Carrying 3 Kayaks While Towing a Trailer with a 2015 Ram 1500 Crew Cab  

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Expert Reply:

It can be tough to bring along all your gear when also towing a trailer but we do have some solutions for you that will allow you to bring all the kayaks with you.

If the trailer is a bumper-pull and not a 5th wheel or a gooseneck then a great option is a ladder rack. Ladder racks aren't just for ladders anymore! Take a look at the Yakima OverHaul HD Adjustable Truck Bed Ladder Rack Item # Y01151-58. This rack has a 500 pound capacity and aluminum bars to resist corrosion. This ladder rack is compatible with many roof rack accessories.

Yakima's JayLow Kayak Carrier w/ Tie-Downs Item # Y04073 or the Thule Stacker # TH830 would make an excellent choice to secure the kayaks to the ladder rack. You may also need additional tie-downs such as # TH855XT.

If the kayaks are more than 10 feet then I recommend a combination of Rhino-Rack carrier # S512 and expansion arm # RRS512X. This will carry 2 of the kayaks. For the third you would need another J-Style carrier # S512.

If the trailer is a gooseneck or 5th wheel then I recommend using a roof rack along with a front hitch and a load extender so you can carry the kayaks on the roof and they would also hangover the front of the truck. Please note with this set up it can create visibility issues for the driver.

For this set up you would need a roof rack. It doesn't have to be the fanciest roof rack so I would go with an Inno square bar rack using the following parts:

Square Crossbars # INB165
Feet for Square Crossbars # INSUT
Custom Fit Kit # INK653

Then for a front hitch you can use # 65062. The front hitch is for the load extender such as # EM07600-07601. Because the distance from the load to the hitch is so far with this set up there can be a lot of movement of the load extender in the hitch. With the kayaks mounted and tied down though it wouldn't be as much movement as if it were empty.

expert reply by: Michael H

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