Velovot@aol.com, Oct 1998:
The beauty of Brompton is that you can take it anywhere! The fold is so simple
and quick that one need not hesitate taking along even if popping into the
corner store for milk and eggs.
I carry my Brompton with me while shopping. In the grocers, I put the bike in
a cart and wheel it about. I find that a touch of arrogance works wonders. If
one assumes there is no problem taking one's folding bike into any
establishment, there usually isn't a problem.
However, I've found that it's VERY important to fold the bike completely
before entering a store or restaurant. If someone's brain registers "bicycle"
as you walk in the door, that's when trouble starts. But, a folded Brompton
doesn't fall into any established category, so people unconsciously look to
the carryer to pick up on guilt or innocence--good old human nature.
Okay, I won't pursue any sociological theories on how people form judgements
and the innate desire to label things as "safe" or "dangerous." But, I'd sure
urge you to stretch the envelope of social acceptance for you and your
wonderful Brompton. Act like you and your Brompton partner belong together
wherever you go.
David Hansen, Oct 1998:
I'm not a dedicated folder. If I'm going in a post office or a bank for a
few minutes I lock it up. This is much easier and a bit faster.
If I'm going to a supermarket (rare by bike as I usually walk) I
nearly always get a basket rather than a trolley. Shopping for one
or two can easily be done with a basket. Rather than carry the
Brompton and a basket it's easier to leave it outside.
David Henshaw - A to B magazine, Oct 98:
Bike theft is a big problem. Personally I never carry a lock and assume
that I will always be taking the bike with me wherever I go. This is not
a problem as a rule.
We've encouraged Brompton-friendly bike shops to look after bikes while
your shopping, and have achieved some success in major UK cities (see the
'recommended shops' page on our web site: http://www.a2b.care4free.net
Some shops charge a small fee, but most see it as a bonus, because you
are likely to buy something while passing through. If anyone knows of
other shops that are willing to mind bikes, please let us know - the more
taking part, the better for everyone.
Mike Hessey, Oct 1998:
My Brompton goes everywhere with me normally when I'm on a ride,
including the euphemistically named bathroom, but when I
have taken the trailer to the supermarket, the Brompton and trailer are
locked up in the car park. Visits to the Post Office were interesting,
in that I've used it to carry hundreds of mags for posting. With these
loaded on it, it was not possible to unload it, let alone fold it, on
the way into the PO, so I just pushed the bike in there fully loaded.
Having got near the counter I unloaded and folded the bike, and then
joined the queue. I feared that someone would object, but in
enlightened(?!) Dudley, England, there was no reaction at all.
Mike Hessey, Oct 1998:
[...] this is a particular virtue
of the Brompton - few IF ANY other folders would allow you to regard
folding and taking it with you as the norm. I own several other folders,
and good as they may be for particular situations, the Brompton is still
the only folder that most people will fold whether they need to or not -
it's so easy and natural. Covering it is often not necessary to make it
acceptable (I've never needed to cover mine on a train yet), and even if
it is, it's very easy - particularly if you carry one of the light
weight, compact, A to B covers!! My Birdy has escaped uncovered on one
occasion when I had to fold on a train and hadn't got the cover with me,
but normally I would not risk it, and would cover it. I certainly
wouldn't try to take the Friday with me anywhere without covering it
while it was folded.
Rob Cope, Oct 1998:
It is not always practical to heave 25-30 lb of bike (even covered) round a
shop: would you take an equivalent size suitcase into
Debenhams/Woolworths/K-Mart? So pending more folder-friendly stores, I do
as I would with a
cumbersome: carry the toughest lock I know of & lock to something solid.
Parking meters are good as the local parking enforcer has a big incentive to
ensure they cannot be uprooted!
I suspect the Brompton is less prone to nicking *so far*as fewer thieves
realise its value plus small-wheelers are still often dismissed as shoppers:
my last ATB, worth #300, was stolen from a rack next to #900-worth of
Moulton AM. Do not rely on this though; there has been evidence of theft
'to order' & with the high demand for Bromptons...
