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First 'rack-cident"

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Road Cycling “It is by riding a bicycle that you learn the contours of a country best, since you have to sweat up the hills and coast down them. Thus you remember them as they actually are, while in a motor car only a high hill impresses you, and you have no such accurate remembrance of country you have driven through as you gain by riding a bicycle.” -- Ernest Hemingway

First 'rack-cident"

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Old 09-17-12 | 12:03 PM
  #26  
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Put a mirror on your house so you can see yourself pulling up, which means you see your bike, and remember to take it off.
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Old 09-17-12 | 12:08 PM
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Shimano Dura-Ace Di3 will feature a garage door opener jamming and alert system.
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Old 09-17-12 | 12:51 PM
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Originally Posted by pihb
Put a mirror on your house so you can see yourself pulling up, which means you see your bike, and remember to take it off.
I actually like that idea. With the amount of times my wife accidentally leaves the garage door open, the idea of putting the garage door opener in the glove box wouldn't work for me.
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Old 09-17-12 | 12:54 PM
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Originally Posted by Hot Potato
...Pulling into the garage, thinking about a nice glass of wine to end the day, and Crunch-BOom!...
This may be a first. An accident caused by alcohol you hadn't even consumed yet.
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Old 09-17-12 | 01:15 PM
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Originally Posted by TrojanHorse
Please post an update when all the dust settles - it'll be interesting to see what your insurance company covers. (or if you get crash assistance from Spec)

Heck, there's a hitch for every car - I've seen hitches on Corvettes!
Wish it were true. Body style of my car requires hole in bumper or bending hitch. Haven't found a hitch guy willing to custom bend one.
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Old 09-17-12 | 01:34 PM
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I don't think I could do a roof rack because I know I would eventually hit something. Of course hitch racks aren't fool proof either. One time on vacation my wife was backing into a space. I looked out the back window just in time to see she was about to pile up the bikes into a wooden fence post. She stopped within a half inch after I screamed like a little girl.
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Old 09-17-12 | 02:34 PM
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Originally Posted by HBxRider
yeah I saw that commercial too, and wondered how often that happens in real life.

well good thing I only have a car port.
My agent said I m the 5th claim in 20 years for this.
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Old 09-17-12 | 02:38 PM
  #33  
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Originally Posted by pihb
Put a mirror on your house so you can see yourself pulling up, which means you see your bike, and remember to take it off.
Now here's an idea! It could even cover up the scuffs and dents my bike just put in the house!
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Old 09-17-12 | 02:51 PM
  #34  
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Get a lower car hahah. I drive a lowered Acura Integra, and with a bike in a rack on top without its front wheel would probably still be less than 7 feet tall.
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Old 09-17-12 | 08:15 PM
  #35  
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Originally Posted by TrojanHorse
Please post an update when all the dust settles - it'll be interesting to see what your insurance company covers. (or if you get crash assistance from Spec)

Heck, there's a hitch for every car - I've seen hitches on Corvettes!
Putting a hitch on a Corvette should be a criminal activity punishable by castration.
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Old 09-17-12 | 08:29 PM
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Originally Posted by JasonCarp
Putting a hitch on a Corvette should be a criminal activity punishable by castration.
Because the car can drive straight only and with the bike on hitch it's even more dangerous. Good point.
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Old 09-17-12 | 08:38 PM
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Originally Posted by Shimagnolo
The other thing against the roof rack is when the force of the wind pulls the front dropouts out of the CF fork, and the bike goes flipping off the top of the car. IIRC, this even happened to Pcad once.
Yes, the bottle is attached stronger to the bottle cage (never lost one because of wind) than dropouts in CF fork.

BTW, when I entered the garage dropouts cracked but were not pulled out.

