My bike saved me from minor disaster

[baiskeli]

Thanks for the story, and the warning about rooftop carriers. Glad you’re okay.

[jrenaut]

Thanks, though I was never really in danger. Monks (pictured here with my 3-year-old), on the other hand, was in the luggage carrier. Losing him would have been disaster.

0731111111.jpg by bsheehy8, on Flickr

[Rootchopper]

Just curious, did a strap break? Car Talk had a call on this. You need to have some weight in the carrier for it not to go airborne. If you can’t think of anything else to put up there, a couple of cases of water (or other liquid refreshment) should do the trick.

[jrenaut]

No, nothing broke. The straps just hook underneath the lip of the roof over the door – it’s not that secure, I guess. It was heavy-ish, but not too heavy. Mostly clothes. I think before using it again I’ll get some straps that actually connect to something securely, though I’m not sure what that might be.

[mstone]

depends on the door; the old-style doors had a lip that you could hook onto, but newer doors (where there’s no frame, just glass touching a weatherstrip) are less feasible for the strap-on roof mounts. you can investigate a big strap that goes all the way around the roof. even if you do have a lip, you need to make sure the straps are tight enough that they won’t slack and fall off (in some cases this can include the roof panel flexing).

[Author]

Posts