That Time My Bike Flew Off The Car Rack...

bturman
Posts
2102
Joined
8/1/2009
Location
Durango, CO US
Edited Date/Time 12/27/2017 5:12pm
Picture this. I had just flown into Grand Junction, Colorado for a riding trip in nearby Moab, Utah. With a few hours to kill before others in our group arrived, I decide to build up my bike. I pull it out of my Evoc bag, throw the wheels on, bolt up the bars, and pop some wheelies in the parking lot. All good. The shuttle arrives, we load the bike on top of the van, cram several bike bags inside, and set off on the hour or so journey to Utah's riding mecca. Some of our crew hops in a truck and follow not far behind.

As we're driving along we feel several strong gusts of wind smash into the car from the side, but don't think much of it. Around the same time, one of the guys in the truck behind us jokingly says, "How crazy would it be if that thing flew off?"

Right at that moment, inside the van we hear and feel a loud "THUNK!" I turn around to watch out the back window puzzled by what happened and my jaw drops as I see my ride tumble off the top of the van. Next thing I know the thing is 20 feet in the air, BOUNCING down the highway at 70 miles an hour. It spikes the ground once, starts spinning wildly, bounces again, spins even faster, then slams into the ground a third time before sliding to a mangled stop on the shoulder.

The whole time I'm clutching the back of my seat, eyes wide open, hoping with everything I've got that it doesn't hit anyone, get hit, or break.



As we veer to the side of the road, we see our friend's truck pull over just behind the piled heap. They hop out, pick up the bike, and assess the damage. The incredible part? Besides a minor dent in the swingarm, the only parts that needed to be replaced were the handlebar and saddle. Oh, and I had to pull out the old smash the wheel on the ground like Hulk Hogan with a folding chair to straighten it technique.



Here's the Diamondback Mission Pro after the fall. How's that for a durability test? Who knew this thing could fly? And yeah, Moab still happened. Then I found $20...

What's your best bike rack failure story? Why is it that everyone has a horror story? Did it end well?
|
jeff.brines
Posts
753
Joined
8/29/2010
Location
Grand Junction, CO US
6/15/2016 3:17pm
HAHAHA. I heard this story. From a certain PR company representing the brand...
6/15/2016 3:20pm Edited Date/Time 6/15/2016 3:21pm


Thankfully no real horror stories from me. Even when we do dumb shit like testing the limits of a 4-tray T2 rack and a minivan.
ride
Posts
66
Joined
8/4/2009
Location
Bellinghome, WA US
6/15/2016 3:35pm Edited Date/Time 6/15/2016 3:45pm
[img]https://p.vitalmtb.com/photos/forums/2016/06/15/3984/s1200_Screen_Shot_2016_06_15_at_3.13.19_PM.jpg[/img] Thankfully no real horror stories from me. Even when we do dumb shit like testing the limits of a 4-tray T2 rack and a minivan.


Thankfully no real horror stories from me. Even when we do dumb shit like testing the limits of a 4-tray T2 rack and a minivan.
.
ride
Posts
66
Joined
8/4/2009
Location
Bellinghome, WA US
6/15/2016 3:36pm
bturman wrote:
Picture this. I had just flown into Grand Junction, Colorado for a riding trip in nearby Moab, Utah. With a few hours to kill before others...
Picture this. I had just flown into Grand Junction, Colorado for a riding trip in nearby Moab, Utah. With a few hours to kill before others in our group arrived, I decide to build up my bike. I pull it out of my Evoc bag, throw the wheels on, bolt up the bars, and pop some wheelies in the parking lot. All good. The shuttle arrives, we load the bike on top of the van, cram several bike bags inside, and set off on the hour or so journey to Utah's riding mecca. Some of our crew hops in a truck and follow not far behind.

As we're driving along we feel several strong gusts of wind smash into the car from the side, but don't think much of it. Around the same time, one of the guys in the truck behind us jokingly says, "How crazy would it be if that thing flew off?"

Right at that moment, inside the van we hear and feel a loud "THUNK!" I turn around to watch out the back window puzzled by what happened and my jaw drops as I see my ride tumble off the top of the van. Next thing I know the thing is 20 feet in the air, BOUNCING down the highway at 70 miles an hour. It spikes the ground once, starts spinning wildly, bounces again, spins even faster, then slams into the ground a third time before sliding to a mangled stop on the shoulder.

