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The art of hitching

Have you ever hitched? Of course we are not talking about the art of sticking your thumb out to catch a ride. Hitching does involve a ride of another kind, a horse. Hitching involves the use of horsehair. A hitcher will start with each hair and combining each strand of hair together, create the desired results. Very much the same as construction of a rope, hitching is done by hand and requires much patience. Twisting the hair into a strand and then again into a larger design can take many, many hours. The art of hitching dates back to Spain in the 8th century, and was brought over to America by the early Spaniards. Many early American hitchers were actually prisoners in western prisons. Of course it is amazing how much patience one has when locked in Yuma Territorial Prison for a 5-7 year vacation.

By now a cowboy tradition of the west, hitching can be found in the form of hatbands, belts, horse bridles and many other forms. Many pieces will often take hundreds of hours of hand made work to complete. Some will incorporate differing colors and designs, this being accomplished by the dyeing of the hair. This is where the art comes in, creativity can flow through a piece. The hitcher is an artist creating a three dimensional work of art.

Dallas Ray Schut is one of those hitchers. Describing himself as "persistent" more than "patient", he insists he must finish what he starts. Working out of his homestead in New River, Az. he is a 25 year disciple of the hitching discipline. It has gotten to the point that he has had his works shown in many public shows and museums. The works of art he creates really do take hundreds of hours at a time to complete, and it shows. The amazing amount of detailed work involved can be seen in each piece. While this was the way of the west for many years, with modern times brought modern methods. It is great to see the artistry of a time gone by from the old west still in those who do things the old fashioned way.

About the Author

Chris Bowley is with www.oldwestweb.com, a design company with a focus on western culture and history.

1: Cheapest Thule Ridgeline Hitch Bike Carrier 4 Bike

Cheapest Thule Ridgeline Hitch Bike Carrier 4 Bike

Cheapest Thule Ridgeline Hitch Bike Carrier 4 Bike
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Moves from one team installed the system and love. Very convenient heavy and built the castle in CME.

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BuyingThule Ridgeline Hitch Bike Carrier - 4 Bike

3 Bikes, Yes... 4 Bikes, No Way

We have a family of four, and thank goodness our daughter's bike is small enough to fit in the back storage area of our SUV. There's no way we'd be able to fit a 4th bike, regardless of size, on this rack. Fitting 3 is a puzzle enough.

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Best value & feature hitch bike rack

If you are looking for a hitch bike rack, this is the one to get.

It's very sturdy for a folding-featured hitch rack, meaning the arms fold down and the entire rack folds out for easy trunk access. It's heavy, but it's only because it's pretty much all steel. Again very sturdy, and anything lighter and as sturdy would cost a lot more (like the Thule's helium models). The two folding joints are very solid, and feels like they won't move once they're "clicked" into place (down or up).

It comes with locks for the rack and the bikes themselves, which are accessible with the same key (very convenient). You cannot lock the bikes in place without the key, so you'll won't forget your lock key. The rack also comes with the anti-sway straps, which works exceptionally well.

If you are to buy all those separately from Thule, you'll pay much more than the Ridgeline. Even comparing other brand/models, it made sense to buy the ridgeline model.

Other's have noted that the bike locks can come off and drag. Well, unless the locks break off, which is highly unlikely, they will not drag. When there's no bike loaded on the rack, and the arms fold down, the bike locks "can" drag off. But if you're that worried, just pull them out and lock them in place, and you're done.

I've read from another review that the hitch lock is a joke, and can easily be broken off with a hammer or something like that. Well, that's absolutely true. But unless you weld your rack to the hitch, there will always be a way for a willing person to brake a lock. Any $20 bolt cutter will cut most chains & locks, and any any $20 portable drill will drill through the toughest key pad lock, etc, etc etc. My point is, the Thule lock system is as good as any bike rack will get, and it's very convenient.

If I had to, I can complain about the fact that the paint on the rack can easily scratch, especially on the 2 folding joints. So if you have moisture on the scratched area, expect some rust. However any can lubricant will cause any further serious rust damage. Also, since it is a folding rack (and has joints), the rack will bounce from front to back, and may be side to side a little bit. That's normal, and if you have more bikes on the rack it will bounce more. It may appear to be loose, but it's not. If you don't believe me, just mount the rack, and jump a little on the rack joint. The entire car will bounce before the joint gives.

Finally, it says Sweden everywhere, but it's made in USA. Gotta love that one.

Again, I could not find a better value and set of features than this one, and I've looked at several others at nearby stores. Hope it works out for you.

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Good Overall....but some basic design flaws...!

This is a sturdy and functional hitch mount bike rack but I have found some really basic design flaws that causes me to rate this product with only 3 Stars.

** the 2 inch (combo) hitch mount is very sloppy in the receiver of my factory 2007 Yukon XL. The rack sways and bounces around like its about to fall off my truck. Very poor fit on the 1-1/4 inch / 2 inch combo hitch mount.

** the hitch pin is under sized for a 2 inch hitch mount. Sure the pin threads are sized correctly, but the portion of the pin that extends through the pin hole to the lock is undersized and adds considerably to loose rack fit and sway. The pin is also too long and allows the pin threads to back out unless tightened down with a wrench. Luckily, the pin lock keeps the pin from completely falling out and allowing my 4 bikes to crash on the pavement at 70 mph!

How could Thule make such basic fitting errors after building a good, a heavy duty bike rack that is otherwise well engineered?

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Solid, functional rack

This rack works perfectly on our RV. It folds down easily when not in use. We were able to put two adult and two kid bikes on the rack with no trouble. The hitch bolt locks on, and there is a security cable hidden in one of the tubes. You just pull it out and lock your bikes. Great feature! Very sturdy and convenient. Highly recommended!

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Buy the Roadway

Buy the Roadway, it's the exact same rack sans the hitchlock, No Sway Cages, and the built-in securty lock. These extras are not worth the money so buy the basic rack. Here's the deal:

1. Sure, you can secure the hitch pin (mediocre anyway). But, you can remove the upright by loosening two nuts and removing the two bolts.
2. The No Sway cages appear to work. But, you'll need to strap the front wheel down or it will bound around. So, use a synch strap through the wheels and the hitch, and no more sway! Even with the No Sway cages, you'll have to do this.
3. The integrated lock is kind of nice. But, it's not really long enough to go through the front wheel. So, if you want to secure your front wheel, you'll need another cable lock anyway. So, just buy a cable lock that can go through the wheels, frame, and hitch and your golden.
Save your money.

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