Hoops on planes
My sister has left San Francisco today to return to Germany. While she was here, we made a hoop for her. Today at the airport, she checked in the hoop as her second piece of luggage. British Airways didn't mind at all. The hoop got its own address tag and baggage claim ticket.
To all the hoopers out there who think that the only way to travel with a hoop is to get a collapsible one: Think again! I'm sure British Airways isn't the online airline who will accept a hoop as luggage. I don't know what the size restrictions are though. My sister's hoop is about three feet in diameter.

[Please excuse the bad quality photo taken with my camera phone.]
























Comments
I'm laughing at the image of a hoop coming around the baggage carousel. (And that's probably the size limit: it has to fit out the baggage chute!)
Posted by: Jason | October 6, 2003 10:16 PM
I still like travelling with my collapsable: I prefer to fly with just carry-on bags only most of the time, and my collapsable makes that possible!
Posted by: Ariel | October 7, 2003 7:49 AM
When I travel with a bunch of hoops I tape them all together and they count them as one piece of luggage. It has never been a problem except for funny looks. However, there is nothing better than having a collapsible in your hand as you are waiting for the plane, inevitably someone asks me what it is and I get to give a little hooping demonstration. Once it was the gate attendant that asked me and after my demonstration she upgraded my ticket to first class...!
Its amazing what a little hip shake will get you in the airline industry.
Or there is also the story of the fight attendant that dared me to hoop in the aisle of the plane on the way to burning man this year...but that's another story.
Posted by: Stefan Pildes | October 7, 2003 9:47 AM
Stefan, that sounds like a story that should be told on hooping.org! :-)
Posted by: Vera | October 7, 2003 10:00 AM
The hoop made it safely to Germany! and is leaning against the wall next to my computer in his new home now. In fact he didn´t go around the normal baggage carousel but came out of a similar though bigger thing for oversized luggage (together with kind of a baby walker. anyway it was fun watching!
Posted by: Bianca | October 7, 2003 1:23 PM
I have also had no problem checking a hoop as luggage, Delta took really good care of it, actually, and hand delivered it to me both times rather than put it on the baggage carousel. Took a collapsable one too, and, like yall said, it alone gets funny looks. Here's to world travelling with hoops!
Posted by: Vivian | October 7, 2003 2:48 PM
When I moved from San Francisco to New Orleans the people at United let take my hoop from High Sierra on as carry on- they even hung it on the suit hangers in first class!
Posted by: Chloe | October 16, 2003 8:56 PM