Best way to get bike from sth island to nth

[Funkyfly]

Brought a bike from some town 1 1/2 hours south of Christchurch, i was thinking of flying down and riding it home, but was wondering what shipping it up north would cost, anyone done this before?

Idea would be to get a bike shop to pack it as i have heard horror stories of transport companys making a mess of friends bikes when they attempted to pack and ship them.

Any info would be appreciated.

FunkyFLy

[Kickaha]

Well if you decide to fly down,I can probably give you a ride down or get it to Christchurch which I assume is where you will fly to,more fun riding it back anyway.

[Ghost Lemur]

I'd say if you can afford it go for the road trip.
As far as shipping goes getting the guy or a local bike shop to package it and then just getting the shipping company to move it is probably best . Haven't had any experience of doing this myself with motorbikes.

Oh and if possible see what the shipping companies insurance policy is. It may have stupid clauses about no coverage if it wasn't packed by the company or something.

[Mongoose]

Brought a bike from some town 1 1/2 hours south of Christchurch, i was thinking of flying down and riding it home, but was wondering what shipping it up north would cost, anyone done this before?

Idea would be to get a bike shop to pack it as i have heard horror stories of transport companys making a mess of friends bikes when they attempted to pack and ship them.

Any info would be appreciated.

FunkyFLy

If you can afford it, what better way of getting to know a new bike than the ride home. If you do, check out and see how long ahead you need to book and get cheap sailings, can save upto 50% if you dont mind unsocial saling times.

[matthewt]

OK, I priced this out 6 months ago and if you can get a cheap flight then just fly to chch and ride it back.

I wanted to get my bike to ChCh for the xmas break. I had to drive down with the kids so I priced up 3 options

1) bike trailer on the car
2) shipping the bike there and back
3) ride to chch, fly home. then fly to chch later on and ride the bike back to wgtn.

All up with flights and ferry bookings I got there and back for around $200 which isn't bad. You'd be cheaper coz your only looking at one fllight and sailing.

[k14]

Yeah i reckon you should fly down and ride up.

The flight from NP shouldn't cost more than $150-180 depending which day you fly down and the ferry back is only $50 or so for you and the bike, so adding on petrol, it shouldn't cost you more than $300.

It is a pretty good ride from chch to picton, but wgtn to np is boring as, but worth it for the southern leg.

What bike you buy?

[bgd]

If it's under 250cc then I'd ship it :D

[curious george]

Look up a furnature carrier. I used 'Efficient Carriers' who are north island only though. It was $60 from Wellington to Auckland. The train was very expensive, and so was getting the local bike shop to do it.
Riding sounds fun

[FROSTY]

fugg it dude--stuff the cost -ya gotta look at ya new jem so best ya ride it back up.

[Ms Piggy]

I know nothing about the costs involved but I'd ride it back for sure. There are some great roads in both Islands & it's a good way to build up that loving, trusting, mutually satisfying relationship with your bike :2thumbsup

[RiderInBlack]

Riding it back is the best, but I have two main concerns for you Funky:


Under what bike you ride you've got "Not sure, havent ridden many", which suggest that you may not have much bike experence.
This time of year the road condition are less than perfect. Have you ridden in the rain, ice, etc?
These two in conbination with riding a bike you are unfamiliar with can end up making you wish that it was transported up to you. If it was Summer I'd say ride it. The experence would be good for you.

[Mongoose]

Riding it back is the best, but I have two main concerns for you Funky:


Under what bike you ride you've got "Not sure, havent ridden many", which suggest that you may not have much bike experence.
This time of year the road condition are less than perfect. Have you ridden in the rain, ice, etc?
These two in conbination with riding a bike you are unfamiliar with can end up making you wish that it was transported up to you. If it was Summer I'd say ride it. The experence would be good for you.


Hmmmmm, well thought out reply, never thought about it being winter as you do when you get used to it. Also never thought about bike size, that could make the difference between a pleasant ride and a frustrating ride. Good luck either way.

[Racey Rider]

Riding it back is the best, but I have two main concerns for you Funky:


Under what bike you ride you've got "Not sure, havent ridden many", which suggest that you may not have much bike experence.
This time of year the road condition are less than perfect. Have you ridden in the rain, ice, etc?[/color]
These two in conbination with riding a bike you are unfamiliar with can end up making you wish that it was transported up to you. If it was Summer I'd say ride it. The experence would be good for you.

If this was a concern to you Funk,, Fly me down there (All expences paid), and I'll ride it back for you. :spudwave: I've had lot's of experence (just don't read the last post I made before this one :o ,) and can delivery too your door!

[kerryg]

Brought a bike from some town 1 1/2 hours south of Christchurch, i was thinking of flying down and riding it home, but was wondering what shipping it up north would cost, anyone done this before?

Idea would be to get a bike shop to pack it as i have heard horror stories of transport companys making a mess of friends bikes when they attempted to pack and ship them.

Any info would be appreciated.

FunkyFLy


Sold a bike to a guy in Invercargill who got me to drop it to Mana Transport in East Tamaki (Auckland). They seemed to know what they were about and I believe they move a few bikes North/South and v.v. Might be worth a phone call if they have a local office in CHCH.

[vifferman]

Hmmmmm, well thought out reply, never thought about it being winter as you do when you get used to it. Also never thought about bike size, that could make the difference between a pleasant ride and a frustrating ride. Good luck either way.
You might be alright with the weather, but it's a bit unpredictable at the moment.
There's another consideration: It's going to be a bike that's new to you, and if it develops any mechanical problems, are you going to know what to do about them? Can you be totally sure about the reliability of a bike you've never laid eyes on, let alone ridden? Bit of a gamble.

[Funkyfly]

Thanks for the replies guys.

Its an 03 GSXR with 7500kms so i dont envision any mechanical problems.

I had a 02 GSXR before so actually riding the bike wont be a problem.

The main reason im looking at transporting it is due to the weather (read : "its flippin cold")

Anyway thanks for the info and leads.

Much appreciated.

FunkyFLy

[RiderInBlack]

Thanks for the replies guys.

Its an 03 GSXR with 7500kms so i dont envision any mechanical problems.

I had a 02 GSXR before so actually riding the bike wont be a problem.

The main reason im looking at transporting it is due to the weather (read : "its flippin cold")

Anyway thanks for the info and leads.

Much appreciated.

FunkyFLySorry FFly, don't know your previous exp. Have riden a 1991 GSXR250 in heavy rain and done the Whangarei to Haast and return on it (the heavy rain was mainly between Greymouth and Frans J. Glasier), so you should be fine with any bigger GSXR seeing you have riden them before. In that case I'd say ride it:niceone:

[Big Dog]

If you decide to ride it, please don't be one of those people you hear about who tun up at the II without any tie downs. Especially if it is rough you will need it well secured, assuming you like the current paint scheme.


There is a page on how to do this right in "The Bikers Bible".

[Funkyfly]

Heh, my mate gave me the word on tie downs on the ferry, however we didnt have room on our holiday and the 4 of us decided to risk it but minimize the risk by being first on the ferry by checking in early, this worked a treat and we all had no problem using the supplied rope "tie downs". They are awfully bulky items and as i travelas light as possible they are last on my list.

If there are to many bikes and i miss out i will "park" the bike between two big harleys with nice big soft saddle bags, that should do the trick! :niceone: