Traveling with gear

[D+F+P=Hadouken!]

Hey, I'm flying to JO's... should I purchase a hard sided case for traveling? Where should I put my toolbox? Where should I purchase a hard side case? Any tips for traveling with fencing gear? Whats the worst that has happened to you? Security issues? This is my first time flying with fencing gear.

[glowstix]

they won't be afraid of your epees since they'll be in the luggage compartment. the toolbox should be packed in there somewhere as well. nothing fencing should go in the cabin with you. if you try to take that on the plane with you as carry on luggage, they'll take it away and ask questions later.

as far as the hard case goes, i've seen people use golf travel cases so you might want to try that. if you have one of those uhlmann roll bags you should be fine. i know people that travel with just that.

[neevel]

You can get a hard side golf case from any big sporting goods chain (Dunn's, Scheel's, Sportmart, etc.). You'll need to check your weapons and tools. It can be a good idea to take your mask, uniform & shoes in a carry-on bag, though. That way, if your checked luggage winds up in Bhutan you only have to buy or borrow weapons.

[mlr2fence]

Definitely carry on mask and uniform. Been there done that with lost luggage. No fun but at least we had the complete uniform and mask. Its much easier to borrow blades and bodycords than a uniform--especially with your name on! It's also easier to buy replacement blades that will do in a pinch than it is to run from vendor to vendor trying to find uniform that fits. We've traveled with hard and soft cases and found it really doesn't make much difference. Only problem is if you rent a car a hard shell may/may not fit in the trunk. In that case any back seat passengers may find the case riding on their laps.

[mlr2fence]

Oh, it goes with saying : Don't refer to your blades as weapons! It's all sports equipment. It helps to put stickers or USFA name tag on, especially if you don't have a traditional Allstar/Uhlmann etc fencing bag. Expect also to have TSA search the bags.

[O_O]

just tell people its golf stuff

[ThatReallyHurt]

A guy from work flew to a resort to golf and checked his clubs... they were in a hard case, but somehow got caught in the cargo doors.

He brought two of them into work after he got back - apparently, the cargo doors on a 737 are a little stronger than the hard case for his clubs was.

[D+F+P=Hadouken!]

Originally Posted by ThatReallyHurt

A guy from work flew to a resort to golf and checked his clubs... they were in a hard case, but somehow got caught in the cargo doors.

He brought two of them into work after he got back - apparently, the cargo doors on a 737 are a little stronger than the hard case for his clubs was.

are you sayin that his clubs got screwed up real bad?

[ThatReallyHurt]

Originally Posted by D+F+P=Hadouken!

are you sayin that his clubs got screwed up real bad?

Yep. Apparently, some clubs will snap while others just bend.

[KShan5[PrFC]]

Originally Posted by mlr2fence

Expect also to have TSA search the bags.

lol, not always true, they get lazy sometimes. If you fly out of a big airport, such as Logan, to say JOs or nationals, you will meet a lot of other fencers. And they all have the same explanaition as to what their gear is, so after a while they just start checking it in as a regular bag.

[wildmoppet]

should I purchase a hard sided case for traveling?

I wouldn't bother. My stuff travels fine without. I have heard of other people who have had to hammer out their guards though...
Its never happened to me anyway.

if you have one of those uhlmann roll bags you should be fine. i know people that travel with just that.

Yup yup yup yup. *nods vigourously*

[Ladeda120]

Yeah I have one of those soft roller cases and it works fine.

[mrbiggs]

Originally Posted by mlr2fence

Expect also to have TSA search the bags.

Who's TSA, and why do they search fencing bags?

[Maeve_Mari]

Originally Posted by mrbiggs

Who's TSA, and why do they search fencing bags?

Transportation Safety Administration
http://www.tsa.gov/public/index.jsp

TSA hires all the guards and screeners at the airports now a days.

[Larrison]

TSA = Transportation Security Adminstration. They're the uniformed folks at the airports who man the metal detectors and hand luggage x-ray machines, and scan the luggage behind the scenes. They get a lot of grief from people who take out their frustrations on them about late flights, etc. so be polite to them.

Fencing bags will show up as luggage with big pieces of potentially sharp edged metal in them -- if you carry them on, you *will* get the bags opened and searched. You may lose them -- "weapons" confiscated at the screening stations, are not returned. As it is, I wouldn't try to carry one one -- since they are oversized and don't easily fit in an overhead bin, unless you're willing to get a half dozen rollaboard briefcases smashed in on top of it. If you check them, they may or may not be searched -- depends upon if they register on the explosives detector. (When was the last time you washed your jacket, eh?)

The wildest story I heard was of a college fencer who was travelling to a tournament, and was trying to carry her bags onto a flight. When the security folks pulled her bag out of the x-ray and dumped it onto a worktable to check out, she got excited and shouted "Be careful with that! If you knock the wires loose, they may not go off!" Needless to say, she had a lot of quick explaining to the guards who came running ...

[O_O #2]

Originally Posted by O_O

just tell people its golf stuff

i agree with this handsome guy

[Zilverzmurfen]

As you know the pros and cons of all sorts of bags has been discussed before. I think you should do fine with either bag you decide to get. I myself have an allstar 'Jumbo' rollbag and have had no problems flying with it.

The important things to remember (in my opinion) should be:

• Always refer to your weapons as 'Sports equipment'.
• Make sure to put ALL of your tools in the toolbox, in your fencing bag.
  (I recently made the mistake of taking a pocket kife in my hand luggage. Have travelled numerous times with it in my hand luggage but this time completely forgot I even had it with me. Security check gave me a bit of trouble... )

Good luck in the competition!

[Alain]

I fully agree with the post above, by (the wonderful) Zilverzmurfen I've done competitions all over Europe and also in Canada. I have always used a normal, but big fencing bag, such as the Allstar Jumbo-thingy (my current one is by Prieur). Some advice:

- Don't use locks! To thieves, they signal that there's stuff worth stealing inside, and anyway if the Security guys want to have a look they'll just snip off the locks (this has happened to mr).
- If you have to pack valuables in your fencing bag, that you can't take in your personal luggage, then put them at the bottom in the most inaccessible place. Bags often come with a 'top' bag anyway, so stuff at the bottom of your proper bag is hard to get at...
- Store your toolkit so that it's easy to get to, as this is normally what Security want to have a look at.
- Use covers for your weapon blades, as discussed in another thread: http://www.fencing101.com/vb/showthread.php?t=14869. These will help to pretect your precious weapon points.
- If anyone from Check-in/Security asks you anything about your luggage, be nice to them!
- Finally, you might want to make a list of the stuff in your bag, and keep in on you. When your flight arrives and you get your luggage back; check to make sure that you still have everything and that nothing's broken.

Oh, and one last thing... GOOD LUCK!!!!!!!!!!!!

[KShan5[PrFC]]

Check out the latest issue of American Fencing and there is an article about traveling with gear in there. Although the piece does focus a bit more on the armourery side of things, its still a good piece to check out.

[sabreur]

I flew back from the States last week with a bit of fencing kit--TSA searched the bag that had body wires and mask cables in it--they didn't search the back with my mask and lame... (I'm having my sabres mailed back to me).

MR