The whole time I'm clutching the back of my seat, eyes wide open, hoping with everything I've got that it doesn't hit anyone, get hit, or break.



As we veer to the side of the road, we see our friend's truck pull over just behind the piled heap. They hop out, pick up the bike, and assess the damage. The incredible part? Besides a minor dent in the swingarm, the only parts that needed to be replaced were the handlebar and saddle. Oh, and I had to pull out the old smash the wheel on the ground like Hulk Hogan with a folding chair to straighten it technique.



Here's the Diamondback Mission Pro after the fall. How's that for a durability test? Who knew this thing could fly? And yeah, Moab still happened. Then I found $20...

What's your best bike rack failure story? Why is it that everyone has a horror story? Did it end well?
Um, Turman. That was awesome. I'm so glad I was there to witness... Bloody hell.
briceps
Posts
3
Joined
5/25/2016
Location
Denver, CO US
6/15/2016 4:02pm
bturman wrote:
Picture this. I had just flown into Grand Junction, Colorado for a riding trip in nearby Moab, Utah. With a few hours to kill before others...
Picture this. I had just flown into Grand Junction, Colorado for a riding trip in nearby Moab, Utah. With a few hours to kill before others in our group arrived, I decide to build up my bike. I pull it out of my Evoc bag, throw the wheels on, bolt up the bars, and pop some wheelies in the parking lot. All good. The shuttle arrives, we load the bike on top of the van, cram several bike bags inside, and set off on the hour or so journey to Utah's riding mecca. Some of our crew hops in a truck and follow not far behind.

As we're driving along we feel several strong gusts of wind smash into the car from the side, but don't think much of it. Around the same time, one of the guys in the truck behind us jokingly says, "How crazy would it be if that thing flew off?"

Right at that moment, inside the van we hear and feel a loud "THUNK!" I turn around to watch out the back window puzzled by what happened and my jaw drops as I see my ride tumble off the top of the van. Next thing I know the thing is 20 feet in the air, BOUNCING down the highway at 70 miles an hour. It spikes the ground once, starts spinning wildly, bounces again, spins even faster, then slams into the ground a third time before sliding to a mangled stop on the shoulder.

The whole time I'm clutching the back of my seat, eyes wide open, hoping with everything I've got that it doesn't hit anyone, get hit, or break.



As we veer to the side of the road, we see our friend's truck pull over just behind the piled heap. They hop out, pick up the bike, and assess the damage. The incredible part? Besides a minor dent in the swingarm, the only parts that needed to be replaced were the handlebar and saddle. Oh, and I had to pull out the old smash the wheel on the ground like Hulk Hogan with a folding chair to straighten it technique.



Here's the Diamondback Mission Pro after the fall. How's that for a durability test? Who knew this thing could fly? And yeah, Moab still happened. Then I found $20...

What's your best bike rack failure story? Why is it that everyone has a horror story? Did it end well?
ride wrote:
Um, Turman. That was awesome. I'm so glad I was there to witness... Bloody hell.
I have a very similar story. Headed to Moab last October from Denver with a buddy, my 2013 Alu Covert atop my car on the Yakima Rack. About 20 miles east of GJ we hear a pop. I turn to my friend, confused look, thinking I hit a squirrel while catching a glimpse of something tumbling down the highway at 84 mph only to realize it's my bike. 3 semis narrowly dodge it before we can go retrieve it from the middle of I-70.

Upon inspection the rear wheel is tacoed (though it's a POS Crankbros Iodine anyway), the derailleur is toast, and the bar ends have been ground down to 45 degree angles. The frame however is almost spotless with the exception of a few small scrapes around the dropouts. Pivots are still tight, no serious damage to the frame at all. I will be a Transition customer for life.
taldfind
Posts
141
Joined
8/6/2012
Location
Blackfoot, ID US
6/15/2016 4:16pm
bturman wrote:
Picture this. I had just flown into Grand Junction, Colorado for a riding trip in nearby Moab, Utah. With a few hours to kill before others...
Picture this. I had just flown into Grand Junction, Colorado for a riding trip in nearby Moab, Utah. With a few hours to kill before others in our group arrived, I decide to build up my bike. I pull it out of my Evoc bag, throw the wheels on, bolt up the bars, and pop some wheelies in the parking lot. All good. The shuttle arrives, we load the bike on top of the van, cram several bike bags inside, and set off on the hour or so journey to Utah's riding mecca. Some of our crew hops in a truck and follow not far behind.

