Roof Rack Recommendations Requested, Slalom and Jump Skis

[Craig]

2009 Jetta TDI.

 

I am tired of burning silly amounts of gas with the truck to get to the lake. I am hoping to fit a pair of jumpers and two slalom skis, jumpers at a minimum.

 

This looked like it might work:

 

http://www.thule.com/en-us/ca/products/carriers-and-racks/winter-sport-carriers/roof-mounted-ski-carriers/thule-universal-pull-top-92726-_-92726999

 

I am concerned it is not wide enough and the padding is not thick enough to get a pair of jumpers locked in.

 

Any experience?

[oldjeep]

Why not just get a rooftop coffin? I won't even put my snow skis in an exposed rack, too much crap bouncing off or sticking to them.

 

Something like this:

http://www.amazon.com/Pro-Series-63150-Bullet-Black/dp/B006YIU5SO/ref=sr_1_5?ie=UTF8&qid=1395358164&sr=8-5&keywords=roof+top+cargo+box

[Craig]

@oldjeep I am not opposed to one, but cannot find one that comes close to fitting jumpers

 

edit: found a couple of Yakima models that would probably fit medium sized jumpers. I will consider this, but I would rather be able to fit it all on the roof. That may be a tall order.

[oldjeep]

How big is a jump ski? They make some pretty huge carriers.

 

One of the issues you would have with a clamp type carrier is that they don't accommodate very thick things. A slalom ski would be too thick to fit in any carrier I've ever had. Even the ones that accommodate a pair of skis back to back don't have any extra room to spare - snow skis are pretty thin at the tip and tail.

[oldjeep]

This Thule has an 87" capacity - is that long enough?

http://www.etrailer.com/Roof-Cargo-Carrier/Thule/TH633B.html

 

[wtrskior]

I'm sure you could fit jumpers in a ski rack side by side. A Slalom not very likely. Get a box!

[Craig]

@oldjeep I want to be able to fit 90" skis...like I said, tall order. The thickness of the rack was a concern too. Have you tried to put a slalom ski in one?

 

I feel like I can engineer myself a solution to rocks and debris from the road but I don't want to even consider the racks unless I know things will fit.

 

the boxes are a good idea, I will just need to dig around some more. If someone has used one for jumpers it would be good to get some of that input. I have also considered strapping the three event bag to the roof and accepting that it will just get dirty.

[Chef23]

I don't think anyone makes a box that will fit 90 inch jumpers. I love having a box but my son's jumpers are only 84". I think a ski rack would fit the jumpers in side by side not bottom to bottom.

[elr]

For car topping 90" jumpers one thing I've heard of is cutting the wheels off of a Sport-tube bottom and using two tops. Not inexpensive as you need two Sport-tubes. But, Sport-tube may sell you just the top.

[oldjeep]

Sportube is an interesting idea, heck I'd even make you a deal on a series 3 that I've got sitting around. I used to haul a monoski and 2 sets of race skis in it before the airlines went completely crazy with the luggage charges.

[Edbrazil]

 

OK, this is a bit off-topic, but maybe an interesting story. Again in the back-when,

water skiers would have snow ski racks, and also carry their water skis. About everyone

was a skier in both Winter and Summer.

 

When you would be a lot less concerned about high-bucks skis, like today Doubtful that

anyone wants to do that now to expose their skis to the elements.

 

Anyway, driving down the New Jersey Turnpike, on the way to a tournament at Petersburg,

VA, a car came up upon us in the fast lane, doing a good bit over the speed limit.

They were carrying their blue Cypress Gardens wooden jumpers, two pairs of them,

on a ski rack, with the tips pointed forward, but with the skis turned upside down to reduce wind force.

 

Guess what that looked like?

 

They pulled into the next rest area, and I knew them, of course. Told them that they

looked like a cop car with a blue light bar. Response was to the effect: "Wow, no wonder

that everyone is pulling over out of the way for us."

 

Not sure that such a trick would work these days, but might be worth a try on long trips,

except with radar, etc. I wouldn't recommend it.

[OTF]

I'd take out a front and back seat and run them through the trunk. If you can't because then your buddy can't go with you tell said buddy he pays for the gas and you'll drive the truck. This is skiing were talking about

[disland]

Yakima sky box 12 is 95.5" long. That should fix anyones jumpers except Ron Goodman

[SkiLady]

@OTF, said buddy = wife :-) and 2 dogs

[oldjeep]

@disland‌

Sort of - it is actually max 92" exterior but if you look at how it is designed, the interior capacity is several inches short of that unless there is a way to balance them diagonally into the "tail"

http://www.yakima.com/shop/cargo/cargo-boxes/skybox12

[GOODESkier]

@oldjeep most airlines allow for a "ski/golf clubs/snow board". Currently Alaska charges $25 for the sport tube AND a binding bad......... I don't think this is too crazy considering the size of the darn sport tube! Maybe @OB knows more about flying with his stick, although he may get to carry it in the cockpit!

[oldjeep]

@GOODESkier‌ well sort of. My big sport tube at the weight that it is with snowskis in it costs me $100 each way on the airplane

[OTF]

@SkiLady that being said a cargo hauler will look great on the jetta.

[disland]

@oldjeep your correct too bad

[GOODESkier]

@oldjeep what airline are you traveling? It is over 50 lbs?

