Protection from the elements on a roof rack?

[badgercat]

So I recently drove ~2600 miles with my Trek on the roof of my Civic from Tucson to Wisconsin and Chicago to visit friends and family and then back to Omaha for a summer internship. I love my Thule roofrack--it was a Craigslist special ($80 for the whole setup!!).

However, the bike was exposed to the elements the whole time. We drove through quite a lot of rain and got stuck in a sudden hailstorm in New Mexico. Fortunately we were near an exit, which ended up having a big 'ol underpass that we were able to take shelter below, but that was my scariest 1/2 mile of driving ever... it was SO loud on the roof, but I wasn't worried so much about dents in the car, I was worried about MY POOR BIKE! She survived, though.

It ended up that the main problem was the BUGS. The amount of bug guts I scrubbed off the poor thing was so disgusting it was almost comical. Not just on the fork and the bars, but bugs splattered on the spokes, a huge moth belly-up in the cassette... it was incredible.

I'm already starting to brainstorm for the trip home (which will be shorter, but ~1400 miles, still nothing to sneeze at). Those of you who have used roof racks for lengthy trips--and there must be some of you around here--have you done anything to shield your bike? I've heard about products marketed to protect the drivetrain (something called the Chain Condom or something?), but I'd really like to protect more than that if I can. With the bikes on the roof, though, I worry about things becoming sail-like. I saw some kind of a form-fitting cover online, made of lycra or something, but that was almost $200. Could I wrap it in Saran Wrap or something?? Or should I just deal with the exposure again? I don't mind so much with the Trek (which is a bit beat up already anyway), but I might have a second, new bike making the trip home with me (fingers crossed), that I'd like to protect...

[Chicken Little]

Saran wrap can work, but it bears constant inspection. If it comes loose, it can whip paint off. This will sound funny, but I sprayed my bike with PAM cooking spray for the trip, and the bugs came off easy. You still run the risk of rock chips and stuff like that. It's a tough call, I worry when mine is up there, too.

[loopybunny]

I've seen things that go over the saddle and bars. I've also seen people driving to races with plastic grocery bags over their saddle and taped around the seatpost so it doesn't come off. I've never seen these in stores though.

Love my Chain Condom though. My bike goes in the back of my Prius and the Chain Condom protects my interior from the grease. Nice!

[badgercat]

Update: BF ordered one of these for my new bike: http://www.performancebike.com/bikes..._1023900_-1___ They come in flat- and drop-bar varieties, so I got the drop-bar one.

And I'm also waiting on a Chain Condom. We'll see how the trip home goes in a few weeks!

[Becky]

Those "bike bras" work great! Beats scraping bug guts off your bars and fork

[badgercat]

Those "bike bras" work great! Beats scraping bug guts off your bars and fork

He was able to order it at a substantial discount through some sale since he has a Team Performance membership, so since it was such a small investment we figured it couldn't hurt to try it. Glad to hear it's worked for you!

[Mr. SR500]

Bike bras works great. If it's a really long drive, I'll bag the seat for extra protection. If we hit rain, I clean & lube everything ASAP.