Adding a bike rack - ideally 5 in a pop up. How easy or difficult?

The friendliest place on the web for anyone with an RV or an interest in RVing!
If you have answers, please help by responding to the unanswered posts.

Camper054

Well-known member
Joined
Jul 21, 2019
Posts
51
Hi fellow pop up camper owners, experts:

I am completely new to pop ups and planning to get one as we transition from tenting :).

Wife wants to haul our bikes (three teenagers and us) to camping and I like the idea as well so you have both hiking and biking options.

Really not easy to find a used pop up with bike racks, but found some Coleman models (2002 ish) and it appears that the bike racks were made for these campers, so no issues.  And, the ones I found also hauled bikes with no problems and no water marks or damage on the roof.

If we let go of having bike rack option on a used pop up, then we have more options and somewhat better ones for the price we are about to pay that has a 4 bike rack installed.

So, now my question is (and would REALLY appreciate your help here) - how easy or difficult to add a bike rack to a pop up?  I have a mid size truck and I could potentially put the bikes there, but there goes all my cargo space!

Would love to hear your thoughts and suggestions and many thanks in advance!
MC



 
Here's one that might work but for only 4 bikes

https://www.ebay.com/i/362696942103?chn=ps&norover=1&mkevt=1&mkrid=711-117182-37290-0&mkcid=2&itemid=362696942103&targetid=596465993508&device=c&mktype=pla&googleloc=9005167&poi=&campaignid=1689407480&mkgroupid=74365778068&rlsatarget=pla-596465993508&abcId=1140476&merchantid=7883484&gclid=EAIaIQobChMIoYyoqaLL4wIVGJSzCh3jugN4EAkYEyABEgJh-PD_BwE
 
Hi!

Thanks so much for the link and replying.  I also saw this before, but what I am afraid is that the roof of the pop up campers are not very *sturdy*, so folks suggest not to put anything directly on it.  The bike racks i have seen in Coleman are connected to two sides and when bikes are placed on them, the weight is distributed to the sides.  I am attaching a picture.  So, ideally, I would hesitate to leave the rear wheels directly on the roof (which the eBay is selling).

Again, many thanks for checking my post and searching for a solution!  Best wishes to you
MC
 

Attachments

  • Bike_rack.jpg
    Bike_rack.jpg
    112.8 KB · Views: 19
Camper054 said:
Hi!

Thanks so much for the link and replying.  I also saw this before, but what I am afraid is that the roof of the pop up campers are not very *sturdy*, so folks suggest not to put anything directly on it.  The bike racks i have seen in Coleman are connected to two sides and when bikes are placed on them, the weight is distributed to the sides.  I am attaching a picture.  So, ideally, I would hesitate to leave the rear wheels directly on the roof (which the eBay is selling).

Again, many thanks for checking my post and searching for a solution!  Best wishes to you
MC
what is the name on that bike rack? I cannot make it out
 
I don't think a traditional "rack" will meet your needs.
A sturdy solution, would involve 5 of these quick release fork mounts You would need to securely bolt a 2 x 4 to the top of the pop up, then mount the 5 QR's to the 2 x 4.
Remove the front wheels of the bikes, lock the forks in the QR's, and away you go....

 
You all are so helpful and funny at the same time!  Thanks so much for the ideas.

I wish there was a toy hauler with mine - would be great for bikes or anything!

I am not too enthusiastic about drilling through the roof.

So, looks like I am sticking with the option to get a camper that has the bike rack installed.

Thanks all, and have a wonderful camping experiences!
MC
 
If you're not keen on drilling on the roof sides of your pop up, you may have to go the expensive route and put one bike in the truck bed.

 

Attachments

  • 318gD8-cUEL.jpg
    318gD8-cUEL.jpg
    11.4 KB · Views: 12
Thanks both!

I wasn't aware of a hitch where I could add another hitch - hitch in hitch!  Thanks OldGator!

! While on the road to Virginia beach, we saw a truck carrying couple of bikes on the bed. So, I searched on the web and found a website that does have good solution:
https://www.truckcoversusa.com/american-rack-system/
But looks like they are all expensive and permanent. I have a soft tonneau cover on the bed and I like it that way - so having something permanent is probably not my first choice at this time. (I guess I want to have the cake and eat it too :)).

Looks like I am sticking with the Coleman camper that has pre installed bike rack on the roof.  These Coleman campers, the ones I saw with bike racks are all exactly same way installed with Yakima bike racks.  So, this tells me that most likely these were made and installed by Coleman (or their dealers as an option). Therefore, these do not have the problem of leaking etc.

Again thanks for the advice and suggestions - As did I, I am sure many others will find them very useful.
Best wishes-
MC
 

Forum statistics

Threads
131,753
Posts
1,384,359
Members
137,524
Latest member
freetoroam
Back
Top Bottom