Bikes on ladder

jplante4 wrote:
Never even thought of it. Put a bike rack on the ladder, stuck a bike on it, drove 6000 miles.

Now I find out it sparks a lot of debate?

Same for me. I hauled 2 on rack on rear ladder for 6 yrs. and 20,000 miles. Did not realize it was against the law. :@

vjstangelo wrote:
Effy, can you pm me a link for the hitch receiver version that works for you?

Sent

In some cases the movement of the bikes on the ladder has damaged the ladder. You are better off trying a hitch mount.

We have 2 mountain bikes that are 30 years old and aren't worth a thing. They don't go on the ladder. It takes about 30 sec to remove the front wheel and they go in the trunk of the toad. Save the ladder for climbing.

Never even thought of it. Put a bike rack on the ladder, stuck a bike on it, drove 6000 miles.

Now I find out it sparks a lot of debate?

Effy, can you pm me a link for the hitch receiver version that works for you?

This topic sparks a lot of debate. Many do it and don't have issues, many won't due to the risk. I look at it this way; your ladder was designed for you to climb on the roof while the RV is stationary. It was not designed to support bouncing weight of bikes hanging off it going down the road and over bumps. Not saying it won't work, but it's not designed to carry bikes. For the numerous bike racks that can be had for a reasonable amount and are designed for the purpose of carrying bikes, I choose to put my bikes on a rack and leave my ladder for climbing.

We also tow a CRV, so a simple solution would be to use the hitch on the CRV (if it has one) or a dual hitch receiver (that's what we use). Dual hitch receiver with a swagman rack and a $50 cover. Puts the bikes right behind the RV so they stay clean and safe.

I should also mention that as an avid cyclist my bikes are very expensive. Like several thousand per bike. No way I would put them on a ladder to get scratched up, banged up, fall off or rip the ladder off. I have a very nice hitch mounted bike rack I got on Amazon for under $200.00. Works perfectly. They also make a bumper mounted version.