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Old April 18th 18, 04:04 PM posted to rec.aviation.soaring
Matt Herron Jr.
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Posts: 548
Default Roof Rack for bikes on a cobra clamshell top?

I have picked a solution and implemented it. First, my bike is an electric mountain bike from LunaCycle so it is large and quite heavy (60 lbs). That eliminated the roof rack category. The handlebars are wide, so I was a little concerned about mounting it on the side of the trailer. Also this direction seemed complex, and a std bike rack would stick pretty far out. That left the "double hitch" solution as an option.

I needed to find a suitable bike rack as well. It had to support the weight of the bike, be compact with only one rack, and be secure. I ended up with a Thule T1 for about $300, and I am very happy with this rack. It comes with a built in lock for the bike, and a lock for the receiver pin. I had to shorten the tongue about three inches so that the bottom of the rack would clear the hitch and trailer when installed. This required drilling a few holes and a lot of hacksawing. The new length works both on the car alone, or with the double receiver.

I used two hitch clamps to stabilize the hitch extension which I highly recommend, even if you are using a standard rig. cuts down on noise and play, which helps stabilize towing. I had to extend the chains to accommodate the extra length, and ended up with a connector pig tail as the trailer plug was not quite long enough.

Pictures are available shortly

Matt