As we're driving along we feel several strong gusts of wind smash into the car from the side, but don't think much of it. Around the same time, one of the guys in the truck behind us jokingly says, "How crazy would it be if that thing flew off?"

Right at that moment, inside the van we hear and feel a loud "THUNK!" I turn around to watch out the back window puzzled by what happened and my jaw drops as I see my ride tumble off the top of the van. Next thing I know the thing is 20 feet in the air, BOUNCING down the highway at 70 miles an hour. It spikes the ground once, starts spinning wildly, bounces again, spins even faster, then slams into the ground a third time before sliding to a mangled stop on the shoulder.

The whole time I'm clutching the back of my seat, eyes wide open, hoping with everything I've got that it doesn't hit anyone, get hit, or break.



As we veer to the side of the road, we see our friend's truck pull over just behind the piled heap. They hop out, pick up the bike, and assess the damage. The incredible part? Besides a minor dent in the swingarm, the only parts that needed to be replaced were the handlebar and saddle. Oh, and I had to pull out the old smash the wheel on the ground like Hulk Hogan with a folding chair to straighten it technique.



Here's the Diamondback Mission Pro after the fall. How's that for a durability test? Who knew this thing could fly? And yeah, Moab still happened. Then I found $20...

What's your best bike rack failure story? Why is it that everyone has a horror story? Did it end well?
ride wrote:
Um, Turman. That was awesome. I'm so glad I was there to witness... Bloody hell.
briceps wrote:
I have a very similar story. Headed to Moab last October from Denver with a buddy, my 2013 Alu Covert atop my car on the Yakima...
I have a very similar story. Headed to Moab last October from Denver with a buddy, my 2013 Alu Covert atop my car on the Yakima Rack. About 20 miles east of GJ we hear a pop. I turn to my friend, confused look, thinking I hit a squirrel while catching a glimpse of something tumbling down the highway at 84 mph only to realize it's my bike. 3 semis narrowly dodge it before we can go retrieve it from the middle of I-70.

Upon inspection the rear wheel is tacoed (though it's a POS Crankbros Iodine anyway), the derailleur is toast, and the bar ends have been ground down to 45 degree angles. The frame however is almost spotless with the exception of a few small scrapes around the dropouts. Pivots are still tight, no serious damage to the frame at all. I will be a Transition customer for life.
I had the tailgate of my truck pop open while driving down a dirt road. It dumped all four bikes onto the road. Luckily, nothing was damaged on any of the bikes. But man, I felt sick while watching the bikes tumble.
nmpearson
Posts
11
Joined
1/6/2011
Location
Salt Lake City, UT US
6/15/2016 5:12pm Edited Date/Time 6/15/2016 5:14pm
ride wrote:
Um, Turman. That was awesome. I'm so glad I was there to witness... Bloody hell.
briceps wrote:
I have a very similar story. Headed to Moab last October from Denver with a buddy, my 2013 Alu Covert atop my car on the Yakima...
I have a very similar story. Headed to Moab last October from Denver with a buddy, my 2013 Alu Covert atop my car on the Yakima Rack. About 20 miles east of GJ we hear a pop. I turn to my friend, confused look, thinking I hit a squirrel while catching a glimpse of something tumbling down the highway at 84 mph only to realize it's my bike. 3 semis narrowly dodge it before we can go retrieve it from the middle of I-70.

