Flying with a Bike

goodvibe

goodvibe

Well-Known Member
Greetings All!
I am going to ride to Key West and there is not too many places down there that will rent a decent road bike. I was thinking of buying a bike travel bag since United doesn't charge more for bikes as long as it is under weight. Baggage fees are cheaper than rental fees.

I was looking at this bag:
www.dakine.com

Dakine Bike Roller Bag

A bike roller bag that you can count on for easy packing and full, padded coverage Take the stress out of traveling with your bike. The Dakine Bike Roller Bag is tricked-out to make packing easy and to keep your bike safe during transit. It delivers 360° coverage for mountain, road, downhill and...
www.dakine.com www.dakine.com

Has anyone used this particular bag? Thanks for your input.
 
I’ve tread this is the one to get. Although I was looking for one that would fit a MTB.

evocsports.us

BIKE TRAVEL BAG XL

The EVOC Bike Travel Bag XL with skate wheels is extra large with hybrid collapsible hard shell soft bag construction and separate wheel compartments.
evocsports.us evocsports.us
 
Karate Monkey said:
Call around your LBSs. Many of them will rent a bag/box.

If you aren't doing it constantly, no need to buy.
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The hope is for me to do it more regularly. I usually ride when I travel and wind up renting a bike. Sometimes the bikes are awesome, sometimes they are horrible. I can get the Dakine bag wholesale, so it won't be too bad, but I am limited in what I can purchase. between this one and a Thule one that is twice as much.
 
goodvibe said:
Greetings All!
I am going to ride to Key West and there is not too many places down there that will rent a decent road bike. I was thinking of buying a bike travel bag since United doesn't charge more for bikes as long as it is under weight. Baggage fees are cheaper than rental fees.

I was looking at this bag:
www.dakine.com

Dakine Bike Roller Bag

A bike roller bag that you can count on for easy packing and full, padded coverage Take the stress out of traveling with your bike. The Dakine Bike Roller Bag is tricked-out to make packing easy and to keep your bike safe during transit. It delivers 360° coverage for mountain, road, downhill and...
www.dakine.com www.dakine.com

Has anyone used this particular bag? Thanks for your input.
Click to expand...
Own multiple, including the dakine. The dakine is great for mountain bikes. It got my XC bike to Iceland to race. I prefer a hard case for my road bikes. Scicon makes great stuff, but ridiculously expensive. Wife has a bike box alan that is also good and half the price of the scicon.
 
jShort said:
I’ve tread this is the one to get. Although I was looking for one that would fit a MTB.

evocsports.us

BIKE TRAVEL BAG XL

The EVOC Bike Travel Bag XL with skate wheels is extra large with hybrid collapsible hard shell soft bag construction and separate wheel compartments.
evocsports.us evocsports.us
Click to expand...

This bag is phenomenal. I've owned a few and these take the cake. Best part is it folds into a little bag so you can stash it in a rental car trunk or hotel room easily...
 
rmich said:
Own multiple, including the dakine. The dakine is great for mountain bikes. It got my XC bike to Iceland to race. I prefer a hard case for my road bikes. Scicon makes great stuff, but ridiculously expensive. Wife has a bike box alan that is also good and half the price of the scicon.
Click to expand...
Why the hard case for the road bike?
 
I’ll add that if you’re only going to fly with a road bike, then you have more options. If you’re gonna potentially fly with a mtb, then choose a soft case. To keep the weight under 50lbs to avoid airline overweight fees you’ll need a lighter case, the hard cases will likely push you over that weight.

I prefer the soft cases overall because they are easier to deal with when you’re not using them.

The cardboard bike box works ok and is cheap, but hell to deal with in a rental car or hotel.
 
Have you considered shipping your bike using Bikeflights? Where are you riding to Key West from and will this be a round trip or a one-way ride? Just thinking the logistics.
 
You can always box up and send to Eaton Cycles in KW. They are super awesome in there. Then just have them box it back up.

