Bike thieves!

[peregrinehill.livejournal.com]

Hi all,

Just a heads up, bike thieves with bolt-cutters are lurking around Teele Square, I guess in celebration of Bike Week. So take 'em indoors. We lost two bikes last night.

EDIT:
The stolen bikes were 1) a black 700c Marin Kentfield women's bike with a basket and a squirrel eaten seat and 2) a red 26" men's Schwinn Ranger mountain bike.

Comments

[pierceheart.livejournal.com]

what kind of lock were you using?

[m00n.livejournal.com]

I am also curious to know the answer to this question. I barely even count it as a bike theft if it wasn't locked up with a U-Lock in the first place.

On an added note, it is really never a good idea to leave bicycles outside overnight in Somerville if at all possible.

Also, people should register their bicycles or, at the very least, write down the serial number so that they can actually claim ownership of their bike if they do manage to recover it from the police.

[peregrinehill.livejournal.com]

We were using a stranded cable lock with a combination, through just about every part of the bike and then through a sturdy metal loop. That's why I think someone had a pair of cutters.

[pierceheart.livejournal.com]

That's why I think someone had a pair of cutters.

I agree with you.

[ron_newman]

Did they leave the broken lock behind, or take it too?

[peregrinehill.livejournal.com]

They took the lock and everything. No sign of a struggle.

[ron_newman]

Sorry to hear this, and thanks for the warning. Did you also tell the police? If not, please do so now.

[peregrinehill.livejournal.com]

Thanks, yes, I let the police know. ATA bikes, where I bought one of the bikes, was nice enough to look up the serial number for me.

[chaiya.livejournal.com]

If you bought this bike within the past year, you might ask your credit card if they have theft reimbursement. It sounds insane, but AmEx gave me my money back when my bike was stolen within 90 days of having spent $500 on it. So I was at least better off than I could have been.

Good time to post...

[jimmyfergus.livejournal.com]

Sheldon Brown's lock strategy article: http://www.sheldonbrown.com/lock-strategy.html

Most people's U-locks are too big (and therefore heavy). A small one through the rear wheel is the way to go, with a cable for other sundry items.

Re: Good time to post...

[peregrinehill.livejournal.com]

I was using a stranded cable lock, but now I wish I'd used a U-lock, too.

Re: Good time to post...

[yagagriswold.livejournal.com]

Enh. I've had a bike stolen when locked with a u-lock. Don't blame yourself. Sorry to hear about the theft.

Re: Good time to post...

[coeceo.livejournal.com]

This.

Multiple U-Locks is the best really. Theives will move on, unless you have something really nice and are targeted by the pros.

Re: Good time to post...

[jimmyfergus.livejournal.com]

I'll expand a bit. I just bought this:

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000FL3E9I

The lock is 3.5x5.5", which is really quite small. Still good enough to lock your rear wheel to a pole (read Sheldon's text for why you don't need it around the frame). Lighter than the big 9" locks, and harder to break by inserting a lever inside the U.

Some reviews complained the cable was too short. I think they were using it wrong; it's 4ft long! You don't need it in a big O loop, you just run the end round the front wheel rim and thread the cable through its own end loop, then run the cable through your saddle or whatever, and the other end loop attaches to the u-lock.

No lock is impenetrable, and if you're leaving a bike out overnight go for at least two different types of locks so they need more than one tool. A thin cable like this is only minimal deterrent. Perhaps 2 small U-locks - one rear-wheel-to-pole, other frame-to-front-wheel.

[smoterh.livejournal.com]

Yeah. Lost front wheel of the bike on my front porch.... Magoun Square

[geekpixie.livejournal.com]

And this is why I'm scared to ride my bike to the T and lock it up there. This and the stories of the guys with bolt cutters in brown paper bags that were circulating last fall. I'm sorry to hear about it, I'll keep my eye out for yours.

Bike Stolen Ball Square

[rrwf.livejournal.com]

We have a lot of bikes, so over the past year I've left my commuter bike on the front porch, properly locked with a U-Lock and cables, tethered to our front porch in the corner (past the two building entrances). Late last Friday night, someone broke the deck and stole the bike, lock and all. Insurance and former bike shop treated me right, but it was still a rude awakening.

Preemptive: yes, I know wood can be broken. But I assumed that it was not a particularly easy "crime of opportunity," there was a lot of downside, and our street is generally pretty safe. So yes, it was a calculated risk. I have too much faith in humanity.

Re: Bike Stolen Ball Square

[chenoameg.livejournal.com]

Where is this great market for used bikes? Presumably people are stealing them because they can sell them, but who is fencing these things?

Re: Bike Stolen Ball Square

[geekpixie.livejournal.com]

Tons of used bikes for sale all over the place, most bike places take them as trade in, I know that much. A little spray paint must go a long way?

Re: Bike Stolen Ball Square

[mjperson.livejournal.com]

I've wondered that for a while. I mean, all of the bike shops in the area must know that 95% of people trying to sell used bikes stole them, right?

OK, that's probably not true, but I'd certainly believe it should be fairly easy to sting people trying to sell multiple bikes in shorter time spans.

Re: Bike Stolen Ball Square

[acidgalore.livejournal.com]

Craigslist is a big market for used bikes...

Re: Bike Stolen Ball Square

[moireach.livejournal.com]

When you say insurance, do you mean renter's insurance or something else? Just curious.

Re: Bike Stolen Ball Square

[rrwf.livejournal.com]

Yes, renter's, although bike-specific insurance does exist.

[miss-chance.livejournal.com]

Are you sure it was theives? Maybe it was the squirrels that gnawed through the cable, having come back to get the rest of the bike after eating the seat? ;-)

No, seriously, sorry about the loss of your bike. Don't let people play "blame the victim" on you for not using a U-lock. We all guage our risk factors every day, and even if your bike was attached to the pole with a garbage-bag twist-tie, it's still freakin' theft if someone took it without asking. My neighbor had her flowers (annuals) dug up out of her front yard and stolen, but no one gave her a hard time for not locking them up.


(Somerville squirrels *did* eat the starter-wire harness out of my van, though... Twice.)

[geekpixie.livejournal.com]

Seriously, her annuals? Now THAT is messed up...(and something I'd blame on squirrels...)

[miss-chance.livejournal.com]

seriously, her annuals. When the squirrels took my starter-wires they left little gnawed remains... the annuals had clean trowel-marks left.

[geekpixie.livejournal.com]

Squirrels with trowels, now they are getting sneaky....

[fefie.livejournal.com]

I've had hyacinth blossoms snipped, daylily blossoms broken off, and a sunflower pulled out of the ground and tossed elsewhere in the yard. Such are the non-animal hazards of having a garden on a busy street (Highland).

In the meantime I'll keep this thread in mind every time I haul my bike up flight of stairs to take it out of the cellar for a spin.

[blacktigr.livejournal.com]

We have had chronic horn problems with our car, and now we're having extra lights go off. Every time we go in, the car-fixing people tend to tell us that something's chewing through our cables.

bike thieves

[sulldoggy.livejournal.com]

Yup, I'll second that! Just had my first bike theft..My silver Jamis was stolen form the Davis Sq. T stop yesterday. It was cabled, but I guess it stood out in the pack. Silver Jamis Mountain bike, with recently installed road tires, brand new. Oh well, live and learn! Time for a cheaper beater bike and better lock.
Rich