With all of our gear, driving just seemed fastest when we looked at our schedule (rental car #1 gas, then drop off, fly, land, rental car #2, get to the hotel...).  When you're traveling around with tons of equipment, airport-checkins become a thing of epically meticulous proportions (also known as headaches)--with lots of labeling, counting, recounting, re-recounting, and PRAYING that every shred of gear makes it in one piece…or at all.  I'd already had a heart-pounding close-call, leaving NY for Boston with a certain piece of equipment...There was really good reason not to gamble.