Author Topic: Stupid Question Fins while driving?  (Read 8329 times)

ATX Golder

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Stupid Question Fins while driving?
« on: October 20, 2016, 10:25:19 AM »
Hi Guys, I'm sure many of you likely think this is a silly question but I'm new to boards and don't have any more experienced friends in town to ask.

For reference my board is a 11'6" all around shape with the stock fin which has a pretty big area.

I drive a Minivan and I strap the board upside down and front forward to the factory roof rack using rack pads and the beefy Dakine Baja tie down straps, it feels like a rock once I have it on there.

The guy at the store told me that I should not have the fin on the board when I'm driving he recommends taking it off.  This sounds like total hogwash to me.  Ok maybe if I'm doing a 5 hour road trip on the highway I should take the fin off.  However 98% of the time I'm doing 10-20 miles mostly at speeds of 40mph and occasionally getting up to 60mph for 3-4 minutes at a time.  For these conditions I should be fine leaving my fin attached correct?

Reason I care is that I'm often trying to get a paddle completed in a short period to get back to the wife and kids, and time spent removing and installing the fin is a wasted few minutes on either end of the trip that I'd prefer to cut out if possible.

drfierce

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Re: Stupid Question Fins while driving?
« Reply #1 on: October 20, 2016, 10:34:22 AM »
I'm not an expert but I usually leave it on, as I'm five minutes from the beach. One of my boards has a bag and I use it on longer trips (think highway for more than a few exits) but I have left the fins on. Curious to see what other people say.
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Beasho

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Re: Stupid Question Fins while driving?
« Reply #2 on: October 20, 2016, 10:41:22 AM »
Well I am an expert, having put boards on roofs for 30 years and driven across country . . . .

Fins stay ON!  No need to take them out of the board.

Lift and drag are proportional to density.  1 / 2 x Density x  (Velocity) ^ 2

Water is 800X as dense as air.  Therefore going 60 mph through air is about as "forceful" as 3 mph in the water.   




starman

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Re: Stupid Question Fins while driving?
« Reply #3 on: October 20, 2016, 10:57:45 AM »
Quote
sounds like total hogwash to me.

It is, if anything having the fin towards the rear adds a bit of extra safety during a panic stop or collision. Keeps the board from sliding off the rack.

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Re: Stupid Question Fins while driving?
« Reply #4 on: October 20, 2016, 11:14:03 AM »
Quote
sounds like total hogwash to me.

It is, if anything having the fin towards the rear adds a bit of extra safety during a panic stop or collision. Keeps the board from sliding off the rack.
Yep, this why in Europe people drive with fins up, nose forward. For some reason in other countries you often see fin forward.

Either way, fins stays ON, unless you are stacking boards for downwinding...

SaMoSUP

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Re: Stupid Question Fins while driving?
« Reply #5 on: October 20, 2016, 11:21:22 AM »
I always take big fins off my boards and have quick release fin mechanisms to speed up this process.

Why? Because the very first board I bought brand new, only two days old, I drove into my garage with low clearance and the fin clipped a sewage pipe. I had a long paddle that day, tired, and forgot to remove fin from board. Damaged the fin box and made a few dings when the fin bounced around the board as it popped off. Luckily no sewage spill. BTW I drive a taller SUV.

So unless you know for a fact that everywhere you drive you have high enough clearance, I'd take fins off everytime. Good thing my SUP surfboards have smaller quad fins so I don't have to take those off at all.

Bean

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Re: Stupid Question Fins while driving?
« Reply #6 on: October 20, 2016, 12:23:14 PM »
I say hogwash, in all the great surf movies including Gidget, Beach Party, etc., the fins are always on! ;D

Seriously, back in the day when fins were mostly glassed-on there was no choice.  Boards went on fin-first because they were tied down with simple rope and the consensus was that if the board slipped when driving at speed, the fin would keep the board from slipping the rope.

So, it became somewhat of a tradition for US surfers to go fin-first.  However, the Aussies, Europeans, SA's and even our very own Great Lakers seem to go nose first.  There is no absolute right way...

BWilliam

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Re: Stupid Question Fins while driving?
« Reply #7 on: October 20, 2016, 12:28:27 PM »
Nose first, fin on & up!




