Travel with Ski

[dhofert]

Headed to the Boarding School in April!

So, what do I need to know about flying with my ski? Sport tube I have heard, which one? Is there a cheaper yet reliable option? This will probably be the only time I will need it.

Anything else that would be good to know?

 

 

[dave2ball]

Find a good one event bag Masterline has them and so does performance ski and surf. Wrap your fin and tail with something soft that will absorb the shock of a drop. Towels are great or bubble wrap. A hollow foam roller also works as a fin /tail protection roller

[oldjeep]

Sport tube with extra protection. The airlines seem to take it as a challenge. I've personally stopped flying with ski gear (winter or summer) and either drive or ship it.

[igkya]

Pray... better yet, have it shipped, especially if you'll only do this a few times.

[TustinTom]

Sport Tube and use Ship Sticks. I've had great success with Ship Sticks. Shipping out is only a bit more than the airlines. They use/go through FedEx. Difference is they pick up the phone/customer service and seem to treat their packages well.

 

Your boots will have to come off if you have/use the smaller Sport Tube. Toss each one in a paper bag. Throw your binding screws & screw driver in a glad bag and roll in a paper bag. Tape some foam (soft foam from like a laptop box) to the top/bottom of the ski. Rope/Handle in bottom portion, vest fits mid ski, boots and towel at the top. Peel off a 4 ft piece of Duct Tape (throw remaining roll in for trip home), apply tape where the Tube pieces connect. The contents/ski will be packed tight and not moving.

 

Ship 3 days early to your hotel or directly to TBS for cheapest cost.

 

I went there 18 months ago. Great spot. Anything else, stay in shape if you can, visit Performance, bring a 6 pack, it will be fun.

[bigskieridaho]

Sport tube series 3 and you will be fine. I traveled with my ski all summer with no issues. Just wrap in some extra padding.

[waterskicorey]

I found the best price for a sport tube series 3 is at ebags

[Chef23]

I have always used a roller snowboard bag I think the on I have is a Dakine. I have flown 10-12 trips with no problem so far. I use a short roller around the fin and wrap the rest of the Ski in extra towels, my vest, heater top etc.

 

Sometimes I think the baggage workers are less careful with hard cases like a sport tube.

[BlueSki]

If you put a snowboard bag in the sporttube, your stuff may be in better shape after TSA tries to repack it.

[Shell]

@Chef23 same here, flown tons of times using snowboarding bag, two skis i packed in, all has been good everytime.

[dvskier]

I use a wheeled soft sided snow ski travel bag and pack with lots of padding. Board shorts, handle gloves, towels. Have not had a problem. Have heard horror stories of hinge pins missing, tubes bashed in by baggage handlers, etc. No disrespect for SportTubes but it seems like it's a no win situation.

[andjules]

Amazon has a budget snow ski bag that I've taken to Bangkok and Florida without incident. I've put my ski in my regular bag first, with some extra padding. Added my vest, towel, shorty, handle, etc. The standard length is fine for 67-68" ski.

[thager]

I took an O'Brien Bag, created an internal box out of pegboard, and put it inside. Ski/bindings go into internal box. Hot top, suit, towel, handle, and rope go on top. Has worked for a good 6 years now.

[bigskieridaho]

Yep the lake owners son that I go to is an instructor in Acapulco and he travels with a snowboard bag all over the place and is fine. I used it once and was good, but had anxiety the whole flight.... that’s why I have a tube.

[lpskier]

By my informal polling methods, Delta seems to be hardest on skis. Southwest has always been good for me, and no extra baggage fee. I use a Masterline one event roller or a Performance three event roller, as appropriate.

[sandvikslandhotmail.com]

 

Travelled with my Sportube 3 this summer by train, aeroplane and rental car and it's easy to include both trick and slalomski and the rest of the gear. Find it perfect proteced all the time!

[mopowpow]

If you get a sport tube from ebags, set up an account and sign up for emails, you can get 20-30% off.

[C5Quest]

Sport tube looks great. Nice and compact. I use the Radar roller bag and it works well. Carry 2 skis and all my gear no problem. Each ski goes in a neoprene cover with the fin protector before I toss them into the bag so no need to wrap them up like burritos and waste space. No issues yet.

[perfski]

We've just received new Burton 181 Wheelie Board Cases and Lockers if you are wanting the best snowboard style bags out there.

[ShererSkier]

I remember reading an old thread where someone put their ski into a pvc construction pipe and then into a Dakine roll bag. Stuffed the ends with towels. That seems like it would work pretty good.

 

I’m going to be flying with my ski next June for the first time. Guess I’ll have a while to decide what to do.

[jhughes]

I've done the Dakine soft bag for what seems like a million flights with no incidents. Multiple Florida flights every year. No issues. This one is actually starting to get worn out. Foam roller on the tail of the ski (the TriggerPoint brand works great for this) or just some 4" SCH40 PVC. Towels and gear round out the bag. Heck, when the kids were younger the damn thing was filled with diapers too!