Commuting - Walmart is biker friendly

I ride my bike to the local Walmart 2-3 times a week, and always park it inside, behind the grocery carts. There's always a Walmart employee giving out the carts to the customers as they come in, and they've always been glad to watch my bike, which I attach to one of the carts with a U-lock. I did have one Wal-mart employee tell me I couldn't do it, but I told her I own 100 shares of Wal-mart, and was therefore an owner, and as an owner, I could do as I pleased. She gave me a blank stare, and walked away. I don't think she had ever heard that line before. I also take my bike into the local shopping mall, and walk it to the stores I want to visit, parking the bike directly outside, in front of the store. Then I can watch the bike while I'm in the store. I have never had anyone tell me not to do it.

My local Wal-Mart has a bike rack by where the guys push the carts into the building. Also I must commend Publix grocery; There are 4 Publix in my immediate area and all of them have bike racks by the front door.

FYI: Stop by the Wal-Mart bike section and you may very likely find some Topeak stuff marketed under Wal-Mart's Next brand.

:D I once rode all the way to the sports department.I would have made it all the way back out,But had to stop and pay for a roll of fishing line.:beer:

Our WalMart does have a bike rack - located far away from the front door and traffic where everything could be easily stolen. I have never had to take my bike into WM, and don't know what their reaction might be - but I would suspect in this heavily biked town that it would be fine.

My local grocery also has a bike rack located way far away - I and my wife just ride our bikes inside the "air gap" type of front door and place our bikes against the wall inside - never had any questions asked.

Originally posted by trmcgeehan
I did have one Wal-mart employee tell me I couldn't do it, but I told her I own 100 shares of Wal-mart, and was therefore an owner, and as an owner, I could do as I pleased.

Great line! :)

i take my bike in most stores too, never had any objections but you can see sometimes that they want to say some thing but they are to stunded :D :D if they dont like it i can always shop elsewhere :mad: :mad:

I take my bikes into stores all the time (when there is no conveinent/safe outdoor parking). I never ask, I just do it. Sometimes I get funny or curious looks, but I have never been challenged. Its amusing to me how people to not try to stop you from doing anything/going anywhere as long as you act like you belong or its not abnormal.

If I were challenged or told I could not park it inside, I would either (1) tell them I'd simply take my business elsewhere; or (2) ask them if they will agree to be liable for any loss or damages to my bike while it waits outside.

dave

Simply taking the bike inside is an interesting notion. I hadn't thought of it. I often complain that businesses in my neck of the woods don't generally have bike racks. Maybe a few of us walking our bikes up and down the aisles would give them the idea to install good racks.

Maybe we could call it "Critical Shopping":p

I tried the "take my business elsewhere" argument at a convenience store once when the clerk told me I couldn't bring my bike inside, but I was dealing with an employee so it didn't work. She just laughed and said, "Fine, go somewhere else."

Then maybe try to apply more pressure.

Where I live we have a local bike club of about 150 people. One day, one of my friends that is an avid commuter tried to go through the drive in teller at the local credit union. He was told that he could not do that on a bike and they refused to serve him. Well, it just happened that this guy was also the public relations officer in the bike club. He wrote a serious, but friendly letter to the credit union expaining that he was a customer like anyone else, and that he had just as much right to 'drive' his bike through the drive thru as anyone else. He asked the credit union to clairify why they would not allow bikes and suggested that in the absense of any good reason, they make their employees aware that bikes WERE allowed.

His letter was very well written and businesslike. It made no overt threats, but certainly getting such a letter from a club representing hundreds of people can be threatening in its own way. A week later, he and the club received a polite and apologetic response from the credit union and he has not had a problem since.

You might take the same tactic with the store.

Dave

Originally posted by hayneda
I take my bikes into stores all the time (when there is no conveinent/safe outdoor parking). I never ask, I just do it. .

dave

If the store doesn't have a rack, I use that as an excuse....If they have a rack, I tell them this bike is to expenisive to lock up, and it doesn't leave my sight.....usually I don't get much hassle.

My local Kroger (S. Hairston Rd. Stone Mountain, Georgia, Atlanta area) has a sign in the parking lot: "No bicycles or skateboards."