Last edited by justfitme; 09-17-12 at 08:44 PM.
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Old 09-17-12 | 08:46 PM
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Originally Posted by justfitme
Because the car can drive straight only
Apparently you haven't driven one in the last 20 years.
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Old 09-17-12 | 08:49 PM
  #39  
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I put a sticky note in the instrument area reading "BIKE ON ROOF!!"
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Old 09-17-12 | 08:57 PM
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Originally Posted by BustaQuad
Apparently you haven't driven one in the last 20 years.
And it helped me to keep my sense of humor.
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Old 09-17-12 | 10:03 PM
  #41  
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Corvettes can own an autocross event given decent drivers. And I have seen a few with hitches hauling trailers with tires, tools, etc. to a track event. Nothing wrong at all with having at least just a square hitch receiver on a Vette.
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Old 09-17-12 | 10:24 PM
  #42  
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3x for my wife...we have been lucky to have never caused any serious damage. These days, the door opener goes in the trunk when the bikes are on top.
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Old 09-17-12 | 11:42 PM
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That's why you get a hitch rack. Look at the Swagman XTC. Compared to a roof rack its cheaper, safer, easier to put bikes on/off, better mileage, looks better, no wind noise, no car damage
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Old 09-18-12 | 06:39 AM
  #44  
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The hitch rack has some disanvatages too.
It looks ugly without bikes and if you need to take your bike every other day, then it is either to keep it on all the time or to re-attach it every second morning. Been there.
Also, the hitch rack sways and it bothered me. I know it's nothing wrong but anyway.
Also, when you leave the bikes in parking lot, they are more accessible for some yahoos with wrong ideas and little alien tool.
The bikes on the roof are visible from the distance - on the hitch are not.
In case of an accident the hitches potentially can make more damage to the car (your car).
Talking about fuel economy - the back of the car has to be the same aerodinamic as the front in order to save the gas.
I did not feel any difference in gas consumption between them two.
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Old 09-18-12 | 06:48 AM
  #45  
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my strategy is to have my garage so packed full of crap that there is no way i can fit my car into it. problem solved
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Old 09-18-12 | 07:30 AM
  #46  
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F that, I went for so many years having to park on the driveway (when living w/ parents) that I vowed when I bought my house to ALWAYS have it clear enough to park the car inside it. I hate seeing all the driveways in my neighborhood all littered up with cars, and even worse, parking on the street. Probably 85% of the houses in my area have double garages, and probably 30%-40% of the people actually park their cars in them.
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Old 09-18-12 | 08:00 AM
  #47  
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Originally Posted by PatrickGSR94
F that, I went for so many years having to park on the driveway (when living w/ parents) that I vowed when I bought my house to ALWAYS have it clear enough to park the car inside it. I hate seeing all the driveways in my neighborhood all littered up with cars, and even worse, parking on the street. Probably 85% of the houses in my area have double garages, and probably 30%-40% of the people actually park their cars in them.
It is not about how many parking spaces people have. In my hood 50% of houses have 3 car garage and all of them have driveways for 4-6 cars. Still parking on the street...to the point when delivery truck can't access.

Hate it too.

But in my case - I have 9 adult bikes and 3 kids in the garage plus running stroller, bike trailer... I managed to squeeze all in one car space, but if I park 2 cars in the garage it is a problem to pull that stuff out.. Even 3 car garage is not enough to park 2 cars.
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Old 09-18-12 | 11:33 AM
  #48  
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okay well I could see that I guess. Right now there's just my one bike in the garage, plus 2 cars, and all my tools and other crap. My bike is on the wall just to the left off the pic below.

I'm actually leaning towards the Seasucker bike racks over a hitch mount, mainly because it could be switched out between any car. Plus if I mount the bike with the back wheel down at the base of my rear glass, the bike will for sure be under 7 feet tall which should have no problems clearing just about anything.

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Old 09-19-12 | 01:18 PM
  #49  
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Originally Posted by TrojanHorse
Please post an update when all the dust settles - it'll be interesting to see what your insurance company covers. (or if you get crash assistance from Spec)
Insurance lady called last night. Had no idea how to value the bike, so she was asking me. I went online simultaneously with her and walked her around the Specialized website. She saw the Roubaix expert UI2 and thought it was the comparable model..... but I am honest and had her switch to the regular Roubaix expert page. Then she googled the Yakima High roller mount for its price. Bike and rack are going through the homeowner policy, so deductible number two applies. She put me on hold, and when she came back she said I am getting a check for @$2500 in the mail. Then, when I submit receipts showing that I actually replaced the bike and rack mount, I will get a check for the remainder due to a "replacement value" clause.

So, I get a new bike for 500 bucks! I will find out about a crash replacement frame and wheel repairs while shopping for the new bike, just hoping that I could inexpensively re-incarnate the old bike in the future for a spare ride. In the mean time, with winter not that far away, I have a dedicated basement trainer at the least.
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Old 09-19-12 | 02:06 PM
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Originally Posted by Hot Potato

So, I get a new bike for 500 bucks!
That's what you think. Wait until you get the bill for your new, increased homeowner's insurance premiums.
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