The Finest Ski and Snowboard Racks

How We Examined Ski and Snowboard Racks

The oldsters behind GearJunkie spend loads of time within the mountains. From each day resort rips to cross-country ski laps, we love taking our skis and snowboards to the corduroy. Like most skiers and snowboarders, we regularly use our automobiles to get to the beginning level. We’ve mounted our roof and hitch racks onto sedans, SUVs, vehicles, and every little thing in between. 

After years of normal use and testing, we’ve recognized one of the best ski and snowboard racks in the marketplace. We totally assess each ski and snowboard rack that we check, right down to the final screw. A ski and snowboard rack must be simple to make use of, ergonomic, sturdy for the long term, safe, and versatile. We deep-dive into the set up, opening and closure methods, supplies, locks, and extra so that you simply don’t should fiddle. We’ve weighed dozens of racks towards these requirements.

The fashions on this listing are nearly as good because it will get. These ski and snowboard racks provide a wide range of kinds from hitch to roof mounts, compact or prolonged in dimension, modularity for 12-month use, and a wide range of worth factors so you could find the proper rack to your crew and wagon.

Why You Ought to Belief Us

Our lead tester and photographer is Eric Phillips, an avid skier and snowboarder based mostly in Crested Butte, Colorado. Phillips — who’s additionally an automotive fanatic and focuses on our motors content material — has used a plethora of automobiles and racks to get his gear to the snow in all varieties of climate. That features brief ticks to his native hill and multi-day powder missions. Tinkering on automobiles is one in all his favourite hobbies, and ski racks are the proper accent for all times in a ski city and for a powder hound.

Lots of the ski and snowboard racks featured right here have been with us for a lot of seasons. Even after common publicity to the weather and racking up miles on tough roads, they’re nonetheless going robust. Whether or not you’re a downhill skier, snowboarder, Nordic skier or someplace inbetween, we’re assured you’ll discover a rack to assist get your gear to the mountains. As new racks roll out, we’ll make sure to hold testing and replace our listing to replicate the present market.

Purchaser’s Information: Learn how to Select a Ski and Snowboard Rack

All kinds of ski and snowboard racks present the good thing about preserving your sharp edges away from the automotive’s inside whereas preserving the seats open for passengers.

Two major kinds of ski and snowboard racks dominate the sector. The primary is roof racks, which mount on the roof of your car utilizing manufacturing facility or aftermarket crossbars. The second is a hitch rack, which connects to your rig with the hitch receiver.

For those who can’t or don’t need to raise gear overhead, and worth is not any object, select a hitch ski and snowboard rack. If you wish to lower your expenses and aren’t involved about lifting your gear or doubtlessly getting sullied by the automotive’s soiled physique, then a roof rack is for you. 

Learn extra of the professionals and cons under, in addition to the model variations inside every class.

Sorts of Ski and Snowboard Racks

Roof Racks: Execs

Roof racks get pleasure from nestling your gear lengthwise alongside the top of your car, preserving them away from highway grime. The listing of contaminants is fairly intensive, spanning unburnt gasoline, tar, salt, grease, and cement mud, to call just a few.

One other benefit of roof racks is that they don’t comprise entry to the first cargo storage.

Roof racks are usually inexpensive and weigh far lower than hitch racks since they require fewer supplies.

Roof Racks: Cons

Relying on the peak of your car, one draw back is that roof racks is usually a bodily stretch to load and unload. Loading typically entails lifting skis or snowboards above your head after which totally extending your arms to put the gear on the rack.

Sure typical designs provide a sliding function to deliver the loading zone additional to the sting of the car. However usually, hitch racks are significantly simpler to load. 

They’re typically single-purpose, whereas hitch racks are extra typically modular, so you possibly can convert the bottom to carry bikes in the summertime with further equipment.

Some roof racks with skis loaded can hinder the hatch from opening, relying on the size of the car and the gear.

