We are back with another edition of Dumbest Product of the Week. Last week and the week before we got started with some really silly cycling products and while I don’t want to limit this series to just bike stuff, I could not resist nominating our next product.
The Bontrager Carbon Seat Post Rack. Weight Limit 11 lbs. Got any paperclips you want to carry?
It seems the folks over at Trek aren’t taking their position as one
of America’s leading bicycle manufacturers to produce useful products for the cycling community. Whether it is their Lime line which perpetuates the view of bicycles as Saturday morning toys or the single speed prototype that is so in your face no one would want to ride it, these Waterloo, Wisconsin bike makers have not encouraged me to embrace their brand for bicycle transportation.
So it was not with great surprise that while flipping through the latest Bicycling magazine, I came across a review of a carbon seat post rack produced by Trek’s component division, Bontrager. Billed as the lightest rack on the market, the Bontrager rank carries loads up to a scant 11 pounds.
Now, the fact that Bicycling reviewed this in an article about accessories for commuting shows how much they’ve drank the carbon kool-aid. Once you install the recommended Trek saddle bag, you’ll just barely be able to carry your current issue of Bicycling with you before hitting the weight limit. I’m just glad I did not pay for the subscription I’m receiving. If you are in need of any cage liners for your parrot, drop me a line.
Give us a break, Trek. I want to haul groceries, not climb Alp D’Huez. Let’s stop reinforcing the stereotype that cycling is just for spandex clad freaks. Enough “Let Levi Ride.” How about “Let real people get places.” It’s not hard. Just try to ride one of your bikes the way real people do instead of Team Astana, and you’ll develop products that people can actually use.
Until then, I guess I’ll be stuck hauling my wafer thin mint with your racks.
Enjoy your weekend, and get out and ride your bike.
EDIT: One thing I forgot to mention in my orginal post about this truly idiotic product is the price tag. For a mear $250 you too can have a rack that is too fragile to carry anything. That’s right, you read $250. I’m going to personally punch anyone dumb enoungh to fork over that kind of money for something so useless. Stay tuned for next week’s edition.
Read the previous week’s Dumbest Product of the Week.
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on Sep 5th, 2008 at 1:08 pm
What is the intended market for this rack? The spandex poser that needs to haul his lunch to work? I think Trek needs to get outside and take a look at who is riding bikes to work and the grocery store.
Like you, I am glad I did not pay for my subscription to Bicycling.
on Sep 8th, 2008 at 12:21 pm
I got three free issues to Bicycling and was offended by them all. They should have paid me to look at them, considering the amount of advertising revenue they must collect.
As to the rack… Any jackass who would pay that kind of money for a useless rack surely wouldn’t overburden it with his lunch – his Clif Shots are securely mounted in the bento box on the top tube of his Tarmac and the banana case is tucked in his $200 jersey pocket. But such a hard-core rider could reasonably secure a spare tampon to the rack when the one up his ass starts getting toxic.
on Sep 8th, 2008 at 2:42 pm
Where’s my OCLV carbon panniers with titanium zippers?
on Sep 8th, 2008 at 3:45 pm
Cool… a place to rant about the subscription to Bicycling that I bought to support my Nephew’s school. Page 1 in my first issue was a fold out Hummer advertisement. No kidding? Who’s this target audience? I then followed up on a write up the magazine did on Higgins Restarant in Portland OR. My girlfriend caught the reaction of the host/hostess pair in the mirror after we passed in shorts, t-shirt and flip flops. When we told the waiter that we were just in for dessert, he immediately said, “let me go see if the manager wants to do that” and right faced. The manager kindly relocated us the bistro for a $25 coffee and desert. That’s not the Portland I know. This is not my magazine. And I want to see the advertisement where I walk out of the grocery and hang my Ortliebs with a half gallon of milk, two glass six packs and a dozen eggs on my carbon seat post rack.
