![]() At 2-feet wide, it fits with even a tandem canoe on 66-inch bars, and still opens easily. A narrow cargo box that fits on top of the rack next to the canoe or kayak, that opens with the boat in place, and that accommodates all that pokey, bulky, hard-to-contain gear. Actually, many smaller cars have surprising cargo space, but it’s the riff-raff that defeats the packing strategy – paddles, PFDs, bailers, small dry bags, all that essential stuff that tends to rattle around loose in the load. So much for taking friends, or keeping the gear explosion down to something below 7.0 on the Richter scale every time you open the back hatch. But then everything else gets crammed in the car. Yes, rack manufacturers have come up with all manner of ingenious rigs for hauling boats on mini vehicles. Bling it out with some stickers and it will look extra cool on the top of your car.Ruby Kesselheim loading the car for a canoe getaway in warmer climes. I’m very pleased with the storage capability and that it doesn’t impact gas mileage. Now I just emit the occasional grumble.īut what I do know is that you won’t regret buying this. On the Copper Harbor trip, I was cussing and swearing when it came time to lock the box. If my experience can demonstrate anything, it’s to be patient until you get the hang of it. This minimizes the danger of your grundies being strewed along the highway.īut, really, for the money, the Rocketbox at $359 is a smoking deal over Yakima’s pricier cargo boxes, which run as high as $689. You can’t remove the key until all three latches are secure. The tight fit prevents leaking and the locking system is designed for security. They fully intended for you to muscle and beat the lid down with a good smack to get it to close. If these don’t line up, you’ll never see your key again. It has three latches on the inside of the box and they need to line-up perfectly with three catchers. It’s a pain to close and it’s not because I eschew assembly instructions. It took me an entire weekend to piece the million little pieces into a fully-functioning Rocketbox for the Copper Harbor trip. I might consider the possibility of actually reading the directions after I realized I put it together backwards or inside out, but even that’s a long shot. I say mostly because I’m in the habit of winging it. Oh, now there’s a subject oozing with controversy. If I had Yakima crossbars that were wider, I could get an extra kayak or an extra bike on top.Īssembly. All this cargo capacity, and there is still room on the crossbars for a kayak or a bike. Even with all our kayaking gear in it, there was still room for a few more items. Its lean, sleek design holds an amazing amount of stuff. I had had apocalyptic visions of the Rocketbox popping open and stewing several thousand dollars worth of kayaking gear along the highway but that never came to fruition. On the open road, it made noise, but it was only audible when the moonroof was open. It fits perfectly on my factory-installed Subaru roof bars and does not interfere with opening the rear hatch once it’s on. ![]() Putting it on and taking it off is easy because it’s so light. Guess I’ll let the Mythbusters crew explain that one.Īnyway. Yes, it’s aerodynamic, but it’s still a thing on the top of the car and the laws of physics state that any thing on the top of the car will create drag and cause gas mileage to plunge. I checked my math a number of times because every calculation showed that the Rocketbox had no impact on the Subie’s gas mileage. Upstairs, in the Rocketbox, were two sets of drysuits, PFDs, spray skirts and kayak paddles. Inside the Subie, we packed bike gear, a toolbox full of bike tools and supplies, a big ice chest and clothes for two people for five days. Packing, for once, was actually less of a chore because we had extra room.Īn Ibis Mojo and a Pivot 5.7 were attached to the hitch-mounted bike rack. That meant a load of gear needed to hauled 7.5 hours from Minneapolis and back. My Subie Outback consistently averages 27 MPG so a road trip was in order. Copper Harbor, situated on Michigan’s Upper Peninsula, is known for its world-class bike trails and sea kayaking on Lake Superior. However, the real value test came with how much the Rocketbox’s presence would affect gas mileage. We needed something long enough to hold my husband’s 210cm cross-country skis (mine are just measly 180cm’s) and our kayak paddles. The reason I went with the Pro 11 over the Pro 12 or Pro 14 is size. The Yakima RocketBox Pro 11 may look like car-top coffin but it has eleven cubic feet of waterproof storage capacity. In the back of my squeaky-clean Subaru Outback? Nyet! Mountain biking, kayaking, backpacking and skiing bring the dilemma of where to stash the smelly, cheesy, wet gear when you get off the trail, river or slopes. Check out this review of the RocketBox 11 from.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |