Re: [Paddlewise] Safety Responsibility and Roof Ra

> From: Bob Denton <BDenton_at_aquagulf.com>
> What condition were the gutter rails in? What brand of rack? Did they
test
> the rack before departing? was there any movement in the racks? Did they
hit
> something that popped the trim?  

and from another post on the same subject:

> Please describe how the Thule and Yak racks broke, and if there would
have
> been any way to discover or prevent the problem prior to failure.


Hey Bob:

Both the rack and the vehicle were fairly new.  The racks were Thules. 
Yes, they were checked the after loading, and no there was no movement. 
Jake was as experienced as anyone in shuttling boats.  No, they did not hit
anything to pop the trim.  My best guess is that the windage of two large
boats on the highway simply tore off the gutter trim, so it was a trim
failure rather than a rack failure.  Trim isn't designed to be load
bearing.

Although not a factor in this incident, you are bang on target about the
possibility of bumps popping the trim.  The times I have broken or loosened
either trim or rack attachments have always been on logging roads.  I have
gone over to using trailers whenever possible, and hang my long boats in
slings (I just toss my short boat in my backseat and let it hang out the
rear window).  This approach is not without its own problems, but all in
all I find it easier.

On the my Thule racks I had a small metal tab break inside the
attachment/clamp.  On my Yaks a threaded bolt sheared.  Aside from general
jarring (I've lost everything from alternators to drive shafts on rough
shuttles), I don't know why these parts wold fail.  Also, the failure
points were not visible for external inspection.  To see where they broke
you would have to disassemble the system, which is not practical, and even
if you did so, the stress would probably only show up under x-rays.

I am in no way trying to put down either Thule or Yak -- they make terrific
products.  It is just that short of building everything out of boron and
titanium, I don't think it is possible to make a bombproof system, and I
don't think that is practical to regularly test for metal fatigue. 
Consequently, I tie off to the frame of the vehicle or trailer as a
failsafe.

Here are a couple of related points that go beyond normal usage of racks.

Folks up north need to keep an eye on rust if they use their racks in the
winter.  Two years ago I had a 4x4 spare tire mounted ski rack rot to
pieces in one winter (yes, I bag my skiis).  Roof mounted racks don't take
the same abuse, but eventually suffer.  Liberal amounts of grease can
extend their lives significantly.

Also, size and number of boats can cause difficulty.  For example, I have
warped racks by carrying a heavy 30' canoe.  By bending the racks, the
attachments/clamps could not sit properly.  I have also had
attachments/clamps slip due to gusts hitting a 36' kayak (obviously tied to
a ladder to avoid snapping the bow), and due to gusts hitting a large load
of single person kayaks (BTW, our record up here is 18 ww boats on one rack
-- I told you we are not too bright).  Of course these are examples of
pushing perfectly good racks beyond what they are designed for.  I just
suggest that when folks go beyond their normal routine, that they take
extra care until they learn just what their racks can and can not do.

Finally, although I am not fully trusting in even the best designed and
constructed racks, I am far more concerned about how people go about tying
boats to their racks.  Over the years I have seen some truly stupid things,
not the least of which was last summer, when the fellow I was working for
became quite angry for my wasting time re-tying the boats onto the trailer.
 He had never tied short boats on the trailer before, which had crossbars
near the boat sprits.  Several boats fell off the racks without falling off
the trailer in the short distance between the compound and our rendezvous. 
He had become complacent and failed to review his tying system when one
variable, the length of the boats, changed.  The funny thing is that even
when the dropped boats were pointed out to him, he refused to recognize
that his system needed modification.  (He used a similar line of thinking
to justify his taking clients into ww without helmets -- he had never had a
head injury, so obviously there was no need for head protection).  It's
this sort of tunnelvision that worries me.

Rather than use  tying system which satisfactorily but minimally meets
normal needs, I like to have a bit of redundancy built in so that when
something odd comes up -- be it a rough road, a big load, or a differently
shaped boat -- I don't risk merrily tootling on my way oblivious to the
souvenirs I am leaving in my wake.

Cheers,
Richard Culpeper
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