Great Lakes - Ohio State this fall - I'm facing the possibility of not being able to have a bike...

I'm headed off to high education this fall, courtesy of Ohio State, and the more I read, the more afraid I become that I will not be able to [safely and securely] keep my bike with me. My dorm most likely won't have a bike room, and, on top of that, I've read that dorm policies prohibit keeping bikes inside the dorm rooms. Some people do get away with it, but I know someone personally who has been forced to remove his bike from the dorm.

So guys, help me out. Does anyone else go to OSU deal with this issue? Are there facilities I could keep my bike in securely? Does anyone know anyone that I could talk to personally that might know anything about this issue?

I'm also looking at joining one of OSU's club bike teams. Do they have facilities or somewhere else where I could store my bike?

Thanks guys!

You could always put together a beater fixie. If someone tried to steal that, they'd prob. fly over the bars!

Yeah but I want to be training and riding my race bike as much as possible...I already have a Hardrock I could use for commuting.

This came up recently in another thread about the Purdue parking and bicycle Nazis. I had a thought though. How bout rent a safe storage space, I noticed several last time I was at purdue, I am sure OSU has them too. A very small one a mile or two away from your room, then store your road/nice bike in it, and ride your beater back and forth.

You could always put together a beater fixie. If someone tried to steal that, they'd prob. fly over the bars!

Worked for me. Someone stole mine once. I found it a block away.

lolz.

Move out of the dorms as soon as you can!

Move out of the dorms as soon as you can!

x2

I wonder how much a small storage space would cost though.. any thoughts?

When I was at UIC, I had the same problem.

I took it to my dorm room, took off the front wheel, and stored it under my bed. If you have bed risers, it works great.

As long as you look like you know what you are doing, look important while holding your bike, and don't ride it indoors, you should be fine and no one will question you. I was questioned once and just told the guy that I had to fix a tire in my room real fast.

Remember, they don't need an explanation, just an excuse. They could care less why you're doing something -- they just want something to cover their ass if their boss questions them.

Small storage space would be around $20 a month. I'd say you could store it at my house near campus, but I don't know you, so I'm not giving you a key. lol. Either way, OSU doesn't seem to be a very bike friendly place. I don't see a lot of people riding when I drive down High...

Go to http://yaybikes.com/transitional/ . Post your message there. There are some OSU folks who might be able to help you out. Contrary to another reply. OSU has a big biking community. You just don't see them riding on High st. in campus because they have better alternatives. Not to mention that Columbus has a better than average bikepath system. And continues to add to it. Also they came out this year with a bike users map that lists the good roads to ride on and ones to avoid that are free in almost every bike shop in the city.

tons of people riding on campus -- there are tons of bike racks outside of the dorms!

Go to http://yaybikes.com/transitional/ . Post your message there. There are some OSU folks who might be able to help you out. Contrary to another reply. OSU has a big biking community. You just don't see them riding on High st. in campus because they have better alternatives. Not to mention that Columbus has a better than average bikepath system. And continues to add to it. Also they came out this year with a bike users map that lists the good roads to ride on and ones to avoid that are free in almost every bike shop in the city.

That may be. I just said what I myself have seen. It wasn't stated as fact.

I wouldn't worry about keeping it in your room. The RAs have much bigger fish to fry, and as long as you aren't smuggling in booze and your bike at the same time you should be fine. I used the same under-the-bed method as JPradun my freshman year, and no one seemed to care.

No matter what, do not lock up your nice road bike outside the dorms overnight. Unless you want it stripped/vandalized/peed on.

As long as you look like you know what you are doing, look important while holding your bike, and don't ride it indoors, you should be fine and no one will question you. I was questioned once and just told the guy that I had to fix a tire in my room real fast.


Looking like you knew what you were doing always worked fine for me. I just carried my bike to my dorm room. Lots of other people had their bikes chained up outside to bike racks, but I just walked right on by and into the dorm with mine. I don't even recall anyone ever questioning me.

+1 on Yay Bikes!

The Olentangy Bike Path runs right through part of campus by the 2 towers and will take you downtown and points north. I see a number of bikes on High but we do see a lot on the surrounding side streets. Michigan and Pennsylvania Avenues are a good alternative to Neil-especially with the amount of congestion due to the 315 construction. Head east on 1st from either of those two and south on Park to get into the Arena District and Downtown. Third and Fourth tend to be good routes as well depending on where you are headed and time of day.

Buck ID gets you free rides on COTA, which has bike racks. Third Hand Co-Op is an easy ride from campus along 5th Avenue for a campus beater or help with repairs.

Biking in Columbus is gaining ground and campus is a great place to be for it.

If you're really into training and racing, check out the OSU cycling team. They've got to be pretty knowledgeable on how/where to store nice bikes.

OSU Cycling Yahoo Group (http://sports.groups.yahoo.com/group/OSUCyclingClub/)

My son just graduated from Ohio State. I built a beater for him and it was useful for all 5 years. I wouldn't bring a good bike under any conditions.

Frank