[Paddlewise] FW: warning

>>
I dunno.  Last year, or was it the year before (damn years are starting   to
run together) I was 20-30 minutes into the return trip home when a   nagging
question started tugging at my sub-conscious:  "Did I really secure the
cross ties?".  I could see the bow line in front of me and the stern line   in
the mirror.  But the cross ties?

I had been doing 60-65 mph, passed a couple of semis and except for some
sluggishnes climbing a couple of small hills, all seemed normal, yet the
question remained "Did I or didn't I".  So I pulled over and checked and   the
answer was a resounding "No!".

What kept the trucks from blowing 18 foot kayak off.  Why didn't the wind
just lift it up and off?  I claim the bow line was fairly slack, as   usual.
Shouldn't it have been stretched tight if it was fighting to hold the   boat
on?  I dunno.
>>

It's one of the mysteries of life. I once set a can of WD40 on my rear
bumper, forgot it, drove 10 miles mostly by freeway to a suburban
parking lot, and when I got there, the can was still on the bumper.

Two years ago I set off for a kayak symposium with my wife and all our
kayak gear, and 30 minutes down the highway noticed that there weren't
any paddles visible overhead. They hadn't blown off; we simply had
forgotten them. :-)

More seriously, a kayak carried upright is pretty streamlined compared
to an upside-down canoe, so I don't think there is a great amount of
lifting force on it. Its mass (and the rear saddle) probably helped to
keep it from sliding backwards, and well-fitting saddles and the bumper
ropes probably helped to keep it from twisting when you passed a semi.

Chuck Holst

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