Transporting Kayaks abd bikes.

Any advice on transporting four Hobie Kayaks and for bicycles on a trailer.
Oh, it will be towed by a mini van or an RV.
Thanks

_________________
Mike Hensel
'86 Hobie 18, '93 Hobie 14, '80 Hobie 14(restso in progress)
Wind in your sails, water in your shoes, great day!

If the trailer is long enough for kayaks, it might have room down the middle for the bikes. If the bikes were upside down, the pedals would be high enough to clear kayaks double stacked on each side (outside of the bikes). Bikes could be paired nose to tail, as two pairs down the middle. The rack work gets pretty simple, and the kayaks would sit low.

I used to haul 6 windsurfers and 2 bikes in the same manner. It's a good idea to keep the kayaks low and flat, because you're not going to be very heavy on the trailer. You don't want something that can blow over in the wind. That's the main thing to keep in mind.

Good luck with that project.
Regards, JimL

When I haul my yaks on my trailer, I just put a bike rack on the rear window of my Golf. (Making sure they don't touch when cornering.)

I got my trailer from these people. http://www.canoekayaktrailer.com/ They have several pictures on their site with different configurations of bike and kayak.

Comes in the mail and takes about an hour to put together.

To solve this problem, I bought a Swagman XP fold-down 4-bike carrier with tongue extension.

It fits in the tongue receiver of my Odyssey, and includes a mount for a 2" ball for my boat trailer.

Now, when I go to my place in the Puger Sound, I can load all bikes and my kayaks or the bikes and my Getaway. I haven't yet modified the Getaway trailer to carry both the cat and the yaks, but I have a few more week-ends before the sailing weather is back in the NW.

Xavier, good to hear from someone in the Northwest. Do you come up to the Puget Sound to sail or fish with your kayak. I was just checking to see if you go to the regattas at the varrious locations.
I am hoping to do some kayaking at these regattas also as the sites are great for both sailing and kayaking.

_________________
Mike Hensel
'86 Hobie 18, '93 Hobie 14, '80 Hobie 14(restso in progress)
Wind in your sails, water in your shoes, great day!

I'm mainly an old "recreational" sailor. I have a place in the Puget Sound which allows me to be on "real" water (i.e. salt water) instead of the rivers we have in Portland.

I typically use the AI in the morning when winds are light or non existent, and switch to the Getaway in the afternoon. I sure wish we had more steady winds! I don't race but may do a couple of week-ends with Fleet 72 or the social aspect in 2007.

Here are some photos I took yesterday of the trailer and bike carrier.

The whole rig (with my Getaway in the background). The black tube stores the AI mast:


Trailer with AI on its side (I can put 4 of them side-by-side!):


Rear view with the zodiac at the bottom. I installed 2 keel rollers and 4 wide flaot rollers (same as for the kayaks - see below) so that I can easily winch the zodiac on the trailer:


Detail of the conveyor belt rollers. I used 3 rollers front and aft across the entire width of the trailer so that I can load all kayaks by myself. The rollers come from a discarded conveyor belt I found in a junk store:


The bike carrier with the trailer attached. The bike support can tilt down to allow access to the hatch:


I still need to figure out how to carry the amas and akas (the current system is not secure). I'll probably rig some 1/2 moon cradles on the outside of the frame so that when I get a couple of other AIs for my wife and son, we can carry them all. Just can't wait!

Transporting four Hobie kayaks and four bicycles is a significant logistical task. Hobies are generally heavier and wider than standard kayaks due to the MirageDrive systems and internal framing. For a "20-minute" loading job that will likely take 20 hours the first time you dial it in, here is the best way to rig your trailer for stability and safety.

1. The Trailer Foundation
Since you are towing with a minivan or RV, you need a galvanized marine trailer or a specialized multi-sport trailer (like those from Malone or Trailex). A standard utility trailer is often too short; kayaks that are 12 to 14 feet long will overhang dangerously without a long tongue.

2. The Tiered Rack System
To fit eight items on one footprint, you must go vertical.

Bottom Tier (The Heaviest): Place the four Hobie kayaks on the lowest level to keep the center of gravity down. Use hull-conforming saddles or PVC bunks rather than flat bars to prevent the plastic hulls from "oil-canning" or warping under their own weight.

Top Tier (The Bicycles): Install a second "tree" or crossbar system above the kayaks. You can then mount four standard roof-top bicycle trays (like those from Thule or Yakima) to these bars.

3. Weight Distribution and Tongue Weight
This is critical for a minivan. You want about 10% to 15% of the total trailer weight on the hitch ball.

If the kayaks are too far back, the trailer will "fishtail" at highway speeds.

If the bicycles and kayaks are too far forward, it will squash the rear suspension of the minivan, making steering light and dangerous.

The Hobie Factor: Remove the MirageDrives, seats, and any heavy tackle boxes before loading. Store these inside the van or RV to reduce the "dead weight" on the trailer.

4. Security and Strapping
Use cam-action straps for the kayaks, not ratchets. Ratchet straps are powerful enough to crack the scupper holes or hulls of a Hobie. For the bikes, ensure the trays are bolted directly to the trailer frame or a heavy-duty crossbar.

The Digital Log
If you take photos of your rack spacing or the "20-hour" final loaded rig to share with the Hobie or RV forums, your phone will likely save them as WebP files. Many of the specialized towing and kayaking boards still struggle to display this format. You can use WEBPtoJPGhero to quickly flip those setup shots into high-quality JPEGs. It is the best way to show the community how you managed to fit that much gear on one axle.