Rack And Panniers For Race Bike
 

Hi,

I have an Emonda ALR disc 2019 that doesn't appear to have any eyelets for a traditional rack and pannier setup. I've been looking at the offerings from https://www.tailfin.cc/ and am considering buying the rack as well as two side bags. My problem is the near $600 this will cost, I could pay this, but wanted to ensure there were no other comparable options at a cheaper price point.

Purpose: I will be using this setup for a 22mi commute (both ways), involving a single road down to a bike path that cuts right into the heart of Milwaukee, I also would like to do some ultra-distance bike-packing on occasion throughout summer. I will be storing the bike in a specific purpose bike storage room which is always under CCTV with limited access to specific maintenance and security personal, I will also be locking the bike here, so theft shouldn't be much of an issue.

Any suggestions or ideas? Frankly, I've never actually commuted, but really don't want to be using a backpack for a 2ish hour bike 3-5 days out of the week. I intend on storing a change of clothes, lunch, sometimes a laptop, and shoes.

P-clamps can generally be used to add a rack to bikes without eyelets. The Emonda looks to have round seatstays which should make it easier.

Why would you need that on a race bike? Do you see race cars with trailer hitches?

If I were you, I would just buy a commuter bike and save my good one for races or long rides.

Frame bag, especially if you later want to try bikepacking. BTW...You can cut down weight and volume by leaving clothes and/or shoes at work. When I commuted regularly to another state I had a pair of brown shoes and a pair of black shoes under my desk. Went with everything. When I am doing my 2 mi. commute I have an entire wardrobe in my office. :D

Buy the Tailfin, awesome product! You get what you pay for.

Time for some straight talk.

You have a road racing bike, which is not designed to haul cargo. It'll make a lousy commuter bike, and an even worse "ultra-distance bike-packing" bike. Sorry to tell you this, but it's true.

If you are interested in a bike that is appropriate for your intended purposes, post a follow-up, or post a new question in either the Commuting or Touring forum.

I commuted 10 miles from Fox Point to downtown on the Oak Leaf for a few years. It was a great ride. I own a Domane now for fun and I use an older bike for my short, now in retirement, commutes. When I worked in Racine, I would commute there on bike to work day.

I think the advice you have received about getting a commuting bike is a good idea. You will be able to set it up racks, fenders, comfortable and more reliable tires/wheels and perhaps an even more comfortable riding position. I expect around Milwaukee, a used bike can be found.

Whatever you decide, good luck and enjoy Milwaukee. I miss biking there. BTW, great article in current issue of rail-to-trails on biking around Milwaukee.

You can probably find a used bike for cheap on your local CL that will better suit your needs.

Edit: If someone hasn't mentioned it already, you might look like a tool commuting/touring on an Emonda ALR.

I'm not particularly interested in getting another bike, I just got a tri bike, and frankly want to still get use out of my Emonda. Also, if it was a much shorter commute and I was planning on using it through all conditions I would probably look for something like an old cross' bike or gravel bike on ebay that has spots for racks and panniers. Considering the distance and the fact that it is entirely on pavement I really don't see why the Emonda wouldn't work fine with 28mm tires.

As much as I want purpose built bikes for everything, I really don't think it's necessary for me to have a road bike, a faster road bike (my tri/tt bike), and a slow, road bike (a purpose-built touring bike). Plus, a decent touring bike is going to cost more than the most expensive Tafflin setup, and a crappy one isn't going to make me want to ride.

Also, for long-distance, my current Emonda has never given me any neck or back issues on 10+ hour 200mi+ rides, so I don't particularly feel the need to find a mildly comfier bike that would likely be slower.

Coming back to the suggestions,
The idea of P-clamps sounds great! I'll have to figure out if it's feasible.

Here's where I was coming from: trying to hack some bags onto a bike that isn't designed for them (isn't designed with attachment points, isn't designed to handle well with the weight) is problematic, at best. You can probably carry enough for work, but loaded bikepacking…?But, if you are determined to try, I'll make a couple suggestions: you can get a good-sized handlebar bag like this, which removes easily for those times when you don't need the capacity - and it might carry enough for your work commute. There are also some good-sized saddle bags - the kind that stick out pretty far in the rear for more capacity - and also top-tube bags, all of which just strap on without needing dedicated attachment points. Items like those will help if your panniers can't haul enough cargo.

PS: If you've been on bf for a while, you should know that the solution is ALWAYS to buy another bike. :)

I disagree with this completely, suggesting that I need to buy another bike even though mine can be retrofitted for these purposes quite easily is ridiculous.
Heres the story of a guy who biked the Great Divide on a $250 mountain bike https://bikepacking.com/plog/great-d...-route-basics/
Here is the race bike Mark Beaumont used to bike around the world in 79 days https://www.koga.com/en/bikes/race/c...d-disc?frame=H

I'm just looking for some solutions to add bags to my bike for occasional commutes and to store a few things if I decide ones every few months to do a 400ish mile ride.

