Carrying a Longboard on a 2dr Civic?

Question

Hi all,

I have recently gotten back into surfing... I have 9-4' Longboard and have been relying on my friends truck for tranport to and from the beach. Id like to be able to just go whenever i feel like it... but the problem is that my car is a 98 honda civic 2 door coupe.

Is it possible/safe to carry a board of this size on such a small car? Id like to get some good soft racks, but if im going to have to worry about the board, my car, or other cars around me id rather not take the risk.

any SERIOUS thoughts / suggestions are appreciated!

Thanks!

Answer 1

Any $35 soft rack will do - we used to tie 3 longboards to the roof of a 1990 2-dr Acura, no problem. Just learn how to tie it correctly.

Answer 2

I think it is safe it you strap it down good. I would buy hard racks though for such a big board. I use hard racks and a tie down strap thing.

The Surfboard Man

http://www.thesurfboardman.com/

Answer 3

if your car has the two luggage racks that run parallel to the car (like along the top but doesn't cross across the car) then do this

take two pieces of solid pvc (i don't know what thickness, but somewhere around 1 1/2" and line them up to cross across your car, so they will be on top of the racks

then drill holes in the pvc so that for each side, there is a hole outside and inside of the existing racks. you want to have a U bolt becaus that will be going through the holes, so you want to make sure its the right space between the drilled holes

then put the u bolt in and secure it on the other side with a bracket and two nuts. tighten it down and do the same for the three other points

there you go

Answer 4

Soft racks will work fine. Just make sure they are spaced far enough apart to balance the load. Put your fin(s) up and to the front. You can always get a nice 1" web cargo strap at Walmart and use that as  'insurance' (just wrap it all the way around the roof and board). And don't go for the land speed record with your log atop the coupe. I see lots of cars smaller than yours, with soft racks and longboards at the breaks I surf, so I'm sure you'll be okay.