I’m afraid that these would eventually get stolen one of these days if I happen to not have a kayak on it. What do you guys think? I’m I being crazy or should I use chains to lock them up into the rack?
Don’t know
Where you live but I have never had anything removed from my rack.
Same here
Jack L
No gear stolen off of my vehicle
I don’t live in the best place either. One of the condo owners rents to “skuzzy” types and another one rented to a gang of “robbers” who robbed neighbors condos until the SWAT Team caught them. I had gear on my van and then on the VW replacement for the van. The gear was left alone.
(I bought security storm doors for my condo but leave the gear and kayak unlocked on my car during season.)
I watched through my window one night as some of these not nice kids were looking at my thule J cradles but my guess is that they didn’t think they could pawn them for much cash. The next group had a kid who was always trying my car doors in hopes of getting in but he left the roof alone.
Condo complex passed a rule. Owners must only sell to folks who will be residents. This has helped with security.
Most in city thieves are looking for stuff they can sell for drugs.
It does happen
It does happen, just goggle kayak rack stolen and you will probably get back a good number of hits even from the boards on this site.
I have lived in some pretty rough areas as well as bartending in dive bars. In some areas people will steal anything that isn’t nailed down and then try to sell it for even a few dollars just to get their next drug hit. I have seen junkies trying to sell plastic trash cans, yard furniture and even one time a nice bush they dug up from someones yard.
Some of the racks I see for sale on Craigslist often look ripped off someones car and the seller doesn’t seem to have a clue how the feet attach.
I usually buy racks I can add the lock cores. Not going to stop a determined thief for long. Add locks if you can or remove them if going somewhere dicey – not sure I would leave my rack on my car if parking at the airport lot for a week, even with locks.
I don’t think I would bother doing chains – that seems to me to be more problem then it is worth. If you are in high theft area, you probably would be best just keeping them off the car when not needed. If somewhere safe then just add keys if you can and use some basic common sense, otherwise I wouldn’t worry too much them getting stolen.
Get the locks for them
maybe
Accessories have been stolen from vehicles, but it is relatively rare.
You could get the locks, but they could end up costing you almost as much as the saddles. Don’t forget to lock the crossbars and roof mounts.
Thieves do go for the easiest route possible. So one option to make it more challenging for them would be to replace those hand tighten able wing nuts Yakima provides with a standard nut (and washer) from your hardware store. This would force them to have a tool to remove it (which most thieves wouldn’t have).
Saddles on car 24/7 and 365 for years
– Last Updated: Jun-14-12 11:44 PM EST –
No one has bothered mine in Detroit Michigan area
and I've had them on my car everyday for years and years.
With that being said, I usually carry spare straps,
foam blocks and stuff to "aid" others as we often shuttle boats,
gear, people, cars and I never really
know who has what until they actually show up.
Having mooched shuttles from others over the years
I now attempt to help others and in the process
cover my butt with alternate means to get boat home.
Unlikely, but …
I’ve been using the Land Sharks for 15+ years, almost yearround, and never had them stolen.
As far as I know, Yakima offers nothing to prevent the theft of the Land Shark saddles from the rack. The Q-towers, etc. have optional locks, but not the saddles.
If you are worried, I’d suggest replacing the big plastic wingnuts on the saddles with something that requires a wrench, or lacing a bike cable through the saddles and bars.
Most thieves seek an easy mark, and if they see any sort of lock/cable, they’ll often look for the next target …
Good luck!
Delphinus
http://www.AquaDynology.com
Accessory Locks
Yakima makes the 7220 Accessory Lock Housing ( http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0kaY5wK7tug ) for locking items such as cradles.
The housing doesn’t come with the lock cores, so you will need to buy that separately (get the same cores to match your existing rack locks).
That said, I don’t use them and haven’t had any rack accessories stolen in many years of use, but it could happen.
Greg Stamer
WHAT IS YOUR NEXT GREAT ADVENTURE?
As a great admirer of yours, I wonder what you’re up to next? Please give us a tease…
Adventures big and small…
Thanks!
I’m a private person, so for most of my adventures, no one will ever hear of them, but every few years I get the “itch” to do a “major public trip”. I have a few ideas that I’m kicking around, nothing I’m ready to announce yet.
For awhile my work demands that I stay closer to home. I’m still coaching and recently got into both K1 (ICF Sprint) and surf ski paddling. It’s always great fun to try a new discipline. I’m working to master those skills and enjoy more racing.
What I love about paddlesport is the breadth of it, and the more you know, and the more diverse your skills, the better the paddler you are.
Greg Stamer