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Shelley's Pick
I previously drove a Honda Civic equipped with a hitch and a hitch
rack. My hitch was installed by U-Haul but you can also
check with your auto dealer. I bought my hitch rack at my
local bike shop. You have to match your hitch rack to your
hitch size. For example, my rack fits a 1.25" hitch. To make
the Buddy Bike extra secure, especially for long trips, I
use an anti-sway cradle and straps to secure it to the hitch.
My favorite strap to use is a nylon dog leash. The just
don't break and are easy to wrap, tie and clip on to the
bike and hitch.
What Our Customers Use
I ordered the most "stable" hitch rack I
could find that will accommodate the [Buddy Bike Family
Limited Edition] and essentially supports the weight. The
make/model is Hollywood Racks HR1400. It's a "platform"
style rack. It can support up to four bikes (200 lbs) but
I'll only be using it for now in the two bike configuration
(100 lbs). It supports a wheelbase up to 60" and weight of
50 lbs per bike but I think the [Buddy Bike Family Limited
Edition] at 53 lbs should be fine since that will be the
only bike on the rack. It's an expensive heavy duty unit
but worth it to protect my [Buddy Bike Family Limited
Edition] and should alleviate any safety issues.
We use the Yakima Sidewinder,
which is their tandem carrier. As expected, it's actually
designed for a longer wheelbase, but it just barely works.
It would work better if I took one part over to a machine
ship to have them move something around. And their fork
mount skewer thing nicely swings out over the edge of the
car so you can get it locked in before having to push the
bike up. It works quite well. I looked at the Thule 558P,
but the single axis pivot didn't look nearly as useful as
what Yakima has done.
Performance Xport Flatbed
4-bike Hitch Rack Item #40-3560M. The wheelbase on the Buddy
Bike is just a few inches too long to fit both wheels
perfectly in the wheel slots, but it works quite well
anyway. You can strap in both wheels and then I add a bungee
cord for extra security.
I have a Thule 590R V2
Recumbent bike carrier that I mounted to the top of my
Toyota Sienna Mini Van. We traveled over 3,000 miles with it
on top of the van this summer while on vacation and it was
great. I am able to put the bike on by myself but 2 adult
males are recommended to safely put the bike on the vehicle
and to remove it.
Per Thule North America: "The
only carrier we recommend for tandem bikes is our 558P
Tandem Bike Carrier for the roof."
I own two 4 bike racks. A
Yakima and a Thule. the Thule is more friendly towards
recumbents and short tandems.
Mounts in the hitch on back of
a van. Manufactured by DRAW TIGHT (four bike model). I have
to remove front wheel due to size. MAKE THE FRONT WHEEL AND
BRAKE AS EASY AS POSSIBLE TO REMOVE AND REINSTALL.
The front
wheel of the Buddy Bike has a quick release for easy
removal.
Buddy Bike
does not endorse any of the products mentioned above nor
guarantee the safety of these products. |