Upon inspection the rear wheel is tacoed (though it's a POS Crankbros Iodine anyway), the derailleur is toast, and the bar ends have been ground down to 45 degree angles. The frame however is almost spotless with the exception of a few small scrapes around the dropouts. Pivots are still tight, no serious damage to the frame at all. I will be a Transition customer for life.
taldfind wrote:
I had the tailgate of my truck pop open while driving down a dirt road. It dumped all four bikes onto the road. Luckily, nothing was...
I had the tailgate of my truck pop open while driving down a dirt road. It dumped all four bikes onto the road. Luckily, nothing was damaged on any of the bikes. But man, I felt sick while watching the bikes tumble.
No pics...but 3 stories
-2014 Rocky Mountain Altitude Carbon that I had just bought half fell off the back of my car. My tray had cracked and I didn't notice it. A car came running by honking at me. It was dragging by the part that holds the wheel on. Only the grip was ruined. I was kinda surprised bc the whole bike was carbon(wheels,frame,bars)
-2013 Santa Cruz V10 Carbon...Did the idiot thing and ran into a garage when i had a roof rack. Just the roof rack got broken. I was kinda stunned.
-Last year I was coming home from school on the train and noticed a homeless looking dude with a morpheus hardtail. He claimed to have found it after it bounced out of a truck going on I-80 west past park city. It was full spank parts so I figured it was a Morpheus pro riders bike. Dude had just got out of jail and said he was commuting on it. I called my buddy who knows the morpheus guys. Apparently one of them lost the bike and just used insurance to replace it. I had just paid for a semester of my MBA so I was broke and couldn't buy it off the guy. I still am waiting to find it in the area.
gotdurt
Posts
9
Joined
5/27/2013
Location
Leander, TX US
6/15/2016 6:13pm Edited Date/Time 6/15/2016 6:18pm
briceps wrote:
I have a very similar story. Headed to Moab last October from Denver with a buddy, my 2013 Alu Covert atop my car on the Yakima...
I have a very similar story. Headed to Moab last October from Denver with a buddy, my 2013 Alu Covert atop my car on the Yakima Rack. About 20 miles east of GJ we hear a pop. I turn to my friend, confused look, thinking I hit a squirrel while catching a glimpse of something tumbling down the highway at 84 mph only to realize it's my bike. 3 semis narrowly dodge it before we can go retrieve it from the middle of I-70.

Upon inspection the rear wheel is tacoed (though it's a POS Crankbros Iodine anyway), the derailleur is toast, and the bar ends have been ground down to 45 degree angles. The frame however is almost spotless with the exception of a few small scrapes around the dropouts. Pivots are still tight, no serious damage to the frame at all. I will be a Transition customer for life.
taldfind wrote:
I had the tailgate of my truck pop open while driving down a dirt road. It dumped all four bikes onto the road. Luckily, nothing was...
I had the tailgate of my truck pop open while driving down a dirt road. It dumped all four bikes onto the road. Luckily, nothing was damaged on any of the bikes. But man, I felt sick while watching the bikes tumble.
nmpearson wrote:
No pics...but 3 stories -2014 Rocky Mountain Altitude Carbon that I had just bought half fell off the back of my car. My tray had cracked...
No pics...but 3 stories
-2014 Rocky Mountain Altitude Carbon that I had just bought half fell off the back of my car. My tray had cracked and I didn't notice it. A car came running by honking at me. It was dragging by the part that holds the wheel on. Only the grip was ruined. I was kinda surprised bc the whole bike was carbon(wheels,frame,bars)
-2013 Santa Cruz V10 Carbon...Did the idiot thing and ran into a garage when i had a roof rack. Just the roof rack got broken. I was kinda stunned.
-Last year I was coming home from school on the train and noticed a homeless looking dude with a morpheus hardtail. He claimed to have found it after it bounced out of a truck going on I-80 west past park city. It was full spank parts so I figured it was a Morpheus pro riders bike. Dude had just got out of jail and said he was commuting on it. I called my buddy who knows the morpheus guys. Apparently one of them lost the bike and just used insurance to replace it. I had just paid for a semester of my MBA so I was broke and couldn't buy it off the guy. I still am waiting to find it in the area.
oops
gotdurt
Posts
9
Joined
5/27/2013
Location
Leander, TX US
6/15/2016 6:18pm Edited Date/Time 6/15/2016 6:22pm
briceps wrote:
I have a very similar story. Headed to Moab last October from Denver with a buddy, my 2013 Alu Covert atop my car on the Yakima...
I have a very similar story. Headed to Moab last October from Denver with a buddy, my 2013 Alu Covert atop my car on the Yakima Rack. About 20 miles east of GJ we hear a pop. I turn to my friend, confused look, thinking I hit a squirrel while catching a glimpse of something tumbling down the highway at 84 mph only to realize it's my bike. 3 semis narrowly dodge it before we can go retrieve it from the middle of I-70.

