"Frederick Burroughs" wrote in message
...
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.



I forgot to mention that you can turn the canoe over so its bottom-up either
when you place the bow on the roof, or after you have it set on the racks. I
usually do it when I place the bow on the roof at first. You can also place
it rightside up, and just walk to the midship and roll it over (I do this
when my back is out). Also, if you want to protect your rooftop from
scratches (especially if you have a metal bowplate), putting your kneepads
or a small carpet down and placing the bowplate on it will help.

--riverman