Shipping a board with Amtrak: two experiences

[rigitrite]

So, shipping a board with Amtrak is by far the cheapest way to send it across the country: $80-$90. Here are two experiences.
#1. I bought a board from a fellow freestyler in Hood River, and had it shipped to KC via Amtrak. Neither of us had ever shipped with Amtrak, so totally new for both of us. He dropped it off in Portland, and the process seemed to go smoothly. It arrived in KC three days later, but Amtrak had misplaced the waybill. I had the Waybill number, so it was ok. He had shipped it in a boardbag, so I unpacked it, and it was perfect. Super happy with the whole deal.

#2. A month later, I sold a board to a guy in Illinois. He agreed to having shipped with Amtrak, so that's what we did. It was a bigger board and would not fit in the board bag I had, so I built a box for it, wrapped it in bubble wrap, packed in in foam and extra cardboard, took a ton of pictures of it, and sent it off. He got it three days later, said the box looked fine, but did not unpack it at the station. When he got home, he took it out of the box to find that somehow, Amtrak had DESTROYED it! The entire nose was completely crushed and broken clear through to the core. It looked like they stuck it under a train wheel and drove over it. He sent me the pictures, and I filed a claim. 7 weeks later, they sent me a cursory letter denying the claim, due to the clause on the back of the waybill that states that you need to claim any damage at the time of receipt.

So, the lesson is, that no matter HOW you ship something, you should inspect for damage when you can, ESPECIALLY if you ship with Amtrak. BTW, I know a fellow car-guy who had a BBS LM wheel shattered by UPS, who had clearly ran it through with a forklift. Even the "good" shipping companies wreck stuff.

[U2U2U2]

Thanks for posting.
This could occur with any type of shipping.

[kevinkan]

i remember a long time ago a boom box showed up with tire marks going diagonally across it and all the aluminum booms inside were bent lol

I'm guessing it's easier for AMTRAK personnel to move a board in a bag b/c of the handle. Also, maybe there's an assumption of fragility that accompanies a surfboard-shaped bag, so it doesn't get stuck on the bottom of a pile.

[flaherty]

I've shipped boards and sails 3 times between Boston and Portland Oregon by Amtrack when I traveled to the Gorge,. The people I've dealt with at both ends were extremely nice and accommodating , especially in Portland. However on my last trip my Open Ocean arrived with a puncture in the bottom of the board , that I didn't look at till I got home. So, I would ship this way again. Yes , I will say on the problem time, the trains were having an issue getting across the country and the board went all over the US before getting to Boston