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What have you found on the ground while riding?

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Old 08-30-19 | 06:16 AM
  #1126  
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Originally Posted by sjanzeir
Did someone get run over by a car earlier in the day? Have you looked around for the rest of the bike?
I did not; but it was a pretty public place in Manhattan, around 6:15 AM. If someone got hit, they'd been taken away hours earlier. No, I think someone must have dropped this. It didn't occur to me at the time, but in retrospect the someone who dropped it may have been a thief who had just stolen the saddle off a bike.
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Old 09-02-19 | 01:05 PM
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Found a wet $100 bill yesterday. Had it rained a little harder or longer it probably would have been washed into the storm drain 8 feet away. Found a 10 mm combination wrench last week.
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Old 09-04-19 | 11:28 AM
  #1128  
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34C.
I kept hoping I'd meet the owner.
But I never did.
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Old 09-04-19 | 11:30 AM
  #1129  
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Old 09-05-19 | 03:02 PM
  #1130  
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In the last two days, I've noticed what appears to be a beat-up quarter at the same intersection. I'm tempted to pick it up, but don't want to be the doofus that falls off my bike going after 25 cents. If it's still there tomorrow, I might have to investigate.
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Old 09-05-19 | 03:09 PM
  #1131  
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Originally Posted by wipekitty
In the last two days, I've noticed what appears to be a beat-up quarter at the same intersection. I'm tempted to pick it up, but don't want to be the doofus that falls off my bike going after 25 cents. If it's still there tomorrow, I might have to investigate.
Just be aware, I've seen coins deliberately glued to the pavement.
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Old 09-05-19 | 03:13 PM
  #1132  
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yeah I'll stop for a quarter, but I won't stop for a dime.
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Old 09-05-19 | 03:15 PM
  #1133  
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Originally Posted by Korina
Just be aware, I've seen coins deliberately glued to the pavement.
When I was in college, I learned not to try to pick up change in busy areas.
But I've never seen that off-campus.
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Old 09-05-19 | 03:16 PM
  #1134  
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Originally Posted by Korina
Just be aware, I've seen coins deliberately glued to the pavement.
Yeah, I had that thought as well.

I once knew a guy who would do that outside his house then sit and watch people try to unstick the quarter.
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Old 09-06-19 | 10:23 AM
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Picked up a nice 8" crescent wrench the other day...early (about 5 miles) into the ride, so had to carry it with me for about 30 miles.
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Old 09-06-19 | 11:18 AM
  #1136  
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Originally Posted by oldgeezerjeff
Picked up a nice 8" crescent wrench the other day...early (about 5 miles) into the ride, so had to carry it with me for about 30 miles.
Nice! What size?
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Old 09-08-19 | 06:59 PM
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Originally Posted by Korina
Just be aware, I've seen coins deliberately glued to the pavement.
Yeah, I remember a long time ago somebody talking about doing that in a mall.

Btw, found a set of keys today on the curb of a 4 lane road somewhat out of the way. Had a Chevy keyless keyfob that got separated from the set a few feet away. Saw some tags as I went by so I stopped thinking maybe they’d help find the owner. Turns out it was a YMCA membership with just a number on it. I called and they gave me the owners info so I called her and she came and picked them up. She was very grateful. Said her husband forgot them on top of a car and they fell off at some point.
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Old 09-10-19 | 01:33 PM
  #1138  
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Just found a pair of scissors laying in the middle of the left turn lane on a busy road. I left them there because 1) I didn't need a pair of scissors, and 2) I didn't have a quick place to stash them and the light was about to turn green.
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Old 09-11-19 | 09:50 AM
  #1139  
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Old 09-11-19 | 10:04 AM
  #1140  
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Just now, a Luna bar, in sealed wrapper. I ate it but won’t be buying any. Too sugary.
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Old 09-11-19 | 10:30 AM
  #1141  
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I remember once being on a long group ride, we had ridden north through Camp Pendleton, and were continuing north on the old 101 -- formerly a highway or even a freeway, but now a giant concrete MUP. I had fallen behind the group, run out of water and was flagging in energy. I found a couple Clif Shot Bloks on the ground that somebody had probably fumbled while trying to get them out of the package while riding. I stopped for them, dusted them off, and ate them. They were glorious!
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Old 09-11-19 | 01:11 PM
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While locking up at the library this morning I spotted a knife on the ground. What you might call a clip point folder. Not knowing what else to do but determined to get it safely away from the homeless contingent that lives around there, I put it inside my bag and presented it at the librarians desk. She was quite startled but I calmed her down. I went about my business of librarying. I hope I didn’t cause too much commotion.
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Old 09-13-19 | 02:10 PM
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Originally Posted by Joe Bikerider
While locking up at the library this morning I spotted a knife on the ground. What you might call a clip point folder. Not knowing what else to do but determined to get it safely away from the homeless contingent that lives around there, I put it inside my bag and presented it at the librarians desk. She was quite startled but I calmed her down. I went about my business of librarying. I hope I didn’t cause too much commotion.
If it was in good shape, I would have probably kept it. Pocket knives or clip on knives are beyond useful.

