 Here is a closer look. The bike is stripped all the way down and ready to be wrapped for the return trip. It looks a little confusing but all the pieces are there. Take off everything; wheels, seat, racks, cages, bars, everything. Get spacers from a bike shop to put in the forks to protect them. Take out the axles and put them in a bag with all the other little bits. Helmet, shoes, tools in the empty spaces. Look closely, the wheels are being braced by the frame. Very, very difficult to knock them out of true in this position. This is possible if you take off the bottle cages. Tie the rear derailleur up against the chainstay. Do this or risk having it knocked out of line. Do you really want to spend the first day of your trip getting it straightened at a bike shop? Or worse, having the hanger welded back on? Tie up the derailleur. Then tie it all together with zipties and wrap it up and tape it like a present. Lastly, punch a small hole near the top and string your belt through it to make a large, ungainly shoulder bag. Punch two holes and have a backpack with your gloves as shoulder pads. This all takes about 1/2 hour. The plastic sheet is about 6' by 8'. It can be found in a hardware or garden store or even a paint store. Broken down and wrapped this way you can take a bike on any train in Europe anytime. The advantage is no waiting at the other end for the shipped bike to arrive. PACKING YOUR BIKE - THE MOVIE!!
|
