What is a bicycle stabilizer? A bicycle stabilizer is a small cycling accessory that you add to your existing bicycle to stop the front wheel from turning and prevent your bicycle from tilting, sliding or completely falling over whenever its placed in a leaned or parked position.
You know what I’m talking about, don’t you? You go for a bike ride and pull over on the side of the road to take a photo, eat a snack, drink some water, go to the bathroom or simply give your backside a break from the saddle. You get off your bike, lean it up against some nearby object, quickly check to make sure the bike is balanced in such a way that it won’t fall over when you let go, and then you walk away.
Seconds later, you turn your back, the wind blows, or your front wheel turns and there’s suddenly a loud crash! Your bicycle has fallen over – slamming to the ground in a sad metal heap.
It’s at this point that you run over to your bicycle, pick it up, check for any potential damage, lean the bike back up against that same object, and hope that this time around you can position the bike in such a way that it won’t fall over again.
Pretty much every person who has ever owned a bicycle has encountered this scenario at one point or another. And this is the problem that steering stabilizers aim to fix!
Here are five of the most popular bicycle stabilizers:
The SteerStopper – A new, independently produced bicycle accessory designed to fix the problem of having your bicycle tilt, slide or completely fall over whenever its placed in a leaned or parked position. This high-quality, elegantly-designed, CNC machined bicycle stabilizer will last a lifetime and can be used in conjunction with a kickstand,
Clickstand or other brake application device to park your bike in almost any situation or scenario. The
SteerStopper is probably the best bicycle stabilizer on the market, but it’s also the most expensive.
Velo Orange Wheel Stabilizer – What is probably both the most inexpensive and, at the same time, the most popular product currently available in the bicycle wheel stabilization market, the Velo Orange Wheel Stabilizer is a cheap, “Made-in-China” cycling accessory designed to perform the same basic function as the
SteerStopper. While the Velo Orange Wheel Stabilizer may be far less expensive than the
SteerStopper, it’s not very well made. Reviews on
Amazon site the product’s poor construction and its use on a loaded touring bicycle is far from recommended, as the product simply doesn’t seem to be able to support the weight you find on most loaded touring bikes. This is not a problem with the
SteerStopper, which has been designed with loaded touring bicycles in mind!
Hebie Steering Damper – The Hebie steering damper uses a spring to prevent the front wheel from turning when you need it not to. If you’re carrying heavy loads on the front of your bicycle it can be useful to have a steering damper on your bike so that the steering doesn’t “flop” when the bike is in a parked position. Similar to the Velo Orange Wheel Stablizer, the spring used in this inexpensive product isn’t strong enough to handle the loads often carried by traveling cyclists on loaded touring bicycles. Plus, the spring on this product is always in a locked position, which ultimately affects how the bike handles when you are riding it.
Steering Stabilizer for Azor – This spring loaded stabilizer connects the fork to the down tube. It adds a subtle self-centering action to the front wheel, making loading and unloading of a bike a breeze. With the steering stabilizer in position, you won’t have to fight the bike while loading up your gear – the front of the bike stays put! The spring offers some resistance to steering as well, so it subtly counteracts your turns when riding the bike. The SteerStopper, on the other hand, remains completely disengaged when you aren’t using it, meaning it won’t affect the way your bicycle handles when the product is not in use.
Rhode Gear Flick Stand – Finally, this simple piece of engineering is probably my favorite of the SteerStopper competitors. Sadly, the company is no longer in business and older versions of the Flick Stand are almost impossible to find on the market today. Like the Velo Orange Wheel Stabilizer, however, the Flick Stand is mounted on the down tube of your bicycle and is relatively inconspicuous. When you want to lock your front wheel in place, simply flick out the small metal clip, move your wheel forward a little bit, and then the Flick Stand will lock your wheel in position with the use of friction and pressure. Then, when you want to unlock the wheel, simply roll your front wheel backward a bit, at which point the Flick Stand will disengage and you can continue on your way.
Bicycle stabilizers are not common in the cycling world, but they are useful in some scenarios… and they become even more useful if you are riding a bicycle with a heavy front end – such as you might find on a loaded touring bicycle.