Whereas one in all our favourite ski and snowboard roof racks can flip down for aerodynamics — the Küat Swap 6 — and a quieter trip, most roof racks stick up and dock gasoline effectivity. Like wind blowing by way of sails, some can add noise to your automotive trip, resembling a light whistle.

Hitch Racks

Hitch racks to your skis and snowboards connect to the car beneath the again bumper utilizing a manufacturing facility or aftermarket hitch. Our consensus is that hitch racks are a lot simpler to load and unload, as they’re much nearer to the bottom and don’t contain lifting your snow tools overhead. 

Underneath the umbrella are two kinds of hitch racks: swing-arm or swing-away and tilt. The subcategory refers to how the rack will be repositioned as a way to entry your cargo area within the car.

Tilt Hitch Rack

Tilt racks just like the Gravirax GR-4 Hitch Mounted Ski Rack can permit the rack to lean again at an angle, enabling you to open a hatchback or drop down a tailgate. This makes it potential to lean in and seize a backpack, car parking zone grill, cooler, or let your canine hop out. Tilt racks are sometimes extra light-weight and cheaper than swing-arm racks.

Whereas they’re dipped away, they don’t provide fully unrestricted entry to the rear of the car.

Swing-Away Hitch Rack

Swing-arm or swing-away racks make the most of a heavy-duty arm that may be locked into a set place behind the car when you’re driving. But it surely affords the flexibility to unlock and swing the rack away from the rear of the car to get to all of your baggage.

Typically, a swing-away operation tends to maneuver the rack additional out of your trip than a tilt hitch rack. This yields higher entry to the first space for storing of the car. It additionally strikes the rack out of the best way, as a way to extra simply pull out heavy or cumbersome objects.

Our favourite swing-away rack is the Yakima EXO SnowBank Exo System Snow Mount. The superb construction swings a full 180 levels away out of your car, supplying you with unobstructed entry to no matter’s again there.

Hitch Rack: Execs

Hitch racks are heavier-duty and have extra shifting components than roof racks. The profit? They will maintain significantly extra weight than roof racks and provide extra versatility. Most swing-away ski and snowboard hitch racks will be transformed for summer time use, together with the flexibility to hold bikes, cargo bins, and extra.

Whereas many hitch racks and roof racks can maintain round 4 snowboards or skis, some hitch orientations can deliver extra alongside. The Gravirax GR-4 Adjustable Ski Rack has a 10-ski mannequin. However hitch racks often max out at 2 snowboards whereas roof racks can match as much as 4 snowboards.

Most significantly, hitch racks are a lot simpler to load, unload, and usually function in comparison with roof racks. You don’t must raise your skis or snowboard overhead or, for some, climb onto a tire or seat to achieve the locking mechanisms. 

Hitch Rack: Cons

Broadly talking, hitch racks for skis and snowboards include greater worth tags than roof racks. Sturdy and extra supplies come at a value.

Moreover, hitch racks are sometimes heavy and will be arduous to put in or transfer alone. 

In any other case, the draw back of hitch racks is that dust, muck, salt, and different highway grime can construct up excessively alongside the again of a car (and your gear) in comparison with the roof, particularly if a rack is low to the bottom. That is because of the air vortex that happens behind a car because it strikes by way of the air, sucking grime from the highway and swirling it behind the car. Larger clout results in the difficulty being exacerbated for vans, vehicles, and SUVs.

Hitch-mounted racks maintain your cargo straight on this vortex, which ends up in soiled skis and snowboards after driving at freeway speeds. For those who dwell or drive someplace the place they salt the roads, this might result in rust forming on the steel ski edges. 

That’s one cause why we advise configuring the Yakima EXO SnowBank Exo System Snow Mount with the EXO TopShelf, in order that the skis and snowboards will be extra elevated above the bottom.