DRMLyons@aol.com, Oct 1998:
While I mostly lurk on this list I feet compelled to respond to the above. I
spent a few days this summer cycling in NYC and found that few people had ever
seen a Brompton, and very few shops objected to it being parked, half folded
near the entrance. As very few people know how to unfold it and ride off, the
only serious threat is from people taking it away on/in a vehicle. There are
few thieves that would be able to escape on a Brompton unless they had riden
on before!
I usually take my Brompton into shops, either leaving it within sight at the
entrance, either parked or fully folded, or trolley it around the shop with
me. When in a supermarket with trolleys you can either wheel it about,
parking (just fold the rear wheel so that it stands up by itself) it
frequently while looking at the produce (store management realise you are a
Customer then!) or fold it up and put it in the trolley. This may sound alot
of hassle but saves fiddling with locks and worrying about whether your
beloved machine is there (and undamaged) when you return!
Andras Toth, Oct 1998:
The French are generally more loosely organized than the Anglosaxon, this
is perhaps the reason why I have been carrying my Brompton around
*everywhere* in Paris for the past one year. Actually, I consider it a
challenge to get into the most unlikely places with it. It has seen the
same amount of films in cinemas as I have, been to the same concerts (not
only in bars and small places but also in big concert halls), and I
frequently take it with me to fast food restaurants and university cantines
(the plate being in one hand and the bicycle in the other until I sit down
at a table), not to mention all the office buildings and appartments it has
been to. I very rarely meet negative reactions: if people make a remark, it
is usually to offer me to watch out for my bicycle, or to put it in a safe
place (especially in the small cinemas of the Quartier Latin). In bigger
places such as the National Library of France, the cloakrooms are happy to
take in the bike as any other item, to the point that I once overheard the
staff saying proudly that in this cloakroom they even store bicycles.
For my shopping, after trying out the pushing-around-in-a-caddie method,
which I found rather bothersome (not because of the bicycle but because I
consider it a waste of time and space to handle a caddie for the few things
I buy) I settled for a supermarket in my area where they have a long steel
bar inside near the entrance in a place where people leave their shopping
trolleys. I always carry a chain lock in my backpack and this is the only
time I lock the bicycle, folded, to the steel bar. This is a necessary
precaution, although I expect that the bicycle thieves are working in the
street and not inside shops, which is the hunting territory of shoplifters.
I completely agree with Tom Vogt's remark that it is important to fold the
bicycle before we enter the target place. The few times I have been refused
to enter with the bike, I had always folded it in front of the security
guys or receptionists (because sometimes it pays to show off with it, but
more often not).
I do not have a cover for the Brompton and I have never really felt the
need for it. I have frequently taken the train with it (both suburban and
long-distance) not only in France but in Scandinavia, Germany, Austria and
Hungary and have never encountered the slightest problem. Should I consider
myself as particularly lucky?
There is only one problematic situation to which I have not found a
solution yet. In some open public areas (mostly parks, such as the nicest
part of the Parc de Versailles or Seurasaari in Helsinki) bicycles are
forbidden, even if you don't sit on but push them. There are no caddies in
which I could put the Brompton, the ground is too uneven to pull it on the
castors, and obviously I don't want to carry it in my hands while enjoying
the park. So the only possible thing to do is to lock it as any other bike
at the entrance.
David Cox, Oct 1998:
I usually fold the back wheel under and use a U lock to fix it to a parking
meter or metal post/fence, I think the average thief thinks that it is
brocken. However, whereas local kids a yobs used to laugh/sneer at the
Brompton one correctly identified it the other day - "look there's a
Brompton". So perhaps the value of the bike and the shortage of supply is
getting around. Beware.
