Angled ski rack attachment for a sports rack

A sports rack for releasably retaining an elongate item near the rear of an automobile, the sports rack comprising:

• a first retaining member including a rigid hoop defining an elongate slot that is adapted to receive one end of an elongate item;
• and
• a second retaining member including a first rigid bar and a clamp attached to the rigid bar, the second retaining member adapted to engage the elongate item near an opposite end;
• wherein the first and second retaining members extend rearwardly from the automobile, and are vertically and transversely offset such that the retained elongate item is oriented at an angle of between about 20 degrees and about 70 degrees with respect to a vertical plane.

A rack assembly for a vehicle defining a horizontal plane, the rack assembly comprising:

• a support assembly having a first end and a second end, wherein the first end includes a keyed post and the second end includes a first and a second keyed aperture;
• a lower retaining member having a keyed post adapted to slidably engage the support assembly first keyed aperture, an extension bar extending downwardly and outwardly from the keyed post, and a rigid hoop extending rearwardly from the extension bar, the rigid hoop defining a first gear retention slot;
• and
• an upper retaining member having a keyed post adapted to slidably engage the support assembly second keyed aperture, a first bar extending rearwardly from the keyed post, and a second bar hingedly attached to the first bar, the first and second bars defining a second gear retention slot;
• wherein the first and second gear retention slots are disposed relative to each other such that a straight line through the first and second gear retention slots will form an angle between about 20 degrees and about 70 degrees relative to the horizontal plane defined by the vehicle.