Get your Bike around in Wine Country

How to get your Bike around in Wine Country

Congratulations, you’ve decided to go on a Wine Country Cycling adventure. As you make your plans, you may decide to bring your own bike, or rent a bike. If you aren’t driving to Wine Country and plan on flying in, you won’t have a bike rack available, you will need to figure out how to get your bike from the Airport to your Lodging. If you plan on renting your bike you’ll need to get it from your Lodging to your ride destination (assuming you have some rides planned where your lodging or the rental location aren’t the starting point). Having the ability to take your bike with you in Wine Country gives you maximum flexibility to go try any route, and you’re not limited to where your lodging or rental shop is located. If you’re on a Full Service Bike Tour they will have many more options including staging and bringing your bike to your start destinations, and storing your bike pre and post ride. In any case, having Bike Transportation will give you greater choices of locations and regions that you can experience on the trip, it’s a great option if you want to explore different areas and not just one region. In fact, some of the best routes, including some of the Epic Bucket List routes really are only available by starting at locations that you need bike transport to get to.

Bike Transport Options

Pack it along	Taking your bike as luggage is always available but for some not the greatest option if you have a lot of passengers and a smaller car it may not be possible to fit. However, you can get creative and sometimes suffering with less space so you can pack more may be an acceptable trade off for a minor convenience of sitting with a frame or wheels across everyone’s lap. The only problem is this may be a tight squeeze based on your rental car, and you can probably only get one bike in unless you rent an SUV or larger vehicle or have a free back seat. If you are only traveling by yourself or as a couple and have a free back seat or SUV this can work out nicely.
Car Rental Bike Rack	Some car rental places rent Bike Racks. This is a great option if you’re coming by air if they are available. This option is extremely convenient allows you to get from the airport to your destinations and travel with your bike as needed. Make sure to check ahead for availability, and compatibility with your rental.
Bike Shop Bike Rack Rental	An alternate if you don’t bring your bike and do not need to bring it from the airport is to rent a bike rack from a bike rental shop. In some cases you can (hopefully) get your bike rental and bike rack rental from the same location.
Ship your Bike	You can have your bike shipped directly to your destination. This can be very convenient if your lodging is in a good location to start your planned rides and you aren’t planning to need to get your bike to another starting destination other than your lodging location. There are now good options available to ship your bike with some that specialize only in shipping bikes. Check with your lodging that they have a safe and secure location, and are able to receive your bike. Some Wine Country lodging locations are accustomed to this request, others will sound like bike’s are from another planet and can’t/won’t ensure that your bike is safely and securely stored away. Call ahead and check, it’s OK to ask a lot of questions. I know a lot of folks that don’t want to have their baby packed in a broom closet with a bunch of luggage packed up against your derailleur where anyone passing by can just walk out with your bike.

Things to know about Bike Rack Rentals

Check First & Book Ahead – Check with the local rental location, even if it is a national chain that “offers” bike racks it doesn’t mean they offer them everywhere. When you do find them, don’t assume they will be available, make sure to reserve them ahead of time.
Compatibility – Check that the bike rack offered works with your vehicle or rental. Not all car models will work with the offered bike rack, SUVs, and Hatchbacks usually require different racks then sedans.
How Many Bikes – Most bike rack rentals are only designed to carry 2 bikes. If you need to move more than 2 bikes, verify the bike rack capacity and if you need more you’re probably not going to have a lot of great options but it gives you time to plan something different.
Bike Damage – Most of the bike rack rentals may not be the greatest bike racks. They will likely work fine at getting your bike from point A to point B secure to your vehicle. That doesn’t mean your bike won’t be swaying in the wind, and banging back and forth along the way. Bring some chamois, or use a towel or t shirt as needed to pad the bike, and bring a few small bungee cords to keep it snug to augment the bike rack. The last thing you want is some dings in your carbon or your nice Italian Pegoretti paint job because of a cheap rental rack. On a rental you’re not as worried, but make sure the derailleur is free from other items that can swing into it and damage it.

Bike Rack Types

Strap Based			What you are most likely to find in the bike rack rental market. Straps connect to the underside of trunk, or in some cases hatchbacks. Usually the cheapest racks, generally only carry up to 2 bikes, and don’t have the greatest controls to limit horizontal bike movement. You may want to bring some bungee cords to secure the bike from swinging, and maybe some towels to augment the padding where your bike meets the rack. This type of rack works best on sedans with rear trunks. Hatchbacks and SUVs may not be compatible with these kinds of racks, but check ahead for your Car rental model.
Hitch Based			Requires a car with a hitch, usually you won’t find these in rental cars. These are generally sturdier, can carry from 2 to 4 bikes, and some have trays and/or straps to control wheel/frame horizontal movement. Not likely that you will find this type of rack available for rental. If they are available AND your rental has a hitch, you will need to know the hitch size, most likely 1.25″ or 2″. You are likely to only find these on SUV rentals if at all, so check ahead.
Roof Based			Generally the best, most expensive racks, they have horizontal and vertical movement controls and your bike (sans some bugs) will make it to your location in a pristine state. Unfortunately, you pretty much have about zero chance of this rack being available for rental. Requires car manufacturer and model specific equipment. If you’re using a tour company, they may use something similar to this.

Car Rentals

Some Car Rental companies rent Bike Racks, however you should ALWAYS contact the local Rental location to verify, and book them ahead of time. Even though a national chain may have a bike rack offering, it may not be offered at the local rental location, so always check. Also note, as mentioned above, make sure to check the compatibility of your bike rack with your car rental. Most of the rental locations are like to offer strap based Bike Racks that attach to the trunk of a sedan, that won’t fit well on SUVs with no trunks, and other compact models with hatchbacks. Here are the rental companies known to rent Bike Racks:

	Company	Offered
	Hertz	Yes
	Budget	Yes
	Rent a Wreck	Yes
	Turo	Yes
	Avis	No
	Enterprise	No
	National	No
	Alamo	No
	Dollar	No
	Thrifty	No

Bike Rental Shops

A limited number of Bike Rental Shops in Wine Country rent Bike Racks. As with Car Rental companies, check and book ahead and ensure compatibility with your vehicle.

Sonoma Adventures

1254 Broadway Ste 1, Sonoma CA

(707) 938-2080

They offer a Strap Based Bike Rack for a great deal of $35 for the length of your trip. The bike rack holds 2 bikes. Book Ahead, they have limited availability, and check your rental car for compatibility. Sedans with trunks work best, SUVs and Hatchbacks may have issues with this type of rack.

Conclusion

There are a few options to help you get your rig where you want to get it in Wine Country. They all take a bit more planning, but give you the most flexibility and the option to experience some amazing routes that you really don’t have the option to get to without a vehicle.

Enjoy the Roll