quick transport-on-minivan-roof question

In article <[email hidden]>, [email hidden] says...

Quoted message said:

Howdy. My relatives are coming up to visit, and they're bringing up
two bikes with them ("teen/regular" sizes). They've got a Dodge Caravan
with factory roof rails. They'll be driving about 350 or so miles from
Virginia to NYC. The route will be almost totally on the big interstate
highways (relatively smooth roads), about 7 hours or so (passing through
Washington DC just to glance at the sights).

The minivan will be full inside, so we were wondering if anyone has
just tossed a couple of bikes on the roof (front wheels removed, of course)
and just tied them down with bungee cords. This is not a regular

Use rope, not bungee cords, and put down an old blanket or something to
protect the top of the vehicle, and they should be fine. You could even
leave the front wheels on if you want.

The other day I saw a *pile* of bikes on top of a minivan going down the
interstate. Must have been 3 or 4 bikes there, but they were so
entangled that I couldn't tell for sure.

....

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(clip) we were wondering if anyone has just tossed a couple of bikes on the
roof (clip)
^^^^^^^^^^^
After doing this, a friend of mine suggested removing whichever pedal is on
the down side. If the bike rests on the pedal over bumpy terrain, there can
be damage, bot to the bike and to the roof.

David Kerber said:

In article <[email hidden]>, [email hidden] says...

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

Howdy. My relatives are coming up to visit, and they're bringing up
two bikes with them ("teen/regular" sizes). They've got a Dodge
Caravan with factory roof rails. They'll be driving about 350 or so
miles from Virginia to NYC. The route will be almost totally on the
big interstate highways (relatively smooth roads), about 7 hours or
so (passing through Washington DC just to glance at the sights).

The minivan will be full inside, so we were wondering if anyone has
just tossed a couple of bikes on the roof (front wheels removed, of
course) and just tied them down with bungee cords. This is not a
regular

Use rope, not bungee cords, and put down an old blanket or something
to protect the top of the vehicle, and they should be fine. You
could even leave the front wheels on if you want.

Don't use those cheap, discount store bungee cords. Otherwise, stretchy is
preferable to non-stretchy. A bit of stretch keeps everything tight as the load
shifts, and keeps knots from loosening. Use nylon or dacron rope with a bit of
give to it, or dacron tie-down straps. Heavy duty marine bungee cord is
excellent, but it requires a trip to the marine hardware store.

Quoted message said:

The other day I saw a *pile* of bikes on top of a minivan going down
the interstate. Must have been 3 or 4 bikes there, but they were so
entangled that I couldn't tell for sure.

I've done this too, and it works fine. To protect the top of the car, a heavy
blanket will work, especially a movers blanket made for this kind of thing.
Even better is dense, thin, ensolite foam, like sleeping bag pads for camping
(not foam rubber). Best of all are rubber bath mats with the suction cups on
the underside. These give great protection, and stay perfectly in place --
which prevents chafing the paint.

Matt O.

In article <[email hidden]>, [email hidden] says...

Quoted message said:

David Kerber said:

In article <[email hidden]>, [email hidden] says...

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

Howdy. My relatives are coming up to visit, and they're bringing up
two bikes with them ("teen/regular" sizes). They've got a Dodge
Caravan with factory roof rails. They'll be driving about 350 or so
miles from Virginia to NYC. The route will be almost totally on the
big interstate highways (relatively smooth roads), about 7 hours or
so (passing through Washington DC just to glance at the sights).

The minivan will be full inside, so we were wondering if anyone has
just tossed a couple of bikes on the roof (front wheels removed, of
course) and just tied them down with bungee cords. This is not a
regular

Use rope, not bungee cords, and put down an old blanket or something
to protect the top of the vehicle, and they should be fine. You
could even leave the front wheels on if you want.

Don't use those cheap, discount store bungee cords. Otherwise, stretchy is
preferable to non-stretchy. A bit of stretch keeps everything tight as the load
shifts, and keeps knots from loosening. Use nylon or dacron rope with a bit of

Good point. I use nylon for practically everything, so don't think much
about it.

.....

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Remove the ns_ from if replying by e-mail (but keep posts in the
newsgroups if possible).

Henry said:

Howdy. My relatives are coming up to visit, and they're bringing up
two bikes with them ("teen/regular" sizes). They've got a Dodge Caravan
with factory roof rails. They'll be driving about 350 or so miles from
Virginia to NYC. The route will be almost totally on the big interstate
highways (relatively smooth roads), about 7 hours or so (passing through
Washington DC just to glance at the sights).

The minivan will be full inside, so we were wondering if anyone has
just tossed a couple of bikes on the roof (front wheels removed, of course)
and just tied them down with bungee cords. This is not a regular
occurrence, so spending a pile of money for a "real" rack is something
we'd like to avoid. I figure i can buy a cheap tarp and wrap it over the
front/top of the bikes to keep out any major downpours, and use duct tape
and/or bungee to keep it all from flying away. The minivan will only
be unattended during rest stops, and I can also u-lock them to the
roof rails (these are just cheapish $300 bikes).

Advice, anyone?

Go ahead and do it. Use toestraps (ah, memories...) for more secure
attachment. I always secure each bike in two places. Those racks have
cut-outs on the metal piece that runs the length of the car, and you
can thread the strap through it if the cross-strut is not convenient.
A bonus: makes the car easy to find in a parking lot.
HTH
--Karen M.