Thanks, as it turns out with some additional searching I settled on a 1Up Quick Rack. Turns out bike carriers is something that is discussed here from time to time in independent threads, so more in-depth use of the search function here, weightweenies and the gravel forums was helpful.


Arrived and test-fit yesterday actually. For people considering it - Add another to the list of people who like it. Best part is it is legit solid. I have no heartburn driving with my race bike on it on the highway.

For others who may be in a similar boat or searching this in the future - before purchasing a rack I recommend you double-check what hitch tongue length you need for your hitch/vehicle. If your hitch is more than an inch or two behind the terminal edge of the the bumper you may be limited on what you can use. 1up seems to also be one of the longer options that is also well regarded. Depending on the situation the the Equip-D might be a better fit. The Quick Rack has a slightly shorter length (hitch opening needs to be further arrears) but the main body also angles up a bit more gradually. I think it would depend on what height the interference would be at which one would work better. Good installation drawings on the 1Up site. Particularly if doing 1 and 1/4 I'd recommend doing everything to avoid an extension. This adds an unacceptable amount of wobble, in my opinion.

If can’t avoid, like on a Jeep Wrangler with rear mounted spare, be sure to use a locking anti-rattle pin from the vehicle to extension. Definitely reduces wobble and rattle. Also, your rack (eg Thule, Kuat, etc) will have a threaded, locking pin so using this on extension tightens things up. Also, lock it. Locking your rack to the extension and bikes to the rack is not useful if the extension has an unlocked hitch pin.

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I miss you "Sports Night"

it feels like i'm responding to the sufferlandria mot

do you know of a database/app that advertises p2p rentals (bikes or other tri gear) geographically? for example, if i am traveling to new zealand, and i don't want to take my bike, i can check out the city i'm visiting and choose a bike that fits my needs?

thanks!

i do not know of such a dbase. we could host it. but we don't at the moment.

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Dan Empfield
aka Slowman

spinlister

I will be shipping my bike via bikeflights with my Ruster Henhouse and wheelbag. I've only ever flown with my bike. Any tips on shipping it to the destination a week prior?

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@floathammerholdon | @partners_in_tri

who are you shipping it to? where are you shipping it to? Not something I have done. I would confirm with either the shipping company and/or the hotel (and I am not sure I would do this if not staying at a hotel) - that the hotel would be OK with receiving the package. And give them notice for when you expect it to arrive, etc. I have sent and received bikes and parts using bikeflights, but only when buying and selling.

If using a ruster hen house to do this - I would also put it into a bike box if using this method. and likely put the wheels in a separate box. One frame I bought - the box had some fairly significant tears and dents in it. Not something I would want to do, with just the hen house, and I have a hen house that I have used a few times for travel.

Damn, that's causing me a bit of concern.

I've already bought the bike flights shipping for $70... It would cost me double to fly with the bikes.

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@floathammerholdon | @partners_in_tri

Does anyone have any thoughts on either the Armored Hen House ($200) or the Speed Hound Bike Case ($299)? At that price the Hen House makes some sense despite having to pay for two bags. I figure there must be less chance of TSA repacking incorrectly (because the gear is spread over two bags). The Speed Hound appears to be a cheaper version of the popular Evoc bag. I don't fly with my bike often so I am not ready to throw down the big bucks on a bag or box but I do need my bike to arrive safely when I fly to Ironman Texas in April. Thanks

i can't help you with this question. what i can help you with is working thru the question of what case to buy. to me, one question critical to this is: what airline will you fly most of the time? because, for me it's american. this means my bike case goes for $30, or for free. and that's a full sized bike case, taking the entire bike. however, the specs of the case are important, mostly weight. the whole shebang can't weigh more than either 50lb or 70lb depending on the cabin in which you're flying. this means the case can't weigh more than, say, 24lb to 27lb, or the case when packed will outweigh the requirements for same-as-checked-baggage treatment.

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Dan Empfield
aka Slowman

If you fly with southwest frequently, the hen house is a no brainer. I've only been charged one time for "a bike" in over a dozen flights.