Rack Capability

One of many first issues to think about when selecting a winter gear rack is what number of skis or snowboards you usually take with you. Racks usually carry wherever from 4 to six skis or 2 to 4 snowboards, so you could have some choices. Some designs carry much more. The max amount we’ve discovered is 10 skis (within the 10-ski mannequin of the Gravirax GR-4 Adjustable Ski Rack) plus 2 snowboards with the aftermarket sleeves.

Typically, a snowboard takes up the identical room as 1.5 pairs of skis, which means a rack that may maintain 6 pairs of skis can solely maintain 4 snowboards. You possibly can combine and match each skis and snowboards on one rack, however your carrying capability will go down. 

Bear in mind, you possibly can all the time carry fewer skis than a rack’s capability, however by no means greater than a rack’s capability. And also you by no means know once you’re going to choose up just a few extra buddies to trip with.

Some hitch racks have non-compulsory add-ons that can add extra ski or snowboard capability to the rack. Roof racks would not have aftermarket add-ons for capability.

Car and Journey Compatibility 

Each varieties of ski and snowboard racks in our information require sure standards out of your car to securely mount the racks.

Crossbars

Roof racks require manufacturing facility or aftermarket crossbars to be on or put in onto your car’s roof previous to rack set up.

Crossbars often are available sq. or spherical shapes. They prolong from the driving force’s aspect throughout the roof to the passenger aspect and are what a ski rack mounts to. Don’t let that confuse you with roof rails, that are customary on most automobiles. Roof rails attain vertically, towards every bumper, and perpendicular to the crossbars. Roof rails are what crossbars mount to.  

Most racks provide common crossbar compatibility, however some, just like the Yakima FatCat EVO 6, are designed to work with Yakima-specific crossbars.

In case your automotive doesn’t have crossbars, don’t fear. They’re pretty simple to put in your self like in our DIY information, or have your native auto store set up them for you.

Hitch Receiver

Hitch racks require your automotive to have a hitch receiver in your car, which is the place the hitch rack can bolt into place. Automobiles often include a hitch receiver, which is a steel tube that’s mounted to the body. However don’t fear, aftermarket hitches are quite common, and you could find one for nearly each make and mannequin. Most are DIY installs, however a good auto store can assist you put in one correctly.  

Hitches usually are available 1.25-inch and 2-inch sizing. It’s essential that you simply confirm the scale of your car hitch receiver prior to buying a rack. A bigger, 2-inch hitch can carry heavier hundreds, which is nice if you happen to plan to hold a swing-away hitch rack. It’s additionally price noting that some racks include an adapter to suit both dimension.

One factor to notice is that even with a hitch put in in your car, the rack won’t all the time perform completely. For instance, the Yakima EXO SwingBase hitch rack wouldn’t open on our tester’s Subaru Outback with an aftermarket hitch put in as a result of it was too near the bumper, however the rack labored simply high-quality on our testers’ Ford F-150 and Toyota Tacoma. 

Ease of Use

Many of the ski and snowboard racks in our information are comparatively simple to make use of, however every has tradeoffs.

Hitch racks are sometimes simpler total as they don’t contain lifting skis or snowboards above your head after which totally extending your arms to put them on the rack. You don’t must threat getting filth in your garments, which may generally occur with a roof rack.

Locking a roof rack entails reaching even greater or doubtlessly stepping on the tire or a seat with the door open to achieve the rack, as a way to pull down with sufficient power to interact the locking mechanism. 

Some sensible racks now provide a sliding function to deliver the loading zone past the sting of the car and above the bottom. Nevertheless, working a roof rack all the time entails some stage of reaching up.

Hitch racks deliver the loading zone from the highest of the car right down to chest peak or decrease, which means you gained’t should get in your tippy toes or climb your car to achieve the rack together with your tools. In addition they can swing open to permit full use of your rear hatch. Some roof racks with skis loaded can hinder the hatch from opening. 

Sure roof rack launch buttons are bigger or extra ergonomic than others, which we discover are simpler to function with gloved arms.

