mr geeker

I see pop/soda/beer cans every day, but I don't pick up all of them... just some.

Cykilist2

Much change, pennies, nickles, dimes, quarters, and a 52% of a $10 bill. Have found digging tools, wrenches, and unfortunately things that stick in my tire like, staples, and nails.

And the other unfortunate thing: Trash from passing cars that don't seem to have a clue on what they're doing other than to use the Earth as their own personal garbage can.

rhm

On Saturday, a long 9/16" Snap-on socket. I picked it up, but I prefer metric.

youthcom

I usually find small change, but recently in one day I found a nickel & a live .357 bullet. The bullet was sitting on a suburban curb & beat up from probably being run over several times, but was still otherwise intact. Gave it to someone into shooting to dispose of.

GeneO 

Last week a Lezyne mini hand pump exactly like the one I carry. Now I have a spare.

rec

A couple years ago while riding up a heavy car traffic hill in the middle of a local open space park, I came upon a big box of brand new home alarm equipment - control panels, window/door magnet sensors, wires, backup battery, manual, etc. Too much to carry in my backpack. Must have flown out of the bed of a contractor pickup truck. Stashed it in the bushes but it was gone next time I rode by.

Also, found a wallet in the middle of the street. Called the owner, she was very appreciative and gave me a starbucks gift card. Figured she put the wallet on top of the roof of the car, forgot about it and drove away. Many car drivers in my neighborhood are jerks to bicyclists so I made a point to tell her I found it because I commute by bike, hope that at least one stranger will discover that some bike riders are responsible people.

rec

Also hand trucks, shovels, bbq's, big trash cans, crates of broccoli. These things have caused huge car traffic jams on major streets and intersections. When I clear the obstruction only a couple times have drivers said thanks to me. I hope at least some of the drivers noticed and won't try to run me over next time they see me or another bicyclist.

79pmooney

What have you found on the ground while riding?

Myself more than once. I have the scars to prove it.

Ben

79pmooney

I used to bring live bullets to the police station, but last time they wanted me to fill out a form. Put myself into their record bank to be drug up later when they need a suspect? For being a good citizen? No thanks.

Ben

deapee

I found a nice multitool but I left it because it had been run over by what appeared to be a bus. It was definitely for bikes though because I could see the hex pieces and the chain tool as I rode by it...

KD5NRH

Forgot about one a couple weeks ago; on the 75mph section of my commute, (still trying...now I can bomb the hill at 34 on a really good day) just before I turn in at work, a passing pickup lost a box of assorted high end kitchenware. Since it was a bit misty that day and I had hi-viz on already, I parked the bike and ran out there to help them collect the stuff that ended up in the travel lanes. Looked like only a couple hundred worth of stuff got run over before we could gather it up.

It's impressive how flat an 18 wheeler can make what was probably a 12qt heavy stainless pot. Could have folded it a couple times and mailed it as a letter after that.

rec

Been fun reading this thread from the start, and now got a place to share my discoveries.

- the dl of HI friend in FL is an amazing story, the odds are astounding.

Starting to remember a few more over many years of riding around:

Free bikes that I've ghost ridden home or to work.

Glad to see others are picking up nails, garbage and other sharp objects in the street, too; don't feel as much of a weirdo now.

A long time ago, just gotten semi permiable hard contact lenses and while I was riding to school my eyes dried out and one of my expensive lenses flew out of my eye. This was on a really busy street. Was late to class so I didn't stop. Eight hours later I returned to the area to look for it and after only a couple minutes I found it on the shoulder. Lucky to see such a small clear thing, and it didn't get run over or stepped on. Turns out I have weird eyes, was able to exchange them for a different size that fit my eyes better.

A couple times i've saved a mama and baby ducklings from wandering into the street. Hard to keep an eye on all of them while trying not to get run over myself. One of those times a fellow bike commuter has helped me corral them and we now always wave hello in our opposite directions. The other time a cute cyclist had just started talking to me but she rode away when the walk signal turned on, I've never seen her again, boo hoo.

ItsJustMe

Since I started riding the route that all the roadie take, I've cleaned up 3 of their discarded tubes. Apparently they can't spare the weight to carry a tube to a trash can.

conquest46

Found this today.

Trevtassie

9/16" is an exact fit for 14mm...

Trevtassie

I found a 6ft Step Ladder. Been in the drain for a while. Came back in the car and picked it up. Nice ladder after some replacement rivets for the ones that popped as it bounced off the road.
In my car I found 20kg of locally caught fresh sushi grade tuna up the road from a fish wholesalers. It wholesales for at least $40 a kg. Obviously the previous owner had left it on the roof and driven off. Since it was for a restaurant they couldn't do anything with it as the cold chain was broken. Mmmm, tuna steaks for weeks.

rhm

Doh! okay, yes, forgive me, thanks, I'm a little slow on the uptake. But I did take it with me, so... is good.

destro713

I found a Vacuvin wine stopper plug once, which matched the ones I had. Never worked up the courage to put it in a bottle, though, because the outside was mottled with black oil stains that would not come out.

RidingMatthew

rode past a pocket knife last week because it was raining and cold. my buddy rode up and picked it up.

ItsJustMe

It's an interesting (and somewhat obvious) fact that the tool sizes that you are most likely to lose are the ones that you use the most (since the ones you don't use stay nice and safe in the box). But the converse of that is that as cyclists who pick stuff up from the street, they're also the ones you're most likely to find on the street, giving a counter to the loss statistic.

I have an abundance of 7/16, 1/2" and 14mm sockets and wrenches. I'm not sure if any of them are ones I actually bought. Lots of them have surface rust on them from sitting by the side of the road for weeks.

noglider 

This morning, there was a dead rat on the bike path. I see these too often. Not that I like live rats any better, and I see those, too.

KD5NRH

Somebody needs to develop a riding scoop tool. I passed up a Zippo that looked fine twice because it was in the middle of a long gentle downhill, near a light that was green those days. Didn't want to blow what momentum I had since there's a short rise right after. By the third day when I caught the red light, it had been run over by something really heavy.
I'm thinking a collapsible handle, spring loaded for quick deployment, on something similar to a stand-up dustpan, but made from mesh so it doesn't become a wind scoop.

Or maybe I need one of those shop cleanup magnet bars mounted under the BB...but the first ride with it I'd be dragging a couple hundred pounds of random crap up the last hill.

KD5NRH

Haven't seen the friendly ferret a couple blocks from me in a while. Wondering if he got run over or the owners figured out a way to keep him from escaping.

noglider 

Oh and yesterday there was a snake in the middle of the rode. It was writhing and trying to break its body free from the surface where part of it had been squashed by a car. I felt a little bad for it.

RubeRad

Yeah, that's rough. What would a mercy killing take? Riding over the skull?

I have a couple times encountered rattlesnakes while trail riding, always managed to stop in time and circumspectly go around (note: some really high percentage of rattlesnake bites, like 80-90% are on the HAND, i.e. from morons messing with rattlesnakes -- you avoid them and they'll happily avoid you).

I have a friend that says he sees rattlesnakes all the time, he just rides right over them, thump thump. They can only strike when coiled, when they're stretched out across a trail they don't have time to react to an oncoming bike.

I wonder though, that must destroy a bunch of ribs, and does it end up killing the snake, or can they survive?