My Kayak Setup

[Bear]

I made my first long distance road trip hauling my kayak up North. I have the Ford roll up tonneau cover, Elevate rack, Thule DockGrip, Yakima HandRoll and Kuat hitch bike rack. I use the Yakima HandRoll to push up the kayak to the rack, I place a long think foam cushion on the roof so it has a soft landing when I push it up. Once on top I move the kayak to the Thule DockGrip and stop it down.

I don't use a bow or stern line b/c the Thule DockGrip prevents the kayak from moving left or right. I have a tie down strap in the front and rear of the cock pit opening to hold it down and it prevents the kayak from sliding forward to backwards....The kayak has a 1 inch trim around the cock pit opening with an overhang lip. There is no way for the tie down straps to slip over the cock pit opening.

Driving down the highway with the kayak on top I didn't really notice any handling issues and my gas mileage was around 34 mpg. Since I'm retired I'm not in a hurry so I pretty much drove at 70 mph.

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[Ford Motor Company]

I made my first long distance road trip hauling my kayak up North. I have the Ford roll up tonneau cover, Elevate rack, Thule DockGrip, Yakima HandRoll and Kuat hitch bike rack. I use the Yakima HandRoll to push up the kayak to the rack, I place a long think foam cushion on the roof so it has a soft landing when I push it up. Once on top I move the kayak to the Thule DockGrip and stop it down.

I don't use a bow or stern line b/c the Thule DockGrip prevents the kayak from moving left or right. I have a tie down strap in the front and rear of the cock pit opening to hold it down and it prevents the kayak from sliding forward to backwards....The kayak has a 1 inch trim around the cock pit opening with an overhang lip. There is no way for the tie down straps to slip over the cock pit opening.

Driving down the highway with the kayak on top I didn't really notice any handling issues and my gas mileage was around 34 mpg. Since I'm retired I'm not in a hurry so I pretty much drove at 70 mph.

View attachment 165683 View attachment 165684

Great setup, enjoy your adventures!

 

[billbillw]

On a long trip, I would at least use a bow tie to the front of the truck. The reason is to counter any lifting or lateral (push to the rear) effect that may occur. Remember that the Elevate Racks themselves are designed more for having weight push down, not to keep things lifting up. The horror story you see is roof rails on SUV/Cars ripped right off due to the force at highway speed, usually combined with a strong wind gust. Yes, the Elevate system is probably more robust than a standard set of roof racks, but they are still just held by sliding bolts in an aluminum t-slot, and that t-slot is only held on by some rather crude clamps which clamp onto a truck bed that has a lot of plastic around the top and an unknown amount of actual metal underneath.

You kayak is beautiful by the way. Mine are all plastic...but they do the trick.

 

[lga0213]

The bow and stern lines are not intended to secure the kayak to the rack, but, rather, the whole setup to your vehicle, in the event the rack fails and detaches from your vehicle. They do not need to be tight, just snug enough that the whole apparatus stays with your vehicle rather than flying off to do damage to nearby vehicles or property. Using these lines is the smarter choice, unless you will not be on public roads, at any speed, with other vehicles.
That is a beautiful boat! Enjoy it and stay safe on the wter!! I miss my kayaking days, but, alas, my health made it so that it was not smart for me to continue kayaking alone.

 

[MakinDoForNow]

I made my first long distance road trip hauling my kayak up North. I have the Ford roll up tonneau cover, Elevate rack, Thule DockGrip, Yakima HandRoll and Kuat hitch bike rack. I use the Yakima HandRoll to push up the kayak to the rack, I place a long think foam cushion on the roof so it has a soft landing when I push it up. Once on top I move the kayak to the Thule DockGrip and stop it down.

I don't use a bow or stern line b/c the Thule DockGrip prevents the kayak from moving left or right. I have a tie down strap in the front and rear of the cock pit opening to hold it down and it prevents the kayak from sliding forward to backwards....The kayak has a 1 inch trim around the cock pit opening with an overhang lip. There is no way for the tie down straps to slip over the cock pit opening.

Driving down the highway with the kayak on top I didn't really notice any handling issues and my gas mileage was around 34 mpg. Since I'm retired I'm not in a hurry so I pretty much drove at 70 mph.

