"Cracked Pumpkinhead" wrote in
ups.com:

"You don't *need* a rack to transport a kayak on your roof."
So there are no laws on carrying Kayaks? I just don't want to get
ticketed. Actually, whats really more important is that I don't loose
the kayak on the highway or tear off my roof LMAO.

"You can use carpet scraps to protect the car's finish instead of a
rack. Just make sure you tie it down at the bow, AND the stern, AND
use a belly line (a little tricky without a rack, but you can probably
improvise something)."
No problem, I guess I will figure something out. Maybe combine the
inflatable or foam rack systems both Courtney and Julia suggested with
straps at the bow and stern?

I prefer rope for the bow and stern lines. Cam straps can get real noisy
and you don't need (or want) them to be real tight. The bow and stern lines
are to keep the boat from launching down the road if the rack (even if
you're using an expensive permanent system) fails. With a plastic kayak
it's not too difficult to tighten the bow and stern lines so much that it
starts to bend the boat.

Belly line??? Does that go around the
whole car, kayak and all?

Open up the doors and feed the line through the vehicle and then over the
kayak. Tighten it down snug. Once you've got everything tightened down grab
the kayak and give it a shake. The whole vehicle should move rather than
the kayak moving back and forth on the cab of the vehicle.

Thanks for the info Walt. I will check out local Buy & Sells,
classifieds etc.

Keeping an eye on classifieds this time of year for a boat is a good idea as
well. Lots of paddlers are buying new boats and some of them are even
selling off their old boats when they do it. Used kayaks might have some
cosmetic damage in the form of a few scratches but in most cases they're as
functional as new. A good quality kayak can last a very long time. I've
got a fiberglass boat in the backyard that I bought as my first sea kayak.
It's 15 years old and still paddles great.

Your post was very relieving. I was stressing over
transporting a kayak ever since I spoke to kayak and rack dealers who
were claiming that I MUST have all this equipment for safety reasons
and that it is EXTREMELY dangerous to secure it my own way with ropes,
bungee's, foam etc. They really freaked me out! ha ha. I guess they
have to stay in business somehow eh.

You might want to shop around at other shops that are less inclined to scare
you into buying something although they were right about the use of bungees.
Never use bungies. Use rope and/or cam straps.