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R1T Kayak Questions

Reed

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I haven't put down my money yet for an R1t. But, the decision is likely happening real soon. I think the only logical replacement for my ageing (and rusting) 2002 Toyota Tacoma is the Rivian pickup. It's a bit bigger than what I want. And, I would prefer an extended cab with a longer box. But, I don't see that happening in an electric vehicle, so the R1t likely gets my vote.

I do still have some questions that perhaps some of you on the forum can answer. Apologies if these items have already been covered elsewhere.

1) I have an 18 foot kayak that will, obviously, stick out over the hood. Is there some way to control how high the hood comes up? I don't want the hood whacking the kayak. Nor do I want to have to untie the kayak and slide it back to get into the frunk.

2) Rack positions. Has anyone seen any measurements for the rack placements? How far apart are the racks? How far are the outside racks from the front and back of the vehicle?

3) How wide (across the bar, not the length of the bar) and thick are the racks? I assume the racks will take Thule and Yakima attachments. I have Yakima kayak holders, and I want to use them with the racks.

4) Vehicle height. There are numbers in the spec sheet, but I want to know how high the vehicle is when the suspension is set to its lowest position. Lower is better when loading the kayak onto the truck.

5) Tires. I haven't seen any mention of the tires having the snowflake/mountain symbol. Are they rated for snow? If not, has there been any mention of a compatible snow tire for the R1t?

For those who might be interested, I have cooked up a scenario for loading my kayak onto an R1t. I would use three racks, in positions 1, 3 and 4. I would put kayak rollers onto the rack in position 4, with the rack set at a low height. Line the boat up behind the truck, place the bow of the yak on the rollers, grab the stern and push the boat forward until the nose sits into the holders in the next rack. Keep pushing to slide the boat forward to connect with the front rack. Tie down and drive!

Thanks in advance for any responses.

Cheers
Reed
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Reed

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I haven't put down my money yet for an R1t. But, the decision is likely happening real soon. I think the only logical replacement for my ageing (and rusting) 2002 Toyota Tacoma is the Rivian pickup. It's a bit bigger than what I want. And, I would prefer an extended cab with a longer box. But, I don't see that happening in an electric vehicle, so the R1t likely gets my vote.

I do still have some questions that perhaps some of you on the forum can answer. Apologies if these items have already been covered elsewhere.

1) I have an 18 foot kayak that will, obviously, stick out over the hood. Is there some way to control how high the hood comes up? I don't want the hood whacking the kayak. Nor do I want to have to untie the kayak and slide it back to get into the frunk.

2) Rack positions. Has anyone seen any measurements for the rack placements? How far apart are the racks? How far are the outside racks from the front and back of the vehicle?

3) How wide (across the bar, not the length of the bar) and thick are the racks? I assume the racks will take Thule and Yakima attachments. I have Yakima kayak holders, and I want to use them with the racks.

4) Vehicle height. There are numbers in the spec sheet, but I want to know how high the vehicle is when the suspension is set to its lowest position. Lower is better when loading the kayak onto the truck.

5) Tires. I haven't seen any mention of the tires having the snowflake/mountain symbol. Are they rated for snow? If not, has there been any mention of a compatible snow tire for the R1t?

For those who might be interested, I have cooked up a scenario for loading my kayak onto an R1t. I would use three racks, in positions 1, 3 and 4. I would put kayak rollers onto the rack in position 4, with the rack set at a low height. Line the boat up behind the truck, place the bow of the yak on the rollers, grab the stern and push the boat forward until the nose sits into the holders in the next rack. Keep pushing to slide the boat forward to connect with the front rack. Tie down and drive!

Thanks in advance for any responses.

Cheers
Reed
Okay, forget the last question about the tires. I see that the off-road version does indeed have the three peak snowflake symbol. The off-road tires are exactly what I was thinking would be best.

