Carrying a mountain bike off road - best solutions?

[Yama_Ranger]

I’ve been at the Mtb game for a very long time, traveling all over the US, Canada, and across the pond. My propensity to be drawn to far away places has led me down thousands of miles of secondary and prop off-road trails with MTBs in tow. By now, I’ve owned several flavors of the the cheapo Thule and Yakima racks, the venerable North Shore Rack, the promising but ultimately terrible Recon Rack, quite a few pickup pads, various truck bed and in-van solutions. These days, I’m using 1UP racks exclusively and couldn’t be happier. Running rough roads at high speed in my Raptor, rough muddy logging roads and even some light rock crawling, the 1UP brushes it all off with ease. No cheap plastic parts, super burly aluminum, never had a failure or lost a bike.

FWIW, I do work in the MTB industry but pay full price for 1UP just like everyone else so not BS sponsored or paid promotion crap here.

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[EJH]

**The only negative I have with the rack is it prevents me from opening the tailgate to the fully open/down position. And the swinging attachments made for bike racks cost more than I paid for the rack itself brand new on amazon.

I researched this extensively prior to buying a hitch rack for my Ranger. The 1UP Super Duty was the only rack I found to allow the tailgate to open, with the rack mounted. Note the rack has to be rotated back/down, then the tailgate clears.

I use a Kuat Sherpa on my 1.25" Subarus and like that one. I also looked a the Yakima racks, RockyMounts, Thule, etc. Unfortunately, the 1UP was the pricest of the bunch, especially as I get a hefty discount on Yakima products.

I briefly used (rented) a NorthShore rack in Moab. It was not stable, IMHO. The bike bounced/swang side to side. It wouldn't have falled off, but perhaps would get scratched up?

I won't use a tailgate pad due to scuffing of the tailgate paint, and sometimes small dents from the pressure points. If you are ok with a tailgate pad yourself, they are a stable option.

 

[Biker Scout]

I use a Kuat and an adapter that drops the rack 2” so I can open the tailgate. I don’t get any movement from the rack or bike when driving off road.

 

[AllenT]

I use a 1UP hitch mount rack. They're expensive, but plenty solid enough for some mild off road use. I have a camper on my Ranger, so a hitch mount rack is my only option.

 

[Thatwaspontus]

I've had a Thule T2 Pro XT for at least 5 years now. It's super burly, been offroad plenty of times on a few different rigs. None of the (very minimal) 'sway' is transferred to the bikes.

There is one downside I discovered this afternoon. With the factory tow bar, it holds the rack up so high that I can't fully lower the tailgate without it coming to a rest on a portion of the rack itself. Anyone with an equivalent Yakima or 1Up have similar issues? Not so worried about scratches, as the portion of the rack that interferes is plastic shielded, but I do plan on making a set of drawers/sleeping platform to go in the back. Would rather not unload bikes and uninstall the rack everytime I want to bust out the stove....

 

[Deleted member 15875]

I researched this extensively prior to buying a hitch rack for my Ranger. The 1UP Super Duty was the only rack I found to allow the tailgate to open, with the rack mounted. Note the rack has to be rotated back/down, then the tailgate clears.

I use a Kuat Sherpa on my 1.25" Subarus and like that one. I also looked a the Yakima racks, RockyMounts, Thule, etc. Unfortunately, the 1UP was the pricest of the bunch, especially as I get a hefty discount on Yakima products.

I briefly used (rented) a NorthShore rack in Moab. It was not stable, IMHO. The bike bounced/swang side to side. It wouldn't have falled off, but perhaps would get scratched up?

I won't use a tailgate pad due to scuffing of the tailgate paint, and sometimes small dents from the pressure points. If you are ok with a tailgate pad yourself, they are a stable option.

Any pics with your bike attatched? This is well built.

 

[Blenner]

Here is my set up. Adarac bars, Kuat trays. Wheels go in the bed. Solid as a rock. Questions? Fire away.

 

[mtbikernate]

a fork mount will be, hands down, the most secure. how secure will depend on what that fork mount is attached to. could be loose, could be solid-looking but weak for rough roads, could be solid

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