I just bought one of those massive, 80 pound Fahgettaboudit chain locks. Has anybody heard of someone getting thier bike stolen with a Kryptonite lock and actually claiming the $3500?

It will not be the lock that fails, but what you attach it to, and Kryptonite will not cover you when this happens.

Bike thief's are creative and tactics are simple. Here in Vancouver, a bike rack full of high end rigs got pinched in a matter of seconds, all locked up. How? they used a huge tow chain and yanked the whole bike rack from the ground and took the whole damn thing including bikes in broad daylight on a busy street. It was over in seconds.

Where and when in Van was that?

This was a few years back right on Broadway near MEC

wow. I didn't hear about that.

Read ALL of the "fine print" on the guarantee - twice. Lots and lots of fine print. You need to file a police report promptly. Return the damaged lock. Prove what the value of your bike was on the day it was stolen. File claims with other insurers, such as your renter's insurance and home owner's insurance.

When you have done all of those things, you can recover the "used" value of your bike, minus any deductible listed in the guarantee, minus any recovery you got from you homeowner's insurance.

Most of my bikes have a "used" value of $300 or less. A $3,500 guarantee isn't gonna get me more than $300, if that much. So, as a practical matter, I don't want to ever have to file a claim. In bad neighborhoods, and at night, I combine two or three different locks, and lock to steel posts set in concrete. Preferably, my $300 bike is parked right next to someone ELSE's $3,500 bike.

Get a $30 bike to lock up outside. Use the big lock anyway. Problem over. If you have a $3500 or more bike don't lock it up outside.

Ha- is that why MEC has a "This is a high theft area" sign next to its bike racks?

The best guarantee is to buy a bike that no-one wants to steal and, if they do, you won't be heartbroken over. Keep your good racing bike safe inside when not using it.

I have a wierd tendency of becoming attached to my beater bikes. I'd be pissed if any of them got stolen.

ditto. i has this real POS mountain bike, spray painted black, stickered up, wobbly back wheel, etc... just for use in the city. a drunk driver landed on the bike rack and crushed it. i was sad and still miss it.

wow i didn't hear about that. does go a long way in explaining the sign, though.

Two weeks ago my partner went out drinking, someone tried to jack her bike (locked with a kryptonite combo lock) and ****ed up the mechanism. I tried to fix it, then went to a locksmith. She loaned me her 36" bolt cutters and assured me that would do. I was skeptical (actually believed the whole uncuttable story.) It took me 12 seconds, and I wasn't working too hard.

Now my partner has stopped asking me why I keep 6 bikes in my room.

Me too.

Put a sticky price tag on your bike understating the value by a hundred shards or so. If the theif can read then you're all set.
if he can't, well f*ck, it looks as though you might as well sell your soul, or at minimum sweet potatoes

I've always been attached to my bikes, even the junkers. I was walking home from the store where I had spent $5.96 out of a $10 bill. I saw a sign for a garage sale that was selling a bike. I needed a bike that I could go to the store on as I only had my good mtn. bike. I told them, "I have $4.04 left, can I buy that bike?" "Sold!" It was 1960's Sears 5-speed. Plenty used, but now mine.

About a year later, I parked it at the bike rack at the store. It was run over by a piece of construction equipment. The wheel, brakes, and derailleur were toasted. The company gave me the money for a new bike, but the old bike had to go to the curb. It just wasn't worth the $$$ for fixing.

It really bothered me to throw out a bike. I kept thinking, "I can fix it up if I....." but I was moving in a few weeks and didn't know where it could be stored at my new place. I was quite unhappy when the garbage truck came and the guy threw it in the back. I've never thrown away a bike before and I hope never to have to do it again. My non-cycling friends just didn't understand it.