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@floathammerholdon | @partners_in_tri

Hi Dan. Thanks for researching and writing up all this great travel info. I think that I have read it all and it is a big help. I take your point about looking at who you fly with and making decisions based on their policy. I was tempted to buy the B&W Bike Box II following your article but I have since seen a few reviews where the boxes have arrived broken from not being closed properly after inspection.

Hi. Thanks for the reply. I think I may have seen you post about the bags in a different thread and that prompted me to google them. Seems like a good idea especially at their current price.

pardon for the very late reply on this. monty and i have acquired a LOT of bike cases. i'm driving down to pick up the rest of them this morning. it's this:



this was a special make-up for the performance bicycle chain. but then that chain went poof. we bought the whole inventory of these. we'll commence selling these next week. personally, i like the bike box ii a lot. but you bring up a good point about TSA not always putting it back together, hence our interview with TSA last fall about how and when to ask to be there in person during inspection. i think this particular case is a little easier for TSA. but i'll take a video if it.

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Dan Empfield
aka Slowman

That case (and the million other versions of it) is nice if you want to fly with a hard case, as it's the smallest exterior out there and likely smallest fork-on case out there. On problem is that it is about 4" too tall and 3" too wide to mail. I'd also suggest getting an additional lock for it as you can pick the lock in 5 seconds with a blade.

Here's one next to a Post Carry 150L if anyone cares lined up for length / height comparison. The hard case tapers in quite a bit, so the tops are about equal in length.

 


Dan,

Re: B&W Case.

My wife bought a slightly used one in a bit of a fire-sale from a rider in our club who was quitting cycling. I think she paid $100 for it. We thought we would give it a go as an experiment.

We used it for the first time back in January for a quick trip to Florida for some cycling.

A few observations:

- Yes it may be one of the smallest "normal" cases out there, but this makes it tricky to fit the bike frame in there. Every bike will be a bit different. My wife rides a "51" and I found it challenging trying to get it and the other stuff in there. Not sure how I would my (or your) "58" frame in the case! How the bike and all the other stuff fits in is HIGHLY specific and propreitory (and takes some fiddling around to figure out on pack up). If TSA opens it up, which they almost always do, how do we know they will be able to pack it all back up properly?

- Speaking of other stuff - these cases are not light, which is good-news/bad-news scenario. Good news - probably very protective. Bad news - you'll be very limited in terms of packing extra stuff in the case, to keep it under 50lbs.

- Case does have wheels, but front wheels do not pivot at all, so fine walking along going in a straight line in the airport towing it behind, but a PIA, when you have to turn or move over while walking (which is frequently in airports). I'm comparing this to my Biknd Helium case, that does have a pivoting wheel on the front and is HIGHLY maneuverable.

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Steve Fleck @stevefleck | Blog

Hi Dan. No worries. I haven't bitten the bullet yet so I look forward to your video and pricing on those cases. I did read all of your travel articles. I will certainly request to be present for the inspection when I fly out of Boston in April.

to me, one question critical to this is: what airline will you fly most of the time?


Dan,

This is a great and very important question and one that few seem to really think about. If traveling with a bike is a one-off for you, say ounce a year, then this may not concern you at all. But for those who travel frequently with their bikes, this is something that needs to be thought through.

- Who do you fly with the most?

- What airlines fly most frequently with the best connections from your local airport?

Start there. Most do this after-the-fact, after they have bought their tickets on say, Expedia, buying the LEAST expensive flight to their destination. They then find they have "expensive" bike fees, and ridiculous multiple connections - the latter is important, because you want the LEAST number of connections and best-case scenario as direct a flight or a absolute direct flight to your destination. This is all important because - loading on/off planes is where the greatest chance of damage to the bike is highest (so minimize that). Also tight, "optimal" connections, may mean your bike does not make it to your connecting flight - thus delays in getting it to you, or worse, going missing!

On connections, when traveling with a bike, when I do have connections, I try and make them at a minimums 90 minutes to 2 hours.

