Roof rack system suitable for both bicycle and kayak?
My wife & I are just getting into (non-sea/ocean) kayaking and biking, and we're thinking about ways to transport our equipment on our car.
My guess is that once a pair of cross-bars are set up on a car roof, it would be possible to use it to handle both 2 bikes and 2 kayaks (although obviously, not at the same time -- either 2 bikes or 2 kayaks at one time). We will be bicycling more often than kayaking, and will be doing this for recreation..., so we're not looking for a serious (expensive or complicated) solution.
Is this accurate? What do I need to take into consideration? How difficult is it to swap out mounting hardware for roof racks? What are better alternatives?
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Kayaks can easily be strapped down to cross bars. Sometimes J bars or uprights are used to put the boats on their sides allowing more to fit without stacking them. Bike racks for roof bars are quite quick to fit/remove but you shouldn't need to if you get them right and you car is wide enough.
You might even be able to strap the boats on their sides to the bike racks. I've seen racks that would do that (they were the sort with a front skewer so you take the wheel off ) and racks that wouldn't.
A reasonably wide car could take two bikes (perhaps one facing forwards and one backwards) and two kayaks either on their side with uprights or one on top of the other, all at the same time. If you do stack the boats be extra careful about securing them and checking that straps don't loosen - I suggest an extra strap/rope/cable lock attaching the end loops of the boats to the roof rack.
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I would recommend to put the kayak on the roof, and put the bicycles on a rear bicycle rack. It should work if you have at most two bicycles.
Source: Hadhuey, Wikimedia Commons
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Yakima Rack
You could easily do 2 kayaks and 2 bikes at the same time on your car, like so:
...with room to spare.
I can fit a 17.5 ft canoe, two mountain bikes, and a tandem mountain bike on the top of my car with 66" crossbars, I'm confident you could tighten the setup shown above and fit two kayaks and two bikes on 66" bars.
I'm extremely satisfied with my Yakima racks. I may be slightly bias because I'm an independent dealer of Yakima racks, but truth be told I don't sell any Yakima products, I just became a dealer so I could get all my stuff at wholesale cost. Find a supplier that sells Yakima racks then open up a cash sales account with them. You'll instantly save 50% on everything you buy.
Here's the minimalist budget rack I'd recommend for you:
Round Bar (66" min)
Hullraiser J-racks (2 sets)
Boa Bike Rack (2 boas)
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