BCITORGB wrote in message
oups.com...
Mike says:
=============
Inflatable roofrack + sea kayak = either badly dented roof or lost
boat.
Probably both. I'd encourage you to fit some proper bars, probably
Thule,
and Thule J bars or similar.
=============

This seems to contradict previous posts. Like Cracked Pumpkinhead, I'm
among the uninitiated and am following this with great interest. My
emotions, right now, are like roller coaster...

Yeh, I know - sorry! Have a look here
http://www.ukriversguidebook.co.uk/f...pic.php?t=6544 - UKRGB (
http://www.ukriversguidebook.co.uk/) is a UK site with an active forum and
this very subject got discussed a while back. Accepting that we're talking
river-boats and hire cars, the principles remains true.

You said you have a small car and even allowing for bow and stern ropes,
you're going to apply some serious leverage to the roof once you've got a
sea boat up there.

Just by way of a wee addition to the debate, a friend was telling me of
being down in N Wales watching a client of ND Kayaks loading her brand new
ND Explorer onto a small European car and using inflaters. The roof dented
to the extent where it didnt recover. A lot of money to fix.

On a personal basis, my sea boat cost me well over a months salary - no way
am I going to entrust something so precious to me to either a blow-up tube
or a few bits of foam. I'm not going to risk any damage to my car either so
for me anyway there's no alterantive to a proper set-up.

I bought Thule bars 5 years ago and they've been on three cars since - the
KCS J's were bought 10 years ago and are still fine. Seems a good bit of
value to me anyway. Now I dont want to get flamed and I realise I'm a new
boy here and that a whole lot of folk have advised that inflaters, or foam,
or whaever will be fine so I'll leave you to make your own decision.

Enjoy your new boat. Mike.

Mike says:
=============
Now I dont want to get flamed and I realise I'm a new
boy here and that a whole lot of folk have advised that inflaters, or
foam,
or whaever will be fine so I'll leave you to make your own decision.
===============

Mike, I think every bit helps us newbies inch towards our own
conclusions. Thanks for your bit.

Cheers,
Wilf
===========

Mike Buckley wrote:

On a personal basis, my sea boat cost me well over a months salary - no way
am I going to entrust something so precious to me to either a blow-up tube
or a few bits of foam. I'm not going to risk any damage to my car either so
for me anyway there's no alterantive to a proper set-up.

I bought Thule bars 5 years ago and they've been on three cars since - the
KCS J's were bought 10 years ago and are still fine. Seems a good bit of
value to me anyway. Now I dont want to get flamed and I realise I'm a new
boy here and that a whole lot of folk have advised that inflaters, or foam,
or whaever will be fine so I'll leave you to make your own decision.

Disliking Thule due to two bad design examples (VW polo and a Nissan
something), I bought a Halfords "Mont Blanc" set of roofrails-mounted
roofracks.

They've already lasted me for several cars now, although I did exchange
the crossbars for an extra wide crossbar three cars ago.

I always use straps to tie boats to the roofrack, and I have yet to see
one that has been strapped to my roof come off, even when doing high
speed (160+km/h ~100+mph) emergency braking on the German highway.

Wilko

P.S. Granted, I did have one boat fly off the roof at one time, because
it wasn't tied on at all... At least it stayed on for several kilometres
of winding roads through the hills, before finally flying off after I
went down one hill at around 100 km/h ~60mph :-)

--
Wilko van den Bergh wilko(a t)dse(d o t)nl
Eindhoven The Netherlands Europe
---Look at the possibilities, don't worry about the limitations.---
http://wilko.webzone.ru/

"Wilko" wrote in message
...

...I did have one boat fly off the roof at one time, because it wasn't
tied on at all... At least it stayed on for several kilometres of winding
roads through the hills, before finally flying off after I went down one
hill at around 100 km/h ~60mph :-)

I once set a two piece fly rod in the rain gutter on the roof of a Geo
Tracker while loading up other gear for a fishing trip.

You guessed it......I forgot about the fly rod.

I drove from southeast Wisconsin to central Pennsylvania, something over 700
miles (in excess of 1130 kilometers,if I remember my Celsius to Fahrenheit
conversions) and was unpacking at the end of the trip when I noticed the
butt section still sitting exactly where I'd left it. The tip section is
MIA.

As you have probably guessed, the butt section of a two piece fly rod is
thoroughly useless without the corresponding tip section. With this in
mind, I left it where it was for the duration of my week long sojourn among
various trout streams in the company of good friends, and returned home via
more or less the same route with nary a deviation in my packing routine. I
still have that butt section.

Wolfgang
um......if anybody has a spare tip section to a seventies vintage sears 7
wt. fiberglass fly rod.......

Wolfgang wrote in message
...

"Wilko" wrote in message
...

...I did have one boat fly off the roof at one time, because it wasn't
tied on at all... At least it stayed on for several kilometres of
winding
roads through the hills, before finally flying off after I went down one
hill at around 100 km/h ~60mph :-)

I once set a two piece fly rod in the rain gutter on the roof of a Geo
Tracker while loading up other gear for a fishing trip.

You guessed it......I forgot about the fly rod. (Snipped good
story - - - )

Ok - more war stories:

1: Friend insisted on "securing" three river boats to his r/rack with those
bungees with wire hooks at each end - at a nice steady 80mph up the motorway
, a boat lifts. Wire hook on drivers side opens, bungee fires across roof
and smacks into passenger side window, breaking it, and somewhat alarming
passenger!

Boat continues to try and fly and of course the others are now airborne as
well - remaining bungee remains firmly in place and encourages three
airborne boats to rip roofrack off car, scattering boats and roofrack all
over M9 near Stirling (Scotland) . Damaged boats - badly damaged car -
destroyed roofrack - unbelivably, no other vehicles damaged!

2: Some years ago, spent happy day working on Series 3 Land Rover, the old
ones with leaf springs - placed full cup of coffee on the front bumper.
Jumped into Landy to go for test drive to check whatever I'd done,
forgetting about the coffee cup. Backed up steep drive, roared off, down
very steep (and quite bumpy) hill, round roundabout and back up said hill.

Coffee cup, and contents, still on the bumper! Cold mind you.

Isn't it wonderful how we can get sooooooo far off topic, sooooo easily????
LOL.

Mike.

"Wilko" wrote in message
...
Mike Buckley wrote:
Snip
Wilko

P.S. Granted, I did have one boat fly off the roof at one time, because
it wasn't tied on at all... At least it stayed on for several kilometres
of winding roads through the hills, before finally flying off after I
went down one hill at around 100 km/h ~60mph :-)

A guy I went kayaking with a while ago was also a pilot. When he parked he
pulled one of those red "Remove before flight" tags out of the car and stuck
it on the drivers side wiper blade. He said it is to remind him to do a walk
around the car to check that everything is in, on and tied down. Seems he
had, at one time, done the same thing. He set the boat on the car to take a
long lunch, planning to go back out on the water later. The weather went bad
and he changed his mind. Did the same as you. He said it stayed in place
much longer than he thought it would. Only sliding off the front and across
the hood a few miles down the road at a stop sign.

Ken

Wilko van den Bergh wilko(a t)dse(d o t)nl
Eindhoven The Netherlands Europe
---Look at the possibilities, don't worry about the limitations.---
http://wilko.webzone.ru/