Tandem Cycling - Dakine Pickup Pad - input please?

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View Full Version : Dakine Pickup Pad - input please?


hup
02-29-12, 09:13 AM
My situation is this - I have fork mounts in my Toyota Tacoma (too) short bed pickup and those are what I usually use to haul my tandem. The tailgate has to be down to fit. This is a problem when I pull out tent trailer because the tailgate must be up have clearance. In the past I have made do in various ways but when I saw this item the lightbulb lit up.

http://www.pricepoint.com/detail/18082-255_DAKPP8-2-Accessories-650-Adventure-Essentials/Dakine-Pick-Up-Pad-offerIN212GLB.htm?utm_source=Googlebase&utm_medium=datafeed&utm_campaign=FTP&zmam=3075515&zmas=1&zmac=30&zmap=255%20DAKPP8

http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51fk4L8CtLL._SS400_.jpg

I checked and the Burley will fit when loaded corner to corner. My question is, am I going to damage the frame/fork if I carry the bike this way? It seems like a nice tidy fit with the bottom tube resting on the tailgate and the fork blade flat against the outside of the tailgate. Anyway, as usual, any input that you all might have would be appreciated.

Henry


Onegun
02-29-12, 11:56 AM
Well, the specs tell me two pertinent things:
A. It's actually designed to protect your truck, not your bike
B. It's only 3/4" foam.
Hmmm. If you're serious about this method of transport, I'd give it a test with a couple of folded up blankets first and see how it rides.

If I liked it I might go as far as getting a block of ballistic rubber, (8x8x16", $59, listed at the bottom of the page here (http://www.blackironrubber.com/ballistic_rubber.html)), carve out channels for the tailgate, the downtube and the forks. A couple of motorcycle tie-downs later and you'd have a custom fit protective system that will cushion virtually any impact and takes 60 seconds to install.

diabloridr
02-29-12, 12:29 PM
As an alternative, I'd suggest looking at putting a roof rack on the Tacoma with a fork mount. This would likely allow the tailgate to be in the up position with the rear wheel of the tandem in the bed.