Custfold, Feb 1999:
Sadly I see many Bromptons chained up outside buildings when they can and
should be taken inside. I am amazed at the rigid thinking which persists
despite the use of the new technology - some Brompton users have yet to
realise that they can have a really easy time just jumping on any convenient
bus*, or using the deep level tubes in London. Basically if you're riding
along and spot a useful bus approaching - race it to the stop, fold up & jump
on. I do this regularly in Edinburgh, when travelling to Loanhead in about
the same time it would take to drive at less than the cost of the fuel alone
(not counting the £9-£12/day fixed costs of car ownership), and spend most of
the trip reading, making phone calls and sleeping.
I do not encumber myself with the redundant weight of a lock and chain - a
relief over the necessary evil with a cumbersome - and find that a firm but
insistent attitude that "the bike stays with me" usually works - the
exceptions being the Mitchell Library, and almost (with grudging acceptance)
the cloakroom at the National Library of Scotland. Last Night it went in the
cloakroom of the prestigious EICC for the Virgin Scottish Transport Debate as
it has on previous occasions - a 'condom' my idiosyncratic description of any
close fitting protective cover for loudspeakers, railway vehicle couplings
(sic as used in W Highland Line to prevent snow & ice packing into coupling)
and any bike cover - is useful for social acceptability of the practice.
I NEVER leave my Brompton assembled and chained up anywhere - at the worst it
has shared a chain with other bikes in its folded state, and those with
extending seatposts should also heed the warning that the top part is easily
removed - so do this yourself. A simple stop - a jubilee clip or broken off
brake lever clamp can set the extent to which the saddle is inserted back into
the post to suit the rider.
Forced separation - when folders not welcome
Dave H, Jul 1998:
I would be interested to know of instances of
anyone being ejected from an establishment for the crime of carrying a folded
Brompton. I was recently asked to leave Washington Union station by a police
officer for wheeling an unfolded Brompton and when I asked the reason I was
advised that bikes looked unsightly in the attractive station! I promptly
folded the machine before her eyes which she seemed to grudgingly accept. I
was later ejected from a Washington museum for wheeling a folded Brompton into
the entrance to make an enquiry at the reception desk!
I believe that considerate use/presence of any bicycle should be permitted in
any situation where other people are not put to undue inconvenience (eg
soiling carpets or danger (eg grazing shins) - including supermarkets, railway
stations and public houses. I tend to assume that my machine (folded or
unfolded as suitable) will be accepted and then attempt to negotiate with any
official who gives me grief, if necessary asking to speak to someone senior.
David Henshaw - A to B Magazine, Jul 1998:
Yes. Only once.
Believe it or not, I was once ejected from a pub with Andrew Ritchie (the
man himself) because we had walked in with two folded (but uncovered)
Bromptons. In my experience, pubs are usually fine, whether the bike is
covered or not, but it is well worth having a cover on hand just in case.
If I will be forgiven a quick commercial plug, that's why we produce our
60g lightweight covers. It lives somewhere inconspicuous like a pannier
pocket, but as Kenneth Williams might say, you can always whip it out at
the appropriate moment.
As a general rule, never get into a discussion of any kind with any
species of official. If in doubt, always cover the bike well in advance.
Doug Faunt, Jul 1998:
I was challenged in a yuppie healthy food store, part of a local
chain, after putting the folded bike in a cart outside and taking it
in, since it was "dirty and unhealthy". I pointed to the child
standing in the cart nearby, but was still told that I shouldn't do
this. I don't go there much, anyway.
Willi Mindak, Jul 99:
I used to fold the bike and wheel it around in a shopping cart until a fellow lady customer
objected to that in no uncertain terms on hygienic grounds.
After reflection I agree with her.
Since then I use reluctantly a lightweight cable lock for all those short stops.
Carrying the folded bike around in a crowded bank/ newsagent presents its own problems.
It is very difficult not to bump into somebody.
Now with a bag or rucksack nobody seems to notice when you brush against them,
but carry a folded bike and the tolerance level is much lower.....
David Hansen, Jul 1999:
I wonder if she would object to push chairs on the same grounds.
