Author Topic: Tying down nose/tail -- sup bra?  (Read 1772 times)

crazybrit

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Tying down nose/tail -- sup bra?
« on: August 26, 2022, 10:52:41 AM »
https://yakima.com/products/supbrah

It would appear this is maybe discontinued?

I stumbled upon the above as I was thinking yesterday of ways to better secure my 12' BIC board --  I'm fairly handy with a sewing machine and was thinking of making a nose/tail bra (two "cone" shaped pieces of fabric with a cinching strap between them that fit over the nose/tail each with a tie down loop).

Curious on peoples thoughts.   Obviously I'm loading the board deck side down (fin up) and tail/front nose/rear but on my BIC the leash tie down is quite small and it doesn't feel that strong,  hence I was pondering the above bra setup.

Also if I'm loading two boards (smaller on top, so it's fin further back) is it a good idea to strap both boards together (independent of the roof rails) so that the wind can't lift the tail of the upper board?

Thanks!

OkiWild

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Re: Tying down nose/tail -- sup bra?
« Reply #1 on: August 26, 2022, 09:48:29 PM »
This looks like a convenient way to have bow and stern tie downs for a long load.

Probably has to do with longer loads. In the sea kayak community, people think the bow and stern tie downs are to keep the kayak on the car if it somehow comes loose, but the tie downs are actually to stabilize a long load on a narrow fulcrum. If you put a 17' sea kayak on a standard set of car racks, it will want to porpoise and twist, which absolutely WILL loosen the racks from the car. If you have wide-spaced racks, like I have on my van (130cm), no problem. But if the racks are 70cm apart, a 14' board can put a lot of stress on the racks.
 

sflinux

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Re: Tying down nose/tail -- sup bra?
« Reply #2 on: August 28, 2022, 07:03:52 PM »
I would worry about fabric ripping under the strap tension.  I would have a sling for the nose & for the tail.  You could another line pulling the two slings towards the center of the board.  Then you can have another tension line that goes from each sling to a bumper tie down.  System will be as strong as the weakest link.
That being said, my longest board is a 12'6" and I haven't had a problem with conventional straps.  My favorite for feeling secure is the kanulock.  As longs as your rack is secure, nothing is coming off.  I use nrs buckle bumper straps for short trips or rainy weather, but have much more confidence in the kanulock system.  With kanulock, the green is good for 1 sup, use the orange for 2 sups.  I've stacked 3 sups for long trips and had to tie the green to the orange (I don't have the yellow).  I prefer nose forward fin up like you described.  Don't be shy about removing fins for transport.  400 miles, 12000 ft elevation change, wind; no problem.
If you have a tiny car with narrow rack spacing and a board as long or longer than your vehicle, I can see the yakima supbrah being handy.
« Last Edit: August 28, 2022, 07:08:45 PM by sflinux »
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PonoBill

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Re: Tying down nose/tail -- sup bra?
« Reply #3 on: August 28, 2022, 08:13:12 PM »
It's fairly easy to accomplish that with just two long straps and a bit of rope. One strap just looped in front of the fin and tied to to the rear bumper. Put a loop of line in front of the fin and run it forward to about a foot from the nose. Loop the second strap through the rope loop and around the board and tie it to the front bumper. I do this whenever I carry long boards on short rental cars.
Foote 10'4X34", SIC 17.5 V1 hollow and an EPS one in Hood River. Foote 9'0" x 31", L41 8'8", 18' Speedboard, etc. etc.

 


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