Year 4 - Prologue

We had arrived in Key West on Wednesday. Thursday morning, we rode our completely stripped bikes to the "We Cycle" bike shop in downtown Key West. "We Cycle" Bike shop packs bikes in Key West for $75 each. 

I should have known there would be issues when I announced to the older gentleman in the shop that we were there to have our bikes packed for shipment and he gave me the deer in the headlights stare! A younger worker came to his rescue and helped take our bikes.

When I contacted them earlier in the year to ensure we did not need reservations, etc. I was not informed that even though they had two shops, one in actual "downtown" Key West, it was their other location a slight distance away (about 3 miles) in New Town that actually packs the bikes. We were given the option to take the bikes there or leave them in downtown and downtown would have the bikes transferred to the other location. Not a problem, but it will potentially require extra time. We left them at downtown location as we had a couple days.

The bike shop packed our bikes in the boxes they had available, e-bike boxes. Larger than normal bike boxes. So instead of the average cost to ship a bike via Parcel Monkey.com, about $80, because of the large box, Parcel Monkey would not handle it. UPS/FedEx would have been over $400! Ouch.
 
But… airline will take bike boxes, as sports equipment, if the box under 115 inches (length + width + height) and under 50 lbs. They take these boxes as checked luggage for an extra $35! So, we checked the bikes as baggage!
 
Got to Phila, went to the oversize baggage line, boxes did not come up, did not come up, after hour of waiting, go to baggage counter, say no bikes, lady says file late luggage claim!
 
Filed claim, bikes got delivered to my home next day with TSA tape all over them! TSA must have had a good time checking them out!
 
Conclusion, for $35, we shipped them home from Key West and got them delivered right to our doorstep overnight! American and TSA have got it all over UPS!

New Update! Due to the delay with our baggage (bikes) American Airlines has refunded our $35 baggage fee, so the bikes traveled for free!

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