i Guys,
I'm about to travel with my 2 fixed length paddles (international, NZ to Thailand) and I'm only allowed 1 23kg bag. If I take a bag with me (which will be the case) , this means I'll have to pay extra to take the paddles, so I'm thinking about strapping/tying my paddle bag to another bag so it counts as 1 volume. Has anyone done it before? Was it alright? Cheers

Might get cought out with that one. I normally put my paddles in my board bag with padding under the blade. Never had a issue with a broken paddle.

Just on the pool noodle thing, when you cut along them (to make a split) don't cut straight. Do some wiggles or mitre it a bit. Straight cut gets pushed off easier and provides less protection on the side facing the split.