Push chairs are used on the pavements, complete with chewing gum,
dog mess and other items. Bikes are used on roads, which have far
less of this mess.
Richard Lighton, Jul 1999:
Does anyone ever put a push chair in a shopping cart? Small kids, yes
(and kids have feet that have been on the ground).
But a different thought. If a Brompton is folded, I don't think
any part that touches the ground (tyres/tires) is in a position to
be in contact with the shopping cart.
David Henshaw - A to B Magazine, Jul 98:
On the subject of supermarkets. I'm very nervous about one of us
upsetting a store and a total ban resulting (although quite how they
could ban covered Bromptons, I don't know).
It's so easy to fold the bike into (or under) a trolley, and you've then
got the same cumbersome vehicle as everyone else, so the problem
evaporates. The only objection we ever had was after a press-item in
Dorset showing Jane wheeling her bike in a supermarket trolley with the
blessing of the store manager. Someone wrote to the paper saying the
tyres might have had dog pooh on them, so the bike was a health hazard.
Fair enough, but the same applies to kids who are often karted around in
trolleys. And Bromptons are unlikely to start screaming or eating the
produce.
Carl Etnier, Oct 1999:
I'm wondering about tactics to use to persuade people that a folded
Brompton is not subject to the same regulations as a non-folded
bicycle. Twice since coming to Wisconsin seven weeks ago I have been
either asked to remove my Brompton from a building or barred from
bringing it into a building.
(In the latter occurrence, last night, I was going to a meeting of
the Transit and Parking Commission, so I said I was going to show the
bike when I commented on the proposal to put bike racks on busses. I
did nothing of the kind, but it was a good cover, and one I may lack
next time I try to get into that building.)
One of these buildings is owned by the state of Wisconsin (University
of Wisconsin), the other by the local city and county governments. In
the Wisconsin code, I find:
340.01(5)
"Bicycle" means every vehicle propelled by the feet acting upon
pedals and having wheels any 2 of which are not less than 14 inches
in diameter.
[The 16" wheels on the Brompton keep it from being excluded on these grounds.]
and
29.001(87)
"Vehicle" means any device for moving persons or property or pulling
implements from one place to another on land or rails or in the air.
Last night, before I got special permission to bring in the folded
Brompton, I tried to argue that the Brompton had been a bicycle when
I rode up on it, but was no longer, since I couldn't ride on it. But
I suppose this argument could be used for a non-folding bike with a
lock on, or with a wheel removed and carried alongside.
Suggestions, success stories appreciated. Specifically, 1) arguments
to use to classify the folded Brompton as a non-bicycle, and 2) whom
to turn to to get a ruling that could be used rather widely.
John R. Bolt, Oct 1999:
The best tactic is to conceal the fact that the object you are wheeling in
is a bicycle--in other words, use the cover. I once had a (quite
unpleasant) building guard insist that I had improperly left a bicycle
(nasty things, they are) in his architecturally pristine plaza, and if I
didn't remove it forthwith he was going to have it confiscated. (He had
seen me ride up on the Brompton, go behind a large planter, and emerge a
minute later with a black canvas wheeled bag). All the while the guard was
yelling at me, the offending vehicle was standing in front of him disguised
as a largish piece of luggage--in which form it was apparently perfectly
acceptable. As I and the Brompton headed for the elevators, the guard was
on the radio ostentatiously ordering a building engineer to take a pair of
chain cutters into the plaza to remove a bicycle. I hope the engineer
brought along the special 'air' cutters needed for dealing with 'air'
bicycles.
When I emerged a couple of hours later, the guard was nowhere in sight. I
like to think that he was in a back room somewhere telling his story to a
disbelieving psychiatrist.
David Hansen, Oct 1999:
The key is I think not to worry about whether one will be allowed to
take the bike in, just simply take it in like one would do any other
luggage. Be confident and one can do many things. A cover helps no end.
Remember a Brompton takes less space than a computer and is a lot
easier to handle.
