riverman wrote:

"Frederick Burroughs" wrote in message
...


The canoe is heavy royalex, weighing about 78 lb. I can get it on the
Beetle by myself, but it's a little bit of a strain. Getting it on and off
my wife's truck by myself is a pain. The kayak is half the weight of the
canoe, so cartopping barely outweighs the thought it takes to do it.


As a canoeist who refuses to cross to the dark side, I can suggest several
ways to cartop your heavy canoe. A simple method is to drag it, rightside
up, to the car, perpendicular at the front door. Then lift the bow and
drag/lay it on the top of the cab. Lift the stern, and walk around the side
of the truck until the boat is lying lengthwise on the cab, drop the stern
to raise the bow, and shove it forward.

This works best if your racks are a bit close together, so that the initial
laydown is on a rack rather than on the roof itself. The moment you lift the
stern with the bow laying on the roof is the tricky moment...you have to
keep the bow from falling off as you start the walkaround. You could even
run a brace between the two racks to provide a bar to lay the canoe onto at
first.


Elegant! I'm always humbled when presented with a solution that is
simple and overlooked. Much obliged.





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