Travelling with your Bicycle

Sometimes your enjoyment of bicycle riding takes you well beyond just riding locally. These are the times when you'll be travelling with your bicycle to races or cycling events via airplane or car. In these cases you'll need to make a decision as to how you appropriately package your bike to ensure it arrives safely. Here are some simple guidelines to help you select whether you use a box, bag or bike travel case when you are travelling with your bicycle. Covers local, national and international tips.

If you are carting your bike in the car and handling it yourself then a soft bag is quite suitable. We have several of these and use them all the time in the car to keep it from suffering from grease stains. It also helps keep the bike free from damage. And… makes carting the bike around easy too when you get to your location. Wheel bags are a must.

If you intend to put your bike on a plane then I recommend a hard case or box. Again, use wheel bags. Boxes are usually free from a local bike shop and provide some good protection. When using boxes ensure you pad the bike well and have blocks in the forks and rear dropouts to keep the frame supported if crushed.

Hard cases offer the best protection but are heavy. If you are travelling domestically in Australia use Virgin Blue as they don't charge for bikes and the weight of the box is irrelevant, they deduct 5kg from your total baggage allowance for sporting equipment regardless of the actual weight.

If you are travelling internationally then a light box will help reduce the excess weight extortion payments you'll have to make to the airline. The other consideration is the durability of the case and the quality of the latches... Latches need to be robust and easy to use. 

Finally, don't make the assumption that your bike will fit inside the travel case without sizing it up first. All travel cases come in different sizes and in most cases there is some dismantling required to get the bike in. I have TC1 case that I have to remove crank, handle bars, rear derailleur and seat to ensure the bike fits. However, the case is light and compact. Once you have figured a system to get the bike in then you just have to repeat the process. But it does take some time initially to figure it out.

Having you bike packed is no guarantee that it won't get damaged in transit. I don't know if it helps but I plaster my case with large florescent coloured "fragile" stickers. Always ensure that you have you bike insured when travelling. My case has a large dint in the top of it after being "lovingly" handled on an international flight. So beware and safe bike carting.