Bike Case/

[Deleted User]

Greetings from Minnesota. Its painful to say the Tri Bike Transport has discontinued its stop to my home state. I now have to find alternative transport to get my bike to IMFL 70.3 in April. My knowledge of bike assembly and disassembly are VERY limited. I have a Felt IA 2. Any recommendations on a bike case that works well with my bike? Thule and Evoc are on my radar after reading the Buyer's Guide from Triathlete

 

Also, I bought a Tesla and I need a bike rack to put on the roof. I prefer the fork mount style but I'm open to suggestions.

 

Thank you.

 

 

Robert Sabo

I love my SCICON TSA Tri case. Minimal disassembly needed. Someone was selling one here on the classified forum. The tri case has a little more room for aero bars.

John Withrow

Kyle-- Do you ever get to Minneapolis? I have a SCICON TSA Tri case you'd be welcome to borrow for your race. My 56cm P5 fits in it great with almost zero disassembly. Just take off the wheels and slide them into the side pouches (I also unscrew the rear deraileur for good measure), tighten a few straps and strategically add some foam to protect a few spots on the frame and zip it up and you're done...

I love my 1Up bike rack, seriously the best hitch mount bike rack made! https://www.1upusa.com/bicycleracks.html

But if I needed to get one to roof mount (or anywhere mount), I'd get a SeaSucker. https://www.seasucker.com/product-category/bike-racks/ I had a bike racing team stay with me last yr and they had a couple of those that they just stuck on the back door of their van. They were awesome and worked like a charm. Bonus points because you could literally pack them when you travel and use them on your rental car as well...

Francis Picard

I dont know for your area but here LBS usually pack your bike with a bike case rental for about 50-60$, I find its a good deal comparing to the price of decent bike case in Canada which is about 700-800$.

[Deleted User]

Hi John. I do get to Minneapolis often. In fact, I'm planning on coming down this weekend for the hockey tournament. I'm staying at my golf club which I believe is not too far from Orono. Windsong Farm? Anyway, I'm planning on dropping my Felt off at GearWest when I get in town for a tune up before my race. Do you need your case before April?

 

Are you racing Buffalo on June 5?

John Withrow

Hey Kyle,
I live about 3 miles from Gear West. You're welcome to get it this weekend or whenever you drop your bike off. I don't need the case until near the end of May, so as long as you can get it back to Minneapolis by then, it's yours... Send me a PM if you want to borrow it.
--JW

Paul Hough

One of the best things I ever did in my tri gear was pay a bike shop to go one-on-one with me on bike disassembly and reassembly. I took my entire bike apart under the direct supervision of the mechanic, cleaned each part, and put it back together. That was way more than I ever do taking my bike apart to case it. If you intend to be in the sport for awhile, then consider doing something similar.

thekidduxc

+1 @ Francis. I fly with my bike 4+ times a year. Not a lot but enough. I take my bike to my LBS and for AED 100 ($27) the disassemble and professionally pack it. I call ahead and schedule a reassembly at a LBS if I have time. If not, reassembly is not that difficult. I always do the same going back as well. Just makes sense in my life to do it this way.

Brian Hagan

@Kyle I am so thankful you started this thread. I hope it helped!  I am traveling by air three times this year with my bike and have been very nervous about it (never done it).  I did buy a nice used box from a friend of mine.  Anyway, I called my LBS and he is going to do exactly what you guys said and teach me how to take it apart, pack it and put it back together.

@ David - Maybe someday I can take it to Dubai or Abu Dhabi! 

thekidduxc

Brian - all are welcome to ride the 120+ KM cycle path in Dubai . Would love to have all guests!

thekidduxc

Brian - which LBS do you go to in Brighton? I know Mark Vernon whom follows you on Strava is always trying to find a decent shop in Brighton?

Brian Hagan

Hometwon bicycles.  They are not really triathlon focused and sell only Jamis bikes, but they do a great job working on my Specialized TT bike and keeping it tuned-up.  If I were to buy a new bike or want a TT bike fit, I would go to the Tri and Bike shop in Livonia or Fraser Bike in Canton or Transition Rack in Ann Arbor.

https://myhometownbicycles.wordpress.com/

Julian Cass

I have a TriCo Ironcase and a Pika Packworks EEP pack. The Ironcase is bombproof but if you fly, the TSA guys are going to open it to check the contents. With the best intentions in the world they may not always put it all back together again properly. Providing they do however your bike will be well protected., Some people pack a lot of other stuff in their case with their bike, I keep it to a minimum to help the TSA guys and hopefully ensure the case is closed up again safely.

The Pika Packworks pack is outstanding but does not offer the same level of protection as an hard sided case, plus there is less disassembly needed. It is much easier for TSA to unzip it, see the contents and zip it back up again. The main risk with this case as with any soft case is the risk of crushing or dropping during the loading/unloading of the plane.

I tend to use the Pika Packworks case more than the Ironcase overall.

On disassembly - there are a lot of benefits to taking your bike apart and rebuilding it yourself, you will get a lot more confidence about the bolts & components on your bike so that when/if you need to fix something in a race, you are better prepared to do so.

Paul Hough

My Pika Packworks will make yet another trip to Europe this summer. I've had it since 2008 and have lost count on how many times I've flown with it...no damage ever. The only downside of the case in my view is the lack of wheels. I sometimes throw a small foldable wheelcart into the case with bungy cords and use that if I to haul it a long ways (e.g., > 1/4 mile). Typical weight packed for me is 32-35 lbs. FYI - for additional protection I inserted corrugated plastic into the outside of each wheel pocket, always remove the DR hanger, install fork locks, and bubble wrap the hell out of it. The bubblewrap also appears to be an effective TSA deterrent to full opening of the bag.