[mkiv808]

I'm about to buy an all moutain rig in the $1000-$1500 range.

I work in NYC and would like to occasionally bike through the city. I doubt I will do it often, but I'd like to regardless. I think it's a good way to see the city.

What I'm worried about is the security of the bike when I go to get something to eat. Let's just say I'm only riding in the day, do you think it's safe to park the bike with a traditional lock for upwards of 30 minutes?

Any personal experiences in this regard?

 

[jbogner]

No. It's not ever safe to leave any bike locked up ever in NYC. Especially not a bike worth anything. There is no lock that can stop a bike thief for more than 15 minutes, and if you lock up a nice bike just to get a bite to eat, it will probably not be there when you get back.

Buy food from a street vendor, sit in the park and eat it, and don't let go of your bike. Or if you do lock it up, make sure it's constantly in sight.

 

[mkiv808]

Maybe I'll just throw it in the back of the Pathfinder when I'm ready to eat.

Park on a side street near a Burritoville or something. Plan it ahead.

 

[CRDalmata]

Bike Locks

Kryptonite is now offering a line of bike locks, called New York _____(such and such) there are a variety of different types of locks (chains, and u-locks), but all of them have at least a $3,000 guarantee except for the NY Molly Lock.

The only real problem w/ these locks is that they are heavy, but that is what you would expect from a heavy duty lock. I think the lightest one is 5 lbs or so, which is a real killer in a pack, but if you have a rack it's not that bad.

I had a my mountain bike stolen in the fall after I had ridden it to school, because I didn't feel like changing the flat on my commuter (it was just a basic u-lock) and when I replaced that lock I didn't know about these new kryptnotie locks so I just went to home depo and got 6 feet of logging chain, which I covererd with an old tube, and a construction grade lock, which is basically what these new kryptonite locks are.

Altogether I spent like $35-40 bucks for the lock that I have now, and these new kryptonite ones are around $75, but it is really worth it because of the guarantee that they come with. I don't think Home Depo will give me jack if my bike were taken, but I'm not too worried about that.

Also, if you do wind up using a lock, make sure to always lock it to something really secure, and not a tree. I had a friend whose bike was stolen after he decided that it would be alright to lock it to a small tree because there was no space left on the bike rack.

 

[jbogner]

Kryptonite is now offering a line of bike locks, called New York _____(such and such) there are a variety of different types of locks (chains, and u-locks), but all of them have at least a $3,000 guarantee except for the NY Molly Lock.

Experienced NY bike thieves can get through those locks in a matter of minutes.

50,000 bikes are stolen in NYC a year, according to Transportation Alternatives. That's 136 bikes per day, or nearly 6 per hour. If you think you can beat the bike thieves who steal bikes for a living, you are kidding yourself. It's not worth the risk.

 

[burtondogs]

Maybe I'll just throw it in the back of the Pathfinder when I'm ready to eat.

Park on a side street near a Burritoville or something. Plan it ahead.

Yeah this way they get a free Bike when they steal your Pathfinder.
Thieves Suck.

Later
Jim

 

[mkiv808]

Yeah this way they get a free Bike when they steal your Pathfinder.
Thieves Suck.

Later
Jim

I'm not so worried about that, it's insured. It's got a basic alarm and I'm parking it on a busy street in broad daylight.