I have status with Air Canada now, and have pretty much always flown with them for the past 10+ years. I may end up paying a bit more, but we have a great number of direct flights to destinations all over North America from Toronto. The bike fee is reasonable at $50 (waived for me now with my status). The only time that we occasionally have to deal with onerous bike fees is when we fly United, unfortunately AC's Star Alliance partner - trade off is that I get AC Status points when I fly UA. These days that is typically only ounce a year to Kona. So last year, we did pay $150 each (CAN$) when we flew to Kona from Toronto, but leaving Kona, they waived the fees for some reason and only charged us the $30 single checked bag fee - so we lucked out! :-)

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Steve Fleck @stevefleck | Blog

- Speaking of other stuff - these cases are not light, which is good-news/bad-news scenario. Good news - probably very protective. Bad news - you'll be very limited in terms of packing extra stuff in the case, to keep it under 50lbs. //

I dont think you are talking about the same case as the one we have. It is 26 lbs, which seems to be on the lighter side for hard cases. And it looks like you will need a hard case for the free flying now with many airlines, and also for shipping with UPS and FedX bike ship companies. So you get the case, your bike at about 20lbs, helmet, shoes, maybe a wetsuit, and that will be it. No more packing cases like we used to, with all your food and other garbage until it was a 100 lbs. The site says up to 61 cm bikes, but we will test out some 58/59's to see if it will fit most people. Kind of the new game now, get the size, weight down and you can go free. The alternative is like buying another ticket, which really sucks..So folks are going to have to learn to take their bikes apart, like we all did back in the day it looks like, or pay the freight...

this case has almost the exact same inner dimensions as the bike box II. i pulled the trigger on this purchase because of this (i'm quite familiar with use of that case) and because of the weight. 26lb is the sweet spot. much lighter and the case is not protective. much heavier and you can't get it under 50lb ladened.

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Dan Empfield
aka Slowman

Hi Dan:

I lost the email about these bike cases you and Monty got. Do y'all still have any left?

I'm looking at either the II or this one.

Thanks,

Steve Mudgett

Yeah, I’d be interested too, jprice8888@gmail.com

Hi Dan. Apologies for re- starting an older thread but I see you did a review on the B&W Bike Box II. Wondering if this would suit a 2021 Cervelo S5 for shipping from the US to Australia? Or would you suggest something else? Thanks mate!

i don't know. i stuck a P Series in one, and it fit fine. but the S5 has that funny handlebar, and i wouldn't want to make any promises until i tried to pack that bike in that case.

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Dan Empfield
aka Slowman

OMG. As typical, I do interneting to figure out what I want, think I know the answer, and then I come here to validate my answer, only to be sucked into hours of reading very informative threads that leave me doubting myself. So, here goes!

I think I want a Scion Aerocomfort 3.0 Triathlon bag.

What I actually need:

• Ability to transport Tri or Road bike. I don't want two cases, I want one that does both.
• I would love to do as little assembly/disassembly as possible. I'm usually going full tilt when on travel and have little patience for tinkering.
• I travel 4-5x/year to Germany from California and usually do a cheap-o flight within Europe for long weekends to go to other places (i.e., Eurowings) and I want to take my road bike (week of work, long weekend of exploring, week of work, long weekend of exploring, week of work, return to CA).
• I travel from California to Tennessee a few times a year and want to take my road bike.
• I air travel to ~2 triathlons per year with my tri bike. MOP! 100% kook.
• I have enough travel status with American and United/Luthfansa to get a free checked bag (among other perks), so I usually fly those airlines.

Do I really want the Scion Tri bag? Inquiring minds want to know....

For the curious:

• My existing ancient bag completely failed and I threw it away years ago.
• I bought a crap bike at the Tränke for €180 and use it to ride around Germany/Europe. It is truly terrible. It does have an awesome torch.
• I have a different crap bike in Tennessee that I might have bought from a drug dealer. It was sketch.
• I have good bikes in California, but I'm only in California maybe 7 - 9 out of 12 months.
• I'm tired of riding crap bikes in places where I spend months a year.
• I actually do need to drag my tri bike around for races.
• I'm tired of loosing fitness by putting around on crap bikes.

So... which bike case do I really want?

I super appreciate any wisdom any twitcher has to offer.... I'm trigger happy on this bike case, but only because I'm traveling in a couple of weeks and in a hurry..... Rock on.

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Hillary Trout
San Luis Obispo, CA

Your trip is short. Make the most of it.
https://www.slogoing.net/