You ever go out for a group bike ride and see one of those
fancy-schmancy ultra-light carbon fiber frames laboring under the
corpulence of a pudgy cyclist? Hey, there’s nothing wrong with being a
pudgy cyclist. Many of us at Woot have been pudgy cyclists for years,
and lead happy, fulfilling lives. But what’s the sense in paying piles
of money to shave a few ounces off your bike when you’re gonna be
carrying thirty extra pounds of gut flab anyway?
We
thought of those guys—the hefty riders with the featherweight
rides—when we read the Wally LiftMate’s promo copy, which leads off
with the self-evidently false claim that “lifting and lowering a bike
isn’t easy for anyone.”
This is pretty close to the opposite of true. Bikes just aren’t that heavy. (And in fact, if your bike is especially heavy, you may be out of luck. To use the LiftMate, your bike must weigh under 37 pounds.)
But
that doesn’t mean Wally’s LiftMate isn’t still pretty sweet. And
there’s no rule that says a task has to be super arduous before you’re
allowed to employ technology that makes it easier. Reading a road map’s
a cinch, but if you want a GPS navigation
aid in your car anyway, we say go for it. And if you want a self-rising
bike hanger even though hanging a bike up on regular old screw hooks is
not very hard—well, god bless you.
A small part of our brain
rejects this particular labor-saver because it’s exercise-related. (If
you use the LiftMate to put your bike up after a ride, is that like
driving to the gym to walk on their treadmill?) But the main part, the
part that buys stuff, that part is just going: “hunh. That’s kind of
cool.”
We’re hoping you’ve got that part in your brain, too.
Warranty: 90 Day Woot
Features:
The Wally LiftMate is a self-rising bike hanger. This unique, wall
mounted bike rack will lift your bike for you. Its patented design uses
an internal hydraulic spring to lift and store your bike high on the
wall just below the ceiling. No electric power or pulling on ropes.
Install it on drywall or studs in a garage, carport or any weather
protected location.
With
a little effort on your part, Wally will lift and store a bike weighing
less than 37 pounds and help you gently lower it to the floor. The
loading position is at a comfortable elevation and out far enough from
the wall so objects such as a workbench, furniture, shelving, lawn
mower, or anything up to 36” high and 30” deep can be stored below it.
When
nothing is stored on Wally, the lifting force is locked out so you can
easily push the empty Arm up against the wall for storage. Returning
the Arm to the loading position is just as easy.
Using the Wally LiftMate is fun and easy for nearly anyone over 5 feet tall.
- Bike must weigh less than 37 pounds.
- Distance between handlebars and back of seat must not
exceed 34” unless bike seat can be hooked at the front edge (preferred)
rather than the back edge.
- Minimum ceiling height of 96” is required for standard installation.
- If your ceiling height is 96”, no part of the bike may extend more than 7” above the handlebars as shown:
- The maximum height of the handlebars and the seat is 41” as shown:
- For installation of the Wall Bracket on a wall stud
(preferred method), the studs must be construction grade, wooden 2×4’s
or better with the 1-1/2” face being the attachment surface.
- For installation of the Wall Bracket on drywall between
studs (permitted for residential use only), the wall must be
constructed as described above for wall stud installation AND studs must be located on 16” centers, minimum. Also, drywall must be ½” thick minimum, properly nailed to studs, and painted.