Paul Brady, Oct 1999:
I brought my Bromi on the ferry to NYC the other day
from and on the way across the water I unfolded the bike. This did not go
over well with one of the boats crew, he said i had to pay full fare now
that I unfolded it in his face. I said I dont think so and fold the back
tire in. He said that is not folded, I said how do you know ??
He did not have an answer, so I sat with the back wheel of the Bromi tucked
under and crew man was really mad at me. He went off to ask the captiain,
who told him if the bike folds they cant chagre me the bike fare, and since
there is no definition of a "folded" bike, I am able to now just tuck the
wheel on the ferry and the crew member hates me for it.... To bad for
him....
alex mumzhiu, Oct 1999:
I have arthritis in my right ankle and I am wearing a brace on it. I even
have handicapped license plate for my car. I am using my folding bike as
equivalent of a wheelchair. However people in uniform (policemen, flight
attendants, conductors, guards etc) never agree to consider my bike as a
wheelchair. They usually do not allow me to do things which allowed to
ordinary wheelchair person, like riding on a pedestrian mall. May be my
bike looks too funny to be considered as a wheelchair?
Doug Faunt N6TQS +1-510-655-8604, Oct 1999:
Yes, I know people who use a wheelchair because they can't stand up
very well for long periods, but a bicycle works just as well, or in
some cases better, for getting around and doing chores. This usage is
not recognized, and should be. Handicapped plates for bicycles?
Custfold, Oct 1999:
Richard Hutchins, author of QWACRS, was touring regularly with folded bikes
and sorting out the transport operators in the 1980's (it helps to be a
retired county council solicitor) his riposte to anyone who challenges is
that the bike is a 'Mobility Aid' and given the general desire not to fall
foul of ADA (US) or DDA (UK) or whatever other administrations choose to call
the legislation most will happily accept this. My experience also dates from
c.1980 when I used the Bickerton, and my bike dismantled and wrapped up in
under 2 minutes...
Locks
Osbert Lancaster, Jul 1997:
I'd originally assumed I wouldn't need a lock as I could always put the
Brompton inside - but I now realise I'll be going to places where this is
possible. I don't want to walk around the Botanic Gardens for instance,
carrying it.
Any suggestions for a suitable lock? I assume the issues will be security,
weight, stowage (I wont always have the pannier with me), and of course
cost.
Doug Faunt, Jul 1997:
It may be less secure, but I found a good cable lock (10mm dia, 2m
long Kryptonite) to be most versatile. A Brompton is peculiar enough
in shape to make the conventional U locks usage iffy at time.
You do have to be careful to go through the frame on the bike.
The coiled cable just hangs on the handlebars, unless the bike is
fully folded. If it's fully folded, you have to carry it somewhere
else, of course.
Richard Taylor, Jul 1997:
I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but those Kryptonite cable locks
you mention can be cut with bolt cutters in about 10 seconds (really). I
um, lost my keys & a friend demonstrated! There are better locks from
Specialised & Oxford which combine a conventional steel core with a
rotating outer sheath. Jut don't go Kryptonite if you want anything
other than to stop someone picking it up.
I have one of the specialized locks. I saw a test in a UK mag which
seemed to indicate that it would take several minutes to cut through
with large bolt cutters - a great step up!
Zach Kaplan, Jul 1997:
In 1993 I had a bike stolen which was locked outside a store less than ten
minutes. The lock was a Kryptonite cable lock.
Clive Page, Jul 1997:
I suspect cable locks are not as secure, but I could not work a way of
stowing a rigid lock without it getting in the way. For what it is worth,
the solution I found was to get a cable lock about 1 metre long (which is
enough to wrap around a lamp-post in most cases) a fraction more than
twice the length of the rear carrier. I stow it along the left-hand side
of the top of the rear carrier, where it can be locked in place looped
around the two transverse tubes which carry the front and rear small
rolling wheels (hope this is clear, really needs a diagram). In this
position the lock does not interfere at all with folding/unfolding.
