Alcan Rally rules require each car to carry two full-size spare tires, and the organizers recommend that each car carry some spare fuel. Any car’s fuel economy drops when the car is fully loaded, and when driving on ice and snow. When you add this to the fact that there may be up to 200 miles between fuel stations in the far north, some extra gas just makes sense.

But where can you put all this stuff? You surely don’t want to spend two weeks in a car that smells like a gas can, or share the back seat with a studded snow tire, so you need a good solution.

We chose a pair of “Mule” roof baskets from BajaRack. These wonderful creations are lightweight, steel roof carriers that will hold virtually anything. They installed in minutes using standard roof rails and are completely powder coated. They look great and are tough as nails. Into each rack, we put both our spare tires, a 5 gallon gas can, and our other “outdoor” tools and supplies. That freed up enough space inside the car to accommodate our luggage, safety gear, and ourselves.