Bicycle Hitch Rack – Should You Let Those Bikes Hang Or Support’em?
Not too long ago when you’d be considering a trailer hitch bike rack the only option would leave your bikes hanging by their proverbial top tubes. That worked for a lot of riders, but it left another group looking to roof racks for bike transporting satisfaction.
Imagine that, people searching for satisfaction in the form of bicycle racks.
Wasting Money On A Bicycle Hitch Rack At A Swap Meet
I bought a rather primitive ‘hanger’bicycle hitch rack at a swap meet. It didn’t swing to the side like the nice ones do. It didn’t do much besides hang my bike behind the 4runner.
Worst of all, it said HOLLYWOOD on it, in big bright letters. My disdain for Tinseltown necessitated immediate removal of the decal. I’m left with a utilitarian trailer hitch bike rack.
Cycling Gear?
open for deep discounts at Bike Nashbar.
They’ve got Hitch Racks
It’s sturdy, rattle-free, and semi-convenient (less so than a swing away model like the Yakima FullSwing).
Your Trailer Hitch Bike Rack Had Better Do Some Swingin
The swing away feature is tremendous since it keeps getting into the trunk or a car or into the back of an SUV from being the sole domain of contortionists.
My Hollywood version hinges down near the hitch and it bends out away from the hitch.
It makes getting into the back of the vehicle a bit easier, except that the bikes are swinging half off the rack. Plus the rack is still where you want to be standing when you’re getting into the trunk.
The down side is common to all the ‘hanger’ bicycle racks- it contacts the revered carbon frame of a high quality bike. This is what kept cycling connoisseurs away from ‘hanger’bicycle hitch racks.
On the other hand, some people seem to like these racks so much… that they load them up with more bike mass than would fit into a two car garage. I’m sure you’ve seen them popping a wheeley down the highway.
Hollywood, Allen, Saris, Swagman, Yakima, and Thule are all prominent in the bicycle hitch rack world. Of course good ole Bike Nashbar has all different types and most of them are discounted to some extent.
There ARE Bicycle Hitch Racks That Support Your Bike
Not long ago the ‘support’em’ style was developed. Both the Saris Thelma and the Saris Cycle-On support the wheels, keeping the frame pristine.
Now some bike racers are shunning the roof racks and showing up to races with this style of bicycle hitch rack. It’s a good option, but it too has got a downside…
It still won’t be embraced by that group of riders now known as the ‘elite bikegearist’. Come on, use your noodle. Why would an ‘elite bikegearist’ buy a bike way beyond his financial means if he isn’t going to put it up high on his roof for all of us to see?
Have you ever seen a Colnago humbly following along on a hitch rack?
What do you know about the other four types of bike racks?
