xtras

Choosing the right kayak rack for you & your car

With spring upon us, its time to start thinking about how to get those kayaks from the garage to the river. Thule & Yakima both offer several great options for safely and easily getting boats to the creek…but which one is the right one for you? 

The first thing anyone thinking about strapping anything on top of their car is the base system they will use. Aftermarket rack systems allow you to carry more stuff safely than factory racks. They also ad a great custom look to your vehicle. At Sun & Snow, we carry only Thule and Yakima rack systems, bands that have consistently proven to be the makers of the best, most durable and most adaptable automotive racks on the market. From there, whether using a factory rack, a Thule rack, or a Yakima rack, there are many choices for getting your kayak from dry land to the open water. 

By far the most popular option, which mounts to both Thule base systems and to many factory car racks is the Hull-a-Port. The “J” cradle racks mount kayaks on their side, making them easy to load and saving space on top of your vehicle for more kayaks or even a box. New this year is the 835PRO Hull-a-Port PRO, which offers the added advantage of folding flat when not in use.  Yakima offers its own “J” cradle in the Hullraiser, which also fits virtually any factory rack system.

The Thule SlipStream, is an option that lays the kayak flat on the top of your vehicle. If offers the advantages of easy tie-down, broad adjustability, and low drag. This is the perfect kayak carrying solution for vehicles with crossbars that sit far forward on the roof, as the slipstream will slide backward for easy loading. On the down-side, it is not well suited to customers with a narrow vehicle who wish to carry tow or more kayaks.

With clamps that mount directly to a rack without a platform like the SlipStream, Yakima’s offerings of the Mako and LandShark Saddles offer a similar mounting style to the SlipStream.

I get by with a little help from my rack….

For those who want a little “help” tossing their kayak on top of their ride, both Thule & Yakima have solutions. For those with Yakima base systems, the Yakima Showboat, is a roller that mounts at the rear of your rack and works in conjunction with the Mako or Landshark to make rear loading a little easier. Similarly, the Yakima HullyRoller uses rollers as the rear mount in conjunction with any Yakima top-of-car mounts for a roll-on rear load. Of these too, the Showboat is the choice for those who have more trouble car-topping their boat, as it mounts at the very rear of the vehicle. 

Customers with Thule rack systems, the innovative 897XT Hullavator reduces lift height required to load and unload a kayak by 40” by lowering to allow for kayak loading and then raising via its award winning kayak lift system to get the boat on top of the car. Thule’s Outrigger and Yakima’s Boatloader are both a great help in getting your boat on your rack system as well. Either is imply inserted into your front bar and pulls out to hold one end of your boat while you get it on the roof.