A security guard told me I had to park my bike off the property (and you know how big the property is, with the parking lot covering it.) Never mind the rule is for kids, not 43 year-old customers.

KROGER, ATLANTA

I couldn't ride in my local Walmart if I tried. The people with shopping carts stroll around there like they own the place. They have no regard for people, other carts, kids, let alone a bicycle. Kind of funny. Today, I rode by. The road to Walmart was backed up about 1/4 mile. Then, the traffic mysteriously vanishes after you pass Walmart. Walmart is the fourth axis of evil.:crash:

However, they do have a bike rack. I am greatful for that. :)

I was just told that for safety reasons, it is "against WalMart policy" to allow commuter bikes inside the store. I was allowed to leave it near the service counter, but was told that they "would not be responsible for it". So you can bring your dog into Petco, but...

The local Wal-Marts around here won't let you bring a messenger bag, backpack, daypack, panniers, seatbag, or handlebar bag into the store with you. I tried to walk in once with my daypack on my back and was told to leave it by the carts. When I got back to pick it up the employee was nowhere to be found and my daypack was laying there unattended. Wal-Mart is sexist, you can carry a 10 gallon purse into the store, you can carry a diaper bag into the store, but you can't (as a man) carry any bag into the store. And you can't leave your stuff anywhere secure.

If I'm going to go to Wal-Mart then I drive the car. I like walmart, but I don't and won't bicycle there.

As to the drive-thru banking, I heard once the argument was that it was an insurance liability issue, same as if you walked up to the drive-in lane. That argument sort of dies when you ride up on a motorcycle.

I loathe Wal-Mart. Disregarding the economic damage they do to local businesses and the negative effect they have on manufacturing in the US (http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/walmart/)......

They sell cheap crap and their customer service is horrid.

Treebound has a great point. That's one issue that might be worth a threatening letter from an attorney. Sexism isn't correct, regardless of the gender of the victim. I'm not saying "SUE 'EM", but a letter from an attorney letting them know that they are opening themselves up for a possible lawsuit from someone less reasonable than you might not be a bad idea.

And I never did understand the "safety" argument when banning bicycles. Have they actually seen how their customers drive their cars and pilot the shopping carts? I'd think that one guy wheeling his bike in to secure it to something solid would be the least of their safety worries.

Seriously - if at all possible, I avoid Wal-Mart like the plague.

I work at Kroger here in Cookville, TN. They don't have a no bikes on the property rule but they have a no bikes in the store rule. They force me to lock it up to a bench outside the main entrance 'cause if it was in the store while I was working and something happened to it, they could be liable. But if it's outside, they can't be held to anything. I hate that place.... so wish I could quit but finding a job in this town is close to impossible.

Way to go on the six year old thread! :beer:

Also, to all those with the inflated sense of entitlement, don't be an idiot, buy a lock for your bike. You wouldn't bring your motorcycle or dog inside a Walmart or other business, so what makes you a big shot when an employee, who's most likely doing as they're told, asks you to leave it outside?

i don't ever want to ride my bike to wal-mart...i don't shop there

So one of the tens of thousands of walmarts out there was friendly 6 years go.. good to know :thumb:
They should put a warning when replying to old threads "are you sure replying to this old thread from a different age would be better then making a new one?"

My wife said when she gets a trike she wants to ride around walmart.
Who would stop her? They'd think it was a weird wheel chair and not know what to say at all. We'll see just how bike friendly they are.

When ever I ride to an Albertson's Supermarket here in Orange County CA. I take my bike right in with me and wheel it around while I do my shopping. I always get greated, and receive service with a smile. Way to go Albertsons.

The way i see it, wheeling my bike around the supermarket is no different than wheeling a cart around.

So one of the tens of thousands of walmarts out there was friendly 6 years go.. good to know :thumb:
They should put a warning when replying to old threads "are you sure replying to this old thread from a different age would be better then making a new one?"


Sorry, but I certainly don't think creating a new thread is better than replying to an existing one, regardless of the age. It's just OT whining anyway.

I think some people's sense of entitlement is way out of control to expect you bike to go everywhere with you.

Of course, I couldn't care less about a Wal-Mart. I didn't buy from them six years ago, nor today.

I told her I own 100 shares of Wal-mart, and was therefore an owner, and as an owner, I could do as I pleased.

Pretty sure that's not the case. Try walking out with $500 worth of merchandise and see what happens. You: Well you see, your honor, I DO own the company, therefore I was only stealing from myself.
Judge: First, you don't own the company and second, you stole from about 200,000 other investors and you're going to prison. Also, you can't have your bike in my courtroom, please lock it up on the rack outside next time.

When people post new threads they are told to use the search function. When people dig up some old thread from the grave they are told to start a new thread instead.

I don't shop at Wal-Mart.

Replying to an old thread doesn't make sense, because the person you're replying to has most likely moved on. At the very least, they've moved on from that issue.

Starting a new thread to ask a question that's already been asked doesn't make sense, unless you have reason to believe that the answers have changed.

Starting a new thread to rant about something that's frequently ranted about is a wee bit selfish.

Abusing minimum-wage retail workers who are only doing their job is the act of a bully.

Shopping at Wal-Mart is cutting your own throat (http://www.jibjab.com/originals/big_box_mart).

What's with all the WalMart shills?

Of course, I couldn't care less about a Wal-Mart. I didn't buy from them six years ago, nor today.

+1

Replying to an old thread doesn't make sense, because the person you're replying to has most likely moved on. At the very least, they've moved on from that issue.

Starting a new thread to ask a question that's already been asked doesn't make sense, unless you have reason to believe that the answers have changed.

Starting a new thread to rant about something that's frequently ranted about is a wee bit selfish.

Abusing minimum-wage retail workers who are only doing their job is the act of a bully.

Shopping at Wal-Mart is cutting your own throat (http://www.jibjab.com/originals/big_box_mart).

We should archive the entire forum.

Old threads are not worth conversing about. New threads have a 95% probability of having been discussed before.

There is no logical choice save for searching those archives. The only forums that shall remain open are: Foo, for casual chatting and Road Bike Racing, for new race results. Any Commuting threads that are about anything other than "first commutes" will be deleted. Only first commutes are original by definition.

:D

Based on Walmart's track record...the one in the OP has probably been abandoned and a NEW Super Center has disgraced the landscape a couple of miles away.

Aaron:)

Here people would wonder wtf you were doing with you bike indoors, and then I am sure the staff of a the business would ask you to leave, if not call security.

They should put a warning when replying to old threads "are you sure replying to this old thread from a different age would be better then making a new one?" No, but maybe better thAn making a new one.

I work as a service technician at the Wal-Mart auto center. I bring my bike inside everyday, and line it up against the gate that separates the customers from the auto bays.

I usually end up walking it out through the store at the end of the day. Our store has one of those far-from-the-front-door bike racks. The local Meijer stores, however, have one rack by every entrance. I buy groceries there =c)>

You have a right to loathe Walmart and there are many Americans feel the same. Unfortunately, most of these are people who dont shop at Walmart and dont need to (I'm not saying you fall into this either of these categories).

I would like to highlight a couple of things about Walmart that invariably gets lost in the media frenzy: they have played a key role in drastically improving the quality of life for Americans who need it the most, those with low incomes, as well as a large chunk of others who are not "poor" but like to stretch their dollar as much as they can. btw this is the way a market economy (as ours is) works: if you can get away with charging a high price, you do. If you choose to attract business by charging low prices, that's your choice as a business owner - but no business can force consumers to buy from them. Consumers buy because they see value, perceived or not.

Yes low prices are small consolation to those that lose their jobs because of outsourcing, but it is incorrect and unfair to blame Walmart solely or largely for this. We have been outsourcing for much longer than Walmart has been in existence. And manufacturing has been in a steady decline for a very long time as well, again much before Walmart came into the picture. In the past you could earn a very comfortable living with little education or skills - that's quickly disappearing and again that's across the board, not just at Walmart and it's certainly not a new or recent phenomenon

FD: I shop occasionally at Walmart and I think their products are great value

We are now outsourcing white collar jobs like IT, research etc, and again there is/was a huge outcry that we were losing Intellectual Property etc, but the fact remains that you always outsource the "low-value", repetitive, mundane tasks and concentrate on the value-adding tasks such as conceptual design, ideas, marketing - and that's what we are good at.

Again that's small consolation for those who've lost their jobs it's what keeps us strong and competitive as a nation.

Just my thoughts


I loathe Wal-Mart. Disregarding the economic damage they do to local businesses and the negative effect they have on manufacturing in the US (http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/walmart/)......

They sell cheap crap and their customer service is horrid.

Treebound has a great point. That's one issue that might be worth a threatening letter from an attorney. Sexism isn't correct, regardless of the gender of the victim. I'm not saying "SUE 'EM", but a letter from an attorney letting them know that they are opening themselves up for a possible lawsuit from someone less reasonable than you might not be a bad idea.

And I never did understand the "safety" argument when banning bicycles. Have they actually seen how their customers drive their cars and pilot the shopping carts? I'd think that one guy wheeling his bike in to secure it to something solid would be the least of their safety worries.

Seriously - if at all possible, I avoid Wal-Mart like the plague.

I loathe Wal-Mart.
They sell cheap crap and their customer service is horrid.
Seriously - if at all possible, I avoid Wal-Mart like the plague.
+1

I've never had a problem finding a place to lock up my bike outside any business' in our area.

Great line! :)

+1

That's HILLARIOUS.

I used to ride around my wally world all the time with my buddies at insane hours of the night...but we would do it on office chairs we got from their furniture dept. They didn't care for this much. My new goal is to see if I can ride in, walk a couple isles with my bike, get something, go through the self checkout thing and ride out. Wonder if it'd be possible. That'd be a real laugh for sure.

When people post new threads they are told to use the search function. When people dig up some old thread from the grave they are told to start a new thread instead.

I don't shop at Wal-Mart.

+1,000,000!!!!

...on both points...

You have a right to loathe Walmart and there are many Americans feel the same. Unfortunately, most of these are people who dont shop at Walmart and dont need to (I'm not saying you fall into this either of these categories).

I would like to highlight a couple of things about Walmart that invariably gets lost in the media frenzy: they have played a key role in drastically improving the quality of life for Americans who need it the most, those with low incomes, as well as a large chunk of others who are not "poor" but like to stretch their dollar as much as they can. btw this is the way a market economy (as ours is) works: if you can get away with charging a high price, you do. If you choose to attract business by charging low prices, that's your choice as a business owner - but no business can force consumers to buy from them. Consumers buy because they see value, perceived or not.


Ok, I guess I'm going to get this sent to P&R....

1) No, I don't "need" to shop at wal-mart. Honestly though, I'm having trouble understanding why anyone does. Most of what I buy comes from ebay, craigslist, or some etailer -- all of which arrive at my door at a lower price and probably higher quality than what I could get at Wal-Mart.

2) Wal-Mart isn't truly selling at a "lower price". For me, that would imply they're selling the same item for less money. What they're typically doing instead, is manufacturing a lower quality item and then selling that at a lower price. Not the same thing.


I'm simply not buying that they're improving anyone's quality of life. They're systematically eliminating HUGE numbers of working class jobs in this country. They're eliminating full-time retail jobs with benefits, by not making them available to their own employees, and by running retailers who were providing it out of business. They're eliminating tens of thousands of manufacturing jobs by offshoring all production.

No, they're not the only ones, but they're a very major contributor. Imagine how many manufacturing jobs Wal-Mart creates in countries around the world. These are all jobs that aren't available in our country. These are jobs needed by the very people who now "need" low quality, low price goods.

When we eliminated the farming jobs, some moved to the factories. When we eliminated the factory jobs, some moved to knowledge jobs. The problem is, not all people are cut out for these jobs, for one reason or another. They might not have any other options. Of course, globalization is removing the knowledge jobs now as well, so everyone better hope they either have a service job, or are REALLY good at what they do. In the end, it's the people at the bottom, without the mobility and flexibility that get screwed every time.

Ok, I guess I'm going to get this sent to P&R....

1) No, I don't "need" to shop at wal-mart. Honestly though, I'm having trouble understanding why anyone does. Most of what I buy comes from ebay, craigslist, or some etailer -- all of which arrive at my door at a lower price and probably higher quality than what I could get at Wal-Mart.

