Don’t be Clark Griswold: How to get your Christmas tree home

Tens of thousands of Christmas trees will be put on the tops of Washington cars over the next few weeks and many of them are just one bad knot away from flying off.

This is one of my biggest fears every Christmas. I even check my tie-job about a half-mile down the road to make sure it’s tight.

Washington State Patrol Trooper Chris Webb said the penalties for losing a tree can be severe.

“If it loses debris and damages a vehicle, that’s a criminal act. That’s a misdemeanor. If it injures a person, you’re looking at a gross misdemeanor. So we’re almost pushing into the felony zone.”

Punishment for a gross misdemeanor can be up to a year in jail.

“Then, if you just lose debris and it sort of scatters on the road, that’s just your typical infraction, which is a $124 fine,” Webb said.

He said he sees trees all over the roads this time of year and even more that are close to coming loose.

“I’ve seen some pretty precarious looking trees on top of some cars that don’t have racks and they’re sort of bungee-corded on the roof. It’s like, ‘I don’t know if that one’s going to make it,'” he said.

I normally use about 10 bungee cords to do the job, though I know that’s overkill.

Longtime Christmas tree farmer Bill Hunter of Hunter’s Farm in Wedgewood offered his advice. He said rule number one is to put the bottom of the tree toward the front of your car. Then, it’s time for the rope.

“A roof rack is always the easiest,” Hunter said. “You can tie it on one side, flip it over, pull it tight, and tie it on the other side.”

Two pieces of rope is all you really need, he said, if you know what you’re doing.

“I’ll tie an eye in one end of it, you know just a simple figure-eight type of eye, and throw it over,” he said. “Then I can run a string through it and pull her down tight and then just a few half-hitches and pull it tight.”

Hunter said the best method might be to slip the tree farm guy a few bucks and have him do the job for you.

If you don’t have a roof rack, take my advice. Make sure the doors are open. You don’t want to finish tying down the tree to find you can’t open your doors.

I’ve done it.