[ORRando] Shipping bikes

[John Henry Maurice]

A very timely posting!

Joanne and I are traveling to Arizona in March to ride Week 3 of the Arizona
Pac Tour - Historic Hotels.

We got one quote to ship the bicycles with Sports Express - $300 each, one
way.

I just called Amtrak and their quote is $55 each. each way plus $15 per
box.  This is one third the cost!

Beth, thank you!

On Sun, Jan 4, 2009 at 12:17 PM, b hamon <periwinklekog at yahoo.com> wrote:

> Here's some additional info about shipping bikes, from one who gets asked
> to do it a LOT at work:
>
> 1. UPS has gotten more expensive, and more picky. Bikes packed in carbard
> boxes settle during transport, and the box's measurements change as a
> result. UPS now re-measures large boxes at their regional depots, and if the
> new measurements don't match what was figured at the point of origin, UPS
> now slaps a "Fuel Surcharge" onto the cost of the shipment. For a bike, that
> surcharge ranges anywhere from 60 to 125 bucks. If you're already paying 75
> to ship a bike cross-country this can be quite a jolt, since there's no way
> of predicting that surcharge in advance.
>
> 2. Lately our shop has had better success shipping bikes via Amtrak. For a
> flat rate of 60 bucks or thereabouts, Amtrak will transport your bike to one
> of 135 freight depots in the US. Downside: your destination may not be a
> designated freight depot, in which case, you'd have to ship it to the
> closest one and schlep by car to go and get it. Still, it's a pretty good
> option and just about every large US city's Amtrak station is also a freight
> depot. (Milwaukee? Sure. Oconomowoc? Not so much.) Another nice thing is
> that Amtrak sells the nicest bike boxes -- they're big and you almost never
> have to remove the handlebars (just loosen and turn sideways and down). Some
> stations will hold the box for you (for a fee) while you do your ride in
> that city, then give it back to you for the trip home. Call ahead to make
> sure.
>
> 3. Greyhound Package Express is also an affordable way to ship bikes
> cross-country (again, less than 70 bucks in most cases) but I haven't used
> it myself.
>
> 4. In addition to isolating and stabilizing dropouts, you'll also want to
> make sure the cranks cannot move (tiedowns through one of the pedal-holes to
> a well-padded frame usually do the trick here); and wrap those chainrings
> too (I make a sort of bash guard out of layers of cardboard and a little
> foam padding). Also make sure that any loose parts (pedals, saddle, quick
> release skewers et al) are securely wrapped so they don't bump or clatter
> against the bike, and deflate your tires about halfway to avoid the risk of
> bursting in an overheated compartment or back room.
>
> 5. Last note, and not necessarily a shameless plug: If you don't work on
> your own bike much at all, you may want to hire a shop to pack your bike for
> shipping. Most shops in Portland charge between 40 and 60 bucks for the
> labor. If you don't know what you're doing, paying a shop is worth the cost.
> Another approach is to lern how to work on your bike more at one of several
> D-I-Y shops in town (the CCC, Bike Farm and Bike Repair Collective come to
> mind).
>
> Hope this helps.
> Happy riding --Beth Hamon
>
> http://bikelovejones.livejournal.com
> http://veloquent.blogspot.com
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
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-- 
John Henry Maurice
www.onyourleft.net
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