Inflatable Kayaks

[TrekTheKaty]

My DH bought me a kayak last year that was collecting dust, because I didn't have wheels or a rack--have to borrow DH's truck and strap it into the bed. However, on vacation I discovered my sister-in-law has two qayak inflatables (www.qayak.com). I never thought thought they would be sturdy, but they used to own a sailboat and did a lot of research before they purchased them. We deflated them to get them in the SUV with the bikes, but left them inflated and tied them on the roof rack for the ride home.

I hadn't bought myself the kayak yet, because I saw the rack, paddle, PDF's, etc were going to be expensive. Luckily, a friend donated the paddle. I also wasn't sure I could handle the kayak on my own. I just purchased wheels and they make a huge difference--worth every penny. However, DH is now interested in buying a second kayak! Having a buddy would make loading easier, but I have no idea where we'd store them both

LPH--what's your technique? I want a roof rack, but I'm pretty sure I couldn't get it up there by myself?!

[lph]

LPH--what's your technique? I want a roof rack, but I'm pretty sure I couldn't get it up there by myself?!

sorry! Didn't see this before now.

Basically I lift one end up first on to the rear supports, then slide the kayak up and over. This was such a great trick to learn so I'll specify it fully here:

I have a standard Thule kayak carrier (874, w/4 rubber supports), on the roof rack of a Toyota Carina sedan. I place a folded wool blanket (a towel or small mat would be even better, but we have blankets in the car) over the rear supports, and another one over the trunk. Nothing covering the rear window, but with a different type of car you might need something there.

I then lift the kayak onto the rear end of the car from behind, so that the rudder end rests on or over the wool-covered rear supports, and the middle of the kayak rests on the wool-covered trunk. My kayak is quite flat-bottomed in the middle, so it's quite stable in this position. The bow of the kayak either rests on the ground, or I'm holding it, depending on whether I've lifted the kayak from my shoulder or from the ground.

Then I just push to slide the kayak up and over, until it's in place. Push the rear end down to slide the kayak forward. Wiggle the mat or blanket out from under the rear supports, strap and go.

This is in fact easier for me to do than lift the kayak up with the help of another person! And it gives me perfect freedom to go anywhere alone.

With a more v-shaped kayak the whole procedure would be more wobbly, but I should think still doable. Thule does make a carrier with felt-covered rear supports, but they are flat rather than curved, and to my mind do not support the kayak very well. Especially when driving alone I need the peace of mind that my kayak is secured as well as possible.

Oh, and I have a Prijon Catalina in HTP plastic, it's 4,64 m (just over 15 ft) long and weighs 24 kg (~53 lbs). I'm fairly strong, but not especially tall, 5 ft 5. With a glassfibre kayak I might want to have a mat of some sort under the bow as well, since it tends to get ground into the dirt a bit while lifting.

[tulip]

If you have an SUV, you should really consider a Thule Hullavator rack. Spendy, yes, but alot cheaper than throwing out your back. I can't justify it because I have a small car (VW Rabbit), but I've seen one in action and it is very, very nifty.

[Cataboo]

To get the boat up, I have this:
http://www.fasttrackracks.com/p-227-...t-rollers.aspx

The yakima hully rollers on the back, the mako saddles on the front.

I've also got the yakima boat loader:
http://www.yakima.com/racks/kayak-ra...oatloader.aspx

So I just lift the end of the boat or put the end of the boat on the boat loader arm which sticks out from my roof rack, then slide the boat up the armon to the front saddles, then I can use the rollers to push the boat forward or back to where I want it...

I've got a 2nd set of saddles/rollers the next side over, so I can just leverage the boat & put it over on the 2nd set...

I also have an easier time of getting the boat on my roof than having an inexperienced person helping me - if I've got another person, we do just sorta lift the boat onto the car, one holding the front and one holding the back.

I've done the use a blanket thing when I first got a kayak, but if you have sand or grit on the bottom fo your boat and it's on your car (I kinda typically have a layer of sand on my roof in the summer), you don't want to slide anything along the roof...

The rollers have a lock so they don't move when you don't want them to, and I tie down the boat pretty securely - I've gone 80 mph for like 13 hours with my boats on my roof without any problems.

I'm 5'1, the car is a subaru outback so it's fairly high for me, but not SUV high.

Boats range from 16-18 feet long, prob 42-60 lbs. I don't have a problem carrying them.