At the least you need red flag on any load that extends over 4 feet from the tail lights. Brake and turn signals on end of boat may be required in some states. Put a roof mount support as close as possible to windshield and move boat forward to even or past front bumper.

 

[northstarmav]

Oh wow...that kayak is a thing of beauty! I mean...it's just gorgeous. I know this is a Maverick Truck forum, but could you spare a few words about that kayak? I would love to know more about it.

And of course, the truck and rails look amazing too! With boat and bike, you look set up for an amazing time up North!

 

[markinvictoria]

Did you build the kayak? It's beautiful...I'd be afraid to put it in our local rivers.

 

[Deleted member 7089]

Length?

 

[MM Mav]

Oh wow...that kayak is a thing of beauty! I mean...it's just gorgeous. I know this is a Maverick Truck forum, but could you spare a few words about that kayak? I would love to know more about it.

Did you build the kayak? It's beautiful...I'd

@Bear I second both these comments!

 

[Bear]

The bow and stern lines are not intended to secure the kayak to the rack, but, rather, the whole setup to your vehicle, in the event the rack fails and detaches from your vehicle. They do not need to be tight, just snug enough that the whole apparatus stays with your vehicle rather than flying off to do damage to nearby vehicles or property. Using these lines is the smarter choice, unless you will not be on public roads, at any speed, with other vehicles.
That is a beautiful boat! Enjoy it and stay safe on the wter!! I miss my kayaking days, but, alas, my health made it so that it was not smart for me to continue kayaking alone.

After thinking about this, I need to figure out where to anchor the other end of the bow line on the truck. I'm worried about the line rubbing against the paint....I'll figure out how to protect the paint.

 

[Bear]

Oh wow...that kayak is a thing of beauty! I mean...it's just gorgeous. I know this is a Maverick Truck forum, but could you spare a few words about that kayak? I would love to know more about it.

And of course, the truck and rails look amazing too! With boat and bike, you look set up for an amazing time up North!

It's a 17 foot sea kayak and its a kit from Chesapeake Light Craft ( https://clcboats.com/ ). It was a fun project and I wonder if I will ever finish it. There were was lots of of sanding and redoing the epoxy & varnish.

 

[Bear]

Did you build the kayak? It's beautiful...I'd be afraid to put it in our local rivers.

Yes, I built it and it took me 7 years. It did end of getting scratched and I wasn't too happy about it. I was doing the M22 Challenge this past weekend and when the volunteers took my kayak they slightly nicked it against another kayak.

 

[Bear]

Length?

It's a 17 footer....I should have made a 14 footer which would have been easier to load on the truck racks. I am building another kayak and it's going to be a 10 footer, easier to get in & out ( https://clcboats.com/shop/boats/kay...ood-duck-10-light-recreational-kayak-kit.html ) more to come on this later.

 

[lga0213]

After thinking about this, I need to figure out where to anchor the other end of the bow line on the truck. I'm worried about the line rubbing against the paint....I'll figure out how to protect the paint.

I had a 2005 Explorer Sport Track that I used to haul my kayak on crossbars over the cabin. It had tow hooks on the front, so I used the one on the passenger side for the bow line, and was able to run the stern line around the bumper. (I always carried the kayak on the passenger side so that the bow line was less of a distraction to my view of the road.)
On the Maverick, I suppose the loops on the hitch receiver for chains would work to attach the stern line. I have seen other posts here on MTC where Maverick owners have talked about using hood straps or hood loops for bow lines. You could try a search to read what others have come up with.
As far as the paint goes, I was not aware of any damage to the paint on the hood or tailgate on the Sport Trac due to the lines rubbing on them, but the truck was 12 or 13 years old and no longer my primary vehicle when I started using it to haul my kayak, so I will confess I was not paying super close attention to that. Shame on me...

 

[Flyangler]

Yes, I built it and it took me 7 years. It did end of getting scratched and I wasn't too happy about it. I was doing the M22 Challenge this past weekend and when the volunteers took my kayak they slightly nicked it against another kayak.

I would forgive them. In time.

I have helped build a wooden drift boat and do not fondly remember all the sanding.

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