I’ve recently been lucky enough to pick Raxter up as a sponsor. Ryan’s old Yakima that he’s shared with me was getting rusted, and it didn’t agree with 29ers very well (both in wheel size and handlebar interference). So, I was really stoked when a Raxter Tarsus showed up on my doorstep on Friday.

I immediately tore open the box, camera in hand:

(The packaging is Chunky Monkey Ninja Kitty approved.)

I was in a little bit of a hurry to run some errands, but I figured I’d put it together anyway since there weren’t too many parts. It was a quick and easy assembly, although you MUST NOT PUT FINGER IN THE HOLE!

Immediately, I noticed that the Tarsus is a good deal lighter than the Yakima (thus less wrestling to get it in and out of the hitch on the Element), and rather than using a cotter pin to secure itself up/down, it uses a simple “pop in” button for both folding, and to attach into the hitch. (Though I opted to use a locking hitch pin that I picked up at Auto Zone. Last thing I need is for my shiny new rack to be sold for a crack rock on Lamar Avenue…)

Since then, I’ve used it a couple of times, and, I must say, I’m very impressed. While other manufacturers have been making their racks bigger, flashier, more expensive, and more complicated (kinda like THIS), Raxter has successfully created something that’s simple and adaptable to any bike you want to haul.

My favorite feature is “auto-nesting” (meaning, you can easily stagger your bikes to avoid handlebar/saddle interference). Now I can stop carrying a 4mm allen key around with me for times when I want to haul two mountain bikes. I also don’t have to wrestle with getting a swing arm over a knobby 29″ tire like I did with my old rack. To top it off, it’s got a slimmer profile than the Yakima, so I don’t have to pull as far into the garage or worry as much about what I’m going to hit when I’m backing up.

Yes, the Raxter falls in to the “Why TF has no one thought of this before?” category of simplicity and ease of use. The only potential “problem” I could see would be if you MUST haul your bike around with a disc wheel installed. In that case, you won’t be able to secure your rear wheel with the rack’s velcro straps. If that describes you, then you are probably a triathlete, and you probably wouldn’t like the Raxter anyway because it’s not big, flashy, expensive, and full of extra complicated moving parts to impress all of your other triathlete buddies.

(I kid, I kid… you know I love triathletes and their disdain for all things that include either sleeves or socks…)

Raxter Tarsus gets the Brickhouse Stamp of Approval!