Aura, fair enough concerns. Yes its a raving positive, with wording that can be a bit "sales pitchish"
Yes, he works in a bike store and sells the things, so one should always be wary of this side of things.
I understand you wondering about me backing him up. We are not friends, last year I went by the store he works at once simply to discover a new bike store I didnt know exist (its in an area I dont have friends in so I never go there) I like bike stores and was curious to see it. I also took a look at the Schwalbe Supreme tires Burton had written about, he had offered to have his bike there with them but I couldnt get out there when that bike was there.
Ive worked in retail before a bit (camera stores) and have a keen nose for when a salesman either doesnt know his stuff and/or is doing the "salesman" thing too hard (especially with bike stuff) In both reading Burtons past posts about panniers (he likes Arkels) or even the expensive Schwalbe Supremes tires, he has been positive about these products, but has also been even handed about how diff competitors products are good too.
Meeting him in person that one time was the same, not pushy, knowledgeable, showed me the line of bikes and such in the store and thats perfectly fine with me.
this rack is a bit like the Supremes, pricey suckers. You know the old saying, "Im too poor to afford to buy cheap stuff"? Thats me, as I have to be careful with what I buy as I want it to last a long time. Back to this rack, I still find it expensive, target market is probably more for someone who doesnt have to be careful like me with what they purchase. I still wonder how it so sturdy, but the test of one heavily loaded side is a good one. Burton was also up front about his specific bike and how its stability and bar width probably was a factor in the "heavy front end test".
I too wonder how the attachment hardware will hold up over time, a regular rack is simple, you screw in the bolts, thats it. Make sure they dont loosen and as I said with my experience, 20-40 dollar racks have worked great for me.
Will this thing not be as sturdy over the years if the attachment points get loosey goosey? I dunno. I guess the issue here is that one of its advantages is that its made for bikes without eyelets, so probably people who buy this wont be loading it too much--buuut its neat to see (or rather, read of) someone who overloads it on purpose to see how it behaves, generally a good indication of its behavior over time.
kinda funny, I havent even seen this rack, nor have any urge nor budget to buy one, and Im defending it....sorry for this. I just wanted more to respond to your questioning my comments vis-a-vis Burton, thats all.
I agree though, one always has to be skeptical about glowing reviews.