Trailer Hitch Mounted Suggestions for Rocket

Hi. I spent some time today trying unsuccessfully to get my new Rocket onto
my existing bike rack (it's the kind that hooks over the trunk of the car
and made for standard bikes). While I probably could attach the bike using
a lot of rope, bungees, etc., it is just not the tool for the job. After a
half hour or so of research, it looks like my Focus hatchback has only one
option for attaching a trailer hitch. I'm thinking the hitch is the way to
go in the long run. It is a Class 1 hitch with a 1.25 inch hitch opening by
a company called Draw-Tite. So, here's the question. Anyone know of an
appropriate bike rack for carrying the Rocket that would work with this
hitch? Thanks.

Richard Greenberg wrote:
So, here's the question. Anyone know of an
appropriate bike rack for carrying the Rocket that would work with this
hitch? Thanks.

We're got something similar to this:

http://www.etrailer.com/Merchant2/me...gory_Code=BR2B

It works OK and depending on the wheelbase might work on a rocket. I
could measure mine if you wanted, but it's not this exact model so I'm
not sure how valuable that would be. Also, I have no idea what a rocket
looks like....

Rich

Richard Greenberg wrote:
Hi. I spent some time today trying unsuccessfully to get my new Rocket onto
my existing bike rack (it's the kind that hooks over the trunk of the car
and made for standard bikes). While I probably could attach the bike using
a lot of rope, bungees, etc., it is just not the tool for the job. After a
half hour or so of research, it looks like my Focus hatchback has only one
option for attaching a trailer hitch. I'm thinking the hitch is the way to
go in the long run. It is a Class 1 hitch with a 1.25 inch hitch opening by
a company called Draw-Tite. So, here's the question. Anyone know of an
appropriate bike rack for carrying the Rocket that would work with this
hitch? Thanks.

I have carried a 2000 RANS Rocket on a trunk rack. Try removing the
seat and hanging the bike upside down on the rack. The downside is that
idiots will tailgate more frequently than normal, as they try to figure
out what the thing on the back of the car is.

I would expect that the RANS Rocket would fit inside a Focus hatchback,
but the front seat may have to be folded back, leaving room only for
the driver. I was able to fit my RANS Rocket into the 1994 Honda Civic
[1] I used to own with no disassembly in this manner.

[1] The late Bill Murphy was able to fit a medium size Tour Easy inside
a similar Civic after removing the wheels from the bicycle.

--
Tom Sherman - Fox River Valley
"Twisting may help if yawl can chew gum and walk." - G. Daniels

Rich ? wrote:

It works OK and depending on the wheelbase might work on a [R]ocket. I
could measure mine if you wanted, but it's not this exact model so I'm
not sure how valuable that would be. Also, I have no idea what a [R]ocket
looks like....

I strongly suspect that the RANS Rocket in question bears a strong
resemblance to the bicycle pictured on this webpage:
http://www.ransbikes.com/Rocket.htm#.

--
Tom Sherman - Fox River Valley
"Twisting may help if yawl can chew gum and walk." - G. Daniels

On Sat, 26 Nov 2005 21:21:24 +0000, Richard Greenberg wrote:

Anyone know of an
appropriate bike rack for carrying the Rocket that would work with this
hitch? Thanks.

Try Draftmaster Bike Racks: www.draftmaster.com

I had the same issue. I had a hitch mounted on my Prius which works fine for
conventional bikes, but it would not work for a recumbent. I looked into
either a Sportworks hitch mounted recumbent rack (now part of Thule). I
also looked into the draftmaster. Draftmaster is very heavy (almost 100 lbs
for two bikes) and extremely expensive. (so was the sportsworks - almost
$500 for two bikes). I opted to go with a Yakima roof rack. I'll use the
hitch rack if I take a regular bike, but during biking season, I'll leave
the racks on the roof.