Cheers
Reed
 

Wimberley51

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KAYAKING AND RIVIAN ADVENTURES ARE A FEW OF MY FAVORITE THINGS ALSO. IN THE PAST I HAVE USED "HULLIE ROLLERS" TO DO EXACTLY WHAT YOU DESCRIBE. I THEN WENT TO A TBAR BED EXTENDER FOR MY 16' KAYAKS. THAT KEPT THE YAK OFF THE ROOF AND AT A HEIGHT THAT MADE IT EASIER FOR ME TO LOAD / UNLOAD. SINCE THEN I HAVE GONE TO A DOUBLE TRAILER. THIS SET UP WORKS THE BEST FOR MY SITUATION, BEST OF LUCK WITH YOUR KAYAK ADVENTURES!
 

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Height estimated at 68.5" in kneel mode here:

https://www.rivianforums.com/forum/threads/r1s-specs-vs-r1t-specs.51/

I think the hood is pneumatic when opening. Probably will want to hold it when opening but I don't think servos will keep trying to grind it into your kayak.

I think I saw somebody post something about rack spacing in the confirmed by reps thread. I'll quote it if I find it. The R1T is exactly 2" longer than your kayak.

Dims of the racks themselves I don't think anybody can be sure of until we finally see them as config options. I would expect width to be roughly the width of the R1T itself which is 79.3". They are modular and can expand in width. Not sure whether width can be adjusted when they're plugged in or if they only adjust width to match socket spacing. I would guess the latter.

Here's some rack designs spied in one of their videos. I think somebody confirmed the telescoping racks are happening. Seems likely for launch as there's no bed cap options yet and accommodating kayakers is kind of a no-brainer. I would expect them to try and be as compatible with popular kayak holder options as possible for the same reason.

https://www.rivianforums.com/forum/threads/more-r1t-rack-functions-and-accessories-spotted.101/

And yes, the ATs should be excellent for snow. Better than the all-seasons.
20s/All Terrain- off-road/snow - probably worst range - #s coming soon apparently
21s/All Seasons - best on-road range
22s/Sport- Track tires for grippy turns on pavement, possibly better acceleration, likely to wear out the fastest
 

fastwheels

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Hi Reed - Welcome to the forum!

As a kayaker myself I too have been trying to figure out how I will haul my boats (13' & 15'). I am hoping for a telescoping bar from Rivian, otherwise I will have to rig up something to make it work.

Although the Scorpion 20" AT tire have the snow rating, I will not be using it for winter. Any tire that can hold up under rock climbing in summer heat will not have a rubber compound conducive to sub-zero use. Nor do they have the sipes necessary for good ice/snow traction and braking. Looking on TireRack I see several manufacturers have 20" winter compound options in sizing that should work on the R1T, with a few in 22" sizing also. The 21" is a very rare tire size and I would steer clear of it at this point in time.

Also, go onto TireRack and read the reviews of the 20" Scorpions for winter use - it's not good.

My R1T order specs the 22" for 3 season use, and I will buy a winter wheel/tire package (18" or 19" if it turns out that they will fit the rotors - otherwise 20") once I get the truck - presumably next Fall...
 

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Reed

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Great replies. Thank you very much for your input.

My spitball calculations for the positioning of the racks has the front rack 87.5 inches from the front of the vehicle. The second rack is 41.3 inches back from the first. The third rack is 43.3 inches back from the second. The fourth rack is 29.5 inches back from the third. The fourth rack sits 13.7 inches ahead of the back bumper.

Don't be fooled by the decimals. These measurements are in no way that accurate! Just me working with a ruler and the vehicle image to come up with an approximation.

The bottom line is that the kayak will fit onto the truck, and be tied down at good points on the yak.

Your comments on the tires have raised some very interesting points. I have BF Goodrich AT's on my Tacoma for the summer and a BFG snow tire for the winter. The AT's are a much harder rubber. Even though they have the mountain snowflake logo, I don't think they would be as good in winter as the snow tires.

It may be that I should re-think the tires and go with a superior range tire in the summer and have a dedicated winter tire for the snow. I do more snow driving than serious off-road driving. So, if the range tires can handle some light off-road work, that might be the better way to go.

The good news is that it looks like tire options can be changed closer to the purchase.

Thanks again for all your responses!

Cheers
Reed
 

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The bottom line is that the kayak will fit onto the truck, and be tied down at good points on the yak.
Thanks for the approx. rack positions. We're avid kayakers as well with 17.5 ft and an 18.5 ft boats to load so have been stewing on this topic as well.

