August 26, 2008
Unhand My Bike, You Fiend
As anyone who's ever owned a bike in this city is probably all-too-painfully aware, they're quite prone to being stolen. It's a tale as old as time, but that doesn't make coming out of a coffee shop to find your bike missing any less frustrating, and with thousands of new students headed to the area this week, we thought it was time for a little reminder about bike registration. Though it's no longer required in D.C., it can still help you out in the unfortunate event that some despicable jerk stole your eco-friendly mode of transport. And, did you know that you can even register your bike after it's stolen? All you need is the serial number. That McGruff, he's always looking out for your best interest. And while we're on the topic of bike thieves, I wonder if D.C. has any criminal masterminds like the one recently busted in Toronto with over 3,000 bikes. Although, we doubt MPD would have enough spare time on their hands to put together a bicycle thief sting. We still don't have any suggestions for how to remedy bike-part theft, though.
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i'm only 1 minute into this video clip, and i'm thinking that i might not be able to make it through all 8
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I can tell you how to avoid getting your bike stolen:
1. Use only quality U style locks...cable locks and cheaper U locks are easily compromised regardless of thickness.
2. Don't keep your bike outside, always bring it in when your returning home.
3. Never leave your bike unattended no matter how short your going to be away....(I've had someone walk up and try to steal my bike while I was right next to it talking to a friend)
4. Change the location of where you lock your bike up while at work, gym etc....
5. Lock you bike to solid objects...meters, public trash cans, trees etc. are better than fences, street signs, metal railings
Remember everyone is a would be thief... Don't give them the opportunity.
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Get a bike so ugly that nobody tries to steal it.
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alewis: But if you park your ugly bike at Union Station, the security guards will take it away.
http://dcist.com/2008/08/26/shocking_union_station_continues_to.php
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Rid yourself of your quick release wheels and invest in a set of locking skewers http://www.rei.com/product/732406
Those, plus a leash on your seat...and all you need is a quality U-lock on the frame.
Knock on wood, it's served me for a year now on a very expensive bike. I've seen a couple would-be bastards have a look-see. One right in front of MPD in southeast. They stare at it for a sec and then they move on. Not worth it.
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Oh no!
Maybe I'm the only person who watched _The Bicycle Thief_ without knowing that the title was about the lead until the end. But I really liked that movie, partly because I didn't know where it was going to go.
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Wasn't the bike registration program totally useless even when it was compulsory? You think MPD is going to be any less uninterested now that registration no longer required?
The only time I ever remember it being "enforced" was as a pretext for the cops to confiscate the bike of a guy who was mouthing off to them.
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If you do have quick-release wheels, learn how to lock your bike correctly:
http://www.missinglink.org/Pages/bike_locking
I also take the front skewer with me, so that my bike can't be ridden away. Lock it up correctly EVERY TIME. Once you get the hang of it, it takes all of two minutes to take the thing apart and lock it down. It's worth the extra time.
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Once a month, nail the body of a bike thief to a tree with a sign around the neck stating: "Bike Thief".
Other issues aside, that would probably decrease bike thefts.
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you also might want to write your personal info like name, phone number, address on a piece of paper and roll it up and put it in the top tube so that if your bike is recovered you can prove it's yours.
Also, don't assume your bike won't get stolen in broad daylight from in front of places such as the YMCA, it just might.
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MDP-1D just did a bike sting:
"We recently did some operations using bait bikes and have made some significant arrests for Theft regarding these bikes. On one of these operations was in the 600 blk of H St NE, we placed 2 bikes and they were stolen 5 different times in less than 1 hour. The bikes were valued at more than $300 so all subjects were charged with Felony Theft. We will continue to conduct these at different locations as these suspects are likely involved in other crimes of opportunity in and around the 1D area. However, it is not known if they are responsible for any of the recent bike thefts at this time.
David K. Kamperin
Commander
First District"
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Also, register your bike at the National Bike Registry. Since police departments often don't share their databases outside a geographical area, it's very useful if your bike is stolen here but recovered elsewhere.