Northern California - Stolen Bikes - Mission District, SF

Well...this sucks! Some scumbag broke into my garage between 2:00 am and 7:00 am this morning and stole my (5) bikes.

So, I'm posting a plea for you good folks to keep your eyes open and let me know if you happen to hear of them.

The bikes are:

Waterford Adventure Cycle

Waterford SR-33

Ron Cooper - 30 yrs old-repainted, no decals; with Ultegra group, moustache bars, etc.

Fuji Touring Touring Series V - 25 yrs old-repainted, no decals, Fuji head badge; Shimano der's,
Sugino crank, IRD cantis, etc.

CIOCC - Blue, chipped paint, mongrolized components - it's a trainer bike

Below are pics of all but the CIOCC. As you can see, they're pretty unique looking.

They were stolen out of my locked garage in the mission district of SF. A neighbor confirmed the door was closed at 2:00 am. When I went down at 7:00, the garage door was open and...no bikes. I have an automatic garage door opener with a keyed switch on the outside set into the door jamb. What the police said probably happened was the a**hole squirted water into the lock which shorted the switch and opened the door. They said this technique has been used a lot lately. So, FYI, if you have this kind of garage door setup, better take some steps to secure it.

What more can I say, if anyone hears anything about these bikes, I'd sure like to know.

Thanks.

Sorry to hear about it. Make sure to check the flea markets and pawn shops.

Sorry to read this. All thieves suck. See previous advice on stolen bikes (http://www.bikeforums.net/showthread.php?593477-My-bike-Stolen-Newer-rider-advice-what-to-buy&p=9841244&viewfull=1#post9841244)

Good luck,

BR

Burn thieves, burn. Good luck finding your bikes and I'll keep my eyes peeled.

Major bummer. I'll keep an eye out for your bikes to the south of you.

This part of the officer's explanation just bugs me, though:

What the police said probably happened was the a**hole squirted water into the lock which shorted the switch and opened the door. They said this technique has been used a lot lately. So, FYI, if you have this kind of garage door setup, better take some steps to secure it.


I was lying in bed last night and was thinking that an electrical short would be similar to a power outage, in which case, the door should not be automatically opened or unlocked.

On our auto garage door (with outdoor key pad) to open the door during a power outage you have to pull a cord on the inside of the garage that releases the door from the gizmo that connects it to the electrically operated chain-track combo responsible for opening/closing the door. Without power or without releasing the door mechanically, the door does not open. Shorting out the electrical process should have no impact on this mechanical process other than not being able to open the door.

If this is the case with your door, then an alternate explanation of how the thief or thieves got to your bikes is needed. Just a thought.

stan

Major bummer. I'll keep an eye out for your bikes to the south of you.

This part of the officer's explanation just bugs me, though:


I was lying in bed last night and was thinking that an electrical short would be similar to a power outage, in which case, the door should not be automatically opened or unlocked.

On our auto garage door (with outdoor key pad) to open the door during a power outage you have to pull a cord on the inside of the garage that releases the door from the gizmo that connects it to the electrically operated chain-track combo responsible for opening/closing the door. Without power or without releasing the door mechanically, the door does not open. Shorting out the electrical process should have no impact on this mechanical process other than not being able to open the door.

If this is the case with your door, then an alternate explanation of how the thief or thieves got to your bikes is needed. Just a thought.

stan

Sorry for your loss. I agree with poster number two with the flea market idea. I been hearing a lot about stolen bike ends up at Laney flea market or coliseum by High street.

Allow me to shed some light on the shorting switch subject. I may not be the best but I do have a little electrical/electronic background. There is two type of short. One is where the short is between the hot and ground which will cause an overload and most likely blow a breaker/fuse and shutting off power. In this situation, that mechanical lock on the lead screw will still be engage and door still shut.

The other short is across a contact such as a relay or switch. The OP just happen to have a theif shorted out the contact that open the garage door. Basically, it's similar to opening the cover on the switch and putting a jumper across the terminal. In his case, it was water. Water is ok conductive but not the best. Mixed with salt or low concentrated acid, then it can be highly conductive. The power did not overload in his case because some garage door uses low voltage at the remote key for safety electrical shock reason. Hence, the low voltage and water did not short the power but did short the switch.

I used to hang out with my dad in my younger days and he was an electrician. That why I sort of know this stuff.

Sorry for your loss. I agree with poster number two with the flea market idea. I been hearing a lot about stolen bike ends up at Laney flea market or coliseum by High street.

