Bike travel case, hard or soft case?
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Can anyone recommend a good bike case for air travel? I Usually use tribike transport but am considering a bike case so I don't have to be without my bike for several days before a race. Also I'm going to the rally in Tuscon and need to transport my bike.
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For domestic airfare, or international airfare to most civilized countries, I'd go soft case all the way. Hard cases in my opinion and experience* are both prohibitively expensive and heavy.
For soft cases, my recommendations would be based on how much you are willing to spend. I think the BIKND Helium is the the most feature-rich soft case on the market but costs $500+. I should note that while a lot, that is still only half of what some of the hard cases go for.
Given your location in UT, if you want to go local and also get a pretty sweet case, I recommend the Pika Packworks EEP. I just got back from flying with my Pika Packworks last weekend and the whole thing was really a pretty painless experience. Bike fees were $50 each way on Virgin, so it was by far my cheapest shipping option all with the benefit of having my bike safely by side right up to and after the flight.
I'll also throw out an honorable mention to the Ruster Sports Hen House, which is the only bike case that fits within the 62 linear inch requirement for airline luggage, meaning that in theory, you can check it as a regular bag. This comes with a few caveats, first, the wheels have to be separated so you have 2 pieces of luggage instead of one, and paying the checked bag fees for 2 pieces of luggage may not be much/any less than paying the bike fee for one. Second, some airlines like Southwest actually call out that you can substitute sports equipment that meets the size and weight requirements for regular checked bags, but most don't. That means they could chose to charge you a bike fee regardless of the size, and result in you having to have uncomfortable conversations with the gate agent trying to persuade them it's not a bike, but a 'mobile ergometer' or some other technicality.
Hover over any of the names and I've linked to their sites. Also, both the Helium and the Pika Packworks are available from Competitive Cyclist. CC also has a video review of the EEP on youtube if you want to see it in action.
*Final note about my experience with this all. The only bike case I've ever owned is the EEP and I haven't had that for long. However, I did pretty extensively research this before making that purchase, so this is basically a recap of my conclusions from that research.
Whatever way you go, buying a travel item for your bike is a GREAT way to expand your horizons for racing and training.
Or, you could be like Al T, who is able to oragami his bike into a pencilcase-sized bag!
Agreed on the lack of wheels on the Aerus Biospeed, that is one drawback.
Pro Tip: when looking to nonchalantly evade bike charges at curbside or normal bag check-in, try not wearing your Ironman finisher's jacket thus destroying the subterfuge. Just sayin'
Link to the aforementioned NYT bike case review. I have not been able to determine which came first or if they have a co-licensing agreement, but the Pika Packworks and Aerus BioSpeed appear to be almost identical. Also FWIW DC Rainmaker uses the Biospeed.
Paul - any chance you could post some pictures of your case when it was packed? (If already done and I missed it, I am sorry). I am not quite sure what you mean by the corrugated plastic inside the wheels...
Thanks.
Paul, if you can't get this working, email me the photos ( my last name @jumpserve.com ), and I'll post them on for you.
1. Remove the pedals and put them in the small carrying case.
2. Remove the rear carrier from my seat, then the seat/mast from my frame. Mark the seat position first. Bubble wrap and tie to the bottom of the case.
3. Remove the wheels and place in each side.
4. Remove the handlebars and lay to the side of the frame.
5. Tie the yellow pad along the handlebars to go between them and the frame.
6. Install the hubmaster skewers.
7. Depending on your skill, either unscrew the rear derailleur or at least shift it all the way in.
8. Bubblewrap the frame and insert into the bag.
9. Bubblewrap my rear carbon cages and toss them in the bottom.
10. Shove water bottles down the side pouches.
11. Place excess bubblewrap in any open space.
12. Put the strap in the case at the airport.
Time spent: about 30 mins to pack and 20 mins to put it back together. Be sure to bring an 8 mm allen key for the pedals and a 5nm torgue key to tighten the seat mast so you don't crack the frame. Most of this has to be done whether you have a soft side or a hard case. Bike services charge $100 or more for a pack/build and the same on the other side. A lot of the hard cases cram stuff in where hard surfaces are rubbing against each other or stuff is bouncing around in the case. That shouldn't happen if you pack right.
Anyway, I just found this video review on the Pika case.
I went to the LBS and they were happy to give me plastic travel skewers that ship with new bikes that come with the shop. I kept the little discs that came with my wheels and inserted them inside the skewer hole for a bit more protection. You can see the small wheel discs and travel skewers in my photos above.
Hopefully we've covered a bunch of thing here to help out EN members that are thinking of traveling with a bike.