• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer
MENUMENU
  • Home
  • About
  • Advertise
  • Join us on

Ultimate France

A Thrill-Seekers Guide

MENUMENU
  • Bike
    • Mountain Biking South France
      • Auron-Saint Etienne
      • Le Dévoluy
      • Diois
      • Isola 2000
      • La Moulière
      • Les Orres
      • Montgenèvre
      • Orcières
      • Pra Loup
      • Queyras
      • Riviera Borderlands
      • Roubion
      • Serre Chevalier
      • Sospel
      • Ubaye Valley
      • Valberg
      • Val d'Allos
      • Vars
      • Verdon
    • Mountain Biking French Alps
      • Portes du Soleil
        • Avoriaz
        • Châtel
        • Les Gets
        • Morzine
      • Alpe d'Huez
      • Chamonix
        • Tour du Mont Blanc
      • Courchevel
      • Les Arcs
      • La Clusaz
      • Les Deux Alpes
      • Méribel
      • Sainte-Foy
      • Tignes
      • Val d’Isère
      • Valloire
    • Mountain Biking French Pyrenees
      • Cauterets
      • Luchon
      • Saint Lary
      • Mountain Biking Basque Country
      • Mountain Biking Northern Italy
      • Finale Ligure
    • Cycling Holidays
      • Mountain Bike Hire
      • Cycle Shops & Repairs
      • Airport Transfers
      • Campervan Hire
      • Road Cycling
      • French Alps
      • South of France
      • Cycling Holidays
    • Bike Directory

      • Finale Ligure Freeride - MTB Uplifts & Guiding
      • Whiterides - Private Airport Transfers to the Espace Killy, Paradiski and 3 Valleys
      • France Bike Trips - Mountain Bike & Road Cycling Tours
      • Natureo Surf Camp - Seignosse
      • RIDE ON NOLI - MTB Uplifts & Guiding
      • Bike Alp - MTB Holidays in the Southern French Alps
  • Surf
    • South West France
      • Anglet
      • Arcachon-La Salie
      • Biarritz
      • Bidart
      • Biscarrosse
      • Capbreton
      • Guéthary
      • Hendaye
      • Hossegor
      • Lacanau
      • Messanges
      • Mimizan Plage
      • Moliets Plage
      • Saint-Jean-de-Luz
      • Seignosse
      • Vieux Boucau
    • Brittany
    • Surf Holidays
      • Surf Camps
      • Campsites
      • Surf Shuttles
      • Campervan Rental
      • Basque Country Beaches
      • Surf Webcams
      • Hossegor
    • Surf Events
      • Quiksilver Pro France
      • World Surfing Games
  • Kite
    • Kitesurf Spot Guide
      • Almanarre, Hyères
      • Beauduc, Camargue
      • Cap d’Agde
      • Carro
      • Espiguette, Camargue
      • La Ciotat
      • Lac de Serre-Ponçon
      • Le Jaï-Etang de Berre
      • Leucate-La Franqui
      • Saint-Laurent-du-Var
      • Sète-Etang de Thau
    • Kitesurfing Holidays
      • Campervan Rental
      • Campsites
        • Almanarre
        • Leucate
      • Kitesurf Schools
        • Almanarre
        • Cannes
        • Hyères
        • Leucate
        • Montpellier
        • Sète
  • Snow
    • Resort Guides
      • Les 3 Vallées
        • Courchevel
        • La Tania
        • Les Menuires
        • Méribel
        • Val Thorens
      • Alpe d'Huez
      • Arêches-Beaufort
      • Avoriaz
      • Bourg-Saint-Maurice
      • Chamonix
      • Châtel
      • Isola 2000
      • La Clusaz
    • Resort Guides cont.
      • La Grave
      • La Plagne
      • La Rosière
      • Les 2 Alpes
      • Les Arcs
      • Les Gets
      • Les Houches
      • Megève
      • Morzine
      • Sainte-Foy
      • Serre Chevalier
      • Tignes
      • Val d’Isère
    • Backcountry
      • Off-Piste Skiing
        • Tignes
        • Val d'Isère
        • Les 3 Vallées
        • Vallée Blanche
      • Ski Touring
        • Les 3 Vallées
      • Heli-Skiing & Boarding
      • Extreme Steep Skiing
      • Snowshoeing
        • French Alps
    • Ski Holidays
      • Airport Transfers
      • Chalet Accommodation
      • Ski & Snowboard Lessons
        • 100% Snowboard
      • Ski & Snowboard Holidays
      • Ski & Snowboard Rental
      • Off-Piste Guiding
      • Last Minute Deals
    • Webcams
      • Alpe d'Huez
      • Val d'Isère
  • Adventure
    • Canyoning
      • South of France
        • Gorges du Verdon
      • French Alps
        • Vercors
      • Canyoning Guides
      • Aqua Trekking Guides
    • Hiking
      • South of France
        • Gorges du Verdon
      • French Alps
        • Tour des Ecrins
        • Tour du Mont Blanc
        • Mont Blanc Ascent
      • Hiking Guides
    • Paragliding
      • South of France
        • Saint-André-les-Alpes
      • French Alps
      • Paragliding Schools
      • Tandem Flights
    • Rafting
      • The Ubaye
      • The Verdon
      • Rafting Companies
      • Tandem Kayaking
    • Rock Climbing
      • Gorges du Verdon
      • Climbing Guides
      • Mountaineering
      • Mont Blanc
      • Mountaineering Guides
    • Via Ferrata
      • South of France
      • French Alps
      • Via Ferrata Guides
  • Active Holidays
    • South of France
      • Aix-en-Provence
      • Ardèche
      • Avignon
      • Briançon
      • Cannes
      • Cévennes NP
      • Dordogne
      • Ecrins NP
      • Gorges du Tarn
      • Gorges du Verdon
      • The Luberon
      • Massif de l'Esterel
      • Mercantour NP
      • Mont Ventoux
      • Nice
      • Ubaye Valley
    • French Alps
      • Bourg-Saint-Maurice
      • Chamonix
      • The Vercors
      • Mountain Bike Parks
      • Ski Resorts
      • Last Minute Ski Deals
      • Ski & Snowboard Lessons
      • Airport Transfers
      • Chalet Accommodation
      • Webcams
    • Atlantic Coast
      • Arcachon
      • Biarritz
      • Biscarrosse
      • Bordeaux
      • Capbreton
      • Cap Ferret
      • Hossegor
      • Île d'Oléron
      • Île de Ré
      • Lacanau
      • La Rochelle
      • Royan
      • Saint-Jean-de-Luz
    • Featured Accommodation