Is this thread about the carbon rack or Bicylcing Magazine? Sorry for veering off topic. But next time I’ll just send money directly to the school.
on Sep 8th, 2008 at 5:49 pm
“hey dickwad, Trek makes and has been making all manner of racks and packs and lights and stuff for commuters for years and years and bikes for every need. One carbon rack does not a faceless company make shtfuker”
on Sep 8th, 2008 at 6:21 pm
Aww, don’t get all hurt about the large, faceless company being attacked now…
on Sep 8th, 2008 at 10:14 pm
Ha ha…all you commenters are slaying me!
I just cannot imagine what the perceived market for that rack is. And what a price!
Everyone knows that the dentists and lawyers who would buy a rack like this to install on their Madone, Serotta or other high-zoot rig pay someone else to tote their lunch for them. Either that or it’s on the passenger seat of their Ferrari…
on Sep 9th, 2008 at 9:07 am
RE: the wad
Someone needs a hug, or a nice carbon rack to go with the Serotta that doesn’t leave his living room….
on Sep 9th, 2008 at 12:44 pm
Excuse me,sir. Is this where all of the poor people line up to whine about how much they hate the rich people?
I’ll bet I could haul 12 pounds on it. Ya’ll a bunch of bay-bee’s!
on Sep 11th, 2008 at 2:28 pm
I’d be willing to pay twice as much for a nice sturdy chromoly rack that can haul more than a roll of toilet paper. This has nothing to do with poor or rich people, and everything to do with sensibility.
on Sep 12th, 2008 at 2:47 pm
Could be this article is the dumbest product of the week (or, last week).
on Sep 12th, 2008 at 2:56 pm
Yah,
I know you are, but what am I.
Now, back to comments that took more than 2 brain cells to come up with.
on Sep 13th, 2008 at 9:02 am
11 lbs is pretty typical for seatpost racks of any material. Its a lot more weight than you think. When touring the C&O canal for a week I had two front ortlieb panniers and full the front set weighed 10 lbs including the panniers which are pretty heavy to begin with. FWIW I had 35 lbs on the rear rack.
11llbs capacity is plenty for a supported charity/event ride, which is a thousand times more common these days than hauling your own stuff.
I really don’t see the $3000 + carbon crowd strapping a carradice to their saddle, although I think that would likely be the lightest gear carrying option.
on Sep 13th, 2008 at 9:15 am
Whoa, I just saw that the Carbon rack weighs over a pound!
My lovely Acorn transverse saddle Bag is 1.05 lbs of steel, leather and canvas, with no weight carrying limit. If it will fit you can haul it.
Its hand made in the USA, and the carbon rack makes it look like a bargain. No tool required. A really great product that no carbon fiber bike owner would be caught dead with on his ride.
on Sep 17th, 2008 at 10:10 pm
Dave, I was just on the esplanade here in Portland this weekend. I wish I had a picture. There was a guy on a brand new orbea orca with a huge carradice bag affixed to his saddle. I promise you this happened. Yes, there are VERY confused people out there. Just look, there’s McCain supporters everywhere.
on Sep 25th, 2008 at 6:38 pm
There’s nothing wrong with a low-weight rack having a low weight limit: why would you be trying to shave off a few grams on the rack if you were going to stick 10kgs on it anyway? I assume the target market would be road bike commuters who just want to carry their lunch and a clean shirt or something.
(But if the thing actually weighs about the same as a much stronger steel rack – well, that’s just stupid.)
on Jan 9th, 2009 at 12:47 pm
[...] an established market and creative attempts to address non-existent problems. The first, whether blindly following current trends, representing yourself as something you are not, or repackaging a mediocre product to cash-in on [...]
on Jan 15th, 2009 at 11:25 am
[...] been a little critical of Trek in the past, but they do make a sold product and have a history of supporting cycling in general. To that [...]
on Aug 6th, 2009 at 11:02 am
It’s exactly what I’ve been looking for.