Surfing Waves

Hi EveryOne,

I was wondering if the car rack would be permanent or would it be temporary???
OR in other words
Once you put it on the car & went surfing for the weekend & when you took it off then next time u go to put it on are ya in fear that u can't put it on the exact way it was before???
On the other hand
Im afraid when i take it off i will not be able to put it on the exact way i did before??? Plus is it hard to put one of those car racks ( thule 480R Rapid Traverse Foot Pack ) on the car roof????

What would u suggest leave it on for good or take it off when not planning on surfing so that it wouldn't tempt people to steal it off my car.??.?.?.

Thanks
CowGirl Surfer

cowgirl,
roof racks sold by Yakima and Thule are removable. I believe you are capable of removing them and placing them correctly on the roof. Yakima and Thule roof racks are not difficult to install on cars and trucks. These manufacturers have developed systems that are easy for people to use; otherwise they would not be able to sell zillions of them.

Yalima and Thule sell locking mechanisms to reduce theft. Most often, this is offered as an option. However, my Thule racks are so old they were made before people needed locks.

Yes, you can leave the racks on all the time, whether they are locked or not. I know many surfers that never remove their roof racks. When I used to use them, I never removed them. Now I place my boards inside my SUV.

Yes they make locks for the racks.. and there is no question about it; get the locks.

As for the rest of it.. if your car is small enough (like mine, it's a little two door coupe car) there really isnt that many different options as to where it's designed to fit. So you tend to always end up with it in close to the same spot anyways! hah. It really doesnt make that big of a difference where it ends up. Its real easy to put on and remove. I often will put mine on around Friday.. run them through the weekend as I use them, then take them off Sun night or Monday.. then do the usual commuting and whatnot all week.

For you, I would suggest just putting them on during the times you surf. If you know you have plans for the next few weekends or something and you wont be surfing for 2 weeks.. You could take them off.

I also know people who only remove theirs when they wash their car too. So you could ALWAYS have them on as well. Just comes down to your own preference on them on your car.

BoarderDave wrote:Yes they make locks for the racks.. and there is no question about it; get the locks.

As for the rest of it.. if your car is small enough (like mine, it's a little two door coupe car) there really isnt that many different options as to where it's designed to fit. So you tend to always end up with it in close to the same spot anyways! hah. It really doesnt make that big of a difference where it ends up. Its real easy to put on and remove. I often will put mine on around Friday.. run them through the weekend as I use them, then take them off Sun night or Monday.. then do the usual commuting and whatnot all week.

For you, I would suggest just putting them on during the times you surf. If you know you have plans for the next few weekends or something and you wont be surfing for 2 weeks.. You could take them off.

I also know people who only remove theirs when they wash their car too. So you could ALWAYS have them on as well. Just comes down to your own preference on them on your car.

Yeah for sure im getting the locks for it. But a question just popped into my mind :
ok so i'll get the locks to secure the Thule rack( 480R Rapid Traverse Foot Pack) from being stolen off my car roof but how can i secure the claps ( which are just easily screwed on or clapped on to the rack) for the surf board : - hang two surf carrier ( from thule ) & if they can undo that then they can for sure take the surfing board! So how can i secure the claps as well???

Well yes.. the locks Im talking about secure the rack to the car.

As for securing the board to the rack... well.. that's not really as possible. There ARE mechanisms out there online for sale that claim to be able to lock the board to the rack.. but Idk, I don't really travel around with my board on the rack (other than to the beach and back), so Ive never really checked to see if anything truly works.

I dont think there is a true solid way to secure the board to the rack that nobody can get through. Even if the clamps were locked to the rack, they can still just snip the strap and off comes your board. I could be wrong though.. but I dont know of a solution. So yeah.. When you have your board on your car, keep an eye on it.

Get a soft rack, Yakima and Thule are good but REALLY expensive.

I have this one:

http://www.amazon.com/Block-Surf-Double-Surfboard-Racks/dp/B000J44S7S/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&s=sporting-goods&qid=1276825020&sr=8-3

And it works like a charm, holds up to 2 longs boards and 6 shortboards, thats right 6!!!

I went this past weekend with my funboard and my friends 2 shortboards, we were on the freeway going around 75mph (I wasn't driving) they didn't even budge or make a sound!

it's about 40 bucks, sweet deal, easy to put on and take off, when your not using them or when your at the beach take em off so they don't get stolen!

yeah, if you're concerned about being able to take it off, go with a soft rack. the thule rack i have for my nissan doesn't have locks but the way it attaches to the car there's no way to steal it without opening the doors. i never take it off. it's pretty simple to install them; but i wouldn't want to have to put it all together/take it apart before/after every surf trip. i usually ride shortboards so i can fit them in my car. the only time i have to use the rack is if i'm driving with people in the car or if i'm taking out my longboard