And better locks! This cable lock isn't good enough!

I just realized my bike is my primary form of transportation Like, I do not want to drive my car 4 blocks to the liquor store. I just do not. If I want to head downtown, it makes no sense to me to drive; I can get there in 10 minutes on my bike. Even ignoring the commute to work, the bike is just the best way to get around the city.

My primary parking concern with my bike is theft. Parking a car is hard, takes money, often leaves me in a parking garage where I lose my car, leaves me far away from where I want to be, and then I have to walk it. Walking is slow.

I need a back-up bike, and better anti-theft.

... how did this happen?

I agree! I need more bikes too. I only have one right now. I spend all day at work daydreaming about all the different bikes I should have: "There's my first bike... Now it's my utility bike. I keep the rack fenders permanently attached. It's just easier that way. Then there's my classy road bike with a slight nod to vintage style, leather bar tape, leather saddle, kind of afraid to take it out in the rain... Which brings me to my rain bike, still pretty light and quick, but I'm not afraid to get it dirty. Oh, and then there's my...."

sigh

I want a Trek Transport or Transport+ and a Portland; but I also want a 2006 Pontiac GTO and a pickup truck.

Thing is, the GTO would be cool. (MX-5 Miata is more in my sights, not for any constraint but because it'd be lighter and easier to handle, so probably more fun) The pickup truck would be useful ... if I ever needed to use it.

Think about that.

The Trek Transport is the same way. Useful, if I ever needed to haul that much. I have exactly one thing that's difficult to haul: an 18 x 17.5 inch Goban. Where am I gonna go with it?

I just need back-ups in case one dies or is stolen

Definitely invest in a better lock; even if your bike isn't expensive, the inconvenience, frustration and violation you'll feel when you return to your parking spot and find no bike isn't worth it. Obviously no lock is foolproof, but buy the best you can.

As to another bike, yeah -- I have my primary commuter and a back up (MTB) but I really want a sporty little road bike for fun...

Oh, and I want a BMW R1200GS and a sporty little hatchback commuter car like a Fiat cinquecento, a Mini Cooper or such...

I have a beater bike for such occasions as the OP's, and if the area that I'm traveling to really makes security an even more of a concern, I can always borrow my main bike's 5 lb cable lock.

More the point was while I can make a commuter out of a V8 or a tiny little MX-5 roadster (depending on how much gas I want to burn), a second vehicle demands justification. Lots of second vehicles for fun are valid; but my planned second vehicle was always a pick-up truck for when I have to move stuff. That ... basically never happens. So I never bought a truck.

In the same vein, I'm considering a Trek Transport--a bicycle that functions as a mega-hauler--yet I'm finding that I really don't have a use for it. I simply don't pull that much stuff at once. My primary concern is more about losing my bike, so yeah I should invest in a better bike lock...


I'm finding, though, that some panniers would be really nice for my current bike.

I`ve got an old Gary Fisher mountain bike that I rarely ride anymore because I haven`t been to the woods to ride it lately. A Cannondale Synapse that I take to the beach to push myself, it makes me want to go fast for some reason and finnally a Cannondale Quick CX4 that I just purchased for riding around the house and just having fun. I have never had this many bikes, I`m living in bike heaven, but it only took me 56 years to get here.Tell us which one you get when you get it. As for a lock I just have a cheap walmart lock right now that is pretty light weight, thinking about getting a better one