If you are planning to transport a surfboard in your truck bed, then you should know that it is really a tough task as it is going to damage your board when moving the surfboard around. You can expect the worst damages to happen on a board outside the water. If the core is exposed to water then it can permanently ruin your surfboard due to serious water damage. Hence, you may end up damaging your board within a few months if you are not careful while transporting it on the truck board. So, let’s discuss here how to tie down the surfboard in a truck bed.
Table of Contents
How to transport a surfboard on the truck?
Trucks beds are really a good option if you want to transport your surfboard safely and conveniently. You can easily transport your 11′ longboard and 10′ paddleboard in a truck board.
But make sure you use plenty of padding to keep your board secured so that it will not move around and bang against the side of the truck. The nose of the surfboard is heavier; hence, it should go in first near the cab of the truck. Hence, we recommend placing plenty of padding around the nose of the board and placing the nose up against the bottom back of the truck bed.
Now, you can use bungee cords to secure the middle of the board. All you need to do is to wrap a bungee cord around the board and then hook it to the clasps inside the truck bed.
Then, you need to lift the tailgate and place the back end of the board on top. Make sure the fins are facing upward to the sky. You can use some tailgate padding to protect your board and the tailgate. We recommend you buy a fancy foam pad that is specially designed for a truck tailgate.
Then, you can use spring-loaded cam straps to secure the board to the tailgate. You can skip using bungee cords and ratchet straps here as you may damage the rails of your board by over-tightening them. If you have a short truck bed and the board is really long, then you have to put a red flag on the end to alert other drivers.
Truck Bed Extenders for a Surfboard
If you are planning to transport surfboards on your truck bed, then you must think about truck bed extenders. These have gained popularity over the years. Most of the truck owners, who have a hard surfboard, prefer to use truck bed extenders.
Truck bed extenders are multi-purpose and work well, which you can use for hauling ladders, lumber, etc. If you are planning to use truck bed extenders to transport your surfboard, then remember that you have to use some type of padding on the metal support bar to protect your surfboard.
How to transport two surfboards?
If you are planning to transport more than one board, then you should put the longest board in first. Next, you have to place them one on top of the other while keeping a towel or t-shirt between them. Make sure that you have kept the fins facing upwards. Then wrap the straps and bungee cords tightly around all the boards.
A few Recommended Truck bed Extenders:
Conclusion
In this article, we have discussed a few steps that you can follow to tie down your surfboard on the truck bed safely and conveniently. Surfboards are really expensive and your truck beds too are. So, if you want to carry a surfboard in a truck bed without hampering both of them, then you may go through the above-suggested ways. We have also suggested a few truck bed extenders that you can check out on amazon.com if you own a truck bed and want to carry a surfboard on it.