2) Wal-Mart isn't truly selling at a "lower price". For me, that would imply they're selling the same item for less money. What they're typically doing instead, is manufacturing a lower quality item and then selling that at a lower price. Not the same thing.


I'm simply not buying that they're improving anyone's quality of life. They're systematically eliminating HUGE numbers of working class jobs in this country. They're eliminating full-time retail jobs with benefits, by not making them available to their own employees, and by running retailers who were providing it out of business. They're eliminating tens of thousands of manufacturing jobs by offshoring all production.

No, they're not the only ones, but they're a very major contributor. Imagine how many manufacturing jobs Wal-Mart creates in countries around the world. These are all jobs that aren't available in our country. These are jobs needed by the very people who now "need" low quality, low price goods.

When we eliminated the farming jobs, some moved to the factories. When we eliminated the factory jobs, some moved to knowledge jobs. The problem is, not all people are cut out for these jobs, for one reason or another. They might not have any other options. Of course, globalization is removing the knowledge jobs now as well, so everyone better hope they either have a service job, or are REALLY good at what they do. In the end, it's the people at the bottom, without the mobility and flexibility that get screwed every time.

Yup...pretty much. Wonder if some day having a job will be so rare some day here that it will make you like a celebrity or something. Like you have paporatzi [however the hell you spell that...] follow you around and your poster on teenage girl's walls cuz you're in IT or something.

Anyway...enough weird brain spooge...I saw a show on tv about wally world once that really put it all in perspective. I think it was referenced in this thread once already. I highly recommend checking it out. Saw one about ebay that was 2405982039582345 times cooler, too...if you see either on while clicking around, check them out.

The Wal-Mart here in Lincoln is not too good for being bicycle friendly. There is a bike rack next to the cart push-in, but I don't trust the employees to not mess with my bike seeing how they all look like child molesters :/ There is an old guy that used to work there named Howard that would watch my bike for me, but he no longer works there and since then I have not ridden my bike to Wal-Mart.

Wal-Mart is sexist, you can carry a 10 gallon purse into the store, you can carry a diaper bag into the store, but you can't (as a man) carry any bag into the store. And you can't leave your stuff anywhere secure.


Tell them it's your purse and your diaper bag and you'll have none of this anti-cross-dressing bias! I defy you to find a Wal-mart employee who'd still be willing to be in your presence, most of them don't care if you are going to steal everything and blow up the building as long as you wait until they leave for the day.

"Wal-mart, the only store where employees universally hate their employer." I think it should be their new slogan, it's more accurate than the drivel about low prices.

I've took my folding bike inside the Asian Food Center by my house. Almost nobody even looked at it oddly.

"Wal-mart, the only store where employees universally hate their employer." I think it should be their new slogan, it's more accurate than the drivel about low prices.

You got it wrong. They don't have employees. They are all "associates".

I hate that place.... so wish I could quit but finding a job in this town is close to impossible.

Serfdom was abolished a long time ago, and it is a big planet.

Ok, I guess I'm going to get this sent to P&R....

1) No, I don't "need" to shop at wal-mart. Honestly though, I'm having trouble understanding why anyone does. Most of what I buy comes from ebay, craigslist, or some etailer -- all of which arrive at my door at a lower price and probably higher quality than what I could get at Wal-Mart.

<snip>
I'm simply not buying that they're improving anyone's quality of life. They're systematically eliminating HUGE numbers of working class jobs in this country. They're eliminating full-time retail jobs with benefits, by not making them available to their own employees, and by running retailers who were providing it out of business. They're eliminating tens of thousands of manufacturing jobs by offshoring all production.


The person who castigates Wall-Mart for eliminating full-time retail jobs proudly proclaims that he buys almost everything online. Hmmmmm.

I went to my local Walmart the other day and saw someone had parked a bike inside the store by the carts. I usually lock up to trash can on the sidewalk of the plaza.

I'm a history buff so I'm just hanging out here on this ancient thread. Wow soak up all this history - a six yeard old thread! :)

We don't have walmart where I live and I'm actually pretty glad we don't.

I would like to highlight a couple of things about Walmart that invariably gets lost in the media frenzy: they have played a key role in drastically improving the quality of life for Americans who need it the most, those with low incomes, as well as a large chunk of others who are not "poor" but like to stretch their dollar as much as they can.

I suppose that all depends on how you define "quality of life". It's a term that seems to get redefined periodically, much as "unemployment" gets redefined to mean (variously) people without jobs, people who are looking for jobs, people who are looking for jobs but haven't been looking more than a few months, etc. I think it's very hard to make the argument that the cheap retail economy of which Wal-Mart is the prime exemplar, really represents an improvement in "quality of life", unless you define a high-quality life as one with easy and cheap access to non-essentials, and increasingly higher costs for essential goods and services. You can go into Wal-Mart and buy a DVD player for under $30; when you consider that DVD players didn't even exist 20 years ago, that's really an amazing thing. But is it a good thing? Does it really add to your "quality of life"? Sure, it's nice to watch movies on DVD, but when the cheap retail economy that made that $30 DVD player possible is also undermining your wages, is it a good thing? When the price of things that you really need, like health care and heating oil and education and (increasingly) food, goes higher, where's your "quality of life" then?


btw this is the way a market economy (as ours is) works: if you can get away with charging a high price, you do. If you choose to attract business by charging low prices, that's your choice as a business owner - but no business can force consumers to buy from them. Consumers buy because they see value, perceived or not.

That's not entirely true; I suggest you google the term "company store" to learn a little history. When Big Box Mart comes to town and squeezes out all the independent competition, consumers are forced to buy from them. When people suddenly don't have anywhere else to work but Big Box Mart, and are now making Big Box Mart minimum wage, they can't afford to shop anywhere else anyway.


Yes low prices are small consolation to those that lose their jobs because of outsourcing, but it is incorrect and unfair to blame Walmart solely or largely for this. We have been outsourcing for much longer than Walmart has been in existence. And manufacturing has been in a steady decline for a very long time as well, again much before Walmart came into the picture. In the past you could earn a very comfortable living with little education or skills - that's quickly disappearing and again that's across the board, not just at Walmart and it's certainly not a new or recent phenomenon

I agree that Walmart doesn't own the problem; they're certainly among the most rapacious of its profiteers, though. The reason that Walmart comes up in these discussions is that a)they're blatant, and b)they're visible, and c)they touch the consumer directly. I can't make the decisions about how GizmoManufacturerX chooses vendors; I can make a direct consumer choice to shop at my LBS rather than give Walmart a dime of my business. I can also, by the way, make the decision to do without that $30 DVD player, or any DVD player -- to not purchase things that I really don't need.


Again that's small consolation for those who've lost their jobs it's what keeps us strong and competitive as a nation.

So, in what ways exactly are we "strong" and "competitive"?

Then maybe try to apply more pressure.

Where I live we have a local bike club of about 150 people. One day, one of my friends that is an avid commuter tried to go through the drive in teller at the local credit union. He was told that he could not do that on a bike and they refused to serve him. Well, it just happened that this guy was also the public relations officer in the bike club. He wrote a serious, but friendly letter to the credit union expaining that he was a customer like anyone else, and that he had just as much right to 'drive' his bike through the drive thru as anyone else. He asked the credit union to clairify why they would not allow bikes and suggested that in the absense of any good reason, they make their employees aware that bikes WERE allowed.

His letter was very well written and businesslike. It made no overt threats, but certainly getting such a letter from a club representing hundreds of people can be threatening in its own way. A week later, he and the club received a polite and apologetic response from the credit union and he has not had a problem since.

You might take the same tactic with the store.

Dave

Is there anyway to get a copy of said letter? I would love to have that handy to mail to some places that give riders a hard time.

Sounds like an awesome letter. I mean you can remove the guys name and address and such if needed.

I had a an employee kick me out of walmart for trying to bring a bike in (no bike racks). I tried to explain that it was no different than pushing a shopping cart. I was not obnoixious just quitly pushing my bike in. So I went next door to Kmart which had a bike rack, i made sure to tell the employee thats where I was going too. He probably didnt care though.