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mushroom
May 12, 2011, 4:15 PM
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Scary sounding, eh? Please don't respond to this if you don't ride motorcycles. This isn't a joke and there is no space for theory here. Bikes don't come with airbags/seatbelts/break-away-bumpers. "Take your car," is an unacceptable response as well.
So I'm a Cody resident and our bouldering lies just barely out of town. But there is a stretch for about 1/2 mile that is 45mph and 1/2 miles of 55mph, not to mention about 3 miles of in town driving at 30-35mph. I'm not gonna carry it like a backpack. F*^% that! I was thinking about strapping it on the back flat, or on its side or something. I'm concerned about covering up the break lights too.
I was wondering if anyone else had already tried this or if someone who rides has any thoughts. I mean, s*%$, I'll do some science but road rash sucks.
Pull harder!
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erisspirit
May 12, 2011, 5:01 PM
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get creative!
it seems like my crashpad would be far too bulky to tie down well to the back of my bike. It would hang well off the back. It seems like something more similar to how people carry their surboards would work better.
That being said, I haven't ridden my bike with my crashpad... hasn't been worth the effort to me.
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altelis
May 12, 2011, 7:00 PM
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seems sucky sucky sucky to me.
that said, i had a buddy who went to colorado college and would go to garden of the gods to boulder, with his crash pad, on his bicycle. including a section on the bicycle lane on I-70...
so i suppose it should certainly be possible...
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jbro_135
May 13, 2011, 12:09 AM
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would some sort of trailer be practical?
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mushroom
May 13, 2011, 3:48 AM
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Inspirational, no doubt, erisspirit! Reminds me of seeing an entire family on a bike (couldn't have been bigger than a 450) in Egypt when I lived there.
But surfers! There's a good source to go to for inspiration. Those bums are a dime a dozen, eh? And likely as crazy as our folk. One of them had to of figured out something.
I'm not going to buy a trailer just to go boulder. I mean, I could resurrect the Saturn....
The quest continues!
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erisspirit
May 13, 2011, 7:26 AM
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mushroom wrote: Inspirational, no doubt, erisspirit! Reminds me of seeing an entire family on a bike (couldn't have been bigger than a 450) in Egypt when I lived there. But surfers! There's a good source to go to for inspiration. Those bums are a dime a dozen, eh? And likely as crazy as our folk. One of them had to of figured out something. I'm not going to buy a trailer just to go boulder. I mean, I could resurrect the Saturn.... The quest continues!
oh yeah. They sell motorcycle racks now for surfboards. Not saying you need to spend that kind of money, but the idea behind it might help you out
good luck
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rtwilli4
May 13, 2011, 8:59 AM
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Lay it down flat on back. That's how we carried everything by motorbike with I lived in Asia. I've even seen people carry big glass windows this way.
If you're worried about covering the tail lights then you could put something under the pad to raise it a bit, but you need to be careful because you could be creating lift which will make you all squirly.
Maybe you could just raise the back, to let the tail lights shine, but then you have a giant wing that will create downforce. That would take away from your steering performance.
I don't think it's a good idea to strap it to the side or have it mounted vertically in any way. If you get a gust of wind or airflow gets between the bike and the pad, you'll be forced sideways pretty violently. Think about carrying a snowboard under your arm on a windy day.
Just ride on the side of the road and go slow, flashers on, etc. Should be fine!
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rsmillbern
May 13, 2011, 9:55 AM
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The model of the bike might make a difference. I have a Triumph Tiger with side bags. I could see strapping a pad on the back across the bags. I don't think it would stick out much. That being said I would keep the speed slow due to wind and possible flappage issues...
Maybe look into making somthing like side bags, but just a platform. Be creative! I say a guy with homemade sidebags made from 5 gal plastic jugs a couple weeks ago while camping in the Pfalz. Painted they didn't look too bad even. I could see this arangment with some tie-down points on the outside and a place to put your shoes and beer :-)
I have been about to get 4 days of camping and trad climbing gear on the Tiger. This was a lot of gear, but didn't have the shape/size component of a bouldering pad.
(edit to add detail)
(This post was edited by rsmillbern on May 13, 2011, 9:58 AM)
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gmggg
May 19, 2011, 2:02 PM
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I've taken a crashpad on a vespa many times. I've never gone up to 55+, but I probably averaged about 5-10 minutes at 45mph on any given ride (3-10 miles). I've worn the pad as a backpack and strapped it down flat on the back of the bike.
I never really noticed a drastic difference either way (I was always pretty whiteknuckled), I'd never tried the surfboard-side-rack style on the vespa but I have done that on a bicycle (both with a surfboard and with a crashpad) I greatly prefer the side mount to back mount on a bicycle since you are a little more active when riding a bike and it sucks to have something looming over you.
Last note... I also think it would make a tremendous difference what kind of bike you're riding. I think a pad would be pretty easy on any scooter, touring bike, or cruiser since you are upright and have a little more control. I think it would be extra terrifying on a cafe racer or modern sport bike.
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Arockstar
Jun 2, 2011, 4:42 PM
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A buddy and I each took crash pads on our bikes. We got up to 70 mph for quite awhile. Half an hour maybe. He had an enduro and I was riding an R6. We both wore them on our backs. The wind sucks. Imagine someone grabbing your shoulders and swinging you side to side. It wasn't awful but it'll feel great to ride sans pad after. Good luck.
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spikeddem
Jun 2, 2011, 5:35 PM
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You know, speed limits are upper maximums. Lots of people don't realize this. You could, you know, go slower than the speed limit.
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erisspirit
Jun 2, 2011, 8:15 PM
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spikeddem wrote: You know, speed limits are upper maximums. Lots of people don't realize this. You could, you know, go slower than the speed limit.
Don't go too slow though! my uncle got a ticket that way 
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StuMsg
Jun 6, 2011, 2:05 PM
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If you are willing and have the skills you could cut each half of the pad into two, sow the ends with some heavy duty material and add velcro. Make sure you cut it so it folds well and the shoulder straps fold inwards (so you dont need to undo/resize them every time you fold it in four)
Now you have a pad that folds into four, making it more a box shape and easier to strap to the back.
Or pay a tailor to do a good job.
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rsmillbern
Jun 17, 2011, 12:29 PM
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I few weeks ago I was at the Bärenbrunner Hof camping/climbing. The gear store there had a pad that folder about 4 times (don't remember exactly) but it folded pretty narrow... Unfortunately I don't even remember the brand :-( but it was pretty narrow, not much wider than your back
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aprice00
Jun 17, 2011, 2:09 PM
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I looked at carrying my Mtn bike on my motorcycle a while back and came across this setup. It seems that this would be more aerodynamic than carrying it like a backpack. + you can still see signals 
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