In both of my kayaks I put deck-to-hull cheek plates, not the ones like in Nick's book that are suspended from the deck only. I run a combination cable lock around the rack, into the cockpit, and around one of the cheek plates. My nylon cockpit cover still goes on and stays on at highway speeds.

Of course, someone could just bust out the cheek plate and repair it later, but how many criminals would do that? Besides, selling a of a one-of-a-kind kayak would be tough, so the thief would have to be stealing it for his own use, not to sell.

Another option that some have used is to put a U-bolt thru the rear bulkhead, then string a cable into the cockpit and thru the U-bolt. I have also heard of a cable-lock system where a loop is put around the tip of the bow and locked to the rack, and another loop is put around the tip of the stern and locked to the rack. In order to pull the bow out of its loop you would have to slide the kayak rearwards, and that is prevented by the rear loop -- and vice versa. That's a system you could make with some cable, some crimps, some plastic tubing, and a lock...

Dean

: Has anyone devised a way of securing a wood kayak with a cable or chain that
: isn't in the way or terribly ugly? I'm afraid to leave my boat unattended
: for a minute when traveling.I know you can't stop the pro's,but would like
: to at least slow down the casual thief.