Thinking at this point of using the two roof mount locations to carry the boats as on any car. One of us would hop up in the bed and guide them onto the cradles.

If I were loading solo I may set the boat on the tailgate, then climb up into the bed and lift it back up and slide it into place.

Loading solo has been a bit easier on my past vehicles, but they also have had some drawbacks as you will see. :giggle:

Rivian R1T R1S R1T Kayak Questions IMG_20131102_094239_655
Rivian R1T R1S R1T Kayak Questions 2012-08-28_19-36-19_82
Rivian R1T R1S R1T Kayak Questions 20180318_130234
 
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Reed

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Thanks for the approx. rack positions. We're avid kayakers as well with 17.5 ft and an 18.5 ft boats to load so have been stewing on this topic as well.

Thinking at this point of using the two roof mount locations to carry the boats as on any car. One of us would hop up in the bed and guide them onto the cradles.

If I were loading solo I may set the boat on the tailgate, then climb up into the bed and lift it back up and slide it into place.

Loading solo has been a bit easier on my past vehicles, but they also have had some drawbacks as you will see. :giggle:

IMG_20131102_094239_655.jpg
2012-08-28_19-36-19_82.jpg
20180318_130234.jpg
I wouldn't want to hit a stiff crosswind with the Smart Car. You could be off to meet the Wizard!

Is that an Etain you've got there?

Mine's a Nordkapp. Not the new "Forti" version, the style immediately before it. The one with the big rocker, once described as an unstable pig.
 

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Is that an Etain you've got there?

Mine's a Nordkapp. Not the new "Forti" version, the style immediately before it. The one with the big rocker, once described as an unstable pig.
Haha, that's great! Mine's a Nordkapp as well, specifically an LV circa 2012 just before the Forti's came out. They're not very common here in the Midwest so always exciting to meet another Nordkapp owner. It's certainly a boat with character!
 

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Reed

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Fast forward to the 3:40 mark and Zab will tell you that the mounts are spaced 36" apart.
Well done. Thank you very much!

I probably went astray by placing the first bar too far forward. At 36 inches apart, the four bars take up 108 inches of the length.

Subtracting that from the 218 inch overall length, leaves 110 inches. If the rear bar is 14 or 15 inches from the back, then the bar over the driver's seat has to be 95 or 96 inches from the front of the vehicle.

Their choice of 36 inches separation between the bars might actually work very well for my kayak. My current truck is set up with a 58 inch spread between the bars. Stretching this out to 72 inches would leave the rear tie down over the stern bulkhead and the front tie down close to the bulkhead at the front of the cockpit.

That would give me tie downs at strong points in the kayak shell and less bow hanging off the front bar than what I now have. I'm always a bit concerned on rough roads that the front of the kayak could be wagging a bit as I hit bumps, creating stress in the hull.

Thanks again. This all really helps to form a picture of how this vehicle is going to work for me.
 
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Reed

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Haha, that's great! Mine's a Nordkapp as well, specifically an LV circa 2012 just before the Forti's came out. They're not very common here in the Midwest so always exciting to meet another Nordkapp owner. It's certainly a boat with character!
Okay, I didn't think the stern looked turned up enough for a Nordkapp.

They're a great boat. Or, to put it another way, the truck has to fit the kayak .... or it's no deal on the truck!
 

Mjhirsch78

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Heh the truck will replace the Subaru for my Eddylines. So much fun to see your setup. I thought my Impreza was small for the boat. Hah!
 

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We own 2 Old Town Sportsman AutoPilot 136s that weigh 120+lbs a piece. Most of the time we will be towing them on our Yakima EasyRider. If I need the trailer for something else and Rivian does come out with cab-height crossbars for the bed attach points, I may roof load one of the two. Is it summer yet?
 

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We own 2 Old Town Sportsman AutoPilot 136s that weigh 120+lbs a piece. Most of the time we will be towing them on our Yakima EasyRider. If I need the trailer for something else and Rivian does come out with cab-height crossbars for the bed attach points, I may roof load one of the two. Is it summer yet?
I am hoping for cab-height crossbars for the bed as well - have seen nothing so far that would indicate they are coming, but I am keeping my fingers crossed for it anyway!
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