TCBA has purchased two hard-shell bike cases for member use. The most common use of such a case is when a cyclist is traveling by air and wants to have their bike to ride at their destination. Phil Wells is storing the cases and handling reservations. The cases include instructions for packing the bike; Phil will be glad to give his advice as well. Contact Phil in Lansing at (517) 267-8971 or philwells99@yahoo.com.

HOW TO FLY WITH A BIKE!
by Phil Wells

So you're flying somewhere and would like to have a bike to use while you're there. What are your options? They fall into three categories:

1. Rent or borrow a bike when you get there.
2. Take your bike on the plane.
3. Ship your bike there and back.

Each option has its pros and cons. What follows is my perspective. There's a web site, www.bikeaccess.net/BikeAccess/default.cfm, with a huge amount of useful information. Thanks to Dick Janson for pointing this out.

1. Rent a bike. Rental, if available, can be convenient, but also expensive. And the rental bike may not fit you as well as your bike, or be of as good quality; or it may not be well maintained. If you're cycling with a commercial tour company, they will probably serve you well, for a price. If you have a saddle that your posterior is fond of, you can pack it (the saddle, not your posterior) in your luggage along with your helmet (assuming the seat post on the rental bike is the same diameter as yours).

2. Bike on plane. The rules are different for international and domestic flights:

International flights. Your bike can count as one of your two pieces of checked luggage, usually without any surcharge. So if you can get by with one other piece of checked luggage, this can be a good option.

Domestic flights. There is almost always an extra charge for a bike. And the struggling airlines have raised their surcharges considerably, and put more conditions and restrictions on special deals through organizations such as the League of American Bicyclists.

Your bike can be packed in either a cardboard box or a hard-shell bike case:

Box options. Most airlines sell, for $15 or so, large cardboard bike boxes, so large you only have to take the pedals off and turn the handlebars sideways. But these boxes provide limited protection for your bike, are tough to get in most vehicles (even vans), are a nuisance to handle in the airport, and are not always treated well by the baggage handlers. And you have to either buy a new box for the return trip or figure out where to store the box (assuming it's not too beat up to use for the return trip!). Try to find a friendly person at the airline baggage office; maybe they'll store it for you. (And don't forget to take your helmet out of the box like I once did!) You can fit extra stuff in the box, like your helmet; but the heavier the box is the worse it'll get treated. In the past, some of the little turbo-prop planes that flew out of Lansing couldn't carry these boxes. But most of the flights now use small jets with bigger cargo bays. (On one Air Canada group flight I was on, the airline provided heavy plastic bags for our bikes. The bikes were actually treated better than if packed in a box.)

Another box option is to get a box from a bike store - the kind in which new bikes are shipped to the stores. These boxes are smaller and thus much easier to handle; but more disassembly of the bike is required, and packing the bike in it is quite a challenge. (As I've learned the hard way, you need lots of foam packing and skill to prevent damage during packing, shipment and unpacking!) Some bike stores will pack your bike in the box for you, for a price. Be sure they're experienced at it. 

Hard-shell bike case. A case such as the club has just acquired for member use provides much better protection than a cardboard box. It requires more disassembly of the bike than the large airline boxes but is much easier to pack than a bike box from a bike store. It may be treated better by the baggage handlers than a large airline box because it's smaller (though not lighter) and has wheels. And it's more likely than an airline box to fit in a taxi at your destination.

Compact bike. Another option is to buy a compact bike like a Bike Friday that packs into a case small enough to check as regular baggage on the airline. For this to save money, you have to get by with one other piece of checked baggage. I've had good luck flying with my Friday. But packing a Friday into the case actually requires more disassembly and time than packing a conventional bike in a larger hard-shell case. And everything has to fit in just so. I fear that someday the Transportation Security Administration will move things around during inspection, in which case they'll never get them back in the right place, and the case won't close. So far, this hasn't happened. Most Fridays are heavier than the racing type bikes that many club members ride, so it may not be the best choice if you expect very challenging cycling at your destination(s).

3. Ship the bike.

For domestic trips, UPS and FedEx will ship your bike to and from your destination.  The UPS/FedEx price is usually less than the airline price for a bike packed in a hard-shell case or a bike box from a bike store (see discussion above). (The large airline boxes far exceed UPS parcel size limits.) Also, you don't have to haul the bike through the airports, and the parcel will probably be treated better than on the airlines. But you have to have an address to ship the bike to. If you have a lodging reservation for your first night, you can probably arrange to ship it there. The hotel/motel/resort/campground will probably store the box/case for you; and, at the end of your stay, you may be able to pay them to have it picked up by UPS or FedEx. Another option is to arrange with a bike store at your destination to take delivery of your bike, and ship it home from there as well. They may even assemble and pack it for you, again for a price.

With the shipping option, you have to ship early enough to be sure the bike will be there when you arrive. This usually means you'll be without the bike for a week or more before your trip, as well as after you get home.