Primary Stage of Alzheimer's?

[Chief]

I have a bike carrier that sits on top of the deck of my trunk and the bike is mounted on it vertically. The front wheel is removed and the fork is clamped into a bracket with a quick release skewer. The rear wheel just sits in craddle which is cantilevered off the back of the trunk by 18 inches or so. It is said that anyone using a vertical mount when transporting his bike is destined to run into something for which there is insufficent vertical clearance. Well it happened to me today.

I usually stop before going into the garage, take off the bike, put the front wheel on it and push it into the garage. Today, the ole fart was think about something else --what I have no idea now--and drove directly into the garage. I had almost come to a stop when I heard this crushing sound. Oooohhh fuuuuudge!! :crap: I immediately backed up and was afraid to see what damage I had done to my Ottrott, trunk deck and garage. I could just envision the head tube all pushed back, the fork broken and tubes bent out of shape and my trunk dented. The high point on the bike when mounted this way is the seat and it was the seat that came in contact with the top of the door jam and would do so only when I am almost full in the garage at which time I have very little forward speed. Fortunately, the weak link in the bike, carrier and car-structure were two struts on the carrier which bent where a hole was drilled into each for mounting straps. The only damage to the bike was a scuffed saddle. I checked the carbon fork and carbon seatpost for cracks and found none. The rear wheel was true as before and there is no apparent damage to any of the tubes. The deck was undented and unscratched thanks to the rubber cushions and the weak link. I straightened the struts and the carrier is as good as new, and cleaned up the saddle. The latter looks as though the leather on it had been pushed back a bit but nothing more. I touched up the door jam with some left over paint. All this for the want of an inch more clearance. You can take it to the bank that I will not do that again until next time.

[Grant McLean]

All I really want to know is did you immediately look around to see if anyone
saw what you did? :)

We have a client at the shop who has driven the rack into the garage at least
three different times, destroyed the bikes (2) each time. Gotta luv 'em. $

g

[regularguy412]

If you have a garage door and a garage door opener,, stick the opener in an old cycling glove when the bike is on top. :) :beer:

Mike in AR

ermm - no,, I don't have a garage or a garage door,, I have a carport. Luckily , it's tall enough to drive under with bikes on top. But I saw this little 'preventive' in a cycling rag a few years ago. Thot I would pass it on.

[stevep]

nail a small yellow piece of material to the bottom of the door. it will hang down in yr face when the door goes up...
hopefully reminding you not to destroy your 2 10k bikes.
s

[Grant McLean]

nail a small yellow piece of material to the bottom of the door.

maybe one of these...

http://www.funmoneystuff.com/towel.asp


g

[OldDog]

Stuff happens. Over the years I have forget to load my front wheel in the truck after mounting my fork in the bike tight in the bed. Once I've driven off leaving the wheel, twice backed over it. I's good to have spare wheels.

[coylifut]

I roofed a friends bike that was on top of another friends car (christophs car). All told, about 1500 in damage to equipment that wasn't mine.

Like above, I don't program the integrated garage door on my car and the opener goes in the trunk anytime a bike is on top.

[thwart]

What works for me is to throw a piece of firewood in the parking slot when I pull out---when you return, you have to get out of the car to move that damn chunk of wood in the way---and by then your brain is usually engaged enough to notice the bikes up there... :rolleyes:

Hasn't failed me yet.

[Chief]

All I really want to know is did you immediately look around to see if anyone
saw what you did? :)

We have a client at the shop who has driven the rack into the garage at least
three different times, destroyed the bikes (2) each time. Gotta luv 'em. $

g


Yes, and my prayers were answered in that my wife didn't hear the crash and come immediately to investigate. I think the yardman next door probably thought to himself, "What the hell is that ole fart doing?"

[lemondsteel]

I was coming back form an early Saturday morning ride. I had a Yakima roof rack and mounted was a Woodrup bike that was my long distance bike. I was very tired and was pulling in the driveway and as usual opened the garage door with the remote and dorve right in. Keep in mind that all my close neightbors were out mowing their lawn. I heard this loud crunch and bang. I immediately knew what I had done. I see the entire roof rack come off the car and carsh to the ground behind me. I sat frozen and stunned.
I get out run to the back. ALL of my neighbors are clapping and yelling "GOOD ONE"! My beautiful red Woddrup is on the ground. I take it out of the rack inspect it and am totaly amazed there is no damage except for scuffing on the handlebars where they hit the underside of the garage door. "boy am I lucky"!!! I then turn and look at the roof of my car. The garage door compressed the roof rack into the top and it released the gutter clips. The roof was entirely caved in at 4 points. Took $200 to fix it but the bike was OK. Insurance coverd it. Lucky.... sort of!

[kbone]

I took a trip to FL with my bike and was ever so careful throughout the trip - including getting out of the car and checking clearance when going through a drive-thru and into a parking garage. On the trip home it took 3 hours longer than normal due to holiday traffic and the baby was done with riding in the car and loudly letting my wife and I know. Well, we got home and I hit the button and started driving into the garage...

When I got out to survey the damage the frame was destroyed - top tube and down tubes completely buckled. The only good news was it wasn't an expensive frame and there was no damage to the car. I really enjoyed the way that bike rode so it was still a sickening feeling to roof it.

These days if I have my bike on top of the car I put the garage door opener in the bag under my saddle. That forces me to get out of the car before entering the garage.

[British]

If you have a garage door and a garage door opener,, stick the opener in an old cycling glove when the bike is on top. :) :beer:

Mike in AR

ermm - no,, I don't have a garage or a garage door,, I have a carport. Luckily , it's tall enough to drive under with bikes on top. But I saw this little 'preventive' in a cycling rag a few years ago. Thot I would pass it on.

I have a garage door opener but he won't fit inside a bicycle glove. What to do?

[regularguy412]

I have a garage door opener but he won't fit inside a bicycle glove. What to do?

Mebbe I mis-scripted. Shoulda said the garage door opener 'remote'. I dunno of any opener that would fit in a glove, either. :D

Mike in AR

[Chad Engle]

Luckily I did it with the mtb, full suspension. The suspension compressed so the rack and the car took all of the damage. About $2,000.00 altogether.

So far I think the best method is put something in the way so that you can't get in without stopping the car. Seems fool proof, unless the kids move it while your gone. Can't happen, my kids don't pick anything up.

[Lincoln]

Anyone else put the bike on top in the garage and try to drive out? I didn't think so.