Confession time: I’ve been a triathlete for nearly 3 years and until this past weekend I did not know how to pack my own bike. I’ve always relied on the generosity and know-how of those far more skilled and generally, just avoided bike travel as much as possible. But, thanks to the great bike guru, Allen Heaton, my triathlon travel troubles are over!
At the recommendation of Allen, his wonderful wife Sarah, and a few other jetsetting jocks I know, I made the big purchase and bought a bike bag. I went with the Aerus Biospeed Travel Case for 3 reasons:
(1) It fits inside the Corolla
(2) It’s small enough that I might be able to avoid airline fees
(3) It’s made by Blue, and so is my bike
Here’s a visual of the set-up:
After getting the bag, the next thing I needed was a set of Albopads! The reusuable bike frame wraps are the genius invention of my good friend Al Bodine. My bike is my most valuable possesion (by far – sorry Corolla!), and I need to take care of it! Thank goodness for Albopads – they’re protective and efficient!
Unfortunately, Allen took one look at my bike and decided it would be offensive to the entire Albopad nation to use their wraps on such a dirty bike. So, for the sake of demonstration we used inferior foam tubing and tape. Maybe Allen’s next class will be on bike washing? Or maybe just how to turn on a hose?
The break-down process was surprisingly simple. With a just a few quick twists of the wrench my wheels, pedals, derailleur, and handlebars were off. Then it just took some crafty tube and tape skills, and Voila!
And the bike slipped right into the bag:
Being able to leave my saddle on “in-transit” is just one of the many advantages of having the body proportions of a mongoose.
At the end of the day I was a happy and much more independent triathlete. HUGE thanks Allen! Now I’m ready for anything!
{ 8 comments… read them below or add one }
Where do the wheels go?
Hey Adam! The wheels fit in pockets on either side of the frame. My training wheels were so dirty, Allen was afraid to leave them in the bag for too long — I have to keep SOMETHING clean!
Very cool. I’m going to need to buy a traveling case soon too, and you did such a good job packing yours that I might buy the same one. Is that designed to survive the luggage bay in a plane or would you need a hard case for that?
I sure hope it’s designed to survive a flight – that’s what I bought it for! I’m planning to try it out soon, so you can be sure I’ll report back!
Hey Haley, How did the flight go? I’m assuming the bike survived? I’m headed to Branson, MO in a month, and I’m super paranoid about traveling with my bike.
Hey Adam! The flight went great! My bike made it to the race no problem. It was really easy to carry around the airport and reassembly was a breeze. I had a great race, packed it up and flew home the same day! One thing I might encourage is taking pictures of your bike, specifically the stem and cabling when it’s assembled, and even snapping a few shots of the bike disassembled in the case. I never hurts to have a quick reference when you’re in a rush. Good luck!
Awww, just when you’ve finally convinced me to buy the same case, it’s sold out everywhere and won’t be in stock again until AFTER my race in Branson. What to do…
Bummer man! If you live in Atlanta you could borrow mine…but otherwise I’m not sure…drive?