Kuat NV Base 2.0 Rack Passes the “Pothole Challenge”

by Adam Gaby, PCI #1362T-B/EMSCI #299T-B
Five Rivers MetroParks (OH) Police Department

Five Rivers MetroParks is a system of parks and bikeways that are spread across the greater Dayton, Ohio, region.  From inner-city parks and rural tracts of land to miles of paved and unpaved trails, the Ranger Division is tasked with patrolling it all, more than 16,000 acres. 

More than half of the Rangers are IPMBA-certified, and that means bike racks on nearly every cruiser.  We have struggled to find a bike rack that can stand up to the stress to which we subject them.  Most bicycle rack manufacturers do not test their racks for driving at high speeds, or for driving off-road, which we do a lot.  We also live in the area of the country where we must contend with road salt, potholes, and rust.

We are lucky here to be able to provide each officer with their own Volcanic bike, and it is a very bad day when one of them comes off of a bike rack while driving.   Last year, I was put in contact with Craig Metcalf from Küat Racks after Maureen told me how much Robbie from Tampa Fire Department raved about the rack, and Craig Lepkowski met the other Craig at CABDA Midwest.  I explained to him what our needs are and described some of the problems we have had with other racks.  He reviewed their product line and offered to send me an NV Base 2.0 for a trial.

Upon lifting the box, I could tell that this was not going to be a wimpy rack.  It had some heft!  The rack was nicely packaged and came with very easy to understand and follow instructions.  Assembly was a breeze and I was immediately impressed with the design and construction of the rack.  The rear wheel sits directly on the tray arm and is secured with a c-mold strap.  The front wheel sits in an adjustable tire scoop and is secured by a ratchet arm that slides down over the front tire.  The 8mm hex wrench needed to adjust the scoop can be stored in the rack itself.

The rack has a lever that can be pushed with either your foot or hand to fold up or down.  You can also tilt the rack down if it is on the back of an SUV, or other vehicle, that has a rear door/hatch.  Each tray contains a built-in cable lock that loops around the chain stay to secure the bike to the rack and help deter theft. 

Installing the rack onto my cruiser was also super simple.  After sliding the rack into the receiver and securing it with the provided locking pin, I used the hand-tightening cam to stiffen up the rack and minimize the movement of the rack while driving. The key for the locking pin and the integrated lock are same, and a spare key is provided.

The bike is loaded on to the rack quickly and easily.  After I loaded my bike onto the rack, it was time to start testing.  So far, I have noticed very minimal movement of the rack while driving, and I have really tried to get it to move.  It has passed the Dayton “pothole challenge” without the normal movement and noise that our other racks make.  The only negative I found so far with this rack is that it sits a little higher and closer to the vehicle when folded up.  This means that you cannot open the rear hatch on the Ford Police Interceptor SUV with the rack folded up.  Other than that, this has been a fantastic rack and would be well worth the extra cost in order to keep our patrol bikes securely attached.

Küat does not yet participate in the Product Purchase Program.  Visit https://www.kuatracks.com/ or email Craig@kuatracks.com for more information. 

Adam is the Community Resource Officer for Five Rivers MetroParks Ranger Division in Dayton, Ohio.  He has been an officer for 16 years and on the bike patrol team for 15 of those years.  He is an IPMBA Instructor, maintenance officer, instructor for PESCII at the IPMBA Conference, and an avid mountain biker.  With hundreds of miles of hiking trails, paved trails and mountain biking trails, Adam spends a lot of time patrolling on bike. He can be contacted at Adam.Gaby@metroparks.org.

Photos courtesy Adam Gaby.

(c) 2021 IPMBA.  This review appeared in the 2021 IPMBA News Product Guide.

---