I have the Pro Trac 4-bike rack that Tim5055 linked to on his reply and it has done well for us. We took the bikes to FW last May and it worked great. I did lot of research before we got a rack of any sort. First let me tell you what I considered, why I didn't choose them, and why I chose the Pro Trac:
1. Strap on top of closed camper rack - might have worked but struck it for two reasons. A) we have 5 people/bikes to haul and most strap on racks accomodate up to 4 bikes, and B) I store my popup in the basement/garage and I don't have much room to store something that size unless I hung it from the rafters or something when not in use;
2. Put a 2-inch receptacle on the back of the pop-up - not safe. If you put too much weight behind the wheel/axle of the trailer it might tip backwards during travel when going over a bump which would cause it to shake back and forth while travelling
which is a recipe for disaster. That's why you need a certain amount of tongue weight (forward tipping pressure) on the hitch on the tow vehicle. You can do this on travel trailers or 5th wheels because they are so heavy 100-200 pounds of bikes on the back doesn't tip the scales (so to speak).
3. Get a rack on top of the tow vehicle - waaaay too high to lift those heavy bikes up there. Somebody (me) could get hurt.
4. Install a permanent rack on the top of the pop-up - an option but I bought my pop-up new and the thought of putting holes in the roof (and nullifying the roof warranty) brings me to tears. As years go by and caulk/seals dry and crack, that's where the leaks will start showing up.
5. Pass through rack on the hitch receiver - probably works if you have only a few bikes. I was worried about putting too much weight (5 bikes) on the hitch.
We got the Pro Trac 4-bike rack and extra hooks/tie downs to carry the 5th bike. One downside is you have to take off the front wheels of the bikes (or buy a seperate attachment so you can leave the wheel on) but I decided to use child labor (hey, gives them something to do!) to put wheels on and off.
Also, through trial and error, I learned that I had to hitch the pop-up to the tow vehicle, crank up the bar, stow the little dolly wheel, then put the bikes on. If I put the bikes on BEFORE hitching the pop-up to the vehicle the extra bike weight caused the back to sag down 1-2 inches more and I could not crank the bar up high enough to get the dolly wheel out! Go figure!
The weight adjusting suspension package levels things out after a while.
In your case, you might be able to lay the bikes on top of the Jeep and just strap them down tightly. I don't know how many bikes you're bringing. I've seen that too. Also you can rent a bike at the Bike Barn at FW. Check the allears.net web site for rates. I agree the golf cart is too expensive! And a little exercise is good for the soul..
Bama ED
