The other day I noticed something strange when I went to park my bike on the corner of NW 23rd and Kearney (just in front of the toy store). The bolts that attach the rack into the concrete had been loosened and the rack wobbled back and forth (see photos below).
A loose rack does not instill much confidence, so I moved to a different location to lock up my bike.
At first I just thought it needed some maintenance, but then I started to wonder. First, all the bolts were backed out about the same amount; and second, what natural thing could possibly make this happen?
Then it dawned on me that maybe this was the work of a thief. Here’s my theory: A thief unscrews the bolts just a little bit each night, which would only take a few seconds and therefore wouldn’t raise suspicions. Then, on the final night, it would only take a few seconds to free the staple rack and take the bikes.
But then again, if a staple rack was loose, no one would lock up their bikes to it…would they (I didn’t)?
Have you ever come across loose staple racks? What do you think about my theory?
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UPDATE: This is not a city-approved staple rack (notice that it is not the standard blue color). City-approved and installed staple racks have bolts that require a special wrench to loosen.