I'm about to trade in my pickup truck for a Toyota Corolla. What would
be the best/easist way to transport my 16' canoe? I want to be able to
load it myself. I was thinking about some good quality racks, like
Yakima, and then use some good straps thru the windows so I don't have
to worry about the rack coming off.
Also how hard is it to remove the racks? Should I just leave them on?

In a previous article, said:
I'm about to trade in my pickup truck for a Toyota Corolla. What would
be the best/easist way to transport my 16' canoe? I want to be able to
load it myself. I was thinking about some good quality racks, like
Yakima, and then use some good straps thru the windows so I don't have
to worry about the rack coming off.
Also how hard is it to remove the racks? Should I just leave them on?

Yakima and Thule both make good racks that work with the Corolla. I
bought one for my 1992 Corolla, and had to buy new towers for my 2002
Corolla because the '92 had rain gutters and the '02 doesn't. You don't
have to run the straps through the windows, just tie the canoe to the
rack - it's on pretty sturdily.

I leave mine on when I know I'm going to be paddling again in a few days,
otherwise I take it off. It's not hard, just annoying. I'm a little
worried that it might be doing damage to the seal around the door, but I
haven't seen evidence of it yet.


--
Paul Tomblin http://xcski.com/blogs/pt/
USER, n.:
The word computer professionals use when they mean "idiot".

Paul Tomblin wrote:

Yakima and Thule both make good racks that work with the Corolla. I
bought one for my 1992 Corolla, and had to buy new towers for my 2002
Corolla because the '92 had rain gutters and the '02 doesn't. You
don't
have to run the straps through the windows, just tie the canoe to the
rack - it's on pretty sturdily.

I noticed that Yakima sells these L shaped things called gunwale
brackets that go on the rack to keep the canoe from sliding from side
to side. Are they any good? It seems to me it would make it harder to
get the canoe on top of the car since you would have to guide it thru
those brackets.

Thanks for the info!

wrote in message
oups.com...

I'm about to trade in my pickup truck for a Toyota Corolla. What would
be the best/easist way to transport my 16' canoe? I want to be able to
load it myself. I was thinking about some good quality racks, like
Yakima, and then use some good straps thru the windows so I don't have
to worry about the rack coming off.
Also how hard is it to remove the racks? Should I just leave them on?


Ulp, your post shows a fatal flaw in your thinking!! If you secure the canoe
correctly, the lines over the bottom are NOT the ones that will hold it on!
The best way to secure a boat on a car is as follows:

1) Place the boat on the roof racks. Be sure, for aerodynamics, that the
canoe is centered over the wheels, not over the hood. That means the front
of the canoe sticks a few feet past the front bumper, the back sticks a few
feet past the back bumper, and the roof is probably NOT in the center of the
canoe. Most likely, the front roof rack is right at the center of the canoe,
and the back roof rack is way off at the end of the canoe.

2) Slide the canoe back about a foot. In some cases, in cars with long
hoods, the canoe will not sit on the roofracks at this point and needs to be
slid back a little to balance. Be CERTAIN, however, that the ends of the
canoe still protrude beyond the ends of the car, front and rear.

3) Tie a line from the front of the canoe down to the front bumper. For the
best rig, tie a line from the bow of the canoe out to the ends of the
bumper, making a triangle with the vertex on the canoe. Otherwise, a single
line from the canoe to the license plate is okay, but not as good. **This
line should be hauled tight enough to lift the stern of the canoe up off the
back roof rack about 6 inches.**

4) Go around back and tie a line from the back of the canoe down to the
center of the rear bumper. Haul down on this line. This should pull the
canoe back down onto the rear roof rack, and provide enough downward force
to 'lock it down' onto the roof racks, and 'lock down' the roof racks onto
the roof of your car.

5) Be EXTRA certain that the two end lines are not pulling in the same
direction; what I mean is that, if the canoe is longer than your car (which
is probably is), that the ends of the canoe still extend beyond the car. Be
sure that both tie down lines aren't trying to pull the canoe forwards. If
so, it will slide forwards and the lines will be slack. The lines should be
both pulling down and in. This is a common mistake, and people are baffled
why their lines keep coming loose.

6) Now, you are practically done. Your midline straps are only to keep the
canoe from slipping sideways on the roof racks. As such, they only have to
loop over the boat and secure on the roofracks. The fact that you asked if
you ought to run them through the windows shows that you weren't sure which
lines secure your boat. Some folks don't even use midline straps; a buddy of
mine just has little bumpers he uses to keep the boat from moving sideways.
If you try to tie on a canoe without end lines, you run the risk of the boat
'twisting' on the roof and coming right off, regardless of how hard you haul
down on the midlines. No matter what you hear from other people, trust me on
this, USE END LINES!

--riverman

riverman wrote:

6) Now, you are practically done. Your midline straps are only to
keep the
canoe from slipping sideways on the roof racks. As such, they only
have to
loop over the boat and secure on the roofracks. The fact that you
asked if
you ought to run them through the windows shows that you weren't sure
which
lines secure your boat. Some folks don't even use midline straps; a
buddy of
mine just has little bumpers he uses to keep the boat from moving
sideways.
If you try to tie on a canoe without end lines, you run the risk of
the boat
'twisting' on the roof and coming right off, regardless of how hard
you haul
down on the midlines. No matter what you hear from other people,
trust me on
this, USE END LINES!

That's an interesting theory. I've always tried to put the bow behind
the front of the car, that way the wind will actually tighten the line
running from the bow to the front of the car. I see your point though.
I'll have to think about this.

