Starting Out
Tying One (or More) On, Safely—A Car-Topping Primer
By Tamia Nelson
tamia@paddling.net
Some things are best seen from a distance. Erupting volcanoes, for
example, or waterspouts. Or flying canoes, come to think of it.
There's nothing like watching 85 pounds of ABS and aluminum headed for
your windshield at 65 mile an hour to concentrate the mind.
This happened to me on the way home from a river trip once. The
canoe belonged to the guy just ahead of me on the Interstate. His name
was Charlie, and he was a whitewater ace. He was also a pretty good
rope mechanic. He taught me how to tie the trucker's hitch, for one
thing. But he liked to use odds and ends of rope to tie his boat onto
his car. The day his canoe made its maiden flight, he'd been in a
hurry. He didn't double up his ties, or check his knots. Half an hour
after leaving the take-out, Charlie's bow tie-down let go, and the
(single) belly tie popped off only a second later. That's when I saw a
low-flying Blue Hole with my name on it.
Charlie braked. I swerved. We both watched the Blue Hole in our
rear-view mirrors. It hit the asphalt and did a spectacular somersault
before skidding to a stop in the middle of the fast lane. Fortunately,
no one else was coming. I parked on the shoulder and ran back to give
Charlie a hand pulling the Blue Hole off the road before anyone nailed
it.
The canoe had a few new gouges at the stem and stern and a bit of a
crimp in one gunwale. Otherwise, it was OK. End of story? Yes. But it
might not have ended so happily. I've seen what happens when heavy
objects smash through people's windshields at highway speeds. It's not
a pretty sight.
Fortunately, though, it's easy to tie a canoe or kayak down so it
will stay put in a hurricane—or on the Interstate. It's like
mooring a big boat at a crowded berth. You need to run lines to both
bow and stern, and you need a couple of additional lines in the
middle. These are called mooring "springs" on big boats, but we'll
call them belly ties here.
If you want a bomb-proof lashing job—and you do!—you'll
need two of almost everything. Two independent bow anchor-points. Two
independent stern anchor-points. And two belly ties. There's one
exception to the Rule of Two. If you're hauling two boats, you can get
by with one tie-down line at both bow and stern. Be sure to tie a
non-slip loop in the line at each grab-loop (or deck eye) on each
boat, however. If you use climber's carabiners to make connections,
figure-of-eight loops works well, and both boats will remain securely
tied even if one section of line is cut.
Whatever you do, don't make Charlie's mistake. Odds and ends of old
clothesline aren't good enough here. Use at least ¼-inch (6-mm)
nylon or polyester (Dacron) line. Some folks prefer webbing for belly
ties. It's kinder to plastic boats and fine finishes. And be sure to
pad any places where tie-down lines pass over rough surfaces or edges,
too. (An edge doesn't have to be very sharp to chafe through a rope.
It only has to be an edge.) Work your way around your boat, tightening
every line until it's just snug. Then do it again, making everything
taut.
Just how tight is "taut"? Here's one test. You've got your
tie-downs tight enough if you can grab the bow or stern of your canoe
or kayak and rock your car without shifting your boat in its
cradles. Don't overdo it, though. You don't want things so tight
that you leave grooves in your boat (or your car roof).
Research Kayak Roof Racks and Canoe Roof Racks in the Paddling.net Buyers Guide
Or perhaps you'd like to find a kayak trailer or canoe trailer.
And how should you tighten your tie-downs? I use a trucker's hitch,
but you'll find lots of gadgets in the catalogs that do the same
thing. Just be sure you understand how the gadgets that you use
work. Practice tying one on before you leave the driveway!
You're not done yet. After you've been driving for ten minutes or
so, get out and check that everything is still secure. Retighten as
needed. Check again every couple of hours you're on the road. And if
you ever hear anything that sounds like a Ping! or a
Pop! or a Bang!, brake gently and pull off onto the
shoulder immediately. Then find out where the trouble is and fix it.
(Always carry extra rope.) Whatever you do, don't just cross your
fingers and hope for the best. Your boat may be airborne before you
know it, and once that happens, it's too late for anything but prayer.
It sounds like lot of trouble, doesn't it? It is. But it's worth
it. After all, I might be driving right behind you on the Interstate!
'Nuff said.
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reserved.