Will

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Re: Stupid Question Fins while driving?
« Reply #8 on: October 20, 2016, 01:00:01 PM »
Fins on, fins up and fins forward, if straps losen slightly and traveling on a highway and the boards slide toward rear of vehicle, forward fins then allow the boards fins to catch the straps and would allow the board to be be prevented from sliding backwards off the vehicle onto the highway where other cars could run it over. With fins up and nose foreard, yes fins in back would prevent the board from flying off car forward in the event of a studden and completely hard stop, other then rare instances, I'd rather have board stay on at higher speeds than a quick stop.
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Dusk Patrol

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Re: Stupid Question Fins while driving?
« Reply #9 on: October 20, 2016, 01:02:29 PM »
Yes... fin on, up and to the front... because, you know, the Gidget and rope thing...  8)
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starman

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Re: Stupid Question Fins while driving?
« Reply #10 on: October 20, 2016, 01:16:01 PM »
This is old info but there is a good reason for the nose first, fin up method;

Mercedes Benz conducted a wind tunnel test on boards carried on roof racks and the findings showed that wind noise and drag could be reduced by positioning the equipment on the car with the nose toward the front of the car, the deck facing down and the nose overhanging the roof as little as possible. This study is posted in the book “Start Windsurfing Right!”

Area 10

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Re: Stupid Question Fins while driving?
« Reply #11 on: October 20, 2016, 02:09:44 PM »
Fins on, fins up and fins forward, if straps losen slightly and traveling on a highway and the boards slide toward rear of vehicle, forward fins then allow the boards fins to catch the straps and would allow the board to be be prevented from sliding backwards off the vehicle onto the highway where other cars could run it over. With fins up and nose foreard, yes fins in back would prevent the board from flying off car forward in the event of a studden and completely hard stop, other then rare instances, I'd rather have board stay on at higher speeds than a quick stop.
Has anyone ever had a board move rearwards on a roof rack? Wind mainly creates lift, and as long as your board is widest in the middle, and you haven't been a total numpty strapping the board on, the board will not be able to move rearwards because the rear strap will prevent it.

PDLSFR

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Re: Stupid Question Fins while driving?
« Reply #12 on: October 20, 2016, 03:35:18 PM »
Fins on, fins up and fins forward, if straps losen slightly and traveling on a highway and the boards slide toward rear of vehicle, forward fins then allow the boards fins to catch the straps and would allow the board to be be prevented from sliding backwards off the vehicle onto the highway where other cars could run it over. With fins up and nose foreard, yes fins in back would prevent the board from flying off car forward in the event of a studden and completely hard stop, other then rare instances, I'd rather have board stay on at higher speeds than a quick stop.
Has anyone ever had a board move rearwards on a roof rack? Wind mainly creates lift, and as long as your board is widest in the middle, and you haven't been a total numpty strapping the board on, the board will not be able to move rearwards because the rear strap will prevent it.

I have seen it happen on a few occasions when BOTH straps (front and rear) became loose.
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DavidJohn

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Re: Stupid Question Fins while driving?
« Reply #13 on: October 20, 2016, 03:38:21 PM »
Fin on.. board upside down and fin at the back.

Bulky

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Re: Stupid Question Fins while driving?
« Reply #14 on: October 20, 2016, 04:35:44 PM »
I think it depends on what hemisphere you're in.  Kinda like how water goes down the drain.   ;)


Although I've heard some passionate reasoning about how boards "should" be strapped to the roof of your car, I think it really depends on the particular board and the set up of the racks.  I have some that work better fins forward, others that go better the other direction.  Used to always put them top down, but have one board with footwells where the rails got dented from the straps.  Solution--turn the board over.

I used to keep my fins in all the time until I went to click-ins, but now I'm rethinking those (see my other thread).  While some people will talk about wind resistance or structural impacts on your board--like Beasho says, that's negligible and if the board is built to take the knocking of an open ocean swell with a 200lb rider, then I can't imagine wind hitting it from any direction is really going to do any damage.


it feels like a rock once I have it on there.



Not familiar with the particular straps you mention but my only concern would be that you're overtightening things--that has the potential of doing much more damage than the likelihood of a slip off the car.  That's a common mistake that makes me cringe--guys putting most of their bodyweight into giving that final yank on the straps.  Doesn't need to be that tight and can really hurt the board.
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