Allow me to shed some light on the shorting switch subject. I may not be the best but I do have a little electrical/electronic background. There is two type of short. One is where the short is between the hot and ground which will cause an overload and most likely blow a breaker/fuse and shutting off power. In this situation, that mechanical lock on the lead screw will still be engage and door still shut.

The other short is across a contact such as a relay or switch. The OP just happen to have a theif shorted out the contact that open the garage door. Basically, it's similar to opening the cover on the switch and putting a jumper across the terminal. In his case, it was water. Water is ok conductive but not the best. Mixed with salt or low concentrated acid, then it can be highly conductive. The power did not overload in his case because some garage door uses low voltage at the remote key for safety electrical shock reason. Hence, the low voltage and water did not short the power but did short the switch.

I used to hang out with my dad in my younger days and he was an electrician. That why I sort of know this stuff.

Thanks for the insight on electrical shorts. Talk about an engineering design flaw; in a security system no less.

stan

Exquisite bikes, the lot of them. I very much hope you manage to get them back.

That really sucks; bike thieves are the lowest life form.

You might want to get the word out by posting info on the stolen bikes on the Bay Area craigslist, including serial numbers if you have them. Also, you might let neighborhood shops like Freewheel and Valencia Cyclery know what happened. Print flyers with photos and descriptions of the five bikes and give copies to the bike shops.

Thanks to you all for the good wishes and advice.

Here's an update. The police arrested a guy with one of my bikes (the SR-33). Apparently, the police were called because this guy was beating up on a woman friend of his at Lafayette and Minna streets (SF). A citizen intervened and the guy took off on MY BIKE! His bike handling skills weren't the best and I suppose he couldn't clip into the pedals with his street shoes, so he crashed. (I like to think my bike was fighting back and bucked him off. Yea I know, it's only a machine...but it's a nice thought.)

So, they got the guy and one of my bikes. The bike took some damage; mangled R der., bashed L shifter and scrapes and scratches on both sides of the frame and components. Well, good news is the ins. co. will take care of the damage. The bad news is I can't do anything with it until this guy's case goes through court. The police released the bike to me but want me to preserve it as is because it's evidence. They said they could release it to me because of it's value etc. but I can't loose it, sell it or fix it until the case is over. They don't have a lead on my other bikes...yet. Hopefully between the domestic violence charge and grand theft, this guy will give them up. The police were very excited to know how much the bikes were worth because it ups what they can charge him with. And right now I want to go on record as applauding the SFPD. They were so cool throughout this whole ordeal, from the cop who came to my house and took the report up to the sergeant and inspector I dealt with. I know they get a bad rap from cyclists here, but not from me!

I'm glad I got the bike back but I'm still in a fix re: training. I signed up for the Death Ride, Levi's Grand Fondo, and I was thinking about the Davis Double. My plan was to start training in earnest after the 1st so I guess I'll have to see if I can find a replacement bike until I can get mine fixed.

At least it's nice to know karma still works.

...Here's an update...

Thanks for the update. Go SFPD!!

Thanks for the update. Go SFPD!!

+1, I think the folks that have a bad opinion of them may have to reset their expectations.

Any word from SFPD about whether the guy they caught knows anything about the other four bikes?

As pointed out, you can pull the cord on your automatic garage doors to keep them from opening. Disconnect the outside switch, also.

Any word from SFPD about whether the guy they caught knows anything about the other four bikes?

Not yet. The police are leaning on the guy so we'll see. They're also talking to the woman he was assaulting. She's actually a friend of the guy and runs with him. They're both known to the police since they're both tweakers and have been involved in theft before to support their habit. While the woman is a victim in the domestic violence part, she may also have been involved in the bike theft. As part of my interview with the inspector, he specifically asked me if I'd given her permission to have my bikes.

Brother, this goes beyond the scope of my life, I guess that's a good thing.

As pointed out, you can pull the cord on your automatic garage doors to keep them from opening. Disconnect the outside switch, also.

You're right except my garage door opener is 30 yrs old. The only thing I can do is pull a cord on the track to disengage the door from the opener in order to open it manually. The door reengages automatically when the opener operates.

The best I can do is pull the plug on the opener and install a padlock on the door (both of which I've done) until I get a new opener.

Sometimes hindsight sucks.

Glad to hear they got the guy. Hoping your others find their way home soon.