One of the fun things about the bike industry is that many brands use Sprinters or similar for shuttling demo fleets (and people) across the country. Some are designed to hold a few bikes and a few people, some only need to carry a little gear plus pop-up tent, and others are meant for a driver and an army of the latest mountain bikes.
Rocky Mountain Bicycles’ east coast Sprinter falls into the latter category, and you’ll be impressed with how many bikes driver Devin Nylund can fit in there…
His current demo fleet is mostly Thunderbolts and other mid-travel bikes, but it’s packed full. The photo above is staring down the head tubes of 20 bikes. The platform for this truck is a 2014 Mercedes Sprinter in its longest, tallest iteration for that model year.
Two more are resting against his promo tents, which isn’t the norm. But even with all of these bikes, he still wasn’t able to get the new Vertex hardtail or Solo gravel bikes on board (because he hit the road before they arrived. I wasn’t the only one asking about them). The spot where the two extra bikes are is actually room enough to fit a full size cot, which gives him space to stretch out for a nap between sessions.
They’re held in place with Thule truck racks, bolted onto a custom made alloy track. A second alloy track is positioned such that it wedges the front tire into place, helping secure the bike enough to make mounting easier when working solo.
The rear tires have straps to secure them to the wall, but Devin says he rarely needs them since the bikes are usually resting on the floor, too, and barely move.
Up front, he stores complete parts kits and tools, plus the necessary personal items for life on the road. Like a BMX bike for kickin’ around town.
Extra storage is found by simply strapping stuff to the unadorned interior walls.
A small shelf could fill the space under the bikes if needed, but we all need to draw the line somewhere.
Creature comforts and comfort foods make long days on the road better. Devin says he heads out from his Oshkosh, WI, home base for anywhere from four to 12 weeks at a time, with eight being average.
In addition to being able to run locks through the bikes inside the van, additional security was added to the rear doors. Big thanks to Devin for showing off the rig while visiting Re:Cycles Bike Shop in our home town of Greensboro, NC. Wanna see it in person (or ride one of Rocky Mountain’s new 2018 bikes? Check out their demo tour schedule here.
Check our growing list of #Vanlife articles here and start planning out your dream adventure van! Got a question? We’ve got experts, Email us and we’ll try to get answers in a future story. Do you offer van customizations, mods or equipment to make road trippin’ easier? Let us know and we may feature your company.
