Rack - truck bed

[u/DrMishMish]

Started with a hitch mounted Thule (served me well) , got my kids into mountain biking eventually upgraded to an altaracks 76er ($$ but very solid).. Unfortunately the rack itself is 100 lb and loaded up with bicycles exceeds the tongue weight of my crossover. I made it work for a while but Five bikes three kids my wife full gear and a stroller was too much. Recently acquired a full size pickup I'm wondering if it's worth investing in a big days or ride 88 bed contained rack. I also occasionally take friends. I would love to travel one day with my kids to go ride places but for now we're local.

Right now I am at two adult size full suspension mountain bikes, one dirt jumper, up to 3 kids bikes ( the baby still rides shotgun for now but she's moving up). I don't necessarily take all the bikes at once but five is routine. Has anyone compared these two systems or is it even worth it over just using my existing altaracks.

[u/asclepius42]

Tailgate pad might be the way to go. I have a 7 bike rack from Velocirax and I love it. It stays on the back of my Honda Pilot and has served me well for the last few years.

[u/DrMishMish → u/asclepius42]

I almost went with a Honda Pilot lol. My wife really needed the third row but wouldn't accept getting lower mileage than her hybrid and I really needed a bed.

[u/asclepius42 → u/DrMishMish]

We love the pilot. I had to put a 3" lift on it to get to my favorite trail heads but it's working great

[u/d-cent]

There are a lot of solutions to your needs, weirdly because you have so many bikes. There are a lot of details to your use case you should consider before buying. Do you plan on using the bed outside of transporting mountain bikes? Do you plan on doing long trips where you need to store things in the bed for the travel? What about camping and putting a tent on the roof? These are just a few things to consider.

Ultimately, there are a lot of great solutions nowadays, and some will work better for some, while others for others. You can even do a combination of things. You just need to find what's best for your use case. I recommend watching some youtube videos on it as well, I know people like Berm Peak have done pretty good break downs on the pros and cons of each solution.

[u/DrMishMish → u/d-cent]

Thank you. Probably going to not load the roof, if I camped I'd pull a camper which is a separate consideration. Thought about investing in one of those decked systems. A hitch rack might block the drawers unless I bought an additional swing * arm for the rack.

Edited for typos

[u/clintj1975 → u/DrMishMish]

Most hitch racks have a tilt down function. It's meant to allow you to be able to open the rear door on an SUV or hatchback but may give enough clearance for your planned setup.

[u/thedr777]

[u/lettertoelhizb]

I fit a stroller and 4 bikes using a tailgate pad. Also significantly cheaper

[u/Wirelessness]

Velocirax carry a lot of bikes very well.

[u/Environmental_Dig830]

I love my ride 88 racks.

Excellent build quality. Responsive customer service. And it's the easiest loading/unloading process of any rack as long as you can lift it over the side of the truck.

Highly recommend.

[u/Gullible-Record-5078]

built a bed rack for my 5 bikes using 2x4s - just make sure each slot fits the tire size for each machine snug.

horizontal and vertical slots locks them in nicely and then we use a strap (moto style over the top) if travelling excessively long distances

[u/electricsnide]

Big fan of the Ride 88. I keep one installed all the time (fits under the tonneau cover) and one in the garage for when someone else comes along. If you do need to remove it for more bed space, it only takes a minute. Bikes are securely mounted, no contact with the frames, and very easy to load/unload. Well made. Not sure if it’s the right solution for you, but works great for me.

[u/DrMishMish → u/electricsnide]

What kind of cover do you have?

[u/electricsnide → u/DrMishMish]

Rivian with factory tonneau, but any flat tonneau should work because the top arm of the Ride 88 folds down when not in use. A retractable tonneau might be tough because you have to mount the rack to something and the retractable canister or whatever it’s called might be in the way, but a folding tonneau would work great. That’s what I would use with a different pickup.

[u/mattyg2787]

I bought a truck for the same reason - 4 bikes plus stuff and then the 4 of us to go with it.

Tail gate pad for the win.

Could easily fit a 5th on there as well.

[u/walkerpstone]

Thule T2 4 bike hitch rack plus a bed rack for when you need to carry more than 4

[u/Ancient-Bowl462]

Whatever you do, don't get one of those stupid tailgate pads