Was wondering if anybody out there had any good advice for a race I am going to do in Dublin in August. I am trying to avoid taking my bike (unbelievably expensive to transport from the US) and am exploring rental opportunities. Does anybody know of any good triathlon shops in Dublin that will rent tri bikes or high end road bikes? I haven’t had much luck with web searches. Another option I would strongly consider - is there anybody from the Dublin area that is not racing and wouldn’t mind renting their bike out for the weekend? I would be willing to pay a few hundred euros and am willing to put down a safety deposit to prove that I am trustworthy
I don’t know what’s around for rental as I’ve never looked. The biggest cycle/triathlon shops I’m familiar with in and around Dublin are Wheelworx, Cyclesuperstore and Base2Race but I’m not sure if any of them do rentals.
It might be worth calling them and asking. If they don’t hire out bikes they may know of someone who does.
As of a couple years ago noone rented out high end bikes (whether TT or road). I doubt that is changed as Dublin isn’t a high demand cycle destination.
I don’t think Wheelworx or Cycle superstore rent bikes. I’m over there a decent amount and have tried to rent bikes and remember only one or two places renting any form of road bike. You can try here: http://www.biking.ie/index.php/road-bike-rental. Without a rental car it’s going to be a pain to get to (although you’d be near decent cycling when you pick it up!).
AerLingus charge 50 euro each way per bike. They fly direct from NYC. One way to save a few dollars is to fly with British Airways (BA) as they don’t charge for bikes across the atlantic. They partner with Aerlingus, so you’d fly to London with BA, then jump on a BA or Aerlingus flight to Dublin. If you make a connection (especially in Heathrow), try and get a 2-3 hour layover to ensure your bike makes it to the second flight. I’ve had so many problems connecting in London with bikes. Dublin’s lost baggage process is a f-ing nightmare so whatever you can do to avoid that is big.
As of a couple years ago noone rented out high end bikes (whether TT or road). I doubt that is changed as Dublin isn’t a high demand cycle destination.
I don’t think Wheelworx or Cycle superstore rent bikes. I’m over there a decent amount and have tried to rent bikes and remember only one or two places renting any form of road bike. You can try here: http://www.biking.ie/...php/road-bike-rental. Without a rental car it’s going to be a pain to get to (although you’d be near decent cycling when you pick it up!).
AerLingus charge 50 euro each way per bike. They fly direct from NYC. One way to save a few dollars is to fly with British Airways (BA) as they don’t charge for bikes across the atlantic. They partner with Aerlingus, so you’d fly to London with BA, then jump on a BA or Aerlingus flight to Dublin. If you make a connection (especially in Heathrow), try and get a 2-3 hour layover to ensure your bike makes it to the second flight. I’ve had so many problems connecting in London with bikes. Dublin’s lost baggage process is a f-ing nightmare so whatever you can do to avoid that is big.
Would recommend you take your bike
My brother, sister, and I plan on doing the Dublin 70.3 next year and I did some prelim checking on flights and bike fees and all that and it seems British Airways from pretty much anywhere in the USA to London-Heathrow, and then a BA or Aer Lingus flight over to Dublin was the best option for both price (for airfare and bike) and flight availability.
Definitely make sure you get a long layover though, even though it’s a pain. I went through Heathrow 3 times in 3 weeks in 2014 and every time the bag didn’t make the connection.
I ended up trying to put pressure on them via social media to get my bike back quicker: