Spotted this unfortunate scene in front of Powell’s last week:
Folks. Please. Bike theft is going crazy in this town right now. I’m getting about 3-4 stolen bikes listed every day on this site alone. Please use a high-quality u-lock or a heavy chain to secure your bike. Cable locks are a definite no-no…and so is only locking your front wheel!
Jonathan Maus (Publisher/Editor)
Founder of BikePortland (in 2005). Father of three. North Portlander. Basketball lover. Car owner and driver. If you have questions or feedback about this site or my work, feel free to contact me at @jonathan_maus on Twitter, via email at maus.jonathan@gmail.com, or phone/text at 503-706-8804. Also, if you read and appreciate this site, please become a supporter.
It may be a unicycle with the seat and pedals removed for theft prevention. The owner was probably just inside shopping.
i wanted to start this thing were i left little notes on bikes saying they need a better lock for their bike or it\’s not locked properly. perfect example! i had a kryptonite chain lock but before so…cable locks will never do.
Man, I\’ve been needing to upgrade to a u-lock for ages… blah. as soon as my next paycheck hits.
And logan? I hope you\’re joking.
I have one of those gigantic onguard chains (similar to the krypto \’fahgettaboudit\’ but even bigger). It kills my neck, but at least my bike is semi-protected.
Anytime bike security comes up I always like to mention to remember the damage a 5mm allen key can do to your bike (especially mountain bikes with spendy suspension forks). Your entire fork/wheel/frontbrake/shifters/levers/handlebars/stem setup could be gone in literally seconds. Just locking up the frame isn\’t good enough.
I\’ve begun leaving notes on peoples\’ bikes.
Yes Martha, I was kidding around. This is the third time I\’ve seen this (two in person) in the last 6 months.
How I would love to take an animal tracking gps system and rig it to serve a low-jack function on a bike, lock it like a typical person (i.e. poorly) in a theft hot-spot, perhaps one with a camera, and trace it to bike theft hq. Call the cops – provide the gps tracking evidence and if nothing else (since gps doesn\’t prove who took it – just where it is) maybe get some stolen bike bunkers examined for lost bikes and hopefully help avert this type of behavior. Perhaps, the person could be found on the bike minutes after taking it – the options for gps tracking are amazing, you can link to a cell phone, draw a boundary that if the bike leaves the owner is alerted, etc…
I almost wrote up a proposal for the CCC’s grants for local bike initiatives based on this idea… But I don’t know what the legal issues are, or if there are…
I am going to have to lock my bike up in a high bike theft (PSU) area soon, four days a week. Not a high end bike, but worth about $600. It will be during day hours. I have two U-locks, one OnGaurd, and one Kryptonite. I was thinking of using two locks to lock it up. Would it be better to throw both U-locks on it, or should I buy a cable lock and throw a U-lock and a cable lock so it would prevent someone who only has a crowbar, or only has cable snips?
I found this video on youtube where these crazy brits cut through EVERY LAST heavy duty chain on the market. And every time they were able to do it in less than a minute.
U-locks (emphasis on the plural) are really the only way to go.
And Ken, use both.
Ken, I wouldn\’t even bother putting on a cable lock, they truly are useless IMHO. I think the best way is to position a u-lock tightly around whatever you\’re locking it to so getting a crow bar in between is difficult. I take my front wheel off and place it in the lock along with the frame just to assist with that (if I\’m going to be locked up somewhere for awhile)
Quick release wheels and seats should become a thing of the past, it seems – replace everything with bolts. At least for everyday bikes that you leave locked outside at places like PSU.
Oh-mi-gosh, always lock your wheel along with the frame!
I\’ve had a bike stolen once upon a time by being careless & just locking my u-lock through the bike frame (& not a wheel too), & then to a tall 8 foot high pole.
The thief bent the entire pole to the ground (it was a sturdy metal parking pole), removed the top sign from it, and slid the entire bike off the pole. Because the wheels weren\’t locked, they just rode it away!
And that was for a $50 pile of poo bike. Lord only knows what lengths he/she would have gone to had it been a $2000 bike, eek!
I use two u-locks on my bike – a normal sized one for one end to lock the wheel & frame to a pole/rack, & then a tiny pocket one for the other end end to lock the wheel to the frame. People make fun of me no end for this, but I\’d rather get made fun of, & still have my pretty expensive bike, yipes.
Perhaps somewhat durable stickers on bike staple racks, advising people on how to lock up safely, might be an idea?
ps- the other day, i saw TWO vanilla bicycles locked up to a tree off NW 21st Ave, with one puny cable lock. Craziness.
\”ps- the other day, i saw TWO vanilla bicycles locked up to a tree off NW 21st Ave, with one puny cable lock. Craziness.\”
i don\’t find that surprising in the slightest.
\”
\”ps- the other day, i saw TWO vanilla bicycles locked up to a tree off NW 21st Ave, with one puny cable lock. Craziness.\”
i don\’t find that surprising in the slightest.
\”
But somehow still jaw-dropping.
i would think that having 2 locks of different styles would be a deterrent. since different locks take different tools to break them I would imagine that a thief would rather not get the bolt cutters out, cut the cable, then put the bolt cutters away and then get out the crowbar and break the ulock.
but maybe i have not successfully gotten into the mind of the average bicycle thief?
disclaimer: this was written by a guy who is lucky enough to not have to think about this sort of thing too often because he is able to keep his bike inside a nice secure building while he\’s at work.
Ken: 2 u-locks (normal-sized to lock wheel & frame to post, mini-u to lock other wheel to frame) served me well in some bad parts of Chicago and they seem to work fine here. Of course, the day somebody wanting a bike badly enough comes around and shoots freon into the keyway…well, my bike is gone.
If you haven\’t bought that second u-lock already, I\’d say go u-lock and heavy-duty chain. Then you\’re probably good unless somebody ballsy enough comes around with an battery-powered angle grinder and all bystanders ATM are sheepish idiots or careless jerks. 🙂
Vanilla bike owners don\’t know how to lock up their bikes?!
blasphemy!
I guess the other thing to keep in mind is the idea of locks serving as deterrents. In a city like Portland, where you can scarcely walk three blocks without seeing a bike locked up somewhere, the target is going to be the bike that\’s the easiest grab. Unless that bike\’s a total piece of crap that even the skeeziest, most methed-out jerkass would pass up (and that\’s saying a lot!), it\’s more likely that it\’s going to be gone for because it takes less time to steal it.
Nate,
That was my thinking. I would guess most bike thieves are using cable cutters and a smaller percentage carry around a crowbar to take on U-locks. I can\’t get inside the mind of a bike thief either but my thought was that a thief might be prepared for one or the other type of lock, but not both. Maybe I am underestimating the number of thieves that carry both tools.
I appreciate the suggestions so far. If others of you out there have more comments I\’d appreciate them.
people steal the easiest thing to steal. at PSU, dont lock bikes next to the trolley tracks as the majority of bikes stolen there are stolen off those staple racks. the moral is, lock up the frame, and dont ride a nice bike around period if you have to lock it up. i know it sounds stupid but i only ride my race bike to train and race on, not for commuting.
Just one note – don\’t forget to remove your lights, too! I can\’t count how many bikes I see locked up w/their lights still attached. Unless they are bolted to your bike, take them off! I sadly learned this my first year riding in Portland – came out of a bar – no lights!
I actually epoxied my lights on once (because i kept forgetting to take them off and they kept getting stolen) and someone still broke them off the brackets, damaging the lights and the brackets.
best bet is to take them off when you lock up your bike.
Yes, someone stole my rear blinky too after a show I\’d attended. I hope hell for them consists of not eternal red fire, but eternal red blinkys of various shapes, sizes, and rhythms. Either that or I fancy they\’ve clipped it to their fanny pack.
I use a cable lock for my $60 Schwinn. I understand the risks of it getting clipped, but the benefit of being able to tie to large trees and other miscellaneous items (car door handles) is worth it.
#20 has it right. The nice and expensive bikes are to be ridden and not parked and locked. If you think you are going to cry over your stolen bike because it cost you so much and because you can\’t afford to replace it, then get a cheapo and put some cleaning and tune-up time into it. I have two, a mtn. and road bike. Between the two I\’m out $400.00. And they ride great! I thank the garage sale gods.
That rack at Powell\’s is a pretty lousy rack, in the middle you can\’t get the handlebars in far enough to lock the wheel and frame to the rack. The last time I parked at Powell\’s I locked my bike to the handrail. I\’m guessing whoever parked their bike there decided they\’d just use the cable lock because they\’d only be in there for a little while.
While that rack is decorative it\’s not very bike friendly, I wish Powell\’s would put in something a bit more functional.
doh!
At least that rack is better than the ones they have over at Bridgeport Village… those a)aren\’t attached to the ground or anything and b) you can only lock a wheel to it, not the frame or both.
Guess BV didn\’t want those big heavy ugly SAFE racks for the locals to attach their bikes to… which means we lock our bikes to any available pole or handrail!
The only bad thing about rising gasoline prices!
Check out Sheldon Brown\’s page on locking up. I\’ve found this method to be pretty reliable, and can utilize the mini-U lock effectively almost anywhere:
http://www.sheldonbrown.com/lock-strategy.html
Not saying it\’s the best or only way, just one good way. Without quick release on the front, my bike is too much trouble, and thieves are going to go after an easier target.
\”The nice and expensive bikes are to be ridden and not parked and locked. If you think you are going to cry over your stolen bike because it cost you so much and because you can\’t afford to replace it, then get a cheapo and put some cleaning and tune-up time into it.\”
Yup – I bought TWO bikes the same day this spring (wife loved that!) one my new cross bike, the other an 86 Nishiki off ebay for the express purpose of being my pub/grocery/locked-to-a-pole bike. And it\’s fun. I\’m still amazed what 100 bucks and some elbow grease will get you if you stay away from the new-bike shops. Speaking of which, I\’m off to one to get a new U-lock; I\’m still sportin\’ one of those bic-pen-pickable old Kryptonite locks and this thread is scaring me.
You bike to Bridgeport Village? I didn\’t know it was possible…if you make it in one piece they should give you a solid gold rack.
The real problem with bike theft is not locks, or cables, or racks, it is a lack of citizenship. I bet 75% of daylight thefts are witnessed by somebody. Somebody who was too frozen-up to even say boo.
http://www.neistat.com/movies/bikethief/index.htm
Don\’t think this is just a New York thing. A UO gradstudent did the same thing on campus. Only one person called campus security.
Right you are Coyote. One of the news stations did an undercover-out in the open- phony bike theft operation in broad daylight. And they would only break or cut the lock (same news bike)when people were passing by. All the \”thief\” had to say was that he lost his key, and that was enough for 100% of the passersby. I believe it was staged at different Portland downtown locales. Scary huh???
Ken, one attempted bike theft at PSU involved a thief using the bike itself as leverage to break the u-lock. The thief failed– the u-lock held, but the frame got bent. The only way i know of to prevent your frame from being used to leverage the lock is to use two u-locks, both through the frame (And not one through the wheels, as some here are advising).
Other than that, you\’re right about using two different types of locks to slow a thief down. Unless you have a bike worth the time and effort for a pro thief, the meth heads will all move on to the cable-locked bikes.
\”Just one note – don\’t forget to remove your lights, too!\”
And your computer, and your frame pump, and your helmet, and your saddle bag. . . .
I work downtown and there are bike racks inside our parking garage. The one time I left my cheap-o pleanet bike lights on my bike there, they got ripped off. Nevertheless, not a day goes by that I don\’t see at least one bike sitting in the rack with all sorts of expensive unsecured doo-dads on it, including helmets and gloves sitting on rear racks. More than once I have seen bikes themselves completely unsecured (not always the same bike, either). I have to admit, I have been tempted to move those bikes to a safe, undisclosed location and leave a note saying \”Do you know where your bike is?\”
Instead of buying a bike specific lock and chain, go to Home Depot or Ace Hardware and buy 2 feet of tow chain. It takes about five minutes to cut through it with a high-speed angle grinder. To keep it from beat up your paint, slide an innertube over it, free behind Citybikes. My favorite lock is a round stainless steel Master lock.
I\’m pretty sure that the higher end bike chains take more than 5 minutes to cut with an angle grinder.
Biking to Bridgeport IS scary. I\’ve never seen people so careless in their quest to get somewhere. It seems like so long ago that the REI was the only thing back there and nobody else drove on that road.
I am willing to test your theory, rixter.
SoldSecure tests locks and chains by cutting them, and then rates them. I really, really doubt that their gold-rated locks can be defeated in five minutes. I think it\’s more on the order of 10-20 minutes, but I\’m only going by memory.
Here, somebody tried to cut a New York Fahgettaboudit chain with an angle grinder, took him the most frustrating 20 minutes of his life:
http://www.bikeforums.net/showthread.php?t=228484
Spencer (#20), thanks for the heads up on the trolley tracks area. When I hear about bikes being stolen from PSU I wish that the owners would be real specific about where it was stolen from because I often eat my lunch and spend time between classes outside. I\’d totally be happy to sit in a spot where I would have a visual line on high crime rack areas. I have no problem confronting someone with cable cutters. If they claim it is their bike they can explain it to campus security and the police…
Thanks everyone else for the suggestions. I\’m definately going with multi-locks. From what I have been reading online this afternoon it looks like it is good to mix the types of locks. Since I already have two U-locks I may just throw both those AND a cable lock on it. I don\’t think the bike would be worth that much trouble.
I\’ve been paying a lot more attention to how people lock their bikes up as I am getting ready to start to commute this summer and it amazes me how many people have these super thin cable locks that look like you could cut through them with scissors. The one that took the cake was a cable lock job that went through the bike rack, but then the person just locked it around their handlbars and forgot to put it through their frame. All someone had to do was lift the cable over the handlebars and they could have ridden off.
More how not to lock your bike courtesy of Crank My Chain!, BikeTV, and Hal from Bicycle Habitat in NYC.
http://www.pdxk.com/crankmychain/2007/04/hal-grades-your-bike-locking.html
I hate to say it, because nobody, including me, wants more red tape or expenses, but this is another reason to have bicycle license/registration. That way anyone could call the cops when you see someone with bolt cutters without any hesitation – if it\’s your bike, you have the registration – no problem. If you don\’t have the registration in your wallet, then it\’s grand theft cyclo – automatic fine or jail time.
Just imagine – for ten bucks you can take a test that says you know that stop lights are stop lights and that you should ride WITH the flow of traffic and whatever else – you register your bike\’s serial number for the data base that helps you track stolen bikes – and you have proof of ownership with you whenever there\’s an issue.
Of course somewhere along the line there will be helmet issues, or insurance issues, and a lot of folks will be against it. Nevermind.
We were discussing the most effective way to be able to recover your bike on the Zoobomb forum and came to the conclusion that writing down your bike\’s (or bikes\’) serial # and keep it on your person is probably the best thing you can do.
Agreed SKiDmark…I took all the info on the bike I commute on and keep it on the back of a business card for quick reference. Make/model/serial#, also I list all the extra stuff that I put on it. Hopefully I never have to use it but I like knowing I have all the info on hand just in case.
Here\’s the deal: If someone cases your ride and wants it enough, there\’s a chance it can be had. All you can do is limit that chance. I use a Kryto chain lock with mini disc lock. It stands a good chance a thief will pass it up for a bike with less security. If they do go for it, it WILL take longer to get. Chains move and have smaller spaces, so leverage is difficult and even if a link is cut it needs to be bent open. This is hard to do. As far as the weight goes, and I\’ve heard lots of people say it\’s nuts to carry around a lock this bulky, you would gladly wish you could go back and happily opted for one over a u-lock/cable(should be banned) if your bike got jacked.
I don\’t leave my bike at the end of the block or across the street, away from where I am visiting. If it\’s night time and your not in front of a busy establishment, you better hold your breath. It\’s a funny thing, as unfortunate as it might be, I feel safer when I see a bike poorly locked while I lock mine up. I know which one the thief will attack.
does anyone know the effectiveness of those handcuff looking locks.
When I steal bikes, I usually bring with me 10 gallons of liquid nitrogen, an acetylene torch, about half a pound of C-4 plastic explosives with blasting caps, a 36-volt angle grinder, 20-pound sledge, and hydraulic press. Cops usually just smile and wave when I splash acid on the sidewalk and blow a 2-foot crater into the sidewalk.
Cheers!
😀
for Ken:
I can\’t resist the oppotunity to offer you more info and a shameless plug — PSU has a Bicycle Co-op on campus where you can also lock your bike during daytime hours (7am – 6:30pm). Not only can you lock your bike to one of our racks with as many u-locks as you like, but you can stay focused in class knowing your bike is also locked inside a covered, fenced, and secure area just behind the Bike Co-op.
For more detailed info check here:
I\’d also like to mention that we at PSU recognize that bike theft is a real problem on campus and we are continuing to improve our efforts to deter bike theft. We have both long term and short term projects in the works (including a brand new bike parking facility scheduled to open next year), but we can always use more help and constructive criticism. If you would like to get involved in bike issues like these at PSU, please don\’t hesitate to contact me.
Cheers,
Ian
bikeshop@pdx.edu