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You’ve found yourself at the airport counter, hungover from PBR, baked to the max from pot.   Then you’re handing $50 that you don’t have to the airline for either an overweight charge, or an oversize baggage charge…. You are a fool..

Allow us at CZ to give you some tips on how to travel a lot easier with your bike.  Over the past 4 years we’ve  been traveling with our bikes heavily from one city to another around the world, jet setting. This first edition of tips on traveling with your bike will hopefully help you better prepare to travel, and keep that $50 for beer.


Baller Tip 1 -  Understand the rules:

Make sure you understand the airline policy for bag and airline policy for sporting equipment that you travel. Better yet, print them out and have them handy with you.  Most are quite vague.  (For instance: If you are flying on Virgin, they have a $50 “oversized baggage fee”.  However, Pg 27 of their regulations states: “Virgin Airlines will accept assistive devices and certain other devices at no additional charge. Items include but not limited to: wheelchair, walker, car seat, stroller, portable children’s playpen type device…” Now, a bike may not be entirely “assistive”, but it certainly falls under the huge category “certain other devices”  I say label your box vaguely!  Tell them it is a “certain other device” and they have to accept it.)   And, believe me, ground crew at the check-in counter do not have any clue about their own fine print or requirements, maybe the only person that knows how to look it up is the duty manager. So, it’s best if you do your homework before your trip.


Baller Tip 2 -  Use Bike case that appopriate:

Ok… if you do not want to get charged for oversize baggage, you should find a right case that will not exceed the requirements outlined by your airline. I use Freight Baggage because it measured approximately 30 X 8 X 26..
Here’s an example from Japanairlines policy “The total linear dimensions for each piece of baggage shall not exceed 158 cm (62 in) derived by adding the height, width and length). Furthermore, the sum of the linear dimensions of two pieces must not exceed 273 cm (107 in.).”


Baller Tip 3 -  Understand the weight limit:

So if you are going to check your bike in, and maybe an extra bag, don’t just throw everything in the bike case because it is already quite large. That bike case will weigh tons if you don’t weigh it as you are packing. Again understand airlines policy “2pieces. Each piece must not weigh more than 23kg (50lbs.).”


Baller Tip 4 -  Act like you are a well traveled baller:

Now, if the above tips still left you with extra weight, then… It’s time to shed some weight. But you don’t want to get on your knee and do all of this at the airport! Here read this carefully because this is how I get away with avoiding so many stupid “overweight chages.”
Here’s the scenario: you arrive at the check in counter, assume that you packed all your heavy stuff like tools or u-lock in one of Freight tool bag or Zo tool bag or whatever bag. Leave them in your carry on bag or on the cart.  Then you go ahead and check your Freight bike box in, let them weigh it (it should be under 50lbs for the bike and the box combined) and tag it and whatever. You wait until you get your passport and boarding card back.
THEN when you about to leave, stop the airline personal and tell them (HERE IS THE MOST IMPORTANT PART… Do not ask politely….You tell them, confidently!!! )  Tell them that you need to put something back in the case. If they ask what it is, just show them that they are tools and u-lock and you don’t want the security to take them away from you. 

Another point I want to state here is that checking your luggage at the check-in counter is not considered to be security checked…. When you check your luggage in at the counter, your luggage still has to go through the security check and x-ray machine before it get packed into the cargo box and then loaded on to the plane.  The key here is that you don’t ask airline personal if you could access your luggage, but you tell them that you need to put away shit that security screening will not let you take on the plane.  And you must stand your ground knowing that check in counter is not considered security check, and that you still have the right to access your luggage at this point because it has not been officially inspected.  Believe me, this has worked for me many times.

Voila….. you see the logic?  shed it and put them back later…..keep that fifty buck for beer or whisky….


Safe travels!

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