roughrider504

After Easter break I am going to start cycling to school again. I used to cyclocommute daily to my old school, but to get to my new school I have to cross a few very busy roads. I figured out how to time the lights so I have just enought time to cross safely, so I will ride now. Enough with this lets go to the question.

The bicycle rack at school is a wheelbender rack. I rode twice during the winter and I used the end of the rack to lock the bike. But theres one problem. This rack is in the parkinglot and gives me no privacy to change my shoes and adjust my bag. Since I am the only person who would think of cyclocommuting, I get alot of weird looks.

I have been looking for a more private place to park away from the parkinglot and I found it. There is a brick wall surronding the preist's house where I could freelock [U lock through wheel and frame] my bicycle. This is on the inside of the school where nobody except students can get to during the day. This would give me and my bicycle alot of privacy in the morning, but the students will be able to see my bicycle when they change classes. It will be a far walk to get to it though. BTW I go to highschool.

Should I just relax and use the rack or should the risk be low enough to freelock? Thanks in advance for any replies.

Joe Dog

PROUDLY use the rack.

CigTech

Ues the rack. If any one can see the bike free locked then they will mess with it.

Stacey

+111

Ask 'em if they want to help you make the adjustments too!

JustBrowsing

High school with a priest's house? Sounds like there's peace of mind in freelocking your bike, since you know that anyone who stole it would look forward to an eternal damnation burning in the fires of hell. OTOH, if you used the rack, you wouldn't need to worry about someone else's soul. I'd personally use the rack...

mtnwalker

The rack. Who cares about the people looking. They are probably jealous that they can't do what you are doing. Besides its only your shoes. I used to put on/take off my sweatpants in the parking lot to reveal my underwear. Lycra .

newbojeff

Rack.

Not sure exactly what you meant by "adjusting your bag," but doing it next to a priest's house sounds potentially bad for all involved.

roughrider504

! Adjusting books in my messenger bag, not the other bag!

Thanks for the replies everyone, I will use the rack.

o-dog

yeah just lock on the end of the rack. that's the only thing there is to do really. since no one else in your school commutes, you'll always be able to use it. unless more people follow your lead and start bike commuting, in which case, go to the principal about getting a better rack installed. definitely do NOT free-lock it under any circumstances.

don't worry about the weird looks, trust me when I say that in the grand scheme of things, it doesn't really matter.

change your shoes? you can't ride in regular shoes? unless you have clipless pedals, I'd say just ride in regular shoes. if I were bike commuting to high school, I'd ride in street clothes also (with helmet and hi-vis shirt of course), unless of course you have a really long commute or a lot of big hills.

deputyjones

Yeah, but they are Catholic so they could just steal it and then confess, do some hail-mary's and all is forgiven .

roughrider504

The shoes we have to wear for school are those huge Dr.Mertiens. They are way to wide and soft to cycle with.

slvoid

What are the odds you can shoot a couple of those 22 cal. anchors into the wall and lock your bike to that?

Eggplant Jeff

Free-locking = free bike for someone else.

DukeArcher 

I presume you mean Doc Martens, and crazily enough, that's all I ever wear on the bike. No toe clips or anything, just bigass boots on flat pedals even when I tour fully-loaded!