So...... how did it go shipping the bike to Europe?
The Bike on the pallet, safe in Germany. It was ready when I got there.
A lot of people were surprised when I said I was flying my bike to Europe. I guess the thought of flying a gasoline powered vehicle, possibly on a flight with passengers, is scary to some. I won't get into that, but here is how things went.
Air Canada Cargo has a great deal for motorcycle shipping in the summer. For Montreal to Frankfurt the rate is $1,100 Canadian, or $837.37 US. This is a flat rate, assuming you don't exceed some maximum that they have. There are maximum sizes, and weights, but no ordinary bike will exceed these. Prior to shipment, you need to have your bike inspected by a DGC (Dangerous Goods Consultant).
For Montreal, and my DGC, I had to first go to Air Canada and have the bike weighed with whatever I was taking. I have heard stories that they limit how much you can take on the bike. The website says "Saddle bags may be filled with equipment, parts, etc. An itemized list of the content of the saddle bags must be provided at time of tender. Personal effects such as a clothing, toiletries and luggage cannot accompany the motorbike.". I have heard of riders who were not allowed to pack much on their bikes. I don't know what their stories are, but the guy at Air Canada Cargo told me that since it was a flat rate, I could load it with whatever I want, as long as I had no dangerous goods in there. It might be because I had hard metal panniers, maybe soft saddle bags have different rules, but the cargo guy said I could strap things to the outside if I want. I had previously talked to a couple of different Air Canada people on the phone and got somewhat different instructions each time. The only consistent direction was if anything else was considered dangerous goods, I had to have extra paperwork for it, such as a spare gas can attached to the bike. This would not include fuel cells permanently mounted to the frame, those are fine. I had a large bag ready to take back anything that they would not let me pack, but it was unnecessary. This is good, because I seem to have lost the ability to pack light, and really did not want to have to lug a huge bag around the airport.
Anyway, I got the bike weighed, 290 KG or 640#. Then went to the DGC, who wrote up the paperwork. There was not much of an inspection. As long as I had less than 1/4 tank and no aerosol cans or compressed gas etc I was fine. Then back to Air Canada for final weighing and inspection. My bike was 5 KG lighter, probably from using gas and I had originally weighed it with my GPS and a few other things on it. I was able to stuff my sleeping bag in one of the bags so all was even.
The bike was then inspected for contraband etc. I loaded my metal trunk and other bags on a pallet and they were x-rayed. If my side bags came off easier, I could have just put those on the pallet. Then a final bit of paperwork and I was done. I left a set of keys in the bike, and did not have to disconnect the battery or anything. Even with getting lost due to construction and the extra trip for weighing, and a fair amount of talking with the cargo guys, it took less than 2 hours. That is from the hotel near the airport, and back. This could easily be done the morning of your trip if you are leaving in the evening. They scheduled my bike for an earlier flight so it would be ready and waiting for me when I got to Germany.
The Air Canada people, and the airport security people, and everyone else I interacted with were awesome. Very helpful and friendly. Even the US Customs people were nice. I interacted with them because I needed to change my address on my Nexus Card, a Canadian version of our Global Entry card. The cargo guys wondered why no US airline is doing this. I suspect that if this was done in the US, it would not be as easy and friendly. I base this simply on my own prejudices, which are based on past experiences dealing with US officials.
There was a guy from Maryland there on a Harley, who was going to Brussels, who got his bike inspected and all that same morning and was flying out that night. There was some discussion about his bike having an alarm that was automatically set if the keyfob got too far away from the bike. The rules state that your alarm must be fully deactivated. Not sure how you do that without disconnecting the battery, but they did not do that.
I used a company called DGC (Dangerous Goods Consultants) as my DGC 8^) - www.dgcmtl.com - They were fine, although a bit tough to get a hold of the first time, as the main number goes to the Toronto office and I had to leave a message. It all worked well enough though.
The Harley guy used "Air Ocean Logistics (AOL)" as his DGC (514) 636-8393 - airoceanlogistiks.com - This company goes to the airport to inspect your bike and do the paperwork. I don't know why my guy did not do that. Anyway, AOL is a family owned company, and when I suggested to the Harley guy we share a cab, since I had to go to the airport to deal with my Nexus Card, the AOL person offered to take BOTH of us to the airport. The AOL person was, if I remember right, the granddaughter of the guy who started the company. She loves her job and especially loves dealing with the bike shipping. With the construction around the airport, she ended up spending a ton of time circling the airport to drop me off. She would not accept a tip. If I were to do this again, AOL would be my first stop, not that there is anything wrong with DGC.
