missing 55cm AHH, harvest gold.

[NME]

Hi All,

American Airlines has lost my bike, a 55cm/700c A. Homer Hilsen with custom color harvest gold.  It's only been 4 days, so there's a decent chance it could still turn up, but I wanted to put the word out here just in case it was pilfered.  If you see the bike (or frame) for sale somewhere, could you please let me know?

The airline isn't exactly sure where it disappeared, so it could have been somewhere near New York City, Washington, DC, or the San Francisco Bay Area. 

I took the rack and bags in a different suitcase, but the rest of the bike should still stand out in a crowd.

https://picasaweb.google.com/107397227427606413789/55cmAHH

Thanks for keeping an eye out,

Nicole

[NME]

And, excellent bike karma: they just found it!  

[Peter Morgano]

God I hate flying, I have been in this situation too. I am glad it all worked out!

On Thu, Aug 9, 2012 at 6:12 PM, NME <nicole...@gmail.com> wrote:

And, excellent bike karma: they just found it!  

--
You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "RBW Owners Bunch" group.

To view this discussion on the web visit https://groups.google.com/d/msg/rbw-owners-bunch/-/Fz_88zqhmbkJ.

To post to this group, send email to rbw-owne...@googlegroups.com.
To unsubscribe from this group, send email to rbw-owners-bun...@googlegroups.com.
For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/rbw-owners-bunch?hl=en.

[Scot Brooks]

Congratulations, that would have been a hard loss to swallow. Beautiful bike.

[PATRICK MOORE]

I'm very glad you got it back -- very nice bike.

On Thu, Aug 9, 2012 at 4:12 PM, NME <nicole...@gmail.com> wrote:
> And, excellent bike karma: they just found it!
>

> --
--
"When in Rome, do as they done in Milledgeville."

Flannery O'Connor

-------------------------
Patrick Moore, Albuquerque, NM, USA
For professional resumes, contact Patrick Moore, ACRW
http://resumespecialties.com/index.html
-------------------------

[NME]

Thanks, all! 

I'd just gone out to RBW WHQ this afternoon to get the original receipt to prepare for all the claims paperwork that would start tomorrow, and just like magic, the minute I left the shop I got the call with good news.

So, two related questions now that I'm coming out of panic mode:

(1) Can anyone recommend their hard case for airline traveling and shipping?  I fly quite a bit and eventually will look into a folding bike or a coupled bike, but for now I want to upgrade from the barebones soft-sided Ground Effect Tardis bag I'd been taking.  I'd originally skipped the hard case because they are very heavy and I didn't want to risk extra overweight charge, but now I see that the major airlines are declaring *no* liability if the bike isn't packed in a hard-sided case.  (Bonus points for a smaller case that might fool airlines into thinking it's less than 62 linear inches and/or not a bicycle.)

(2) Can anyone recommend reasonably-priced but decent bike insurance?  I had some insurance in Germany, where I was until now, but I need to get something in the US now.

Thanks again and happy riding,

Nicole

[pb]

On Thursday, August 9, 2012 4:15:43 PM UTC-7, NME wrote:

Can anyone recommend their hard case for airline traveling and shipping?  

 

I'm going to ramble a bit on this subject, as it is important to me -- I hope you won't mind.  This subject is a bit of a can of worms.  I have flown a coupled bike many times, and I own two of them.  I use the S&S case which is expensive and which works well, although the first time you pack it, it will be a Japanese puzzle.  I pack very slowly when I'm getting ready to leave on the trip, and it takes me about an hour; but I can pack in half an hour if pushed.  Assembly takes about half an hour.  Pack the night before, not the morning of.    

 

On a related subject, I rather regret having an expensive custom bike coupled.  I wish I had simply stuck with my inexpensive production coupled bike, a Gunnar.  US Air/Air France lost my Gunnar for two weeks, and I assumed I would never see it again.  It was eventually recovered, but I am now very reluctant to put a custom which I consider special and valuable on a plane.  My new attitude is, don't load anything onto a commercial aircraft which you are not willing to lose.

 

But now returning to the subject of the case.  Cases that are worth owning are expensive.  I think you should figure out exactly which direction you are going with the travel bike before you invest money in a temporary solution.  Another strategy -- some bike travellers (one internet presence with a very high opinion of his own opinion comes to mind) have argued that couplers are dumb, special cases are dumb, and the best way to go is to use a bike shop box.  That strategy has become impracticably expensive on most or all carriers, and I think that the coupled solution is the best solution available at this time.

 

One time I loaded too many additional items, including tools, into my S&S case, I didn't check my weight, and I was over 50#.  The surcharge was going to be $200-something.  I repacked in the airport, something which is to be avoided.  

 

The Ritchey case is oversized.  I have flown it, and I wasn't charged, but I doubt I would get away with it again.  

 

So, to come back to my earlier comment -- I think you need to make a decision about your bike strategy before you make a decision about your box strategy.  I just found this link, and they are doing things a bit differently:

 

http://ravellobikes.com/travel%20bikes.htm

 

Compact architecture makes sense to me for a travel bike -- it will make a frame easier to pack, and will leave more room for other stuff.  650B as well, especially if you require a large-cross-section tire.

 

Sorry for the rambling. 

[Liesl]

Nicole, so glad to hear your Homer is back with you!  How scarey!

I know you are looking for temporary hard case solutions for a regular bike, but I just really have to put a plug in for Bike Fridays.  They fit into a regular big samsonite hard case—which means no over-size charges.  And in some cases, it's less than bringing a second (or first) bag because it's sports equipment.  Anyway, the bikes are wonderful and easy to travel with.  One can do a very Rivendellianesque (how's that, Patrick?) build with them.  I was traveling with mine when I found out that my mother died.  In her honor, I put Resurrectio decals on it.  Fridays become quite good companions when traveling.

liesl

[PATRICK MOORE]

So cute! And ... well, Rivendellianesque!

On Fri, Aug 10, 2012 at 11:03 AM, Liesl <li...@smm.org> wrote:
> Anyway, the bikes [Friday] are wonderful and easy to travel with.

> One can do a very Rivendellianesque (how's that, Patrick?) build with them.