Pads

Pads are the rubber materials that comes into contact together with your skis or snowboards alongside the bottom and prime sheet. Practically all of the racks in our information use a rubber pad to safe your skis in place, whether or not that’s on the hitch or roof.

Many of the pads are both curved or rectangular in form, and a single strip stretches from one aspect of the arm to the opposite. The rubber compresses round your skis to grip them and forestall motion as soon as the arm is shut.

Our testers have been impressed with the GripLock rubber on the Küat Grip 4. The GripLock rubber makes use of a zipper-like format with alternating rubber tooth that match collectively flush when the rack is closed. We discovered the grip to be very good, and it gripped skis and snowboards tighter than different designs, irrespective of how huge or slim.

Locks

There are two most important varieties of locks in terms of ski and snowboard racks. Locks that safe the complete rack system to your car, often known as crossbar or hitch locks, and locks that safe your tools to the rack, often known as ski locks. 

General, locks play an essential position in deciding which rack is greatest to your wants. Do you propose on dwelling on the highway or preserving your skis and snowboards in your car for prolonged intervals of time? Go together with a roof rack that has an built-in crossbar lock. For those who’re simply doing day journeys to the ski resort and gained’t have gear tenting in a single day on the rack, you might not must spend money on a rack with built-in locks. 

Rack Ski Lock

With the ability to lock the rack when your skis or snowboard are inside is a vital element. Not solely does it forestall your skis or snowboards from being stolen, however it could actually additionally ensure the rack doesn’t pop open once you’re zooming down the freeway.

Most racks in our information combine the lock into the closure perform, basically requiring the rack to be locked earlier than you drive away. The one rack and not using a ski lock is the Gravirax GR-4 Hitch Mounted Ski Rack.  

Crossbar or Hitch Lock

After spending your hard-earned bread on a ski roof rack, the very last thing you need is your rack to get stolen out of your car. That’s why built-in crossbar locks are an essential facet of a ski rack.

The racks we’ve examined with out these locks are the Gravirax GR-4 Hitch Mounted Ski Rack (which attaches by way of hitch receiver), and the Yakima FreshTrack 4 and Rhino-Rack Ski and Snowboard Service #576, which affix to a crossbar. Even with the ski lock engaged, anybody with a easy set of instruments, a couple of minutes, and muscle would be capable of take away the complete rack from the car. 

Built-in Aftermarket Locks

A number of manufacturers provide aftermarket upgrades to unify and customise the important thing cores between your tools. We suggest the funding for ease of use and never needing to handle as many keys, particularly when you have a group of racks or equipment.

Manufacturers with common key-and-lock-core upgrades embrace:

We favored that the Yakima FreshTrack 4, Yakima FatCat 6, and Yakima EXO System all have the SKS improve choice. As does the Rhino-Rack Ski and Snowboard Service #576.

Keys and Key Rings

Our testers have been most impressed with the locks and keys on the Küat Grip 4 and Küat Swap 6, which got here on a sturdy key ring and with sturdy plastic-coated heads for simpler grip with gloves on and within the chilly. 

Most different racks provided moderately meager steel keys with no reinforcement or key ring.

Open and Closure

One of many largest pains with ski and snowboard roof racks is opening and shutting them in chilly and snowy situations.

Launch Button

Opening the rack with gloves entails first unlocking the ski lock, then urgent the discharge button or pulling the discharge deal with.

Our favourite design was on the Küat Grip 4, which makes use of a deal with to open the rack versus a button. We by no means had issues opening this rack, even with heavy-duty mittens in freezing situations. 

Closure Latch

Closing the rack, however, takes much more effort and often entails stepping up — for shorties, possibly onto the tire or working board of the car — to have the ability to attain the open rack’s arm and fasten it down.

When totally loaded, sure roof racks can take a bit extra grit to clamp down. Most roof racks have a multi-stage closure mechanism, which means you’ll must firmly press till you hear two or three clicks.

