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BikeBar prevents roof rack wobble worries, keeps your bike stable

Written by Steve Fisher
16 Comments
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The BikeBar installed on vehicle
The BikeBar was designed to provide lateral support for roof rack systems.

For many of us, travelling with your bike(s) is a common experience. Whether you have to drive to the nearest trailhead or just enjoy road tripping to explore new riding zones, roof racks make it easy to load up and hit the road. However, none of the current offerings stabilize your bike side-to-side, allowing it to wobble left and right when you hit a pothole, make an evasive maneuver or head off road.

After a few unpleasant personal experiences with various bikes popping out of roof racks while travelling, multi-discipline rider Kris Pepper decided to employ his background in industrial design to solve the problem. Enter the BikeBar, an adjustable bar that provides lateral support to your roof-mounted bike, preventing any potential in-transit damage to your bike or vehicle.

Brace yourself and head past the break to check out the BikeBar’s design and setup…

BikeBar lateral support attachment for roof racks
The BikeBar’s simple design is easy to use, and won’t rust.

The BikeBar’s main tube assembly is constructed with aluminum, and uses a 31.8mm quick-release to telescopically adjust its length. Rivets are used to ensure all connections stay tight, and since the product is entirely made of aluminum, rubber and stainless steel hardware, rust will never be a problem. The BikeBar’s rubber end caps and straps are ‘frame friendly’ and make it easy to fit to any bike frame, and anchor to any type of roof rail.

The BikeBar adapter installed
The BikeBar adapter creates an anchor point for vehicles without factory roof rails or a second bike tray.

The BikeBar is designed to anchor your bike frame to a roof rail on the opposite side of the vehicle. However, if you don’t have a parallel rail on your rack (or built into your vehicle), their adapter creates an anchor point. It simply bolts onto your roof rack’s perpendicular support bar, and works for square or aero-shaped rails.

The BikeBar is currently in development via a Kickstarter campaign. Early bird supporters can purchase a BikeBar online for $75, and the product is slated to be manufactured in Philadelphia, PA. In the testing phase Pepper has driven over 2,000 miles with his BMX, cyclocross and all mountain bikes secured by the BikeBar. The one design element that will change before production is the straps and hooks, he’s currently sourcing stronger options for the final product.

Sometimes getting there is half the fun, but not if you’re worried about your bike flopping around during the drive. The BikeBar is designed to put your mind at ease, and allow you to focus on the road ahead… or plan your next ride! For more information, check out the BikeBar’s Kickstarter page.

Steve Fisher
Steve Fisher
784 articles

Steve Fisher is a staff contributor for Bikerumor. Steve has been writing about trail, enduro and downhill mountain biking (plus a few commuter bikes) for seven years. Prior to that, Steve wrote for Whistler Traveller Magazine and Mountain Life Magazine. Steve is based in Pemberton, British Columbia, an area that offers plenty of challenging world-class singletrack and makes for great photos!

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16 Comments
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Scotty
Scotty
9 years ago

Easier solution is to buy a better roof rack instead of the cheesy aero tube roof rack that uses universal mounts. My Yakima rack and bike trays are way more solid than that. Been offroading, drifting, 100+ mph, and never had a bike come off.

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Paul
Paul
9 years ago

Man, go on SharkTank and ask for 100K for 15% equity. Sorry to be sarcastic but, it’s just such a waste of this kid’s time. Stop now, move on. Please tell me you haven’t submitted a patent application for this. It’s okay, it’s a learning process, just remember, each failure brings you closer to success. Um, BikeRumor, save this kind of stuff for April 1st.

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Bob
Bob
9 years ago

I’m definitely in the minority, but I’ve been thinking of making something like this for myself for a while now. Fear of loosing a tandem on the Autobahn is what does it for me though… I’ve never worried when there’s a non-tandem up there.

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il Bruce
il Bruce
9 years ago

That adapter mount is as kluge as it gets.

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Ben
Ben
9 years ago

I think this idea is actually pretty solid. I’ve had the top of the line Thule bike racks and had the same thing happen to my girlfriends bike when we were driving through Savannah where we live. With all the cobblestones and constant bumps her bike came loose and bent her fork as well as damaging my roof. Also I am a bicycle mechanic and yes everything was installed correctly. Honestly I couldn’t make this bar for what he is asking for. Solid idea, simple solution

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captain derp
captain derp
9 years ago

even better solution: a hitch rack.

also, i have those same aero cross bars (they came with my subie). they’re such garbage i couldn’t give them away.

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Tim
Tim
9 years ago

Bikes don’t just pop off of a quality roof rack. User error… I’ll stick with quality brands where I know they’ve been test aggressively.

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Tom
Tom
9 years ago

@captain derp, I’ve seen the Subaru aero bars on a few vehicles. I also thought they were very good, but they were definitely different than the Thule aero bars.

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Tom
Tom
9 years ago

CORRECTION:

Should read “I also thought they weren’t very good”

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chuckster
chuckster
9 years ago

Could see this being nice to have if you’re driving rough or dirt roads. I’ve never liked the sort of forces a sharp hit can put into the fork dropouts, especially with a heavier bike.

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Scott
Scott
9 years ago

@scotty- I want to drive with you to the trail head!!

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Ultraclyde
Ultraclyde
9 years ago

“Rivets are used to ensure all connections stay tight…” OOh, thanks, I needed a good laugh on a Monday morning!

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Ripnshread
Ripnshread
9 years ago

I’ve seen a few roof racks fail. Usually due to someone driving into a garage or under a too low overpass with the bike on top. Done it myself once. In every case the fork mount/frame attachment did not fail. Some forks were sheared off just above the QR, some car roofs were severely damaged. This seems like a product with no purpose.

I guess if you have a tandem or a huge/heavy DH rig this could give your mind some security…but if you cant trust a QR to hold your front forks under load…you may not want to ride your bicycle. The road bike pictured certainly should never need this product.

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DanHarmony
DanHarmony
9 years ago

I think this is a good solution for bikes with carbon forks. I’ve seen cracks develop from the side-to-side torque that these racks put on the fork tabs.

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James
James
9 years ago

I’ve had my scoobie aero rack for about a year now and I’m very happy with them.
They play very nicely with the Yakima system. But there are restrictions to which rack you can install on these due to shape. Also they flex a bit more than the Thule. No problem carrying my 22lbs XC rigs around.

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Frizzlefries
Frizzlefries
9 years ago

I wouldn’t mind trying something like this when I transpo’ my Mtn tandem. I’m always a bit edgy when we head down to southern UT and the desert winds are kickin’ hard. Other than that I can’t see this being very necessary.

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