Upon inspection the rear wheel is tacoed (though it's a POS Crankbros Iodine anyway), the derailleur is toast, and the bar ends have been ground down to 45 degree angles. The frame however is almost spotless with the exception of a few small scrapes around the dropouts. Pivots are still tight, no serious damage to the frame at all. I will be a Transition customer for life.
taldfind wrote:
I had the tailgate of my truck pop open while driving down a dirt road. It dumped all four bikes onto the road. Luckily, nothing was...
I had the tailgate of my truck pop open while driving down a dirt road. It dumped all four bikes onto the road. Luckily, nothing was damaged on any of the bikes. But man, I felt sick while watching the bikes tumble.
nmpearson wrote:
No pics...but 3 stories -2014 Rocky Mountain Altitude Carbon that I had just bought half fell off the back of my car. My tray had cracked...
No pics...but 3 stories
-2014 Rocky Mountain Altitude Carbon that I had just bought half fell off the back of my car. My tray had cracked and I didn't notice it. A car came running by honking at me. It was dragging by the part that holds the wheel on. Only the grip was ruined. I was kinda surprised bc the whole bike was carbon(wheels,frame,bars)
-2013 Santa Cruz V10 Carbon...Did the idiot thing and ran into a garage when i had a roof rack. Just the roof rack got broken. I was kinda stunned.
-Last year I was coming home from school on the train and noticed a homeless looking dude with a morpheus hardtail. He claimed to have found it after it bounced out of a truck going on I-80 west past park city. It was full spank parts so I figured it was a Morpheus pro riders bike. Dude had just got out of jail and said he was commuting on it. I called my buddy who knows the morpheus guys. Apparently one of them lost the bike and just used insurance to replace it. I had just paid for a semester of my MBA so I was broke and couldn't buy it off the guy. I still am waiting to find it in the area.
(Why is it quoting the posts before me, and why can't I delete the quotes???)

Mine wasn't as dramatic as your bike taking flight, but an ugly, tragic trip-ender, no less.

Back in '97, after college graduation, I loaded my van (AKA "Hotel Chevy") to get away from Houston and spend a couple of weeks riding CO, UT and AZ. I had built a rack that held the bike vertically on the ladder on the back door of the van...

After a few days of riding in Moab, I headed down to Flagstaff for my next stop. I met some cool locals at the trail head at Mt Elden that showed me some incredible trails, followed by live jazz at some dive bars downtown... I headed back up Schultz Pass Road to find a good spot to camp for the night; it was dark, especially in the forest, and I was tired for the day... I drove by what appeared to be a perfect spot, I put it in reverse and backed in.

The van came to a loud, crunching, popping halt...

Of course, it wasn't long before I realized what the crunching sound was, so I rushed to the back of the van to find my beloved, custom-built Giant AL1.75 and the back door in a mangled mess, sandwiched into a very large, and obviously immovable boulder.

That ended my trip, and now very awake and sickened, I headed home for Texas that very moment. I couldn't bring myself to walk behind the van for rest of the 1000 mile drive home...

The good news is that the frame ended up somehow surviving, so after some new wheels, seat, and seat post, it was back on the trail.

The bad news is, 4 years later it was stolen... on my birthday (at this time, I was now living in Phoenix, AZ; the riding in Flag had that much impact on me!). That was my favorite bike ever, and to this day, I still fantasize about what I'd to the guy that took it.


Acadian
Posts
68
Joined
7/30/2009
Location
A Computer Near You, CA US
6/15/2016 6:20pm
briceps wrote:
I have a very similar story. Headed to Moab last October from Denver with a buddy, my 2013 Alu Covert atop my car on the Yakima...
I have a very similar story. Headed to Moab last October from Denver with a buddy, my 2013 Alu Covert atop my car on the Yakima Rack. About 20 miles east of GJ we hear a pop. I turn to my friend, confused look, thinking I hit a squirrel while catching a glimpse of something tumbling down the highway at 84 mph only to realize it's my bike. 3 semis narrowly dodge it before we can go retrieve it from the middle of I-70.