KW is sooo flat a single speed is fine. The A1A can be interesting/frightening in some areas by bicycle.

If you have never been dinner/lunch at Louie’s Backyard is premo
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tonyride said:
Have you considered shipping your bike using Bikeflights? Where are you riding to Key West from and will this be a round trip or a one-way ride? Just thinking the logistics.
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I looked into shipping and it is pretty expensive with Bike Flights or via any other service. Also, I may want to travel with my bike more because I would rather have one of my own. If this works out, it is worth the investment.
 
goodvibe said:
I looked into shipping and it is pretty expensive with Bike Flights or via any other service. Also, I may want to travel with my bike more because I would rather have one of my own. If this works out, it is worth the investment.
Click to expand...
I agree. I went all in with a buxumbox https://buxumbox.com/ cause I bring my own bikes when traveling, the one I have, Ventoux MTB fits a road or MTB but its pricey. Tried to ship it once within the US using the box and it was punctured by a forklift so I gave up on shipping and always check it. I had the EVOC Pro before and was happy with it too. Havent tried the Da Kine.
 
If you plan to travel with your bike more than once it probably worth investing in a bag. I purchased the EVOC bag last year after exploring the options.

- Some REI locations will rent you a bike bag but availability is hit or miss. Fees add up since you need it for the duration of your travel
- United will sell you a bike box for $25 but it's just a box. You can probably pick up a better box locally for free
- Bikeflights isn't cheap and you're at the mercy of UPS and the possible delays

So, I initially went with the regular EVOC bag. It fit my large pivot perfectly (with the rear derailleur removed) and it worked really well. I could throw all of my gear in there and still be under weight for United. Fast forward to the next trip, I found that my large Evil wouldn't fit. I could jam it in there but it offered little protection near the derailleur hanger. I wound up selling that bag and picked up the Pro version. It's about 4" longer and has an aluminum rail tray to secure the bike which is pretty sweet. It does cost more but it fits anything I have.

I can send you some photos of bikes in the bags for comparisons if you'd like.
 

Bike travel case - Trico Sports Iron Case

Hard shell plastic case for shipping or air travel. Easily fits a road bike and smaller frame 29er mountain bikes fit as well. Wheels get removed and placed between 2in thick foam sheets (included). Functional condition, wheels are gone but all straps still good. $100 each obo QTY 2...
www.mtbnj.com www.mtbnj.com
 
turbotrix said:
If you plan to travel with your bike more than once it probably worth investing in a bag. I purchased the EVOC bag last year after exploring the options.

- Some REI locations will rent you a bike bag but availability is hit or miss. Fees add up since you need it for the duration of your travel
- United will sell you a bike box for $25 but it's just a box. You can probably pick up a better box locally for free
- Bikeflights isn't cheap and you're at the mercy of UPS and the possible delays

So, I initially went with the regular EVOC bag. It fit my large pivot perfectly (with the rear derailleur removed) and it worked really well. I could throw all of my gear in there and still be under weight for United. Fast forward to the next trip, I found that my large Evil wouldn't fit. I could jam it in there but it offered little protection near the derailleur hanger. I wound up selling that bag and picked up the Pro version. It's about 4" longer and has an aluminum rail tray to secure the bike which is pretty sweet. It does cost more but it fits anything I have.

I can send you some photos of bikes in the bags for comparisons if you'd like.
Click to expand...
I found a STEAL on a lightly used EVOC Pro. I had to stop myself because there's absolutely NO way I'd get my bike/bag down under 50lbs. in the cardboard box it was 49.5 on the airport scale. (heart stopping, high five w/the desk clerk moment). and that was with the cassette, pedals and chain in my carry on. it'd easily top 54lbs in the EVOC. i wanted so badly to buy that EVOC bag and fly in style. I'm always stunned and a little jealous when I see youtubers cramming tools, helmets, shoes and clothes into the EVOC. I guess my bike is just a fat pig.
 
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