In a previous article, said:
I noticed that Yakima sells these L shaped things called gunwale
brackets that go on the rack to keep the canoe from sliding from side
to side. Are they any good? It seems to me it would make it harder to
get the canoe on top of the car since you would have to guide it thru
those brackets.

Yes, that's what I have. They're only an inch or so high, so it's easy to
lift it over. You can losen them without tools, so you could open them up
some before you put your canoe up and then push them in tight, if you need
to, but I never have.

I rarely tie down the front and rear unless I'm going to be driving it for
hours - between the gunwale brackets and tying the canoe to the rack bars,
it's rock solid.

--
Paul Tomblin http://xcski.com/blogs/pt/
It seems that we were audited recently, and the auditors found a certain
'f' word in the comments of a configuration file, and deemed that this
is a 'security risk'. -- Paul Fenwick

wrote in message
oups.com...

riverman wrote:

6) Now, you are practically done. Your midline straps are only to
keep the
canoe from slipping sideways on the roof racks. As such, they only
have to
loop over the boat and secure on the roofracks. The fact that you
asked if
you ought to run them through the windows shows that you weren't sure
which
lines secure your boat. Some folks don't even use midline straps; a
buddy of
mine just has little bumpers he uses to keep the boat from moving
sideways.
If you try to tie on a canoe without end lines, you run the risk of
the boat
'twisting' on the roof and coming right off, regardless of how hard
you haul
down on the midlines. No matter what you hear from other people,
trust me on
this, USE END LINES!

That's an interesting theory. I've always tried to put the bow behind
the front of the car, that way the wind will actually tighten the line
running from the bow to the front of the car. I see your point though.
I'll have to think about this.


Its more than a theory. I've lashed a LOT of canoes onto roofs, and this
method has proven to be bombproof. I've also noticed that the wind has a
much smaller effect than braking; things lashed on roofs tend to work
themselves forward instead of backwards. But try some ideas out for yourself
and let us know what you discover.

--riverman

On 11-Jan-2005, "riverman" wrote:

Be sure, for aerodynamics, that the
canoe is centered over the wheels, not over the hood.

I'm trying to figure out why this should be so.

**This
line should be hauled tight enough to lift the stern of the canoe up off the
back roof rack about 6 inches.**

4) Go around back and tie a line from the back of the canoe down to the
center of the rear bumper. Haul down on this line. This should pull the
canoe back down onto the rear roof rack, and provide enough downward force
to 'lock it down' onto the roof racks, and 'lock down' the roof racks onto
the roof of your car.

The results of this arbitrary 6" lift will be highly dependent on the amount
of stretch in the line, on the distance between the rack crossbars and on
the type of canoe you're tying down. Stiff lines on a light canoe mounted on
closely spaced crossbars could break the hull while soft lines on a WW canoe
with widely spaced bars may have little effect.

Mike

"Michael Daly" wrote in message
...
On 11-Jan-2005, "riverman" wrote:

Be sure, for aerodynamics, that the
canoe is centered over the wheels, not over the hood.

I'm trying to figure out why this should be so.

Hi Mike. When the car is going straight with a direct headwind, it *is*
irrelevant. But having the boat far to the rear, as many people tend to do
instinctively when they center it over the cockpit of the car, gives you a
'sway' if you have a sidewind, or if you get a blast from a passing
tractor-trailer. If the canoe is centered, you only get a lean. It also
distributes the weight evenly on the car: otherwise you ride like you have a
loaded rear end.


**This
line should be hauled tight enough to lift the stern of the canoe up off
the
back roof rack about 6 inches.**

4) Go around back and tie a line from the back of the canoe down to the
center of the rear bumper. Haul down on this line. This should pull the
canoe back down onto the rear roof rack, and provide enough downward
force
to 'lock it down' onto the roof racks, and 'lock down' the roof racks
onto
the roof of your car.

The results of this arbitrary 6" lift will be highly dependent on the
amount
of stretch in the line, on the distance between the rack crossbars and on
the type of canoe you're tying down. Stiff lines on a light canoe mounted
on
closely spaced crossbars could break the hull while soft lines on a WW
canoe
with widely spaced bars may have little effect.

Yes, you are completely correct. 6" is an approximation of what I used with
my boat, but your response shows that you perceive the situation clearly. I
should have said 'enough tension to raise the stern of the canoe a small
amount, so that when you tie down the stern, it tightens the bow line
significantly."

--riverman

Mike

If you drive around with the roof rack or anything else on the top of the
car you'll use more fuel. I even keep the boat tied low to the roof to
reduce drag. My roof rack consists of two pieces of rolled up carpet. In
this case the strap actually holds the boat to the car, not to the rack.

I would not pull the front of the canoe down 6" and tie it off as described.
It might crack or distort some canoes. I'd just make sure it was tied on
snug.

I use only the straps to drive along residential streets over to the
river, 1 mile away, speed limit 35 mph, but tie the ends down when going
further and faster.

When tying down the ends each is tied with a 12 foot length of 1//4 inch
rope. One end is tied to one end of the bumper (actually to the ring under
the bumper they used to tie the car down on the boat from Asia where it
was made) with a bowline knot, passed up and through the ring on the bow
of the boat, then down to the other bumper ring where it is snugged up
with a trucker's hitch. Same on the back. When the boat comes off the roof
of the car the two lines are tied to the ends as painters.

There are photos on my website under "Boats" (Dogskiff, Loonie, Delta).


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