Pierre Virlogeux, Jul 1997:
I have 2 locks because I had 2 stolen bikes in the past I
have a U model Kryptonite and a heavy cable ( 25 mm diameter
an about 80 cm long )
I put then simply on the handlebar and I have no problems
with them
I use also the cable to lock the folded Brompton in the
luggage compartiemnt of the TGV ( French High Speed Train )
to the luggage frame. I always retrieve my bike.
Gert de Jong, Jul 1997:
I also use a U model lock. But because I don't want to hang it on the
handlebar, I started looking for a place where I could mount it, fixed
to the Brompton without loosing folding capabilities.
I concluded that only one place was possible: in extension of the frame,
mounted on the front carrier block. It required some sawing, screwing,
etc. but I use it for quite some time now and it works well.
Steve D. Hanel, Jul 1997:
When I was in High School I ran a test of chains and cables (they had no
U locks then). The cable lasted 10 times longer than the case hardened
chain.
Chain - 1 second. Cable - 10 seconds
I have heard the Kryptonite Evolution 2000 series U locks are the best
security without spending $70 or more. I will be testing three different
brands of U locks for ease of (unlawful) entry soon. The Kryptonite
E2000 will be one of them.
Jim Norris, Jul 1997:
A friend gave me a Bravo 999 cycle frame lock
that he picked up in India years ago. It attaches to my seat stays. When
you push a button, the lock goes through the wheel. I bought a thin cable
for locking the bike to trees, etc. The key remains in the lock until you
lock it. The Specialized Globe use this (or a similar) lock. You might try
contacting them. Good luck.
Custfold, Jul 1997:
Those nice 'ring' keys fitted to early Kryptonite locks, and many other types
may look super secure, but there is a useful locksmiths tool which fits into
them and vibrates, and presto in seconds the tumblers shake into the
unlocking state. IIRC this tool is a light battery powered hand held thing.
You have been warned.
Meantime I'm thinking about how to fit a Datatag into the Brompton, since
putting it into the seat tube (as normal for a diamond frame) is not
possible. Could some kind of smoke generator fit into the front main tube,
triggered if the bike was abused whilst it was primed? Imagine riding away
with orange smoke pouring from the front joint.
Ulric Schollaert, Jun 1999:
Many people want to fix a U lock on the B. 's frame. I've got round the
problem by using the pocket for the cover (hanging from the saddle) as a
pocket for my U lock (the cover can easily fit elsewhdere if used
regularly). The one U lock I found fits easily into the pocket and is
useful in most circumtances is a narrow Abus one (rated 10/10 strengh). I
rarely find it difficult to spot a reliable thing to lock my B. on. Of
course, this is only a standard solution for standard occasions, and I take
Zoum-Zoum in whenever necessary. I also use the Abus lock as quick lock
(when I park in front of a shop where the bike is not in full sight and is
more than a step away): I just lock it on the front wheel, so no one can
ride away in 10 seconds.
Mark Hodson, Jul 1999:
When using the Brompton I generally carry a lightweight cable lock to attach
it (folded) to something solid in case I have to leave it out of sight in a
train (probably in contravention of all sorts of railway rules). I've never
needed to lock it in any other situation.
DrDBWood (Daniel Wood), Jul 1999:
Theft may not be much of a problem in other areas. I am sorry to say
that humanity is sorely lacking in my native Eugene Oregon where people
seem to follow their worst impulses at the merest sign of temptation.
Fortunately, I have never lost a bicycle to theft, but that is largely
because I now will not leave the bike unattended, and even at home, the
bikes are double-locked in a locked garage or i the house. With an
alarm. With a security lighting system.
It really is horrible, because ofttimes I will have grown hungry on long
country rides (before my current illness, when I was cracking off 3-4
Centuries a week and 8,000 -12,000 annual miles) and if the proprietor
won't allow me to park the bike inside near the cart racks, I really
didn't feel comfortable leaving it. This holds true for all my bikes,
and especially the Herse replica and the tandem because they are a bit
unusual and so attractive. I don't expect it to be different when I
have finished brazing up my own Folder from scratch. I made it with the
intent of storing in the kneewell of a standard-sized office desk, where
it would also be locked.