      • Seignosse Surf Villa
      • Christiania Hotel - Valloire
      • Camping International Giens, Campsite - Almanarre
      • Camping Huttopia Gorges du Verdon
      • Chalet du Mont d'Arbois - Megeve
      • Camping La Ferme de Castellane
      • Camping Huttopia Lanmary - Dordogne
  • Events
    • Mountain Biking
      • Raid VTT
      • Terres Noires Enduro
      • CRANKWORX – Les Gets
      • Megavalanche
      • Pass'Portes du Soleil
      • MTB Instructor Course
      • Roc d'Azur
    • Outdoor Sports
      • Spadtribu - Ubaye Valley
      • Natural Games
    • Skiing & Boarding
      • La Grave Off-Piste Adventure
      • Snow & Rock Backcountry Skiing
      • Val d'Isère Photo Comp
  • Gear
    • Waterproof Cycling Jackets
    • Expedition Duffel Bags
    • Backpacks under 30l
    • Mountain Bike Helmets
    • Snowboard Boots
    • Snowboard Helmets
    • Base Layers
    • Waterproof Jackets
    • Shimano CM-1000
    • Lapierre X-Control
    • Soft Roof Racks
    • Wetsuit Buying Guide – Everything you need to know to choose the right wetsuit
  • Magazine
You are here: Home / Gear Guide / The Best… Soft Roof Racks – Reviewed

The Best… Soft Roof Racks – Reviewed

Soft Surfboard Roof Racks - banner

Review of the Best Soft Surfboard Roof Racks

If your board doesn’t fit inside the car and the forecast says 4′ and clean, then you need to get to the beach. And if you don’t want to invest in a permanent roof rack or your car just isn’t compatible, you’ve only got one option – a soft rack.

Great for travel, soft roof racks are lightweight and pack down small. If your plan is to fly to Biarritz and hire a car, a soft rack means you can load the boards on the roof and seek out the best break on the day. Because your boards are on the outside, it also means you can hire a smaller car and save some pennies. If you’re swapping cars for the day, no problem, your soft rack will fit most vehicles.

There are some limitations. We don’t recommend going faster than 100 kph with a soft rack, and if it’s pouring with rain you may find some drips run along the straps and inside the car. It’s all part of the surf trip adventure!

A single soft rack will fit 1 to 3 shortboards, whilst a double will fit 2 to 6 shortboards, and they’re also suitable for longboards and SUPs.

This is box title

How to fit a soft roof rack

Fitting a soft rack is straightforward and takes less than 5 minutes, but there’s a couple of things to bear in mind. Open all the doors and position the pads about 70 cm apart on the roof. Pass the straps through the inside of the car and secure tightly with the buckle mechanism. Now place your surfboard on the pads wax side down and as an extra safety precaution make sure the fins are facing forwards. Take the tie down straps and place the buckles on top of the surfboard and throw the straps over the top. Walk round to the other side of the vehicle and pass each strap through its respective D-ring. Again, throw the straps back over the top. Walk back round, feed the straps through the D-rings and up and under into the buckle before pulling tight. Putting a twist in the straps before you pass them through the buckles will help stop any noisy vibrations. Tie them off with a couple of half hitches and you’re done.

Here we review the best soft racks available:


Northcore Single Soft Surfboard Rack

Northcore Single Soft Surfboard Rack

The Northcore soft rack feels well made and robust. The buckles are strong and the webbing feels like it will last the test of time. The metal buckles on the tie down straps come with neoprene sleeves to keep you from scratching your board. The D-ring tie-down system is simple to use and works well. Northcore say that this rack can carry 5 boards, but it would be wiser to limit the load to 3. The straps are prone to vibrate at speed, but a single twist in the straps will help reduce any noise. The soft rack comes with a heavy duty storage bag.

