Hitch rack question

My wife and I own recumbents, a RANS Stratus and a Barcroft Dakota. We have been transporting our
bikes on top of our Escort. I've been considering a Sportworks hitch rack, or similar rack, to carry
the bikes on the back of the Escort, but I'm concerned about the length of the bikes. They would
stick out several inches on either side of the car and would worry about hitting something, or being
hit by another vehicle. Have any of you had any experience with a Sportworks style rack and whether
I have legitimate concerns?

Jeff

Check your local road regulations to find out what the maximum permissible overhang is (each side).
Here in Oz I think it's about 1 foot (300 mm)

If you're into DIY, make a rack that holds the 'bents more or less vertical behind the Escort. I've
seen commercial racks that do this.

Paul W

Sorry about the "off-subject"

Jeff, I'd be very interested in knowing how you transported your RANS Stratus on top of your Escort.
I'd like to do that with my Stratus and a Nisson Pathfinder. janaka

On 15 Mar 2003 16:44:15 -0800, japalmer@twcny.rr.com (Jeff) wrote:

>My wife and I own recumbents, a RANS Stratus and a Barcroft Dakota. We have been transporting our
>bikes on top of our Escort. I've been considering a Sportworks hitch rack, or similar rack, to
>carry the bikes on the back of the Escort, but I'm concerned about the length of the bikes. They
>would stick out several inches on either side of the car and would worry about hitting something,
>or being hit by another vehicle. Have any of you had any experience with a Sportworks style rack
>and whether I have legitimate concerns?
>
>Jeff

In article <71a374c0.0303151644.51d88a3c@posting.google.com>, japalmer@twcny.rr.com says...
> My wife and I own recumbents, a RANS Stratus and a Barcroft Dakota. We have been transporting our
> bikes on top of our Escort. I've been considering a Sportworks hitch rack, or similar rack, to
> carry the bikes on the back of the Escort, but I'm concerned about the length of the bikes. They
> would stick out several inches on either side of the car and would worry about hitting something,
> or being hit by another vehicle. Have any of you had any experience with a Sportworks style rack
> and whether I have legitimate concerns?

I had a RANS Stratus which I carried on the back of an Infinity M-30 Convertible. (Perhaps not any
wider than your Escort). It extended beyond the mirrors by only 2" I doubt that you are anyone is
going to intentionally come that close to another vehicle. Just be mindful of the bike in back just
like you are of the mirrors by your front door.

I did have to rotate the front fork 180° to minimize the Stratus length.

--
Cletus D. Lee Bacchetta Giro Lightning Voyager http://www.clee.org
- Bellaire, TX USA -

I use a Yakima rack. I use the fork mount and a tandem tray. This works fine but I have to remove
the front wheel and the seat when transporting the bikes. This is a pain (especially with fenders)
if I'm just driving 1/2 hour to the start of a club ride. We've traveled across the US several times
with this setup and it has worked fine.

Jeff

j>
> Jeff, I'd be very interested in knowing how you transported your RANS Stratus on top of your
> Escort. I'd like to do that with my Stratus and a Nisson Pathfinder. janaka