Yak on the rack

T

The Short Bus

Member
:
2003 P5
Hey I've seen a couple of pics with kayak-laden P5s and will soon be picking a yak up myself. Looking at a Pungo 120, with fishing the Twin Cities as it's main purpose. I have the factory racks and two questions:
1. Anyone have comments/experiences to share on the fishhook type carriers versus saddles?
2. I'll mainly be quietly zipping along city streets to get to metro lakes and rivers but will undoubtedly be tempted to take it to places that involve interstates. How much would I need to worry about a properly secured 12' yak ripping the roof off at 65mph?

Thanks! Hopefully I'll get a picture of a bright yellow yak on a bright yellow car up soon.
 
I am one of those kayak-laden P5s that you have likely seen on this forum, and I am happy to share my experiences with hauling kayaks on my car. Let me start with the following:

You should be VERY CONCERNED about your boat flying off of your car at 65mph!

Any load that you tie to your roof must be properly secured - and a kayak is definitely not an exception to this rule. The wind-load of a kayak on your roof is huge, and your rope/straps must be secure enough to handle it. Even in the city, don't forget that you might have to slam on the brakes sometime - your boat needs to be able to handle that too! It happens ... it sounds like you already understand this, but it never hurts to repeat this!

I have traveled several thousand miles with my kayak (or canoe) on my car. Always secured properly and always without an issue. Just make sure that it is tied securely to your rack AND the bow and stern are tied as well. There are too many people that consider the bow/stern to be a back-up, but I can not disagree more. Tying the bow will eliminate a lot of the upward lift on you rack when the wind pushes on your boat. And the stern tie (when used with the bow) will keep the boat from twisting under the force of a sideways wind gust.

Moving on to the cradle vs: saddle debate ... I prefer the cradle because it takes up less bar space, and I find it easier to load over the side of a short car. The saddles are nicer if you have a tall vehicle and are sliding the boat on from the rear of the vehicle. If you are thinking about hauling two boats (eventually) you will need the cradles. The saddles will take up too much bar space and 90% of the time will not allow two kayaks up there (especially wider boats like the Pungo). Food for thought.

Check out the Yakima Hullraiser Aero (http://yakima.com/Product.aspx?id=197). It is designed to work with a factory rack and includes the necessary straps as well as a bow/stern tie down. I've been using a Hullraiser for my kayak for about 4 years now - it's awesome!

-=D
 
Last edited:
BTW: The Pungo 120 is a nice choice. Great for the type of paddling that it sounds like you are getting into. Enjoy! If you have specific boat questions, I can probably help you out - I sold Wilderness Systems, Dagger, Perception, Necky, and Riot kayaks for the past 5 years.
 
i used to strap one or two on top of the P5 and would go 80+ with no problems........as long as though they are strpped on well, no need to worry.

-R
 

Attachments

  • f33026f8.jpg
    f33026f8.jpg
    29.5 KB · Views: 193
Protege52003 said:
i used to strap one or two on top of the P5 and would go 80+ with no problems........as long as though they are strpped on well, no need to worry.

-R
Click to expand...

Exactly, as long as they are strapped on well.

-=D
 
Sweet, thanks a bunch for the info. I was actually looking at the Hullraiser Aero, but I thought the saddles might make for a more aerodynamic ride since the kayak is level and symmetric. I guess I hadn't thought about more than one kayak, or a kayak and a bike... the Aero it is.

Ya Midwest Mountaineering has the Pungo on sale for $600, which is a lot cheaper than it was in the fall. That's about all I'm looking to spend since the rack is $130 and I'll need a paddle and a vest yet.
 
Mine are WS Tarpon 120s. I use thule hullaports-cradles that attach to the factory racks. No problems. Racks ran about 135.00 to haul 2 boats. Yes, tie them down, tie them down & tie them down some more for highway travels. Our normal paddling area is 10 min away on neighborhood streets & the tying takes longer than the ride to the park BUT still, tie them down good. They do work great in conjunction with the aero box & bikes ride on the rear bumper rack when other stuff on top. Wish I had taken pic of that all fully loaded down.
 
Welcome to the club! I bought the P5 for the express purpose of hauling yaks! ;)

I use twin saddles for my pair of Tribalance (long/narrow) kayaks.
I use cargo straps at the bow (around the license plate mount) and at the cockpit -to around the aft of the rack to secure in case of sudden stop.

I once had the d/s side one fall off - a tornado in the area blew a gust of wind that pushed it off - ripping the d/s mirror off. I also lashed with extra rope for the highway - to keep the saddles anchored and to help hold the kayaks. Around town - i just use the straps - no problems. Use an old sock cut in half and slide over the cargo straps to protect the hood from the straps rubbing.

Fish on! I have been catching many a fish on the Chesapeake this way! :)
 
Might as well add some more eye-candy to this thread ... glad to see there are so many closet-kayakers on this board!

attachment.php

attachment.php


-=D
 
Last edited:
nice.....i have some pics of both my kayaks on top of my P5 somewhere on this forum........

-R
 
great thread! living in Southern California a lot of peopel do kayak fishin in the oceans and bays around here and ive been wanting to get into it...i was wondering how they were gonna work with my P5...great info...thnx guys!!!:)
 
The Protege5 has proven to be my boat-hauler of choice! I have friends who are driving trucks and/or other cars, but none of them compare to the convenience of the Protege5! The roof length and the ride height both combine to make it an incredible easy and secure vehicle to load boats on.

I wish I took a picture when I had mine loaded with two 17'6" canoes. Each with a 36" beam! That was a huge load (not that heavy, but BIG) and the car hardly even noticed them up there.

-=D
 
leetpcguy said:
Who else here paddles white water. Naty, Ocoee, Green?
Click to expand...

Sorry Leetpcguy, the only way that I paddle whitewater is in a canoe. A few friends of mine are into whitewater playboating but I have never been too intrigued. Glad you're enjoying it though!

-=D
 
pic

Snow on the ground still. More to come once I actually do something more than just get it home.
 

Attachments

  • yak1.jpg
    yak1.jpg
    110.9 KB · Views: 121
  • yak2.jpg
    yak2.jpg
    111.6 KB · Views: 141
Please log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

T
Roof Rack ( canoes and yaks )
Replies
10
Views
3K
wobmarl
W
D
Load assist kayak carrier with factory crossbars?
Replies
5
Views
5K
SaintsReturn
S
M
New CX-5 Thoughts & Impressions
Replies
5
Views
2K
CX-SV
C

Latest posts

Back