G'day Gurus
Can I travel/is it ok to travel - with an inflated inflatable SUP tied to the roof racks? I will also have a hard board as well - should I put the hard oard on top or underneath the inflatable. Normally I would travel with it deflated but we are short on boot space. Thoughts??

I would put the hard board on top then the straps wont squish the inflatable board.

I travel with inflated sups on roof bars all the time. It's either limited boot space or having got ready for a trip in one place with the get in somewhere else.

The stack just depends on board sizes and rocker. I've had a stack that was isup, composite, plastic(!), isup before.

Longest distance I've done with inflatables on the roof is UK to France - about 200 miles.

Hard board on top for sure.. IMO

What would be the general concerns re: inflatable SUP on roof racks?
I assume the concern would be it flapping about in the breeze (or something to that extent)?
I also assume that any 'flapping about in the breeze' would be primarily generated by the nose rocker?
If any of that is correct, then what would be the best positioning of the board on the roof?
Nose forward or tail forward, fins up or fins down?

I don't own an inflatable SUP, just curious.

Tail forward, fins up is the way I used to do it when I had an inflatable with no issues, but they were only local, short trips and less than 80 km/h speeds.

Each to their own on this but I've always done fins up and nose forward when putting board on the roof of my cars and it's always worked perfectly for me.

Just don't drive all day without checking it.... not much deflation needed to then have loose straps
Its never gonna happen, but still...... if youre driving 8hrs...

Select to expand quote

DavidJohn said..
Each to their own on this but I've always done fins up and nose forward when putting board on the roof of my cars and it's always worked perfectly for me.

I don't think it makes any difference whether it's nose forwards or backwards, but it seems more aerodynamic. Most importantly though I think tail first looks far cooler.

Well, didn't I go down a google-machine rabbit hole!
To be clear, I don't own an inflatable SUP. All my longboards (and my 2 SUPs), live and travel in board bags. So any aerodynamic effect of the board is pretty much going to be lost due to the bag.
I always, and always have, travel with the boards nose-forward and fins up.

Nonetheless, there seems to be heated discussions on reddit based on nose vs tail forward. Nothing with any real clear evidence, other than opinion. That said, the argument that tail-forward will potentially save the board if the straps come loose - fins catching on the straps - makes some sense.... if you're not confident with your straps.

Interestingly, when I specifically searched for inflatable SUPs on roof racks, there's quite a bit stating tail forward.
Red, Bote, and Glide (which all seem to sell inflatables) all say tail forward.
Even more interestingly, NRS states " Never transport the board fully inflated. Heat from the sun or a change in elevation can increase the board's pressure and cause a catastrophic seam failure. Let air out until the board yields when you press on it. And if you're driving any significant distance, stop periodically and check the pressure."

Again, I don't own an inflatable, and am unlikely to ever own an inflatable (unless I was to buy one for my 7 year old), so have no skin in the game. Simply, was supposed to be working, so hit up Google instead!

Have travelled 1000's of kms with inflatable sup on roof racks and hard boards on top. Nose down fins up on the back. Probably a touch underinflated as I haven't topped it up in years.

No issues except last long trip I had to remove the bungee strap off the sup as it was tapping the roof. Not aerodynamic but easy to use. We have pulled up and had a nice paddle on the journey sometimes.