

As I was 16 kilometres into my trip down the East Coast of Australia, I needed to turn around in a tight space. In a typical cyclist fashion I decided to lift the front wheel up 90 degrees, disregarding the 16 kg weight in my panniers and an additional 5 in a dry bag on my rear rack, 2 seconds later, it was all on the ground and my trip ended an hour after it started.
I’ll be stuck in Cairns until I get a replacement and I’m running out of time on my visa. It was obviously my fault, I didn’t think about how lifting the bike up would change forces on the rack.
I need to order something online. What would you go for? I’d like to get the Surly Rear Disc Rack, but that one is currently unavailable in Australia.
Thank you very much for your suggestions
by tomthestrom
7 Comments
I could also get the Ortlieb again and treat it nicer. 🤐
Topeak super tourist. Cheap, not too heavy, available everywhere.
I have a quick rack on my carbon bike but only when I use it to commute.
I have topeak racks on all my other bikes (and my sons bike and my wife’s bike)
I use Tubus racks on all my bikes…. Except for my Krampus haha… I have an Old Man Mountain Divide rack since I needed something with clearance for 3“ tires.
Also have a look at Bontrager Mik, the light version.
https://www.trekbikes.com/au/en_AU/equipment/bike-accessories/bike-racks/trek-backrack-mik-bike-rack/p/48110/?colorCode=black
Before you judge me, yeah it’s easy to hate on trek.
This thing is 650gm, holds the full standard 25kg, and is relatively readily available for A$90. Yes, it’s also got proprietary mounts if you want them but you don’t need to use them.
For longer trips and big cargo I would also choose a bolted on rack. I personally have tubus but there are many other great options too.
Quick rack I have on my son’s bike because for convenience (only comes on for bigger trips).
Thank you for sharing.
I can imagine something like that would happen to me.
I have the old man mountain divide and elkhorn racks both brilliant