>> In a message dated 1/27/00 10:58:19 PM, michaeldaly_at_home.com writes: >Two sea kayaks and a rack are about the same weight as one small person. >The gear I carry for two on a long weekend's trip weighs about the same >again. >Not what I'd consider an excessive load and well within the ratings for >the car. Within the weight ratings, certainly. But what about factoring in the additional wind resistance load (s) both just plain going down the road, and also in crosswinds? <snip> Scott >> Kayaks are so streamlined that I doubt they create much drag on the car. Last summer my wife forgot to strap down her Romany, and we drove at speeds up to 55 mph on the freeway before I noticed the bow moving up and down slightly. If the kayak had much drag, I'm sure it would have flown off the car. Chuck Holst *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List - All postings copyright the author and not to be reproduced outside PaddleWise without author's permission Submissions: paddlewise_at_lists.intelenet.net Subscriptions: paddlewise-request_at_lists.intelenet.net Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ ***************************************************************************
Chuck Holst wrote: > >> > In a message dated 1/27/00 10:58:19 PM, michaeldaly_at_home.com writes: > > >Two sea kayaks and a rack are about the same weight as one small person. > >The gear I carry for two on a long weekend's trip weighs about the same > >again. Not what I'd consider an excessive load and well within the ratings for > >the car. > > Within the weight ratings, certainly. But what about factoring in the > additional wind resistance load (s) both just plain going down the road, and > also in crosswinds? > <snip> > Scott > >> > > Kayaks are so streamlined that I doubt they create much drag on the car. > Last summer my wife forgot to strap down her Romany, and we drove at speeds > up to 55 mph on the freeway before I noticed the bow moving up and down > slightly. If the kayak had much drag, I'm sure it would have flown off the > car. One way to look at the drag effect is to consider that drag increases with the square of velocity. Hence, if the kayak adds 21% drag, that's equivalent to the car without the kayak going 10% faster ( 1.10 squared is 1.21). Or if the kayak increases drag by 44% - 20% faster. Doubling the drag is like driving a clean car 41% faster. So the effect on wear and tear is like driving at a higher speed. Pick your guess on the drag increase and see what the effective increase in speed does to your mechanical system. Mike *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List - All postings copyright the author and not to be reproduced outside PaddleWise without author's permission Submissions: paddlewise_at_lists.intelenet.net Subscriptions: paddlewise-request_at_lists.intelenet.net Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ ***************************************************************************
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