Sport Tubes...Yea or Nea

[Living Proof]

For those not familiar with Sport Tubes, it is a hard-shell plastic case to carry skis on flights. It splits into two halves which slide together, the skis put into it, and then a pin secures the two pieces back together. It does have rollers,so it is fairly easy to drag through the airport.

The genesis of this thread is a conversation I had with @Ron about buying his 184 cm "The Ski". My problem with a ski more than 180, is that it does not fit into my Sport Tube system for carrying skis on airline flights. I've used the Sport Tube for 5 years now, and, find it's performance good for carrying up to 2 pair of skis, plus still room for a fair amount of soft goods. Ron, on the other hand, is not a fan at all, and, his Tube is just taking up space in his basement. (Hint for those of you who may be looking). Ron's major issue is that a Transportation Safety Inspection did not reseal the Tube properly and he had a mess on his hands. A common friend of Ron and I also ditched the Sport Tube for the same reason. I know the TSA has opened mine, but, to-date, no problems. The method of reseal is not complex, not fool-proof either, but, if not done correctly, bad things will happen.

I'd be interested in hearing reviews of others with Sport Tube experience. BTW, I bought mine from Philpug when he moved from Philly. If I had to do on a new basis, I would get a soft ski bag just to be able to carry a longer ski.

 

[Monique]

I don't generally fly to ski, but I did so a couple of years ago and bought two Sport Tubes. We used a TSA approved lock. We'd heard about difficulties, but we figured SLC of all places should be able to figure it out. Anyway, it worked fine, except - we checked both boot bags and sport tubes. We got the boot bags no problem, but the skis were MIA. After some investigation, we found that on the tiny plane, they hadn't had room for the skis, which were coming in the next flight. Apparently they delivered the skis to my aunt's house in the middle of the night - and somehow we didn't hear the doorbell, but she did. Oops. Anyway, the tubes being bulky could mean that they need to make it onto a later flight or larger plane.

I'm not sure, but I suspect that if our boot bags hadn't been flagged because my husband had some sort of priority airline status, we would have gotten the boot bags later, too.

 

[Ron]

Paging @Gary Yeah Mike, not only Have I had issues with TSA but the closed interlocking hard shell makes packing it challenging and inefficient. A soft, padded fully opening case is much easier to pack and allows you to pack items in the case around your skis. Then you just zip up the case.

 

[Monique]

A soft, padded fully opening case is much easier to pack and allows you to pack items in the case around your skis.

Of course, the airlines will tell you this is totally against the rules because ski bags are for skis only ... and I'm sure everyone complies 100% ...

 

[Ron]

I've never had a problem with any ski bag as long as it's under 50 pounds and within length.

 

[RNZ]

Of course, the airlines will tell you this is totally against the rules because ski bags are for skis only ... and I'm sure everyone complies 100% ...

I've never had a problem with any ski bag as long as it's under 50 pounds and within length.

Same. We travel regularly with soft padded bags and never had a problem, including on air Canada and united. They only seem to care that it is under 50 pounds. Occasionally we have had to sign a waiver, but there is no consistent approach to this. Never had any questions about length even though one bag is 195cm long.

 

[Ron]

Same. We travel regularly with soft padded bags and never had a problem, including on air Canada and united. They only seem to care that it is under 50 pounds. Occasionally we have had to sign a waiver, but there is no consistent approach to this. Never had any questions about length even though one bag is 195cm long.

Totally on the spot. It's inconsistent but never a real issue. I got nailed once in chile for an Over sized" ski bag but that was total bs. They just wanted money.

 

[Jilly]

Well our lovely national carrier here in Canada, Air Canada, makes you sign a waiver if you use a soft case/bag for skis (and golf clubs!)! So I bought a Sportube for a trip to Denver 6 years ago. Fine going out, coming back someone decided to open it, when they closed it back up they nicked the base of the skis at the tip. Not serious damage, but...Denver couldn't do better? When I was going to the check in a stewardess asked me what was in the case? Ah it might be May, but it's Denver...skis!! I've used it 3X since with no problems....again back to Denver and 2X to Vancouver.

I did hear a story about some paddlers who were using a double one to take dragon boat paddles to Malaysia. The officials couldn't figure out how to put it back together. We're talking $200 carbon fiber paddles....The instructions are on the case!

 

[RNZ]

Totally on the spot. It's inconsistent but never a real issue. I got nailed once in chile for an Over sized" ski bag but that was total bs. They just wanted money.

Absolutely - one of the most useful things you can do when travelling is to be really familiar with what you are allowed because they will spout bs - like the Air Canada guy who said to us before we even got to the counter said "I spy an extra bag that will be an extra $100" to which I replied "I spy airline status and no fees" but I'm pretty sure he would have charged us if we didn't say anything. Actually Air Canada is pretty atrocious when it comes to knowing what traveller entitlements are.

 

[Ron]

Transpack makes a great soft sided ski bag. I use this one and have been extremely happy with it. ( @Tricia we need some tags here please ).

http://www.transpack.squarespace.com/rollingconvertibleski-2/

 

[cantunamunch]

I'm currently using Fischer's race bag - fits 192s; fits 2 pairs of Volants with Neox on them and still comes in under 50 lbs.

 

[Tricia]

Transpack makes a great soft sided ski bag. I use this one and have been extremely happy with it. ( @Tricia we need some tags here please ).

http://www.transpack.squarespace.com/rollingconvertibleski-2/

I agree about Transpack.
I think @SBrown has a ski bag from them that she's going to review this season.

 

[Brad J]

I pack light when I go out west I carry my boots, ski jacket, ski pants , glove and socks on carry on bag, Sport tube filled with cloths, skis and poles. In boston they opened it and it was kind of a mess, at SLC it was not opened , I think they have a machine that scans the ski bags. overall I think its a good investment, thinking about a TSA lock

 

[Living Proof]

I never knew of the TSA approved locks, it's a great idea and beats the hell out of the pin supplied by Transpack. For sure, I'll have one before flying to Denver for the Aspen Gathering.

 

[Ron]

I never knew of the TSA approved locks, it's a great idea and beats the hell out of the pin supplied by Transpack. For sure, I'll have one before flying to Denver for the Aspen Gathering.

really? Buy cheap ones! TSA is not good about putting them back on or breaking them. I like the ones with the cable for the Sporttube.

 

[Philpug]

I personally like a semi soft rolling back like a Transpack, Dakine or what a dozen other manufacturers offer. I think they are less rigid in their design not so much in construction aspect but how they can be packed. I don't like having to cram everything into one end. The weight is also key, most tubes weight close to 20b where a back will weight 10-12lb. With airlines having me stick to 50b limits, that is almost 10 less pounds of stuff I can bring. When I going on a 7-10 trip...that is a lot.

 

[Ron]

Transpack ski vault. The only thing this bag lacks is a full open clamshell design but it opens enough that you can load up ski's and items easy enough. It's wide horizontally placed handle allows pulling from either side and the wheels roll very smoothly making this bag better than others.

 

[Stephen]

I have a sports tube with the TSA lock. It has been opened a number of times by TSA but no issues. They seem to get it closed back the way it was. It is rigid, but im happy about that. It came back with a nice dent in the corner after the first trip(not sure how they even accomplished that) and I couldn't help but think what would have taken the brunt of that force if I had a soft side bag. I've learned how to pack it fairly easily but it did take getting the hang of the "tricks" to it.
Overall I'm happy with it but I definitely see the perks of a semi soft bag as well. Mostly ease of packing and weight. I cram my sport tube full and never come in under 60lbs. I do think I could get it under 50lbs if I packed it differently but I get by with it because of my airline status.

 

[drewski]

I have a Dakine DBL soft rollerbag, will actually hold 3 pair of skis with bindings on.concerning the TSA, they can't even figure out how to open their TSA locks. last trip to Utah they twisted the lock on my roller duffle and broke my zipper pulls.

 

[Gandalf]

Living Proof:
I have been using a double Sport Tube for several years now, and decided to switch to a Transpack double wheeled bag this year (with zipper extension) this year. I've often had the Sport tube opened by TSA, but never had any real bad experiences (I put minimal clothes in it). The two big factors pushing the change for me were weight and overall size when loading the back of the car. The advantage of the Sport Tube is the hard shell, the disadvantage is that the hard shell takes up more space than a soft bundle with straps around it. I could never conveniently fit my skis behind the seats of my RAV4 in the Sport Tube, I can with the Transpack. I think the overall Transpack is about 10 pounds lighter. I like the construction of the Transpack and my skis are packed for next weeks trip west, but it hasn't been through baggage handling yet. I'm sure it will be easier for TSA since you unzip the top to see what is inside. Sliding a Sport Tube apart and getting it back together (especially with the weight of two sets of skis) is a challenge. And I think the double attracts more TSA attention.

FWIW, you can fit two pair of skis in a single Sport Tube if you take the bindings off and put them in boot bag or suitcase. Lynn has been doing that for several years. We usually take two pair of skis, but only one pair of bindings. Single sport tube with two pair of skis and no bindings is an easily handled package.
NOTE: Obviously, we have system bindings that mount on a rail and slide off easily.