Hi to all fellow riders both road and MTB

Moving to Orbe area in August.

Unsure about what bike to bring with me. I have a Trek elite 9.8 carbon fiber XC hardtail MTB this is my baby but im very nervous about flying it across being carbon fibrer and also wouldnt want to throw this bike down steep mountains. Any recommendations on bike boxes or traveling with bikes by air?

Are there any XC trails (nothing too insanely downhill) in and around switzerland? Or is more like North Vancouver style downhill beasts of trails. (maybe time for a full suspension toy)

Also aware that Switzerland has amazing road cycling. I might get laughed at for this suggestion but if I stick a good set of road tires and rims on my trek and lock out the front forks. will this be a good substitute for a road bike?

If not where is the best place to buy a decent road bike? I like trek alot is it cheeper to buy a bike in france?

Sorry for all the questions

Dusty

Welcome (soon) to the Alps. Lots that could be commented on, but I'll stick to the flying part for now. I've flown carbon fiber road frames across the Atlantic, within the States, over to Hawaii, and within Europe and I've never had a problem with frame damage. I use a 12-year old Trico Sports Iron Case. There are probably better bike boxes on the market now, but this one has served me well for a long time for flying with both road and mountain bikes. If it's just a one-time use though, you could always pack it (carefully) in a standard cardboard bike box.

check out metabief (french jura). it has lift assisted biking for DH but there are plenty of mellow uphill trails too. you are also close to Chaumont (Neuchatel) which has a funiculaire and nice trail riding. super crazy North Shore trails but also easier trails. and there's another funiculaire in Biel/Bienne that is supposed to be similar to Chaumont.

no problem. i brought a carbon bike in a cardboard box. go to a bike shop and see if you can get an old shipping box from them. take off your pedals, loosen your stem and turn your handlebars sideways (or take them off), deflate your tires, and that's about it. use some pipe insulation on the frame. otherwise, you can buy a bike box or padded bag to transport it. i have a performance bike box which is a hardshell plastic case. its worth it if you plan on flying with your bike more than a few times.

yes. tons. lots of mellow XC riding and plenty of DH riding, including north shore trails. if you are a serious biker get a full suspension too. its waaaay more fun than XC.

no problem unless you plan on some really long distance rides.

i haven't found france to be any cheaper, in fact, i think it's now more expensive than switz. if you are coming from the US, buy something there and bring it over. otherwise, seek out a good local bike shop here and give them your business. nothing is cheap here. except my full suspension DH bike that i'm trying to sell.

Thanks for both your responses very useful.

Im gonna hit the huge bike warehouse in town tomorrow they should have plenty of shipping boxes.

Nice plug at the end there Ripz I will check it out.

Dusty

A DH rig will definitely give you more freedom to fully explore the trails, but I expect that you could do so pretty well on a XC machine, too. I wouldn't be too concerned about shipping the bike. Investing in a proper box might be a good idea if you plan to use several times, but you do have to consider whether you have the storage space for a hard box. I've frequently used cardoard boxes from my LBS and not had a problem, although I haven't shipped my carbon fiber baby yet.

As for slick tires and locked-out suspension making it a road-worthy machine, then certainly give that a go. However, the gearing and riding position may still be way off what you would get by having a true road machine. If you're buying brand-name bikes like Trek then buying in France won't save much money, and could cost more because they charge more sales tax. There are several online retailers in Europe where you can pick up a decent road bike for a good price, although these often don't have a wel-known brand and you have to be your own local bike shop with setting it up, fitting, tuning, etc. By September, they should start selling off last year's models at pretty good prices (10 to 25% off), particularly for brands who are making major changes to their line-ups for 2010. If I was you, I'd wait until I get here and search for something like that.

There is currently a pro' road cyclist who is actually from Orbe - Danilo Wyss. I believe he is currently on the BMC Racing Team, who do most of the big races in the US.

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