A good part of my caution is justified by the experiences of myself and
others. I used to work in campus security, and simply could not believe
the amount of theft by professional rings who would travel to town in
vans and literally cleanse an area of bicycles. I still have some of
the broken U-locks that were left behind, unclaimed by the students who
had lost their bikes. I had carefully collected the pieces and notified
them figuring they might need/want them for insurance reimbursement.
Most of the pieces showed evidence of leverage prys, but a few of the
U-locks had literally shattered. I responded to one theft-in-progress
report only to find an empty bicycle rack and scattered fragments of
U-lock. A sweep of the immediate area turned up a can of Freon and a
large patch of glass-wool insulation backed with aluminized paper that
may well have been used to cool the lock before breaking it. It was
literally impossible to respond in time to prevent a theft, especially
since the pry-thefts required just seconds to pull off. Having seen the
results of so many, I can recommend choosing a U-lock with minimal
protrusions and using it with care to ensure the space inside the lock
is filled with bicycle. Both these tactics reduce the chance for
leverage needed for a pry-break of a lock. A small but extremely
resistant lock and a large case-hardened chain can be helpful in some
situations.
No matter how a bicycle is locked, it is wise to recognize it may still
be stolen. By chance we recovered some very expensive bicycles with
frames that had been cut clean through the stays. Thieves had evidently
decided to sacrifice the frame in order to get the parts. They are not
generally restricted by sentiment as an owner might be. Surprisingly,
very few of the University's mild-steel bicycle parking racks were ever
damaged or cut.
The owner of one of the oldest and largest shops in town has lost any
number of bicycles to direct theft where bicycles were simply wheeled
off the showroom floor and out the door. When a door-mounted detector
and sensor tags had been installed in the new bikes, thieves simply
removed customer's bikes from the repair queue at the rear of the
showroom. Devilishly difficult to detect, especially since those bikes
were obviously used and customers often came and went as they scheduled
service for another day or left a bike only to return on foot.
All prospective customers are required to leave a photo I.D. like a
driver's license and they require written pre-authorization to charge
the entire amount of the bicycle to the customer's charge card before
any test rides are allowed. Upon returning from the test ride, the
bicycles are inspected for chargeable damages before the charge
authorization is returned to the customer.
The shop owner himself learned a painful lesson when thieves identified
his home and stole his personal bicycles from a tool shed behind the
attached garage of his home. The official word from the police
department theft prevention specialists is that locking bicycles inside
one's home is the best deterrent. They advise itt is unwise to leave a
garage door open in well-trafficked areas, since bike thieves will often
note the location and return later.
Friends -- sometimes in my presence -- have lost their bikes to thieves
using bold ways I could never have imagined. The neighbors across the
street had a backyard barbecue and the guests arrived on bicycles. In
the few moments it took for them to carry their potluck contributions
through the gate and return, both unlocked bikes were taken. And, I am
ashamed to say, I was washing the car in my drive and didn't see or hear
a thing.
In another case, friends rode to a small, amateur-league soccer match
and leaned their bikes against a railing imediately behind them. While
they were distracted watching the game, someone made off with the bikes.
Other friends left their mountain bikes leaning against the windows of a
cafe while they ate dinner. Sadly, that meant they had front-row seats
as both their unlocked bikes were stolen on the other side of the glass.
By the time they got around the tables and out the door, the thieves had
turned the corner and were lost from sight along with their bikes. I
can think of tens of similar instances involving friends and
acquaintances over the years.
When I was commuting regularly by bicycle, I always parked my bike near
others that weren't locked, since they made easier targets. Mine had a
U-lock, 1/2" diameter cable, another lock (Abus Discus) and for good
measure, a 140 decibel motion-sensing alarm tucked under the saddle's
rain cover. I removed the computer, the pump, and the rack elastic. My
waterbottles were consistently stolen until I left them half-full in
thieir cages, which somehow made a difference.