[GOODESkier]

I have a THULE cargo box on my truck even for waterskis. Really nice when traveling to just have them up and away and out of sight even.

[BraceMaker]

I haul my slalom ski on my roof rack with out a "carrier" I secure the case with a webbing strap, and then lock it through the grommet holes with a cable type gun lock so no one can get light fingered with it.

[ToddL]

The SCR M3 jump record holder puts his jumpers in his sedan diagonally from passenger front dash to driver rear deck... I think it is a Honda accord.

[oldjeep]

@GOODESkier‌ way over 50lbs ;) 2 pairs of 180CM race skis with risers and bindings, a monoski and a couple pairs of poles add up to some weight. It was probably Delta the last time, I mostly drive now - doesn't cost any more and I can haul a lot more gear.

[Chef23]

Those Yakima boxes look like they would work for jumpers up to 90 and maybe 92s. It says they are 92" long and they have rise in the back. My advice is buy bigger than you think you need that makes it easier to get stuff in there. My box gets crowded with jumpers, 2 slaloms, 2 tricks vests, handles etc when we go to tournaments.

[Ajskier]

@h20ski1326, I have an 06 Jetta TDI and I just put my 90" jumpers inside the car. I drop the passenger rear seat down and run the skis right up through the middle and they stop right before the gear shift, they don't get in the way. I have done this with my wife riding shotgun, dog in the back passenger side and then another passenger riding behind me. I do it this way when I don't want to remove the bindings, but if I remove the bindings, I don't even have to drop the seat down, I can just run them from the trunk through the center armrest and up the middle. Also, there have been times that I have used my roof rack for all of my waterski equipment. I have a thule rack and thule ski attachment and I can either stack my jumpers without bindings on them and put a slalom ski on as well or just have my jumpers side by side when I don't want to take the bindings off. Most snow ski racks will clamp down enough for the skis to fill snug in the rack.

[Craig]

@Ajskier, this is exactly the kind of feedback I was hoping for, thank you.

 

So you put your skis with tips toward the trunk?

[BCM]

A friend of mine had their jumpers in their snow ski racks when the wind caught them on the interstate, it ripped the rack off the roof and the jumper was broken in half by a tractor trailer behind them, luckily the ski didn't go into anyone's car window and/or cause a crash. After seeing the tire tracks on their broken jumper, wrecked rack and dented roof, I would recommend NOT putting jumpers in a roof rack. Unless you remove your bindings there likely won't be enough room to run them upside down and those tips are going to build a lot of pressure at 70mph+.

 

I can fit my 86" jumpers in a Honda Accord along with my slalom ski... the skis are on the drivers arm rest, but its much safer and cheaper than the roof rack. Tips in the trunk of the accord, its been a while, but I even got them in, inside my 3-event bag... I just hauled some 8 foot trim back from the lumber yard in the accord, not a problem...

 

 

[Ajskier]

@craig, if I am putting them in the car, I put the tips in the trunk and then the tails run right up the center armrest. If I am using my rack, I just flip them upside down and put the tails toward the rear of the car. My rack is tall enough that I can flip the skis over with the bindings on them.

[chris_logan]

@Craig I have a Honda CRZ, and I just strap down my 3 event bag, wheels forward, on my removable Thule rack. Everything stays together and its easy loading and unloading. It was a ton cheaper than buying anything else to go on the rack and doesn't take up any arm rest space or passenger space. $130 on ebay and I was good to go. The 3 event bag is much more tournament friendly anyways.

[BraceMaker]

@bcm - yikes - losing a roof rack always scares me - I will not own one of the ones with door clips unless it has a rain gutter (my old e30 was a great car racked up)

[jwr]

Able to fit two 94" jumpers and a slalom in my Yakima racks. Blew off the car last year and lost all three skis. Racks and clips were still locked when I picked them up off the highway. Was using the door clips. Will never do that again. Either go in my car or use the Yakima racks attached to the crossbars on my wife's suv.

[BCM]

I like the method by @chris_logan‌ a good ratchet strap has a pretty high working load (3000lb +), much higher than a roof rack, and your gear is protected. And you can buy them for $10-$15 a piece...

 

@BraceMaker‌ - it was a few years ago, I can't remember if their rack opened up or ripped off the roof, but I have seen a few racks removed from the roof of a car when the car was driven into a garage with a bike on the rack... Total a $5k+ road bike, total your rack and a few thousand in damage to the car... I have witnessed snow skis falling to the road from an improperly latched rack, mountain bikes falling off the roofs of cars and bikes being driven into the garage. Long story short, for me it goes in a box on the roof, inside the car or in the bed of my pickup.

[Alberto Soares]

Sorry for the bad English - A few years ago in Argentina for a Latin American Championship, we were riding a taxi in a highway with the skis on the top rack. One of the straps ripped and my friend´s slalom fly away. We stopped the taxi to pick the ski (or the rest of it) and a small car with an old couple run over it. It got stuck below their car and they kept driving. We got back to the taxi, followed the car and made them stop half a mile later, lifted the small car and voila, we got my friend´s ski back. It was on a Masterline bag with all his equipment on it. He lost his vest, a neoprene top and his towel, lucky the ski had a minor damage he fixed with some epoxi and even won his age category. Always check the straps...