Name: Thule+896+DockGlide+Kayak+Carrier
Brand: AMAZON
SKU: B01MTUDGYU
Price: 139.26 USD
Availability: InStock
Rating: 5.0 (10 reviews)

Features:

Easily load and unload the kayak with the pivoting felt-lined rear saddles that help Glide and center a kayak onto the vehicle
Two independent pivoting saddles with angle-setting lever conforms to limitless range of hull shapes
Quickly secure the kayak using the center load straps with car-protective buckle bumpers and QuickDraw bow and stern tie-downs
Protects the hull with large, flexible, cushioned pads
Accommodates kayaks up to 36 inches wide and 75 lbs
Fits a variety of Thule rack systems, round bars and most factory racks due to T-Track and FlipFit brackets

More Information

Outstanding - allows me to load/unload kayak by myself

These are exactly what I needed to allow me to easily load my kayak on top of my car by myself and without damaging my Honda SUV. I place a thick folded quilt on the rear window and top back end of my SUV, hoist and place the front tip of the kayak onto the back window, then carefully work ,my way back to the end of the kayak, keeping it steady with one or two hands as needed, them lift the back and push it up onto the kayak carriers. The rear carriers allow the kayak to glide forward easily over the front carriers, which grip the kayak with their rubber surfaces once the kayak is dropped down onto them. After practicing placing the carriers on the crossbars, I can now put all 4 of them on or take them off in just a few minutes. Have had my kayak out twice this week and expect to use it much more now that I have a good system for mounting and unmounting it. The seem very solidly built. I previously had purchased a set of J-racks and locks from Yakima, which were very well constructed. But it was difficult to load my kayak into the J-racks by myself and needed something I could do without help. The Thule carriers also came with a set of hold down straps, which I haven't yet used since I'm still using the strap set that came with the .Yakima, but they look well built as well.

Natasha Lee Aiken

Useable on Yakima round bars, supplied rope easy to knot

But even fully tightened they may rotate if you push the boat abruptly. I will have to put a piece of inner tube between the clamp and the crossbar. I have loaded my fiberglass sea kayak 4 times on them. I especially like the blue rope with a ratchet that is used to secure the two ends. Two of these are included and since I carry two kayaks I use these two to secure the front end of each kayak as I prefer these to the old webbing based setup Yakima supplied 10 years ago. It is a plus that the blue rope holds a knot very well (does not get undone when you drive an hour at 75 mph) yet it is easy to undo the knot on arrival. To me this was a pleasant surprise. Also when you take the boat off you can pull the rear end towards the ground lifting the nose up, then you can rotate the boat so the nose moves towards the side of the car where it is much easier to grab and lift off (if you don’t want to slide the boat off because the bottom is sandy)

Odunola Oladunni-Afolabi

Clever design makes loading/unloading easy for 1 person

I installed this carrier on my Thule square bar roof rack to transport a 50 lb 12-foot kayak. The IKEA-style instructions were more difficult to follow than they needed to be but were otherwise sufficient. I researched several carriers before deciding on this one. I like how the horizontal orientation allows me to easily load or unload the kayak by myself from the rear by sliding it up or down the trunk of my car (padded with a towel). With just the two cam-buckle straps my boat feels rock solid and stable at 75 MPH. Bow and stern tie-downs are also included but I don't find it necessary to use them because of how securely the saddles secure my kayak.