How to Pack a Surfboard for Travel
1.Buy or borrow a heavy-duty, appropriately sized board bag. To increase the odds of ding-free travel, buy a board bag. While some people claim you can travel safely without a board bag, it's debatable and is certainly a moot point when you receive a damaged surfboard at the other end of your flight.
2.Remove the fins from your board. If you have removable travel fins such as FCS, O'Fish'l, or Excel Fins, it makes good sense to remove them to prevent the possibility of catching on surrounding objects. A flatter object travels more soundly.
3.Remove the old wax off your board. Skipping this step will usually cause your cold water surf wax to melt all over your board bag when you land in the tropics.
4.Cut foam pipe insulation covering and duct tape it down the rails of your board. Pipe covering is available at most hardware stores.
5.Protect the ding prone areas of your board such as the nose and tail. Do this by duct taping items that you're already traveling with, such as wetsuits, towels, and clothes around the board. Bubble wrap is also a great choice as it is lightweight and cushions impacts well. Look for bubble wrap with the larger bubbles.
6.Slide the board into a sock or bubble wrap bag if you have one. This is yet another layer of protection that will go inside the full board bag.
7.Place the protected board in your board bag. Throw in some extra clothes and padding for that extra bit of protection, especially at the ends or any ding-prone parts. Don't forget the removable fins and the fin key, if applicable.
8.Write "top load" or "fragile" on the bag with a marker or acrylic paint. You're set to go and reach your vacation destination with the board in one piece. All you need to do now is to stay healthy on the plane!
2.Remove the fins from your board. If you have removable travel fins such as FCS, O'Fish'l, or Excel Fins, it makes good sense to remove them to prevent the possibility of catching on surrounding objects. A flatter object travels more soundly.
3.Remove the old wax off your board. Skipping this step will usually cause your cold water surf wax to melt all over your board bag when you land in the tropics.
4.Cut foam pipe insulation covering and duct tape it down the rails of your board. Pipe covering is available at most hardware stores.
5.Protect the ding prone areas of your board such as the nose and tail. Do this by duct taping items that you're already traveling with, such as wetsuits, towels, and clothes around the board. Bubble wrap is also a great choice as it is lightweight and cushions impacts well. Look for bubble wrap with the larger bubbles.
6.Slide the board into a sock or bubble wrap bag if you have one. This is yet another layer of protection that will go inside the full board bag.
7.Place the protected board in your board bag. Throw in some extra clothes and padding for that extra bit of protection, especially at the ends or any ding-prone parts. Don't forget the removable fins and the fin key, if applicable.
8.Write "top load" or "fragile" on the bag with a marker or acrylic paint. You're set to go and reach your vacation destination with the board in one piece. All you need to do now is to stay healthy on the plane!