The real value of a 110db alarm is YOU MIGHT HEAR IT!

I dunno about you, but if I was in a house or coffee shop and I heard that go off I'd be outside in 10 seconds. Then? "It's clobberin' time"

What a bummer. Bike thieves are some of the lowest of filth.

Curiosity: How long were you away from your bike from time of locking to time of noticing it was gone?

Was this in the middle of the night?

Was this in the middle of the city?

Sad to hear. Hope you work something out. What about buying a bike out of Eugene? Any family in other cities that could pick it up for you?

Sucks about your bike :(
For non-homeowners, does any know if renter's insurance can cover stuff, such as bicycles and laptops, stolen from somewhere other than your home? Have others done this?
In California, there is a kind of registry system, where the police took all sorts of information about my (bicycle, size, model, serial number, modifications etc.) They gave me a little sticker signifiying it was registered. Does anyone know of any instances where this was actually any help in recovery? Don't know if other states have similiar programs. The campus police at my school also loaned me an engraver which I used to engrave my drivers license # and initials on different parts of the bike. Was wondering what others thought about these practices. All this was free through my school, and possibly more useful than letterns to santa or buying lotto tickets? I can bring my bike inside at work but I am getting real paranoid about leaving outside on campus when I go to school. Don't want to be starting a new thread with the same topic.

Arent there locks with a guarantee? I know I had one for my motorcycle (before it got stolen LOL).

http://www.kryptonitelock.com/inetis...s_item&pgrp=20

read the first three bullet statements.

Of course I dont know if this is impractical, cost effective, impossible to claim on... but its there

My daughter had her bike stolen from outside the YMCA and it was covered by my renter's insurance less the $250 deductable. She had a crappy lock on it, but she never left the replacement bike outside.

Huge bummer, man. There is a special place in hell for bicycle thieves. They are wily, and hard to beat. All the same - please don't give up! An inexpensive bicycle isn't hard to budget for, and the savings against commuting by car or even public transit are worth it.

Something to consider when you start up again is not the kinds of locks you are using, so much as your locking technique. Lock the bike in a safe place. Keep it inside if at all possible. Buy a long-shackle mini U-lock for your primary lock. It should be just wide and long enough to fit snugly around the largest object you routinely lock to (like those metal hoops embedded in concrete) and your rear wheel. Please note that you are locking your rear wheel only, not your frame. With a snug mini U-lock, there is no way to get a tool in there and break the lock unless they are willing and able to mangle your frame and/or rear wheel. And if someone is willing to go to those extremes to take your bike, they will. If you have a U-lock with a wider shackle, you can lock both your rear wheel and seat tube to the rack - this is what I usually do, and it is also effective. You can then use a cable lock to secure your front wheel to the frame and rack. Never lock just the frame, don't lock the frame and front wheel unless you have no choice, never ever especially never lock just the front wheel.

You can't make your bike thief-proof, no, but you can make it harder to take, and bike commuting is worth sticking with. Don't let the bastards grind you down!

--- Please don't give up. We are stronger than the thieves.

Hi Bob,
Very sorry to hear about your bike getting stolen. I see people around here (where bike thieves are also rampant) locking their bikes poorly or not at all, and I shake my head as I figure its about 15 minutes to gone. But you on the other hand, did everything right. Rode a beater, locked to an immovable rack with TWO locks. Around here, most bikes will disappear no matter how beaterish or how they are locked, if its overnight. (well sometimes they leave the locked frame but will strip off all parts overnight) So its essential to have an indoor place to store the bike overnight. Was it late when your bike was stolen?

My suggestion would be to look at buying a folding bike, some of the newer ones are pretty light and fold up fairly compactly and quickly. That way you can avoid locking your bike and take it inside with you wherever you go.

Tanya

Getting your bike stolen is the worst feeling ever. It's right up there with getting dumped or losing your wallet. You can't seem to stop thinking about it but there's absolutely nothing you can do to help the situation. You can't help to think "If only I had..." over and over again. It just sucks. Period. And then people come out of the woodwork to tell you what you did wrong or give ****ty advice.

I know the feeling of getting a bike stolen. Hang in there. Chin up. It'll get better. Promise yourself to get another bike.

Major bummer!

I'm curious as well regarding the method of theft. Was the U lock one of the lock types involoved in the "bic pen" recall? Was the cable a seperate cable, or a cable that attaches using the U lock?

'Sup fellow Eugenian? I've lost more than one bike here too. So many people get bikes stolen in broad daylight, and nobody does anything whatsoever.

But yeah. As for a new bike, have you tried checking out Center for Appropriate Transport/Eugene Bicycle Works? I haven't been there for a few years, but they always had bikes for about $40 when I was a kid.

Bummer.
Bike theft is part of the whole bike commuting experience. It happens to the best protected bike. Buy another beater from a goodwill store or whatever and don't let them win.
Insurance is not really worthwhile for a commuter hack/beater style bike. Instead of giving your money to an insurance co, put it in a piggy bank for a rainy day. $100 should be enough to get you mobile again.

Gday Mate

Sorry to hear about your loss. It could be worse. Here in Australia everything is at least twice what you pay for it there. I was born in Eugene Oregon in the States. It brings back memories (well some I moved away at 4) lol. Don't let them beat you!! Hope you get a new used bike!!

Chris

Check with local bike shops and see if you can post pictures... tell others in local bike forums etc... Good Will or some Thrift store may have some beater bike you could get cheap...

Keep Cycling,

Jeff

This is what I did too when my LOCKED UP bike got stolen. Shops here keep a book under the counter...when a "new customer" comes in, they check it out.

ATOMBOMB...don't fall for the "If your bike wasn't registered by the NBR, it's your fault" crad. Find out HOW the police dpt in the area handles stolen bikes. My bike was stolen sort of at the juncture of 3 towns. I was shocked to know that:

* Each town had a differant way of how they remove stolen bikes.
* They don't do anything with that NBR number
* They don't try to match the found bike with the stolen rpts - it's all manual and they're too busy :eek:
* It's your responsiblilty to pester THEM to find out if your bike is in the holding pen
* After 6 weeks in the pen, some towns move them to a larger pen for an auction...but it was unclear how to attend the action to actually find your bike.
* Good luck proving it IS YOUR BIKE, if you don't have the serial number
* Good luck getting the bike back if the serial number is missing from the frame and you don't have it elsewhere on the bike
* Pawn shops take bikes...no questions asked
* Thieves shop/know a good bike even though you dress it down.


YMMV..but keep looking for your bike, it may turn up.

NOT! That bike was ultra-cool and sooo worth it. Cool off, take your time and regroup....we're here for ya man!

get a cheap Dahon folder and keep the bike with you

I second the Dahon... isn't Bike Friday in Eugene? They're pretty expensive though.

Thanks for all the support and letting me *****. I'm just angry. I built this single speed with the help of some friends and a little time at CAT, the frame actually fit and I had adjustment to change the gearing argh. I've been having a blast on it all summer and now boom. I don't know if I'll have the money right now to build another one so this sucks. Insurance has a 500.00 deduct. so they are of no use. Any one have a bike they wanna sell for 50 bucks? lol. Back to the grind I guess.

[QUOTE=atombob]I called the Police dept. in Eugene Oregon today to file a report...... They really aren't interested in something small like this. EPD would rather be hassling hippies over 30 bucks worth of weed. QUOTE]

Maybe that's not such a bad idea; those guys are probably the one's who took your bike> ;)

Seriously, I know your pain after losing my cannondale last winter.

atombob: There are cheap bikes out there, I promise. The folks who want the most money will advertise. Those who just want to get rid of them sell them in garage sales. Check the garage sale ads for the weekend. Many sales around here begin early on Friday morning but others begin on Saturday. When we were young and poor with four little kids, I would check the ads on Friday and circle the sales that listed the items I was interested in (at the time, kids clothes and toys!) I would only go to sales that specifically listed a bicycle. It might even take a few weekends but you'll be able to find something that will meet your needs until you're ready to get something else.

Good luck and let us know how you're doing! :)

Bummer to hear about the bike....
Is that a signed picture of Stever martin in the Background?
Also, Is the picture near the middle of a naked chick?

Yeah I was thinking he should sell one of those pics to finance a new bike. :D

Sorry to hear about the bike being stolen. I had my road bike taken some years ago. Sickening feeling.

Follow everyone's advice here -- the cheapest POS you can find to ride for now. I guess the big expense will be new locks... can you afford them?

Edit: and save-up for a folder.