Reassessing Bow and Stern Lines....

Yes, those are my kayaks, still strapped down to the roof rack, in the middle of I-5. Both are destroyed.

Would a bow and stern line have saved them? Hard to say, but would have likely kept them out of the grill of the Jeep (BTW, I was in the right lane, merging on from Delta Park). With the length of the T-15, the bow/stern lines that I normally use for longer trips would have likely caused a lot of damage to my car (vs the very little damage that was done).  It's still pretty likely that one, if not both, would have still sustained some heavy damage.  It's also entirely possible that when the tower broke, the bow line would have kept things under control a couple seconds longer before there was a complete loss...

In the mean time, all I can do is theorize on the whole thing and wait to hear back from home insurance...

Ouch! Sorry for your loss.  I am very paranoid about my yaks on the roof rack.  I was always afraid of the same thing happening to me.  I double up on all straps and if out on the open freeway, I actually run one though the doors so the roof would also have to fail if the rack failed.  Anal, I know, but I get nervous when stuff is strapped up there.  I know it wouldn't necessarily work in your case with the convertible roof and all.

I hope the insurance helps you out.

Sorry to see such a sad sight and glad the people and vehicles are OK. I hope your insurance covers it all.

Sad to see....Makes me totally think about my setup (once I get it next week) and safety on the road.  Good luck with the insurance.  Hope you can get back on the water soon!!!

Daymn Issac....  That totally sucks!  So sorry your toys got totaled but I'm glad there were no injuries to go along with it.

It takes a whole lot of nut to lay this out for others to learn from.
 
Any chance you can post some pics of the failure mode?  Were you accelerating at the time?  Was it latteral acceleration?  Did you get any warning?

I always run a bow line but leave the stern line unless I'm travelling in Washington.  I've never given much thought to the latteral forces.  My concern has always been the lift that yaks seem to generate on the roof. 

-Mark-

Man that totally sucks..  You just got your new boat all rigged out too..  Sorry!   

Total armchair  QB here but I would vote that if you had bow and stern lines holding things in place they would have given you enough time to pull over before it totally went south (separated from the vehicle).  Or not, hard to know for sure..   I'm assuming the connection point of the rack to the car gave up?

It takes a whole lot of nut to lay this out for others to learn from.
 

Seconded!!!  It is definitely one thing to talk about it, but showing in pics for the "reality" factor....yeah...what he said!

I think if you had bow and stern lines, your towers would not have seen the force necessary to break them.  They would have held the whole thing secure.  The force that the air pressure builds on the end of a kayak is magnified ... the kayak behaves like a lever on your rack attach points.

-Allen

I think if you had bow and stern lines, your towers would not have seen the force necessary to break them.  They would have held the whole thing secure. 

+1  I agree.

Man, that really blows.  I'll definitely stop slacking and use mine all the time now.

Oh man that sucks. Were you at least able to take your new kayak out for a spin before it untimely demise?
If you need a kayak to help you get your fix you can use my old tarpon or I can see about getting you a long term demo from the shop.  I will have to verify the integrity of your roof rack first though.

 

😱💩😢😭😂😪😡

Well sorry doesn't quite cover it, but like was said above at least no injuries. A lawsuit would have made a shitty day much worse.

Anybody needs plastic to weld a crack or hole give The Nothing a call, word on the street is he's got plenty laying around.

Man that really stinks. I have yet to transport my yak on the roof of my SUV, the rack is there by I always load my yak into the back of my truck. Lesson learned for me I will take extra precaution when I do load my yak on the roof. Thanks for sharing what I know must be very painful to you.

Talk about bad luck. We've never used the bow or stern lines. But, I will definitely start using them.

Sent from my DROID BIONIC using Tapatalk

Thats sucks for sure, Maybe if you post a bunch of pic of the yak damage,We can help with Ideas for a fix? I've heard Duck type does wonders..or a Hot glue gun??I sure wouldn't write them off with out trying to do something for them..Ive got a Hard little car to tie mine to..

Yes, those are my kayaks, still strapped down to the roof rack, in the middle of I-5. Both are destroyed.

Would a bow and stern line have saved them? Hard to say, but would have likely kept them out of the grill of the Jeep (BTW, I was in the right lane, merging on from Delta Park). With the length of the T-15, the bow/stern lines that I normally use for longer trips would have likely caused a lot of damage to my car (vs the very little damage that was done).  It's still pretty likely that one, if not both, would have still sustained some heavy damage.  It's also entirely possible that when the tower broke, the bow line would have kept things under control a couple seconds longer before there was a complete loss...

In the mean time, all I can do is theorize on the whole thing and wait to hear back from home insurance...

NOOOOOOO

That sucks!! Glad everyone is safe.  The whitewater guys at Next Adventure have seen some really bent plastic in their time and might be able to help with fixing some of the damage.

Hope you get back on the water soon.