FWIW, if you are planning on doing this, I would recommend first calling Air Canada Cargo to ensure they are still running the deal, then book the flight for you. I think the next step is to get a reference number from Air Canada Cargo. As of this writing, this cannot be done until 30 days prior, and must be done before 14 days prior to leaving. As soon as you have a number from them, call your DGC and have them tell you what to do. There is no place on the Air Canada web site that clearly specifies each of the steps that you need to do, and in what order. It is not that hard, but it could be made less intimidating.
GETTING MY BIKE IN GERMANY
I am loving Air Canada. I chose Frankfurt partly because it is a hub that ships a LOT of motorcycles and knows what it is doing. Frankfurt is a large airport. It took some time to get to the baggage claim area simply because of the long walk. Customs was easy. From the time I picked up my bag, to the time I retrieved my bike and rode it out of the cargo building was about 1 hour. That included getting a bit lost. Here was the procedure, as it worked for me:
From the baggage claims area, go out to bus stop 10 (or 11, or 12, they are near each other, and they do not seem to be particular which of them they stop at). Get on the "West" bus to TOR 26 - The bus might say TOR 25, but ask the driver, and be sure he drops you in the right place and points out where to go.
When you get there, you will be through a gate. If you were dropping your bike off in Frankfurt, you would have to sign in at the gate when entering. Anyway, the bus driver will point you to Air Canada Cargo, which is on the first floor. Here you will need your paperwork from when you dropped your bike off in Canada. You will also need your proof of Green Card Insurance. Stephan at Knopf Tours can arrange to send it to your home, or can drop it off at the Air Canada Cargo office. What, I didn't mention Stephan before? knopftours.com in Heidelburgh, Germany runs tours, rents bikes and arranges shipping from various ports. They also run a bed and breakfast, arrange for mandatory Green Card Insurance, and provide numerous other services for the travelling motorcyclist. They also store bikes for $300 USD/year, where they charge the battery, and can have your bike prepped and ready to go when you get there next time.
Oh, a gentleman here at Stephan's B&B said I should mention that if you are over 65 you need a doctors note saying you are healthy enough to operate a motorcycle to get the Green Card insurance.
This is the bike he is touring the Alps with. edit: I met up with his touring buddies a week and a half later. He had clutch trouble and had to bow out of the tour.
Anyway, after you do the brief paperwork at Air Canada, you go down the block, around the corner to Customs. They are on the second floor of a corner building. Look for "Import" on the door. The stairway is weird, so if you are on what you think is a floor and there is no hallway, you are probably not to the second floor just yet.
This is the outside of the building, with no sign saying this is where customs is. If you are not sure, ask.
Hauptzollarnt (Customs) is on the second floor dummy. Sure, I knew that.
Customs will require the Green Card insurance again, the original, not a copy. They will give you a form, and you then go back to Air Canada, where you will pick up your bike. Mine was still on the pallet, as you can see in the photo above. They unstrapped it, and I helped roll it off the pallet. I quickly packed the bike, and security came and checked me out and sent me on my way. Where I proceeded to get lost. I followed the directions perfectly. My only mistake was not learning what the German word for EXIT was prior to this (Ausfahrt).
I would recommend doing this if you can. Renting a bike is great, but at this price point, the shipping will cost about as much as a week or two of bike rental (depending on the bike you get. You would have to deal with anything that goes wrong with your bike, so there are some risks, but if you are going for three or more weeks, it might make sense. BUT, Stephen does rent bikes and at a very reasonable rate, so either option is good. Shipping a bike to Germany and leaving it there for multiple trips is a great idea too. You can even store your bike in different locations. I might store my bike at Stephan's this year, and in Dublin next.
Don't let this very wordy post discourage you. I used a maximum amount of words to describe a very simple process. If riding in Europe is something you have always wanted to do, then do it. NOW. Remember, time is our only truly finite resource. If not now, then when?
Bob L
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