Pole Position
 

I read your post and I had to laugh, because back in June I popped into the Home Depot for a couple of things on my way home from work. I was happy to get some hardware items that were holding up some home projects. As I was walking to my car, it hit me: Crap! I drove the Porsche today. So, this is how I got my 8' galvanized pole home!

Lucky for me, the trip was incident free. Except, oddly, as I was sheepishly motoring home, I was passed by some guy in a very nice early 70's model Carrera. He seemed to be shaking his head. Ha, ha. It's a can do anything car!

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1409695206.jpg

I've carried everything from 2x4s to trees in my targa. For items such as your paddles (or the 2x4s I picked up from Home Depot yesterday) I put them in the passenger footwell and then use a small rag or similar where I rest them against the bar, so the item is sticking out the top, pointed towards the rear of the car (for less wind resistance, of course). Loop a bungie around them and then attach bungie ends to the luggage strap clips below the back seats. Simple and secure. Trees are different, slide the passenger front seat as far forward as you can then place behind front seat. People like it when you drive past them with a tree sticking out of the top of your targa!

Yikes! I'm glad everybody is OK. If those paddles had experience columnar failure you'd all be digging CF shards out still...

There is a thread on here with a GREAT desription of a rear Targa glass refit using anchor points in the ground and a ratcheting strap. Made great sense when I read it, and it worked very well for its author.