Just curious - was that a Thule or Yakima rack? I've used my Thule rack on three different cars now (unfortunately requiring three different adapter kits), and it always seems rock solid. Mind you, I haven't taken out any buzzards, or carried kayaks (YET) but I haven't had any trouble with a sailboard and upright mountain bikes at highway speed. I would have no problem trusting this rack with my kayak, once its finished. Anyway, something that size would probably wreck the yak regardless of whether the rack held or not.

: Just a comment on roof racks. I always wondered about the strength of them.
: Just recently on a trip a large bird came flying around a truck I was
: passing. The bird hit the front rack on the left hand side of my Dodge
: Durango. It broke the rack and the black mounting strip. I admit this was
: a large bird...probably a buzzard, couldn't tell for sure...just feathers
: and gobbets left, but still...it was just a bird. I certainly wouldn't
: trust the rack to carry my boats.