Upon inspection the rear wheel is tacoed (though it's a POS Crankbros Iodine anyway), the derailleur is toast, and the bar ends have been ground down to 45 degree angles. The frame however is almost spotless with the exception of a few small scrapes around the dropouts. Pivots are still tight, no serious damage to the frame at all. I will be a Transition customer for life.
taldfind wrote:
I had the tailgate of my truck pop open while driving down a dirt road. It dumped all four bikes onto the road. Luckily, nothing was...
I had the tailgate of my truck pop open while driving down a dirt road. It dumped all four bikes onto the road. Luckily, nothing was damaged on any of the bikes. But man, I felt sick while watching the bikes tumble.
nmpearson wrote:
No pics...but 3 stories -2014 Rocky Mountain Altitude Carbon that I had just bought half fell off the back of my car. My tray had cracked...
No pics...but 3 stories
-2014 Rocky Mountain Altitude Carbon that I had just bought half fell off the back of my car. My tray had cracked and I didn't notice it. A car came running by honking at me. It was dragging by the part that holds the wheel on. Only the grip was ruined. I was kinda surprised bc the whole bike was carbon(wheels,frame,bars)
-2013 Santa Cruz V10 Carbon...Did the idiot thing and ran into a garage when i had a roof rack. Just the roof rack got broken. I was kinda stunned.
-Last year I was coming home from school on the train and noticed a homeless looking dude with a morpheus hardtail. He claimed to have found it after it bounced out of a truck going on I-80 west past park city. It was full spank parts so I figured it was a Morpheus pro riders bike. Dude had just got out of jail and said he was commuting on it. I called my buddy who knows the morpheus guys. Apparently one of them lost the bike and just used insurance to replace it. I had just paid for a semester of my MBA so I was broke and couldn't buy it off the guy. I still am waiting to find it in the area.
ugh....

been there, done that. I've had two hitch racks fail on me - one catastrophically. Like you I hear a loud "SNAP/THUNK" then I watched out of my rear view mirror as my bike tilted over and started tumbling/sliding across multiple freeway lanes. ugh....

Cris_ries
Posts
1
Joined
6/15/2016
Location
Mesa, AZ US
6/15/2016 7:22pm
Around 2010 Erik Nelson and myself were heading out to Fontana from flagstaff az. Right around the the Cali az border the straps on the bike rack broke and Erik's orange commencal 4x(only one in the us) fell off but we had to take the next exit and loop around. By the time we go there the bike was gone. About 2 months later Erik got a call from a shop in Idaho. A lady had picked the bike up and drug it on her 2 month road trip till she got back home. She took it to her local shop in hopes they could locate the owner. The bike had no serial number but luckily a mechanic at the shop was a racer that knew the bike was Erik's, and was able to get in touch with him. We though the bike was gone for good, so he was surprised when he got that call.
bdamschen
Posts
30
Joined
8/17/2009
Location
Spreckels, CA US
6/16/2016 8:29am
Going to a Fontana race with 4x bikes hanging off the tailgate and our DH bikes in an older sketchy 4 bike Thule T2. I had a cable and lock that ran through all the bikes on the tailgate, then under all the top tubes on the bike in the rack and locked around the toptube of my buddy's Morewood Izimu(this was like 2007 or so). As I'm driving my truck through an intersection we bounce through a particularly nasty drainage ditch and I see his Izimu disappear off by just swinging down like a trap door.... then the cable goes taut.

I'm pooping my pants as I pull over, he bails out of the back door and runs toward the intersection, stops, then runs back to the truck. Turns out the bike was still connected by the strap through the back wheel and swung down to a 90* angle until the cable lock caught and held it there. Didn't even touch the ground.

We decided that maybe that last tray should stay empty for the rest of the trip.
kev.1n
Posts
85
Joined
11/1/2012
Location
portland, OR US
6/16/2016 4:05pm
taldfind wrote:
I had the tailgate of my truck pop open while driving down a dirt road. It dumped all four bikes onto the road. Luckily, nothing was...
I had the tailgate of my truck pop open while driving down a dirt road. It dumped all four bikes onto the road. Luckily, nothing was damaged on any of the bikes. But man, I felt sick while watching the bikes tumble.
nmpearson wrote:
No pics...but 3 stories -2014 Rocky Mountain Altitude Carbon that I had just bought half fell off the back of my car. My tray had cracked...
No pics...but 3 stories
-2014 Rocky Mountain Altitude Carbon that I had just bought half fell off the back of my car. My tray had cracked and I didn't notice it. A car came running by honking at me. It was dragging by the part that holds the wheel on. Only the grip was ruined. I was kinda surprised bc the whole bike was carbon(wheels,frame,bars)
-2013 Santa Cruz V10 Carbon...Did the idiot thing and ran into a garage when i had a roof rack. Just the roof rack got broken. I was kinda stunned.
-Last year I was coming home from school on the train and noticed a homeless looking dude with a morpheus hardtail. He claimed to have found it after it bounced out of a truck going on I-80 west past park city. It was full spank parts so I figured it was a Morpheus pro riders bike. Dude had just got out of jail and said he was commuting on it. I called my buddy who knows the morpheus guys. Apparently one of them lost the bike and just used insurance to replace it. I had just paid for a semester of my MBA so I was broke and couldn't buy it off the guy. I still am waiting to find it in the area.
Acadian wrote:
ugh.... been there, done that. I've had two hitch racks fail on me - one catastrophically. Like you I hear a loud "SNAP/THUNK" then I watched...
ugh....

