SEND IT HIGH ROLLER TAILGATE PAD REVIEW

Words & Photos by Sourpatch

As a truck-owning mountain biker, there is no easier way to transport bikes to the trailhead than just being able to throw the bike onto a tailgate pad and head out. Since our Tailgate Pad roundup video, more and more offerings have been popping up with new brands entering the space. One such brand is Send It, a Colorado based company whose sole product – outside of some apparel – is the High Roller Tailgate Pad. With so many tailgate pads on the market, where does the High Roller stand, and where does it stack up against some of our favorite pads?

ABOUT THE SEND IT HIGH ROLLER TAILGATE PAD

The Send It High Roller Tailgate Pad is available in two sizes, the mid-size and the full-size we tested. Send It follows the standard carrying capacity, which is 5 and 6 bikes for their respective pad sizes. The full-size pad has an interior measurement of 59-inches by 12-inches, and an exterior measurement of 63-inches by 23.5-inches. These measurements do not include the section that folds over the lip, which maintains a 63-inch width.

Send It designed the High Roller with reverse-feed straps, which slide on to G-Hooks on the exterior of the pad for easy installation. Microfiber fleece lines the inside of the tailgate pad to protect your vehicle’s paint from unnecessary scratches. Most notable are the large foam blocks running along the lip of the High Roller Pad. Instead of just one large piece of foam like the Sensus Bachelor pad uses, Send It opted to divide theirs into sections to allow the pad to fit a number of vehicles easier. Foam blocks can also be found on the exterior of the pad for added protection.

Other features built into the pad include wide, square security grommets to run a bike lock through, in an effort to prevent pad theft…cause that’s a thing apparently. There’s a decently sized zippered pocket on the interior portion of the pad to store small essentials. The High Roller Tailgate Pad also features a unique sliding panel, which is used to access the tailgate handle and backup camera.

At $225, the High Roller is a reasonably priced tailgate pad given its premium features, and is available in black only.

THE DIRT

INSTALLATION | For reference, the vehicle used in this test is my 2015 GMC Sierra 2500HD. It has a tailgate that measures 62-inches by 23.5-inches on the exterior and has an interior width of 59.5-inches. Due to the High Roller tailgate pad’s width and height, there is a sliver of tailgate visible from the interior and exterior of the bed. Centering the pad is crucial to ensure successful closing of the tailgate. There is quite a bit of heft to this pad compared to the competition, and it is noticeable while trying to fit the pad to the tailgate.

Installed, the pad still fits loosely over the bed despite being designed around newer GM trucks. It may not slide much due to its width, but it certainly is a lot easier for dirt to get between the pad and the tailgate. If my tailgate was half an inch taller, things may be a little different. I did run into another hiccup – my handle-located backup camera is not compatible with the sliding door. This door is very neat on paper, but a miss in reality for my particular vehicle. I also found the sliding door requires two hands to slide down the guides properly. It’s not a big deal, but most other handle “flaps” are easy to use one handed.

IN USE | As a tailgate pad, the Send It High Roller does exactly what it needs to do. That is, get your bikes from point A to point B and keep them in place along the way. Analog bikes transported as well as one would expect. They fit inside the Velcro keepers and stayed put fairly well during our trips to the trail. The padding on the High Roller tailgate pad is hardly put to use with the lighter weight bikes. When it came time to haul our favorite ebikes to the trail, the pad performed equally as well. Although the straps are too small for the beefier ebike downtubes, the bikes still stayed in place well despite my efforts to get them to slide. The way Send It designed the thick foam padding into separate rows aids in keeping the heavier bikes in place with the way the foam can deform around the down tube. I do think that the amount of foam used to protect the downtubes could be shaved down a tiny bit with how dense the foam is.

The option to stow pedals and other small pieces of gear in the small, zippered pouch has come in handy a time or two as well. Always a nice bonus when there is a storage option integrated into a tailgate pad.

From a durability standpoint, the Send It High Roller has tested exceptionally well over the last couple months of winter use. The vinyl material has stood up to the elements quite well, and despite a loose fit, the microfiber liner is just as clean.

HOW DOES IT COMPARE | Prior to testing the Send It High Roller, I had been running the Sensus Bachelor Pad V2. Though it was not my top pick from our Tailgate Pad Round up, it is the pad that was most convenient for my needs. Both the Bachelor Pad and High Roller were designed around newer GM trucks. The High Roller fits better in terms of width, whereas the Bachelor Pad fits better in terms of height and closeness to the tailgate. The Bachelor Pad also gets a point for working with my back-up camera. The High Roller is easier to install and remove, being minutes faster. The High Roller’s standard hook and loop straps also haven’t damaged my paint like the Bachelor Pad’s extra wide Velcro straps have done. Both pads have great padding and protection, but the High Roller is the only pad capable of fastening bikes, albeit analog only, in place with downtube straps. The lack of branding on the Bachelor Pad gives Sensus a small bonus point. That all said, both pads have their pros and cons, and if you don’t have paint protection on your tailgate, the High Roller may be the way to go.

The Wolf’s Last Word

If you are in the market for a new tailgate pad, the Send It High Roller should make it on your short list, depending on your vehicle. The High Roller offers full tailgate coverage and then some, ample padding and protection for your bikes, and is one of the quickest pads to install and remove. It is on the more expensive side of the tailgate pad market at $225, though justifiable when compared to other pads in this price range.

Price: $225
Website: Senditco.com