You know what, I take back what I said in my earlier post, I can never have enough bikes... I'm probably not going to buy a purpose-built touring bike, but seriously, I want a fat bike, a gravel bike, a 'cross bike, a mountain bike... it never ends.

This bike would tick some boxes for you. Put on fenders and a rack or two, and you would have an excellent commuter that can carry up to 50 lbs (rated) for light touring...And it'll take tires up to 43mm wide, which is great for exploring gravel roads. I even did a few gravel races (with no fenders or rack, though) on mine before buying a dedicated gravel bike.

Surly, and some other companies, make similar bikes.

That Tailfin looks ideal for your situation. I have primarily ridden my race bike to work for many years, in order to incorporate training on the way in or to hit Tuesday Night Worlds after. I totally get wanting to ride a nice road bike on the road. The idea that a road bike is unsuited for a paved commute is baffling.

You could also swap out the carbon seat post for an alloy one, and go with a beam rack like this: https://www.topeak.com/global/en/pro...frame-(v-type) It's a bit cheaper than the Tailfin. I just got one to commutify my CX bike. Haven't used it yet, though.

Beautiful bike, but I also just found https://oldmanmountain.com/product/s...ete-bike-rack/
+2 panniers it comes out to $326 which isn't terrible.

Also, I recently created a thread asking about adding clip-on aero bars to my Emonda for Triathalon/distance riding and ended up spending $3000 on an Argon 18 disc tri bike, $150 on a sweet hydration unit, and $300 on a fitting. I still need to buy a powermeter for it (e.g. my powermeter compatibility thread I've also made) which will range from $650-$800, so I'm a lil broke lol.

Also a good suggestion, I do love my carbon seatpost, but would also love to commute, interesting idea.

I leave clothes at work to change into and bring as little as possible on the bike. That way, I get by with a small messenger bag if I want to.

With an alloy seatpost you can attach a seatpost rack. Or you can modify a threadless stem and a cut down handlebar and use those to mount a handlebar bag behind your saddle. Here's one I made. This is on a cheap steel seatpost just to show how I did it. With some seatposts and the right stem you may not need a shim on the seatpost. You can also use a larger handlebar bag than what's shown here. The Great thing is that the handlebar bag does not affect steering even if the bag id loaded heavily.

https://cimg9.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...3b1c187402.jpg
https://cimg0.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...e9c3ccb66c.jpg
https://cimg1.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...3caae761d5.jpg
https://cimg2.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...7a6bdd7b12.jpg
https://cimg3.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...cef9a8ad0b.jpg
https://cimg5.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...0548b37f96.jpg

Cheers

That's a heavy duty rack (700g) with 70 lb. capacity. Seems overkill for an Emonda.

One option, if the bike is fairly tall, is to get a bikepacking handlebar roll-bag if you can find one that holds your laptop. Reasonably priced, minimal weight and aero penalty.

I tried to avoid having a rack on my road bike, but eventually settled on this https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01HOVDODM (only $22 is a plus). No pannier support, but personally I couldn't trust my laptop to a seatpost mount in any event. It's great for the non-laptop commutes though.

Didn't realize it could hold that much, I'll also consider a handlebar bag, I just feel like it may impact handling a bit much, and there are constant high winds in this area (and I don't intend to move slowly through those winds).

As noted, I'd probably need to get an alloy seatpost, while my bike is alloy, the handlbar, stem, seatpost, and wheels are all carbon (although I did just get some "value" alloy wheels which I'll probably toss on). I'm considering this as an option.

Firebird: I just went thru this whole analysis with my carbon Super X and Tailfin turned out to be too expensive because you can’t use regular pannier bags. You have to buy theirs. Here’s what I did. I bought a thru axle from Robert Axle Project. They make a special thru axle that you can screw a regular m5 bolt into each end. I then took my Blackburn rack that was set up for attachment to the rear wheel via quick release and then drilled out the holes a little (simple) to accept the bolts instead of quick release skewers. The rack is then screwed into the ends of the Robert Thru Axle. The other end of the rack attaches to the seat post via a seat post rack adapter. Simple solution to otherwise expensive problem.

Have to wonder whether that OMM rack has a fit kit for narrow seatstays. They are really designed for MTBs and other off-road bikes.

For the upper mounting point, consider something like this. But depending on the size of your bike, you might need super-long rack stays to reach that high.

https://www.amazon.com/M-Wave-Clamp-...56313275&psc=1

With that threadless stem adapter I posted above, you can put a large handlebar bag on it without it affecting the bicycle handling.

Cheers