tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21736635.post116612510228503907..comments2023-10-06T02:45:43.200-07:00Comments on Wheel Revolution: Bike Adventure to Seattlewestwindhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03426303468231092890noreply@blogger.comBlogger4125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21736635.post-1166730203023582792006-12-21T11:43:00.000-08:002006-12-21T11:43:00.000-08:00Hey Shawn, thanks for the tips! It is good to hav...Hey Shawn, thanks for the tips! It is good to have a variety of perspectives.<BR/>We were on the Cascades, and were joining a group who had already reserved the tickets, so that did complicate things, but even with a lot of advance planning and calls to Amtrak, there were still a lot of inconsistancies. It does seem as though everything depends on the individual employees you encounter. I had assumed that I would need to box the bikes both ways, but the folks at the Seattle station were very kind, flexible and willing to work with me. We showed up at the Seattle Station for our return trip fully expecting to have to plunk down $20 for boxes that would not survive thr trip, and were pleasently surprised not only at their willingness to hang the bike with no advance reservation, but to battle their computer system to create bike tickets at the last minute, seperate from our group ticket. They really went way out of their way for us.<BR/>For our next trip north, we are thinking of taking the Shared Routes Biodiesel bus!westwindhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03426303468231092890noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21736635.post-1166724793674466572006-12-21T10:13:00.000-08:002006-12-21T10:13:00.000-08:00Hey there! I've taken Amtrak with bike many a tim...Hey there! I've taken Amtrak with bike many a time in the last few years and I can attest to your frustration with their inconsistent bicycle policy.<BR/><BR/>A couple things to note:<BR/>1) If you are taking the Cascades service (short distance services between Eugene-Portland-Seattle-Vancouver BC) and are bringing your bike, always reserve the bike space when you purchase your ticket! Like you I learned the hard way about the limited space in their racks. However, the Portland station allowed me to put the bike in the baggage hold sans box, so it is all depending on who is working.<BR/><BR/>2) I'd disagree with your comments about the Amtrak bike box. The one you got in Seattle seems a bit tattered, but the ones I have had to get have looked better than that. (In fact they often won't let you use a perfectly good used Amtrak box because they're worried about it holding up) Yes, the Amtrak box is $10, but it's a big one and is designed so all you have to do for a standard sized bike is a)turn handlebars and b)remove pedals. Other smaller bike boxes require you to remove the front wheel (or both) and take off other things. There's two reasons this can be a problem: a)you have to put it all back together and readjust everything b)the forks and/or front chainring can eventually poke through the bottom of the box, and sometimes the baggage handlers drag those boxes along hard concrete surfaces, not good.<BR/><BR/>It's not impossible to travel with a bike on Amtrak, but it does require a bit of research, which is definitely a deterrent for wider use. Here's their "offical" webpage for bikes-on-trains info:<BR/>http://www.amtrak.com/servlet/ContentServer?pagename=Amtrak/am2Copy/Title_Image_Copy_Page&c=am2Copy&cid=1080080554487&ssid=43adventure!https://www.blogger.com/profile/11840448827760637569noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21736635.post-1166203586141336962006-12-15T09:26:00.000-08:002006-12-15T09:26:00.000-08:00Thanks. There were bumps along the way, a few gru...Thanks. There were bumps along the way, a few grumpy moments, and we would have had more fun had we not been jumping through all the hoops.<BR/>The Boy IS an amazing kid, that said I did what I could to shield him from the uncertainties, and to keep us both focused on the notion that it was an adventure. It was definitely a learning experience, and an opportunity to learn to roll with the punches.<BR/>We are thinking of taking another run at it in the Spring, with a custom box to carry the Xtracyclewestwindhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03426303468231092890noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21736635.post-1166164717547112682006-12-14T22:38:00.000-08:002006-12-14T22:38:00.000-08:00Thanks for the report. Kudos to your The Boy for h...Thanks for the report. Kudos to your The Boy for hanging on through all the uncertainty and to you for completing the trip.<BR/><BR/>A lot of kids couldn't handle that, and a lot of parents wouldn't attempt it. I'm learning it's experiences like this that make life real.mytzpykhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02026711923523985711noreply@blogger.com