I carry one every day and use it for opening boxes, cutting straps or rope, trimming plastics/rubber, even cutting zip ties if needed. I've even cut up food with it on occasion (wash it first).

One time I drove through about 200 feet of thin rope that came undone from a truck in front of me on the highway. We both pulled over and I cut my car free. If that happened on my bike, I'd do the same thing if needed.

I really need to sharpen my knife tonight. It goes dull real fast cutting through thick cardboard.
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Old 09-13-19 | 03:02 PM
  #1144  
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Originally Posted by FiftySix
If it was in good shape, I would have probably kept it. Pocket knives or clip on knives are beyond useful.

I carry one every day and use it for opening boxes, cutting straps or rope, trimming plastics/rubber, even cutting zip ties if needed. I've even cut up food with it on occasion (wash it first).

One time I drove through about 200 feet of thin rope that came undone from a truck in front of me on the highway. We both pulled over and I cut my car free. If that happened on my bike, I'd do the same thing if needed.

I really need to sharpen my knife tonight. It goes dull real fast cutting through thick cardboard.
I carry a swisstech utilikey on a keychain that handles boxes and tape pretty well, as well as the occasional loose flathead or Philips screw, there's a bottle opener too, but I have a dedicated one .

If you aren't already sharpening a double bevel, you're robbing your blade's edge of strength. The thicker profile resists deformation better. Thinner profiles cut better earlier, and lose their hone quickly.

Last edited by Unca_Sam; 09-13-19 at 03:07 PM.
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Old 09-13-19 | 11:40 PM
  #1145  
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Jeez man, it’s a jackknife not a sword
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Old 09-14-19 | 12:23 AM
  #1146  
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Today was heavy on wildlife; on the way out of town I saw a red-tailed hawk sitting on phone wires, and passed it relatively closely. Then there was the snake; the third dead young garter snake I've seen this year. I followed a scratch on the highway shoulder for over a half mile, like a machine had a rock jammed in it, just not sure what kind of machine. Got off the highway and onto the trail, where I saw a freshly killed coyote on the shoulder. I'd never seen a coyote before in the 21 years I've lived here. Stopped on the trail and ate handfuls of ripe blackberries; yum.

All in all, an interesting commute.
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Old 09-14-19 | 09:33 AM
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Originally Posted by Darth Lefty
Jeez man, it’s a jackknife not a sword
Hard to say. I'd like to see a photo.

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Old 09-14-19 | 12:55 PM
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Sorry, I didn’t get a picture. Unfortunately our library has become a homeless hangout. In the morning thay hang out and then rush in when it opens and grab a computer to sit at until thay get kicked out. The bike rack I mentioned was already decorated by a bike trailer full of something. My description was not that great, the only thing I know about knives is from watching “Forged in Fire”. Think of something black with a four inch blade opened and some buttons to do something. My thought was to get it out of there. So I stuck it in my bag and went inside. I did think about taking it across the street to the police station but that might have raised more complications than I wanted.

Sometime we should talk about being taken for a homeless person because I was riding a bike.
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Old 09-15-19 | 06:38 PM
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Found a stack of business and membership cards held together with a binder clip. Rode down the road a little ways to a nearby Verizon store. Called USAA and gave them the name and member number on the card, left my info, and told them I’d leave the bundle with the Verizon store manager.
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Old 09-17-19 | 04:48 PM
  #1150  
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hypodermic needles and human excrement. Also an encampment that keeps growing with a bunch of butchered bicycles, abandoned Jump bikes
but on the positive side...
lots of wildlife: turkeys, squirrels (sadly, some squished by bikes) , deer, coyotes, quail, rattlesnakes, king snakes, turtles, tortoises, waterfowl, birds of prey, lizards...

Last edited by restlessswind; 09-17-19 at 04:55 PM.
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