Roof pad dimensions: 43 x 13 x 3 cm
Strap length: 3.2 m
Strap thickness: mm
RRP: £39.99
Available from: Amazon.co.uk


FCS Premium Single D Ring Soft Rack

FCS Premium D-Ring Single Soft Roof Rack

FCS are well known for their high quality fins and surf accessories but they also have an auto products range that offers a variety of solutions for securing boards to your car. FCS’ Premium D-ring soft rack includes rectangular pads and integrated tie-down straps with an easy to use D-ring mechanism for pulling the straps tight. FCS claim that since the D-ring doesn’t have any moving parts it’s more durable than a conventional cam lock buckle. That may well be true, but we haven’t had any problems with either system. The straps wind up neatly for storage and everything fits in a good quality bag. Single soft racks hold 1 to 3 shortboards and 1 to 2 longboards.

Roof pad dimensions: 45 x 9 x 5 cm
Strap length: 3.0 m
Strap thickness: 32 mm
RRP: £44.95
Available from: Amazon.co.uk


Bulldog Double Soft Roof Rack

Bulldog Double Soft Roof Rack

Bulldog’s temporary roof rack is very well made and the extra wide straps and beefy cam lock buckles inspire confidence when securing your pride and joy. Unlike the FCS soft racks, the Bulldog pads and board tie down straps are separate, which adds about 30 seconds to the time it takes to strap a board to your car. Noisy vibrations can be avoided by putting a twist in the straps. This double rack can hold up to 6 shortboards and 4 longboards. The rack comes in an equally durable carry pouch. Highly recommended.

Roof pad dimensions: 45 x 9 x 5 cm
Strap length: 3.0 m
Strap thickness: 40 mm
RRP: £49.99
Available from: Amazon.co.uk


Streetwize Easy Fit Soft Roof Rack

Streetwize Easy Fit Single Soft Roof Rack

As the name suggests, this rack is very easy to fit to the car and secure a load. Good wide pads, this rack is ideal for an SUP, a longboard or even a kayak. It’s one of the cheaper racks in this lineup, and with thinner straps, the product may be more suited to occasional use. Comes with a drawstring storage bag with fitting instructions printed on the rear.

Roof pad dimensions: 60 x 12 x 8 cm
Strap length: 3.0 m
Strap thickness: 25 mm
Price: £31.45
Available from: Amazon.co.uk


Rhino Rax Double Soft Roof Rack

Rhino Rax Heavy Duty Double Soft Roof Rack

Rhino Rax soft racks are well made and hardwearing with super strong webbing and heavy duty cam lock buckles. There’s nice attention to detail like the neoprene sleeves to stop the buckles from scratching your boards and anti-scratch D-rings. Like the Bulldog, this double temporary rack will hold up to 6 shortboards and 4 longboards. Like the FCS, the tie down straps are integrated with the pads making it very easy to fit and your boards feel secure.

Roof pad dimensions: 45 x 9 x 6 cm
Strap length: 3.2 m
Strap thickness: 25 mm
Price: £59.99
Available from: Amazon.co.uk


Creatures Wrap Rax Soft Roof Rack

Creatures Wrap Rax Single Soft Roof Rack

Creatures make the bold claim that the Wrap Rax is the most advanced soft rack system available. Not sure they could back that up if their product was viewed alongside the FCS. However, it’s a well made rack and the thick 30 mm straps feel like you could hang a car off them. The buckles are military grade and also feel like they’ll last the test of time. The foam pads are encased in a durable nylon, but they could be a bit thicker. The tie down straps are long enough to carry 3 shortboards and 2 longboards. We’ve even seen 2 SUPs strapped to a VW Touran using this rack. Comes in a sturdy carry-bag with a tough Velcro opening.

Roof pad dimensions: 45 x 9 x 6 cm
Strap length: 3.2 m
Strap thickness: 30 mm
Price: £39.95
Available from: Amazon.co.uk


Primary Sidebar

Shop Soft Roof Racks

Footer

Ultimate France

About us
Contact us
Advertise
Events
Gear
Magazine
Webcams

For Business Owners

Add your business
Rejoindre l'annuaire

Assoc. Atout France

Top Mountain Bike Resorts

Portes du Soleil
Morzine
Les Gets
Avoriaz
Châtel
La Clusaz
Chamonix
Tignes
Les Arcs
Les 2 Alpes
Alpe d’Huez
Valloire
Val d’Allos
Pra Loup
Roubion
Les Orres
Montgenèvre

Directory

Airport Transfers
Campervan Hire
Canyoning
Cycle Hire
Cycle Shops & Repairs
Hiking
Kitesurf Schools
Mountain Bike Holidays
Rafting & Kayaking
Ski & Snowboard Hire
Snowshoeing
Via Ferrata

Secure Payments

Secure Payments with Stripe and PayPal

Copyright © 2021 Hang Ten Media SARL. All Rights Reserved | SIRET: 821 011 590 00014 | Privacy Policy | Terms and Conditions