Originally Posted by jtwilson

You guys have made some very accurate guesses. It happened between Five Brothers Market and Figaros Pizza at the intersection of Long St. and Champion Ave. Just to the north of there is the Poindexter Village where I believe these guys are from, based on the foot traffic I ususally see coming to and from there.

I would agree that the neighborhood shouldn't be judged on this isolated incident, but it is a unique area of town for sure. Between Long St to the north and Main St to the south there are residents of all levels of income, and on my block the neighbors aren't all strangers - good folks in general. On either side of that north-south boundary are some really rough areas though.

Ultimately I should have considered it would be better to avoid the corner store on a Friday evening, but I had never seen a crowd like this, or even been slightly harassed beyond being asked for change. I think I will start riding on Broad St more when I'm east of Hamilton Ave.

The bike was a black Motobecane Fantom Cross Outlaw with a silver triple crankset and black rear derailleur. It had a rear rack with yellow Ortlieb pannier, front and rear fenders, Nokian W106 studded tires, shallow drop bars with gray handlebar tape. This bike meant so much more to me than just the utility it served me and the money put into it. On the down tube was a sticker from Mammoth Cave National Park - this bike took me on an epic solo tour there and back over a couple weeks last summer. The sentimental value is the biggest bummer of losing it.

Second to losing the bike, the next biggest disappointment is the human nature factor - the absolute senseless and barbaric nature of it. I am considering contacting local media. My only concern is that the effect might be to scare more people away from cycling, or from visiting or living in more mixed areas of town. On the other hand, awareness needs to be raised for attention to be paid to problems in the community.



Adam, yeah I did buy your Ionos recently. Nice helmet! Luckily it and my road bike were safe and sound at home during this incident. I think I have just about everything I really need to get my back-up commuting bike in service for the immediate term too. I really appreciate the offer though!

Back to the wrenching...