them to swing.

At a bike expo last year we had a chance to view the Saris 'Cycle-On' system ... the Saris representative let us take one outside and attach it to our Ford Escape. After a few months of talking with people who had them (usually stopping people out in parking lots!) we bought one from our LBS. We've hauled our road bikes as well as our mountain bikes and are more than happy with the result. The bikes are held steady - because of their placement right behind the vehicle the bikes are relatively protected from rain, slush or whatever is *kicked up* by the tires.

What I really like is that I can now transport my bikes without have to mess with removing the wheels or resorting to putting my bike in the back of the Escape (or the Ranger).

We also have two bike mounts on a board where we can (front fork) mount two bikes on and transport them in either the Escape or the Ranger. I should add that we also have transport covers for road and mountain bikes when we carried bikes on the roof rack.

HOpe this helps

Cindy