Hobie TI roof rack on a Subaru Forester.

Normally this TI is on a trailer where it is super easy to launch. However, we did a road trip to San Juan Island (including three ferry rides) and motel stays that made the car top option attractive. Not easy to do but also pretty amazing that you can actually car top a boat like this..

Note.. loading this rack should ONLY be done on a flat surface and away from any other cars!!!

The TI is 18 foot long and the after market racks on this car are only 28 inches apart. A 90 inch long cradle was made that supports the boat.

A support in the rear that includes wheels further distributes the load. The boat is also tied down at the front of the car.

Unload and setup time is about 20 minutes. This setup was used for a 3975 mile road trip

Below: Rear support just fits over the trailer hitch ball and is easily removable by lifting the support bar (an old windsurfing mast cut down) upwards. The wheel assembly stays attached to the boat by the black line you can see in the picture.

Below: the ladder allows a two step lift of the from of the boat onto the loading arm - better on the back..

Below - loading and unloading. In the picture below, we are draining a little bit of water from the hull after a sailing session.

Below: When the boat is held up by the loading arm, it puts a rotation force on the rack. The aluminum brace shown by the black arrow in the picture keeps the rack from falling off during loading.

Below - first rev of the loading arm. I later changed the pine 2x4 to an aluminum piece. We had no problems with this on our trip.

Below: some of the junk that was loaded in the car

Below. Carpet added so the hull slides up on the rack easier.

Below: I had to add those aluminum channels to both sides of the rack to cut down the rack sagging on both ends.

Below: The yellow pads and rings made tying down the hull and amas a lot easier. It was about a 20 minute setup time from rack to ready to put the boat in the water.

Below:  The wheel assembly is held on by the black line to a cleat in the boat. Once the aft end of the boat is in the water, the wheels get dropped off and retrieved.

Below: The front of the hull was also tied down to the front underside of the bumper for Hiway travel (not shown)

Below: The main cradle is 90 inches long