been there, done that. I've had two hitch racks fail on me - one catastrophically. Like you I hear a loud "SNAP/THUNK" then I watched out of my rear view mirror as my bike tilted over and started tumbling/sliding across multiple freeway lanes. ugh....

Whooowww Luc! How did that even happen?? I just went out and checked to make sure my thule was tight and 100%
JxRx
Posts
9
Joined
6/3/2011
Location
CH
6/17/2016 12:57am
Family vacation in Germany and one of the kids gets sick and starts chucking up... so late in the night i go down to the car and loosen off the bike rack - a 4 bike one that goes on the hatch - so I can then open up the back to get to the medicine. Forget to tighten things back up... (you can guess where this is going already Wink )

Next morning get into the car to drive home and enter the German Autobahn and put the foot down - luckily only got up to about 150km/h (93mph) - before I heard an almighty CRACK CRACK CRACK CRACK and looked in rear vision mirror to see the bikes "folding down" from the bike rack - HOLY CRAP!!! Dive off in a rest stop which just luckily was right there and got out to inspect - luckily I'd just forgotten then hinge bolts on the rack - so no danger of bikes falling off

But it sure woke me up better than an espresso Wink
Acadian
Posts
68
Joined
7/30/2009
Location
A Computer Near You, CA US
6/17/2016 2:34am
nmpearson wrote:
No pics...but 3 stories -2014 Rocky Mountain Altitude Carbon that I had just bought half fell off the back of my car. My tray had cracked...
No pics...but 3 stories
-2014 Rocky Mountain Altitude Carbon that I had just bought half fell off the back of my car. My tray had cracked and I didn't notice it. A car came running by honking at me. It was dragging by the part that holds the wheel on. Only the grip was ruined. I was kinda surprised bc the whole bike was carbon(wheels,frame,bars)
-2013 Santa Cruz V10 Carbon...Did the idiot thing and ran into a garage when i had a roof rack. Just the roof rack got broken. I was kinda stunned.
-Last year I was coming home from school on the train and noticed a homeless looking dude with a morpheus hardtail. He claimed to have found it after it bounced out of a truck going on I-80 west past park city. It was full spank parts so I figured it was a Morpheus pro riders bike. Dude had just got out of jail and said he was commuting on it. I called my buddy who knows the morpheus guys. Apparently one of them lost the bike and just used insurance to replace it. I had just paid for a semester of my MBA so I was broke and couldn't buy it off the guy. I still am waiting to find it in the area.
Acadian wrote:
ugh.... been there, done that. I've had two hitch racks fail on me - one catastrophically. Like you I hear a loud "SNAP/THUNK" then I watched...
ugh....

been there, done that. I've had two hitch racks fail on me - one catastrophically. Like you I hear a loud "SNAP/THUNK" then I watched out of my rear view mirror as my bike tilted over and started tumbling/sliding across multiple freeway lanes. ugh....

kev.1n wrote:
Whooowww Luc! How did that even happen?? I just went out and checked to make sure my thule was tight and 100%
being loose wasn't the problem - the damn clamp holding the tray on simply failed. The irony is that this rack was a replacement for the original Sportworks that had failed a few months before. At least that one didn't fail catastrophically - the front wheel retaining arm cracked at the weld and my DH bike tilted over while driving to North Star. Luckily the front wheel hoop is pretty solid and the rear wheel fastening ring held the wheels in place. I dragged the bars for a few miles, which is still better than having a bike completely fall off.

