Quote of the Day: All Bikes Weigh Fifty Pounds
by Lloyd Alter, Toronto on 08.18.08
Leslie Scrivener writes in the Star about the problem of rampant bike theft, and the proper way to protect your bike, including painting it pink, using two expensive and heavy locks, or riding a junker. A commenter pointed out (what appears to be a cliche but new to me):
"All bicycles weigh fifty pounds. A thirty-pound bicycle needs a twenty-pound lock. A forty-pound bicycle needs a ten-pound lock. A fifty-pound bicycle doesn't need a lock at all."
TreeHugger on how to prevent bike theft:
How to Prevent Bike Theft
Designing Bikes to be Theft -proof
Design For A Better Bike Lock
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Protect your bike by painting it pink?!? My wife and I each had a bicycle; hers a bright pink cruiser and mine a black and silver mountain bike. Which one got nicked out of our garage? That's right, the pink one! Mine was left sitting in the yard. I guess they could fit only one in the van (or however these people go about their business) so they took the pink one.
I guess someone really needed a present for his girlfriend.
Given that scrappers will take gates and railings from occupied homes when the owners are home, sadly, a 50 pound bike probably needs a lock.
I don't know. Why not just change the laws that states, if you are caught with stolen merchandise in your posession...you go to jail. People steal stuff, because they can sell it. If they cant sell it..what would be the point? Ok, over simplified sure...but I would think twice about buying a bike or parts of a bike if I thought I could do time. Sorry officer, I didn't know it was stolen...too bad..you're going down! ;)
I once had a good quality clunker -- Schwinn 1-speed from the seventies, good condition -- locked behind and under my very shiny and attractive but lousy-quality 10-speed racing-style bike. Someone cut the lock, moved the 10-speed out of the way, and took the better quality clunker, leaving the 10-speed behind. Some thieves actually know what they're doing.
how about we fill our bikes with sand so they are so heavy that they actually do weight 50 lbs? Or Water or something. Yea its a dumb idea but it gets ya going.
If universities can run concrete canoe design contests (and they do), then someone can start designing and building concrete bikes. Then you could have an ugly fifty-pound bike that no one would touch, not even to scrap.
I would love to see making bike theft equivalent to auto theft. Also, I would really enjoy watching a show like Bait Car but with bikes.
Hey, all you bike experts, this raises a big moral dilemma for me: I want to buy a "clunker" kind of bike (not TOO clunky, but nothing new either). How do I know I am not buying a stolen bike? Any advice greatly appreciated...
I want something that is good enough to get me to the train station, but bad enough that I can leave it there all day.
I've been a year round bicycle commuter for 10 years in Toronto now - never had a bike stolen. I do cart around a heavy lock everywhere though.
If you're looking for a "clunker" bike, have a look at:
http://search.ebay.ca/_W0QQsassZpolice.auctions.canada
which is the ebay store for the Toronto Police auction. Yes, you will be buying a stolen bike, but one that has been recovered, but not claimed.
For the last few winters, I've bought $50 bikes through this to be destroyed by salt exposure (to save my 'nice' bike). Be sure to check out the hours for pick-up before you bid, the time frames for this are not the most convenient.