Performance: Open and Closure

We discovered that with the ski and snowboard hitch racks being nearer to the bottom, they have been a lot simpler to shut and lock into place than any of the roof racks.

The best rack to open and shut total was the EXO TopShelf, that are the arms that safe skis and snowboards on the Yakima EXO SnowBank Exo System Snow Mount. This was as a result of the orientation of the rack was horizontal, and we might simply attain it whereas standing in our winter boots.

Locking Mechanism

It’s price mentioning that the Gravirax GR-4 Hitch Mounted Ski Rack has no locking, opening, or closing mechanism. Skis relaxation vertically contained in the tubes like bats hanging in a cave. Additionally, we have been upset with how arduous it was to shut and lock the Yakima FatCat EVO 6 and the Küat Swap 6 when these two roof racks have been loaded to their scripted quantity. 

Extender Bars

Extender bars are a extra fashionable function rising within the ski and snowboard roof rack area. These inserts are like stilts, extending the vertical area between the automotive’s roof and the rack.

The upper hole permits room for bulkier ski or snowboard bindings. One rack we examined, the Yakima FreshTrack 4, has an non-compulsory extender bar that locations the rack at an angle, taking a triangular kind, to create extra space for bindings. 

For those who plan on stacking snowboards — one dealing with up and the opposite dealing with down — you’ll want sufficient ceiling for the bindings. When bindings rub the roof, that may trigger extra put on, scratches, or dents on each.

If in case you have low-hanging crossbars or massive bindings, we suggest going with a rack that has extender bars. 

Meeting

Meeting refers back to the time from opening your bundle to having the rack prepared to put in. Some racks in our information just like the Küat Swap 6 come ready-to-go straight out of the field with no meeting required! You gotta love time-savers. Most different racks require some kind of meeting, although, so seize your mocha.

Sure designs, just like the Thule SnowPack Extender, required half-hour of meeting earlier than the rack was prepared to put in. That’s on the upper finish of a construct. For those who do plan on storing your rack within the authentic field in the course of the low season, have in mind the meeting occasions. You’d must disassemble the rack to suit it again into the unique field. 

Set up

Set up comes after the rack meeting. This step refers back to the time wanted to mount your ski rack in your car.

We rated the set up of every ski and snowboard rack between simple, reasonable, and tough based mostly on how lengthy it took to put in the rack. The opposite issue was the comprehensiveness of the instruments offered. If we wanted to search out instruments, that was a shortfall.

Problem Scores

Straightforward installs took quarter-hour or much less, from the unboxing to having the rack totally mounted — together with the meeting. Now, that’s fairly good. A reasonably difficult set up lasted wherever between 15 and half-hour. Troublesome installs have been half-hour or extra. Ouch.  

Whereas some installations took extra elbow grease, all of the racks in our information will be assembled and put in at house with out the assistance of an expert. Simply ensure to learn the directions totally earlier than you begin and comply with every step. Additionally, set up your ski rack earlier than it begins snowing, or do it in a storage to keep away from making your set up tougher. 

Instruments

Of all of the set up instruments included with racks, the Küat Swap 6 and Küat Grip 4 had the highest quality. However, the INNO L INA951 instruments felt very economically made. They flexed when tightening, inflicting our tester to have one go flying. This was additionally the one rack the place we skilled a bolt stripping in the course of the set up. 

Our longest set up time was 46 minutes for the Thule SnowPack Extender, partly because of the absence of the required instruments. A T20 bit and Phillips-head screwdriver have been wanted per the directions however not offered. Maintain this in thoughts if ordering this rack. The directions have been additionally not probably the most clear, as a result of they lacked textual content.

Aerodynamics 

For many who need one of the best fuel mileage, this part is for you!

Typically, hitch racks are extra aerodynamic than roof racks, which implies they assist higher fuel mileage. Even probably the most aerodynamic roof racks worsen fuel mileage than hitch racks. Roof racks result in drag attributable to wind hitting the rack because it flows over your car.