Pictures of the weld...


bturman
Posts
2102
Joined
8/1/2009
Location
Durango, CO US
6/17/2016 12:26pm
Ugh.... I'm buying a new rack now after reading all this.
Ha! You mean a truck?
tullie
Posts
81
Joined
12/19/2011
Location
Pine Valley, CA US
6/17/2016 1:00pm Edited Date/Time 6/17/2016 1:06pm
[img]https://p.vitalmtb.com/photos/forums/2016/06/15/3984/s1200_Screen_Shot_2016_06_15_at_3.13.19_PM.jpg[/img] Thankfully no real horror stories from me. Even when we do dumb shit like testing the limits of a 4-tray T2 rack and a minivan.


Thankfully no real horror stories from me. Even when we do dumb shit like testing the limits of a 4-tray T2 rack and a minivan.
ride wrote:
.
Thats my old TR450 on the back of that rack.....

Before I powder coated it, it fell off my thule t2 rack shuttling the trail across the street from North Star resort on the dirt road up top. Luckily no real damage just some scratches and scrapes.
Big Bird
Posts
2136
Joined
2/1/2011
Location
Oceano, CA US
6/17/2016 5:32pm
tullie wrote:
Thats my old TR450 on the back of that rack..... Before I powder coated it, it fell off my thule t2 rack shuttling the trail across...
Thats my old TR450 on the back of that rack.....

Before I powder coated it, it fell off my thule t2 rack shuttling the trail across the street from North Star resort on the dirt road up top. Luckily no real damage just some scratches and scrapes.
That's a great fun and free trail. I've never had this problem myself, though my hitch rack is well bent from a rough shuttle road in Bass Lake.

I do have an old story of someone else's mishap though. Years ago, when I worked at Another Bike Shop in Santa Cruz, someone came in (I can't remember who.) to tell the tale. Pat McCall (Saintly father of TMac and Cam.) Was taking the boys and friends down to a collegiate downhill race in Parkfield, CA and had one of those "Strap on the back." type racks fall off of the back of their old van full of DH bikes. Needless to say the shop made a pretty penny repairing all of the damaged bikes.
Alta_Racks
Posts
17
Joined
7/5/2017
Location
Salt Lake City, UT US
12/27/2017 5:12pm
bturman wrote:
Picture this. I had just flown into Grand Junction, Colorado for a riding trip in nearby Moab, Utah. With a few hours to kill before others...
Picture this. I had just flown into Grand Junction, Colorado for a riding trip in nearby Moab, Utah. With a few hours to kill before others in our group arrived, I decide to build up my bike. I pull it out of my Evoc bag, throw the wheels on, bolt up the bars, and pop some wheelies in the parking lot. All good. The shuttle arrives, we load the bike on top of the van, cram several bike bags inside, and set off on the hour or so journey to Utah's riding mecca. Some of our crew hops in a truck and follow not far behind.

As we're driving along we feel several strong gusts of wind smash into the car from the side, but don't think much of it. Around the same time, one of the guys in the truck behind us jokingly says, "How crazy would it be if that thing flew off?"

Right at that moment, inside the van we hear and feel a loud "THUNK!" I turn around to watch out the back window puzzled by what happened and my jaw drops as I see my ride tumble off the top of the van. Next thing I know the thing is 20 feet in the air, BOUNCING down the highway at 70 miles an hour. It spikes the ground once, starts spinning wildly, bounces again, spins even faster, then slams into the ground a third time before sliding to a mangled stop on the shoulder.

The whole time I'm clutching the back of my seat, eyes wide open, hoping with everything I've got that it doesn't hit anyone, get hit, or break.



As we veer to the side of the road, we see our friend's truck pull over just behind the piled heap. They hop out, pick up the bike, and assess the damage. The incredible part? Besides a minor dent in the swingarm, the only parts that needed to be replaced were the handlebar and saddle. Oh, and I had to pull out the old smash the wheel on the ground like Hulk Hogan with a folding chair to straighten it technique.



Here's the Diamondback Mission Pro after the fall. How's that for a durability test? Who knew this thing could fly? And yeah, Moab still happened. Then I found $20...

What's your best bike rack failure story? Why is it that everyone has a horror story? Did it end well?
Glad it worked out, next time may we suggest the ALTA SIX GPR. Converts for other sports as well.






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