VANCOUVER ISLAND WINDTALK • Flying with kite gear?
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Flying with kite gear?

Posted: Fri Dec 17, 2010 9:38 pm
by rookieRyan
Hey guys any tips on flying with kite gear.I was thinking the golf bag trick.Any tips whould be great thanks happy riding! :D

Posted: Fri Dec 17, 2010 10:29 pm
by BK
When are you leaving?

Posted: Sat Dec 18, 2010 12:52 am
by rookieRyan
Feb 5th cancun

Posted: Sat Dec 18, 2010 8:05 am
by Ed
what airline?I've flown to Mexico the last six years on Alaska and it's no bigdeal,but I think there is an extra charge now,maybe 50$.If you want to borrow my Dakine bag let me know.It will fit 2 kites,board,shorty wetsuit and weighs 48 pounds all in

Posted: Sat Dec 18, 2010 8:33 am
by rookieRyan
Im flying with sun wing think ther max is 44 pounds.I might just take u up on that Ed ill keep in touch thanks! 8)

Posted: Sun Dec 19, 2010 7:42 pm
by MikeH
if your looking for another option, I have a butler one from costco that you could also borrow. I took it to Trinidad last year and if it were my choice then I would go again this year. The catch is that my 123cm board fits in it with only a couple inches to spare. I fit a 10m, lifejacket, kite pump, harness, a couple pairs of shorts and towels, boots and a bar and lines... It weighed ~10-15 pounds more coming home since it contained booze and was semi drenched/sandy. Things sure dry fast at 30C though, the only flaw was kiting not long before you pack it up again.
You could swing by the airport the night before to see how the weight is and size if you have the option. Mine was def. overweight coming home but I scoped the ticket agents out in advance to make sure I didnt get a grumpy one. Uh, it was american airlines though...

Cardboard KiteBag

Posted: Sun Dec 26, 2010 12:04 pm
by wullis
Ryan,
I just got back last night from flying to Cancun with my kitegear. I have a big dive bag, in which i put my clothes and my whole kitebag. (naish cult 10.5, which packs up nice and small). For my board i made a "board case" out of a big U-Haul cardboard box. I just added a little handle with lots of tape. It looked a little well-fare, but it worked great.

I flew with Sunwing, and when they asked my what was in it, i told them a small surfboard, they didnt know what a kiteboard was, and they let me bring it. i didn't pay a cent extra...

I was hoping to visit Marty in Tulum, but my internet at the hotel stopped working so communication troubles prevented it from happening. Went out one day, right in fron of the hotel in Cancun, but i was underpowered.

Hope you have a great trip!

Posted: Sun Dec 26, 2010 8:04 pm
by rookieRyan
Thanks bud short trip or just not much wind?.Im goin to try the golf bag idea seems to work.Too bad u didnt get to see marty.Happynewyears see ya at the beach. 8)

Posted: Sun Dec 26, 2010 10:10 pm
by 240
Ryan,
I fly all the time and the golf bag has always been a great success with all of my friends. The throwers tend to respect golfers much more cause they bring money and may be important people, they also don't know what is really in the bag. I myself do not bring a golf bag and have a Dakine, but ALWAYS put my personal clothes etc. in a separate bag. Most if not all, call for 50 pounds max. Second bags are now a charge, you will see it on your itineraries. I use either water noodles sliced for the edge of the boards or just wrapped with big bubble wrap with a bit of foam for the edges. Fins always removed! Make sure they have bar codes all over your bags, as they now scan them for easy tracking when lost. This takes days off of waiting for your gear which by the way are the first items they leave for the next plane when luggage compartments are full. This is why I always bring 2 bags: 1 gear, 1 clothes/booze. I pay 50 to 80 bucks for an extra bag overweight, so just distract her and lift the scale with your tow, it is quite comical when they catch you, so it doesn't hurt to try. Good Luck

Posted: Wed Dec 29, 2010 12:29 pm
by rookieRyan
Thanks for the replys ya im going with a golf bag for sure.Im sharing a suit case with my girl so i might be able to get another bag for myself.Happy holidays 8)

Golf bag

Posted: Tue Jan 04, 2011 12:49 pm
by Nimpkish-Bill
hey Ryan. I just flew back from Cabo with a golf bag that weighed 90 pounds and a surf board bag ( 6 ft) with 2 boards. Alaskan Air and no charge for both items.

Posted: Wed Jan 05, 2011 4:38 pm
by rookieRyan
Thanks Bill im flying with sunwing and they say golf bags have to be under 25kgs 44 pounds so guess i will have to work with that.Happy newyears cheers! :P