Hitch racks have much less drag as a result of they sit behind the car in a pocket of decreased wind and drag. The extra you may get your gear behind your car and out of the wind, the higher aerodynamics your rig will sport. 

To assist improve your fuel mileage whereas hauling gear, you would journey slower, however clearly, we suggest going the pace restrict for security. Highways speeds above 50 miles per hour drastically cut back fuel mileage, stories the U.S. Division of Vitality.

You could possibly take away your roof rack when it’s not in use, however that may even be time-consuming. and get hitch racks as little as potential in your car.

Some racks just like the Küat Swap 6 will be folded down flat to enhance the aerodynamics and fuel mileage when not in use.

Hitch racks assist, as a result of the extra you may get your gear low and behind your automotive, the extra environment friendly journey will probably be when it comes to fuel mileage. This may be enhanced by mounting your hitch rack on a low setting and even use a drop hitch when driving taller automobiles like 4×4 vehicles. 

FAQ

The brief reply is, often. The overwhelming majority of hitch-mounted or roof rack designs can maintain both skis or snowboards. The Gravirax GR-4 Adjustable Ski Rack is a extra ski-centric design that does want an extra accent to carry a snowboard: the Gravi Metal Snowboard Sleeve ($199).

Snowboards take up extra space on a rack than skis, which means a rack that may carry 6 pairs of skis can solely maintain 4 snowboards. Be certain to examine the carrying capability of any rack earlier than you buy. 

Sure! Each skis and snowboards will be stacked in your ski roof rack. Stacked refers to having a pair of skis or snowboards sandwiched with their bases collectively. Technically, that’s one single set of skis and two snowboards, for example. This protects area in your roof rack versus putting the tools aspect by aspect.

Simply ensure there may be sufficient clearance for the binding on the underside between the rack and the roof of your car, with the intention to keep away from pointless put on on each. In the event that they do hit, you may get extender bars to lift the peak of the roof rack and unencumber area for stacking like with the Yakima FreshTrack 4.

Bear in mind, when speaking about rack capability, producers are referring to a single set of skis being stacked and snowboards being located aspect by aspect, nevertheless it’s completely okay to stack snowboards.

We wouldn’t suggest having sticking two skis with a snowboard on the opposite aspect. It’s greatest to solely stack skis with skis and snowboards with snowboards, because of the ski brakes and base compatibility.

Crossbars are the bars that run from the driving force’s aspect to the passenger’s aspect, throughout the car’s roof. They’re important for mounting a roof rack.

All roof racks require crossbars for mounting. Some automobiles include crossbars. In any other case, aftermarket crossbars are very simple to put in your self alongside together with your ski rack. They arrive in a set of two, and also you’ll want each to mount a ski roof rack.

You’ll additionally need to examine that the crossbar form is suitable with the roof rack. Every model producers their very own particular shapes with specific materials composites and finishes. However usually, there are oval, sq., heavy-duty (HD), and aerodynamic bars. Yakima, for example, affords 4 crossbar kinds that they’ve labeled JetStream (aerodynamic aluminum), HD Bar (heavy-duty), CoreBar (aerodynamic metal), RoundBar (oval).

Sure, you possibly can carry each skis and snowboards concurrently on one ski and snowboard rack.

A rack that holds 6 skis or 4 snowboards can maintain a mix of each, like 3 skis and a couple of snowboards. The width of a snowboard is roughly the width of 1.5 units of skis side-by-side.

We’ve got all seen the images and heard horror tales of skis being misplaced on the freeway after somebody forgot to lock their roof rack earlier than driving off.

Ski and snowboard roof racks, when used accurately, are one of many most secure methods to move tools to the ski resort.

The padded arms clamp down securely in your skis or snowboards with out hurting them. Freeway speeds gained’t hurt the rack or gear, both. Simply ensure to comply with all of the directions in the course of the set up course of and when loading the gear. Earlier than driving, all the time double-check that your rack is locked, whether or not there’s gear inside or not.