Oregon Cycling Magazine

by Patrick Moran, age 17 and Nolan Chase, age 16

It seems like every day we hear about somebody’s bike getting stolen. We see the flyers that people bring around to all the bike shops, and we hear the wailing and the gnashing of teeth. We also have to bite our tongues when we hear that the unfortunate bike was not securely locked, but was left outside the store “for just a second” or on the third floor balcony “where I thought it would be safe”. We end up biting our tongues a lot because these are the things we hear over and over again. Well DUH! It just takes “a second” to hop on a bike and ride away! And if you think your bike is safe on a balcony, unlocked, anywhere in the world, then you are living in a dream. Wake up and find out what it takes to keep your bike safe! We have conspired to come up with some suggestions for you to consider as we all gear up for spring and the proliferation of bike riding that nicer weather brings.

Locking your bike

Choosing the right kind of lock can seem unimportant, but investing a few more dollars in a good lock is essential. Also, learning the proper technique for locking your bike is important. Speaking from personal experience, U-locks have been the most effective. More then a few times we have seen bike racks with snapped cables hanging pathetically on the ground, often with no bike to accompany them. While a U-lock can be heavy and awkward to carry around town, the strength and security it represents is well worth it. You should avoid combo locks because they tend to be cheap and easily breakable. We have broken combo padlocks with very little force. If you decide to use one of these kinds of locks, please make sure it is not your main lock! Use it for extra security when you need it, use it to lock up your panniers or trailer, but do not rely on it.

When you are locking up your bike, do you think about your wheels? While the front wheel is easier for thieves to take (especially if you have quick-release wheels), the back wheel is much more expensive and time consuming to replace, so when locking your bike outside anywhere, I recommend locking both the frame and back wheel of the bike to the rack. It takes only a couple of extra seconds, and it is a good habit to get into. Simply locking the top tube or the rear triangle to the rack is often inadequate because a thief can get some great leverage out of a loosely-hanging U-lock (leverage is how bike thieves break locks). If you use that space wisely by running the U through the bike rack and your frame and wheel, there is much less room for a potential thief to work with. More dedicated anti-theft crusaders would carry multiple locks or quick-release their front wheel to carry it with them, but we haven’t gone that far yet.

Probably the most vital part of locking a bike is the location. Use common sense along with intuition when selecting a place to lock your bike. Try to think like a thief. Don’t park in dark, secluded alleys where whole gangs of thieves could work with no interruption. On the other hand, are you considering parking your bike in a large clot of other bikes near a busy public thoroughfare where a thief might be able to work inconspicuously? You better think again. The best place to park your bike is obviously a place where you can see it, but if that is impossible, then your next best bet is a real bike rack (not a lamppost or street sign) located in a well-lit location.

If you are in a position where your bike might be left unattended overnight, do your best to get yourself out of that situation. Do not leave your bike parked overnight! If you are staying with a friend, ask if you can bring your bike into a garage, shed or basement. Of course, if your friends are really cool, they already have a place set up for bikes. If not, maybe you need to go riding with them more often.
Looking good
Balancing aesthetics and security can be a delicate subject for many cyclists. But the fact remains that the look of your bike will affect its appeal to possible thieves. Bike messengers trying to prevent theft have perfected the art of making quality bikes look ugly, and this is a skill that you can also perfect if you want to take the chance that a bike thief will pass your ugly bike up for another one. If you are in the market for a really high-end bike and you want to consider its security without compromising its sleek beauty, you might want to select simple color schemes or less flashy finishes. The auto industry regularly releases information on what colors and brands of vehicles are stolen most often. Perhaps we need to come up with equivalent information for cyclists.

Let’s face it though: if you have thousands of dollars to spend on a bike, you probably have a hundred or two to spend on a beater—a bike that you ride around town, to the store, maybe to work. A beater might be defined as the bike you don’t have to worry about. Some people I’ve known do not even lock their beaters much, figuring that if someone really needs the bike, they can have it.

An ounce of prevention
One way to prevent bike theft is to not be a part of the probem in the first place. We’re not saying that because we think you are running around stealing bikes (you’re not, we assume), but because a lot of bikes are stolen for resale. And that’s where people who are not bike thieves by nature become accessories to bike theft. You should only purchase bikes from reputable dealers or people that you know and trust. If you are in the market for a bike and are tempted by a classified ad or a listing on craigslist, make the effort to be sure that you are taking part in a legitimate transaction. The black market is no longer limited to dark alleys and shady characters, although that shady character in the dark alley is probably not a reputable bicycle dealer. These days, stolen bikes are bought and sold out in the open on the internet, so it pays to ask about serial numbers and to do some homework before arranging to buy a bike over the internet or from a classified ad.

Bike registries can be helpful, both on the local or national levels. Many communities have bicycle registration programs to help locals retrieve stolen bikes (ask your local Police department), but since many bikes are stolen in one town and sold in another, the National Bike Registry (NBR) is also available. Through the NBR, you receive an ID number and a sticker for your bike. Law enforcement everywhere has access to the database, and can contact you if your bike is recovered. More information on the NBR is available at www.nationalbikeregistry.com

Computer-based ID
RFID could be a promising way to retrieve stolen bikes. RFID stands for Radio Frequency Identification, and RFID chips are small circuits, as small as the period at the end of this sentence. An RFID chip broadcasts a radio frequency that can be programmed with information, and picked up by a scanner, which can be small enough to carry in your bag. You might have a pet with an embedded RFID chip for identification. The tag on your jeans also may have an RFID for inventory control.

Now, if RFID readers were placed around the city, and you had an active RFID tag in your bike, you could look up where your bike has been. You could get very nerdy with this information, printing out maps of your daily travels. But if your bike got stolen, this information could also help you see where your bike is. In fact, for just a few bucks, you could tag all your valuable possessions, and have a much better chance of getting them back if they ever got stolen. Lost your keys? That’s OK; your key chain can have an RFID tag. Your TV gets stolen? That’s OK, because pawnshops could scan to see if someone RFID tagged it before taking property of questionable ownership.

Obviously, there is another side to this issue. RFID tags can be reprogrammed using a handheld device that costs a few hundred dollars, and will rapidly become cheaper as the technology becomes more common. The government could implant you with one, unbeknownst to you, at your next doctor visit, and track you for fear you might be a terrorist. Such a technology can become a slippery slope, and our privacy could slowly slide away in more areas of our lives.

Possibly Related

• April 2007: Filmed by Bike is back in town
• July 2008: Citizen prosecution of dangerous drivers
• October 2007: Five under $15: quality gear on the cheap
• August 2007: The yoga of mountain biking
• March 2008: BMX racing: a rider's perspective