In that University setting, others lost any accessory that could be
removed, if not the whole bike. Unless one had a private office, there
was always the possibility of a colleague leaving a door unlocked while
gone on some errand or there was a risk from the constant foot traffic
through the office. A friend was on an errand when he lost an old but
much-beloved Moulton Stowaway. His office partner was called from the
office to take what proved to be a ruse telephone call. Of course, it
was officially considered unlawful to park a bike indoors due to
reasonable concerns related to fire restrictions. In that setting, I
would still park inside and lock my Folder in the kneewell of my desk,
to the desk, using a Kryptonite New York lock and chain combination.
Eugene is home to a number of bicycle industry manufacturers, including
the Burley cooperative (tandems, trailers, clothing), Co-Motion Cycles
(custom tandems), Green Gear/Bike Friday (Folders, travel systems),
BicyelERevolution (bike trailers), the Center for Appropriate
Transport/C.A.T. (Swift Folders, various heavy-hauler HPVs and recmbents
of all sorts), Jackson and Gibbons (clothing, bike luggage), and more.
This probably makes it unusually attractive to thieves.
Mountain bikes are the most-stolen kind of bicycle locally, and that is
not surprising since they are also the most popular. In this area, road
bikes and tandems are also at risk, and there is widespread knowledge
that Folders can be very expensive. The C.A.T. lost one of their Swift
folders right out of the shop earlier this year (Dark green with a Sachs
7-sp. internal hub. If anyone has seen it, please write).
The driving motivation behind these bike thefts seems to be drugs.
There is a lot of crystal methamphetamine being manufactured locally,
and now the police have set up a heroin trafficking tip line; the
television announcements run at the dinner hour. Stolen bikes are often
offered for sale at pennies on the dollar (example: Cannondale Raven
offered for $150, or Trek Y-foil road racing bike for $175, both offered
to friends in the last month). While talking to the director of C.A.T.
one day, a gentleman walked in with a new but badly scratched Bike
Friday Air Friday (the one with the titanium flex beam), saying he'd
paid a guy $75 for it and asking what kind of bike it was and if it was
any good. A friend who runs a scrupulously honest used bicycle business
will not purchase any bicycle without a serial number check and
sometimes a waiting period as well. Even after that, if he gets his
"feeling", he will refuse to buy. He loaned $20 to a prominent repeat
customer as a favor so he could buy a bicycle he spotted at the nearby
Goodwill thrift store. My friend imagined a beatup Huffy would be the
result, since even the least-expensive bikes in his shop were too high
for this fellow. Imagine his surprise when the customer returned
pedaling a full-Campagnolo equipped bicycle custom-built by San
Francisco frame builder Albert Eisentraut. He was still so flustered
about it, he telephoned me the next day just to vent.
My friend's advice on avoiding bike theft? "When you choose to park
your bike, ask yourself if you would feel secure leaving a
hundred-dollar bill lying unattended in the same place. If the answer
is no, then take it with you!"
I realize this is a long post, and for that I apologize. To many who
live in areas where bicycle theft is infrequent, I must sound paranoid.
However, bike theft is a daily reality here, and I hope some of the
lessons learned can help others avoid losses of their own. Watch those
bikes, be they cumbersomes or Folders!
Simongikuk, Jul 1999:
I had a Specialized "Rapper" cable lock ( not the thinner, longer and lighter
type; but the heavy-duty one with a steel cable plus a Kevlar core, all
encased in a flexible steel outer tube and covered in grey woven plastic.)
According to a lock survey in a bicycle magazine, they can be cut through by
bolt-croppers in less than a minute, despite their appearance. And I can
vouch for it -- myT5 was stolen in exactly this fashion, by a professional
bike thief, despite the a/m Specialized lock.
(Amazingly, Mr Plod got my Brompton back for me two weeks later. Wonders
will never cease!)
