Surfboards next to roof top tent on a Mitsubishi

[TimLucas]

Hi there,

My girlfriend and I are planning to drive to south africa by way of the continent's west coast (ghana, ivory coast, etc) at the beginning of next year. Because we are both keen surfers we want to take our surfboards with us (probably one 9 ft board and two in the 6'5´´ range. I was wondering how to attach these surfboards to the roof since the already is a tent on top of the car. So after some thinking these are the options I came up with:

1. Make the roofrack higher so the boards can go under the tent. This would mean that I would have to buy a new roofrack or get a new one build somewhere that is high enough so that the boards can slide under the tent. Safetywise for the boards a good option but maybe not so much for the weight distribution on top of the car. I fear that the car might become unstable if the weight of the rooftent is too high.
2. Place the vertically next to the roof top tent. This would mean that the boards would be sticking out a bit of the side of the roof. I am basically looking for something like the following thule part but then for surfboards: link

Does anyone have any experience with this type of carrying surfboards? Any comments on these options, which would be best and how to realize this option (where to get the rack, etc), would be highly appreciated. I also attached a picture of the car for reference.

Thanks in advance!

Cheers,

Tim.

 

[jhill15]

Hi Tim, your trip sounds amazing! I think your on the right track with the thule vertical kayak carrier. I would just buy some 65 inch bars to extend out on both sides of your rack so you can attach the carriers/boards, and with your rtt opening from the back of your paj you wouldn't have to take the boards off to set up the tent.

Where I live we have a large whitewater community and ive seen people extend their racks so they can fit 4 kayaks on top of a subaru lol.

 

[kevinrx7]

I'm looking for a solution to the same problem only we have paddle boards. One is 10' 4 and 31 wide the other is 11' 6 x 28. I have been searching for J racks for paddle boards with no luck, might have to have some fabricated locally.

 

[montypower]

I'd either have a custom rack built to attach boards horizontally on the outside of the tent leaving enough room to deploy the tent or have the boards sloped where the front is at roof height sloping to tent height.

 

[TimLucas]

Hi guys, thanks for the advice. I'll guess I'll have to find someone to make the bars.

 

[JamesW]

Any way you can place the rear of the boards on top of the tent with the fronts of them slanting down towards the top of the windscreen, they will act like a wind breaker for the front of the RTT, which is fairly un-aerodynamic. Only issue is that you'll need to pull them off every time you open up the tent

 

[Sabre]

Any way you can place the rear of the boards on top of the tent with the fronts of them slanting down towards the top of the windscreen, they will act like a wind breaker for the front of the RTT, which is fairly un-aerodynamic. Only issue is that you'll need to pull them off every time you open up the tent

My first thought is also to carry them on the top of the tent. Surfboards are very light, and you may not have to remove them when you open the tent. It's possible that you'd have to replace the pneumatic struts holding up the tent lid with something with more lift capacity, something easily sourced.

Under the tent requires a lot of fabrication, puts your tent that much higher, and I'd have concerns about damaging the boards while accessing the tent.

Next to the tent would put them fairly far outboard, putting them at hazard for damage from tree limbs, narrow alleyways, and perhaps mischievous passersby.

 

[Talega 4x4]

Hi there,

My girlfriend and I are planning to drive to south africa by way of the continent's west coast (ghana, ivory coast, etc) at the beginning of next year. Because we are both keen surfers we want to take our surfboards with us (probably one 9 ft board and two in the 6'5´´ range. I was wondering how to attach these surfboards to the roof since the already is a tent on top of the car. So after some thinking these are the options I came up with:

1. Make the roofrack higher so the boards can go under the tent. This would mean that I would have to buy a new roofrack or get a new one build somewhere that is high enough so that the boards can slide under the tent. Safetywise for the boards a good option but maybe not so much for the weight distribution on top of the car. I fear that the car might become unstable if the weight of the rooftent is too high.
2. Place the vertically next to the roof top tent. This would mean that the boards would be sticking out a bit of the side of the roof. I am basically looking for something like the following thule part but then for surfboards: link

Does anyone have any experience with this type of carrying surfboards? Any comments on these options, which would be best and how to realize this option (where to get the rack, etc), would be highly appreciated. I also attached a picture of the car for reference.

Thanks in advance!

Cheers,

Tim.

View attachment 282091

Tim,

I just came across your post as I recently picked up a roof top tent and had the question, “now that I have the tent, how do I do a surf trip.”

Well I went and used a set of soft racks that I used before I installed my Thule system. These racks can be purchased at an local surf shop. I attached the rack directly to my Roof Top Tent(see pics.). Once I had the racks on and the my 6’2” Merrick attached, it seamed a little insecure as the ladder was keeping the racks from holding the board flush.

Fortunately my California Tent’s travel cover has two straps that are used to secure the cover while driving. I took off the straps, put them over the board and then tightened them. The board was then snug and secured.

I then took a road trip from San Clemente up to Leo Carrillo in Malibu. We went 75mph+ On the freeways with no issue.