If you’re a pickup owner who’s overdue for a biking adventure, you’re not the only one. Winter can feel long to the point of cruel and unusual to the fair-weather cyclist (ahem), and the rides that remind you why you do it can become few and far between.
So if you’re ready to break out this spring, Küat just unveiled some new dishes to help you do it. The HUK “family” of tailgate pads can help pickup drivers give their rigs a cushy, secure ride. And the IBEX bed rack comes with robust carrying capacity to float even the burliest bike collections, plus loads of built-in accessories to ease life on the trail.
It’s great that every pickup truck comes with its own, built-in bike rack; you just need to add a pillowy layer to keep the ride soft. Küat HUK tailgate pads give you exactly that, in a lot of sizes and with one key safety feature.
Five sizes of HUK let you rack up 2-6 bikes. You’ll find welded seams and thermoplastic polyurethane (TPU) construction to handle wear and tear. Extra padding on top gives a softer ride where you need it most, and it lags down with simplistic G-hook buckles (you’ve seen these before).
The HUK also stands out with a roll-up “window” in the middle — that’s so your backup camera can still see. No more risking your prime carbon fiber rims to unseen rear obstacles or (not pointing fingers here) questionable skills in reverse. The camera window comes on every HUK except the two-bike version. There’s also a panel for your gate latch.
There are variants for mid- and full-size trucks, and even trucks with bulky, feature-laden gates typical today. MSRP ranges from $149 to $320.
The HUK looks like every bit of a capable gate pad, but the IBEX roof rack turns up the heat as far as add-on gadgets. Here’s the list of everything you can put on the conventional, T-channel truck bed rack.
- Molle panels
- Adjustable height crossbar kit
- Piston SR rack mount
- Shovel/axe holder
- Extra crossbar kit
- Grab handle
- Antenna mount
- Hi Lift jack mount
- Retrax bed cover mount
- Bottle opener
I don’t know the last time I used two of those same things on one trip…or even more than just a bottle opener. But it’s all there for anyone’s accessorizing pleasure.
It also works on a wide range of vehicles. The standard universal mounting kit will fit most trucks, and the included but optional T-slot mounting kit it comes with works on Toyota Tacomas and Tundras, Nissan Frontiers and Titans, and Jeep Gladiators, according to Küat.
Aluminum construction supports a solid 600-lb. road carrying capacity. And off-road, you’ll still float 300 lbs. (claimed).
“The closer you get, the better it looks; the more you understand its versatility and capabilities, the more you see how good the IBEX truly is,” said Luke Kuschmeader, founder and CEO of Küat.
See for yourself but prepare to pay the price — MSRP will range from $1489-$1589 depending on the SKU. Warranties protect the whole array, which debuts today at the Life Time Sea Otter Classic in Monterey, Calif.
