When I bought my new car I had to rethink my bicycle carrying options. Our original carrier, the
Sari Bones 3 bike trunk mount has served us well, being adjustable for different vehicles. Later on I added a similar rack to use on my Focus because
sometimes we needed a separate rack for each of us. I have seen the Sari like our original mounted on an SUV occasionally, but it did not look secure to me, and would make access to the hatch difficult or
even impossible. The reasonable options for my Escape were either an inside carrier or a trailer hitch mount. The
inside carrier, consisting of basically a 2x4 and about $30.00 worth of hardware seemed to be a viable option for early season riding, but it
severely limits what else you can carry - like camping equipment and luggage. It would have to be the trailer hitch mounted carrier. The big drawback was the cost of that option, although adding the triler hitch would count as en enhancement to my car. The hitch and rack both run around the same price. With a nice (and probably last) income tax refund and Shana volunteering to pay for one of them that's what we opted for. My criteria: hitch mount, no wheel removal required, fold away without great difficulty, will carry road bikes or mountain bikes with equal ease. I think
this one will do the trick in style, and both components were purchsed from local independent retailers. Now I am all ready to ride (as soon as I put on my funny bike clothes). A warm day and some free time all at
the same time.
Whoopee!
When I bought my new car I had to rethink my bicycle carrying options. Our original carrier, the Sari Bones 3 bike trunk mount has served us well, being adjustable for different vehicles. Later on I added a similar rack to use on my Focus because sometimes we needed a separate rack for each of us. I have seen the Sari like our original mounted on an SUV occasionally, but it did not look secure to me, and would make access to the hatch difficult or 
even impossible. The reasonable options for my Escape were either an inside carrier or a trailer hitch mount. The inside carrier, consisting of basically a 2x4 and about $30.00 worth of hardware seemed to be a viable option for early season riding, but it severely limits what else you can carry - like camping equipment and luggage. It would have to be the trailer hitch mounted carrier. The big drawback was the cost of that option, although adding the triler hitch would count as en enhancement to my car. The hitch and rack both run around the same price. With a nice (and probably last) income tax refund and Shana volunteering to pay for one of them that's what we opted for. My criteria: hitch mount, no wheel removal required, fold away without great difficulty, will carry road bikes or mountain bikes with equal ease. I think this one will do the trick in style, and both components were purchsed from local independent retailers. Now I am all ready to ride (as soon as I put on my funny bike clothes). A warm day and some free time all at the same time. Whoopee!
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