I’ve had my fair share of bikes stolen. Usually it happens that one time I stray from my normal routine. Whether it’s locking it up right and in a “safe” location. Putting it inside my house because most bikes are stolen from peoples houses and back yards over night. Point is, theft happens when you fall asleep at the wheel and let your guard down, which is exactly what I did. Granted I had a few chelas and I didn’t want to ride my bike drunk or buzzed because it’s against the law. Even though I only lived a few blocks away, there is no excuse for riding any vehicle drunk. Unless you’re at someones house, then it’s hilarious.
But the point I’m trying to make, which is also a friendly reminder to everyone else too, is to make sure is that you should always secure your bike and be mindful of it. Have a nice, strong lock on it and lock it right. Don’t ride drunk or buzzed, even though I did that once from Chinatown and it was a blast, I could have gotten seriously hurt. And don’t make the mistake I made in thinking that just because you don’t have the best looking bike, no one would want to steal it. Take it from me, these bike thieves will steal ANYTHING. Putos. More and more people have been telling me that they’ve have their rides stolen too. Supply and demand I guess. It’ll take me a while to find another bike, but it’s the principality of the thing you know ? That and me being stupid for one minute, which is all it took. So, learn from my lesson and don’t get too comfortable cause that’s when they’ll get ya. And it sucks that I have to say this because I would like to have faith in people and trust them. But sadly, that’s not the way things are.
FYI ~ My bike was stolen from the front door steps of Corazon del Pueblo Friday evening. It was locked to the light post. It’s a woman’s, red Murray, 10 speed bike. Covered in taxi cab stickers in the back and various others on the frame. It had those plastic things that make noise when you ride. Only one brake on the left hand side, duct take on the left handle bar and went by the name “little kramer.” If you see it, holla at me. It occurred to me to make a report at the Hollenbeck PS, but I realized that the cops had better things to do than worry about my stolen bike.
Random –
You said you locked it, right? What kind of lock. One of those profesionales or those canchinflas that you get at 99 cent stores that unlock when you say \”open sesame.\” You know what I’m talking about. The ones we put on our high school lockers and then forgot to take them out.
Great post. People need to take care of their ride. What kind of locks do people recommend?
aw man that sucks.
getting the ride jacked is the worst.
lo siento homie
Post a pic of your bike so we can keep an eye out for it.
Picking a good lock is always a weird game people play. The locks that “work” are pretty damn expensive ($80+ for some seriously hardened steel), they are heavy, and people rarely use them properly (i.e. lock a quick release front wheel using a $125 lock and someone leaves the wheel but walks off with the rest of the bike).
After having over 20 bikes stolen from me in college, and more before and after, I can suggest the following: a middling quality long-ish (8 or 11″) u-lock with a cable lock.
Make sure the wheels are bolt on. Make sure the seat post clamp is bolt on as well.
More advice:
http://www.streetfilms.org/hal-and-kerri-grade-your-bike-locking/
WTF is someone doing stealing a Murray beater with only one brake? That is nutty.
I’m seeing all kinds of easy to steal bikes locked up all over the place, and with the mountain of kids riding fixies and other cheap bikes right now, there must be a ton of demand for some cheap, hot parts. I’ve been looking at ways to secure my bike better, and I’m looking at spending $150-200 to have any kind of real security.
But man, I can’t believe anyone stole a Murray 10-speed with one brake. That’s crackhead action, right there.
yeah why would anyone want to steal a Murray 10 speed with one brake.(to be honest i dont even know what a murray is.)
The ironic thing is that it might be cheaper to get a new bike than buy proper security.
Proper bike locking would have prevented this.
wow thanks ubray…I haven’t really been riding my bike anywhere due to the fact that I don’t have a lock yet and had NO idea what kind to get…..
It sucks that thieves are taking lesser expensive bikes commonly used for transportation, as opposed to the fancy, expensive show off kind. Another example of how the people are eating the people, while the rich are dividing up amongst themselves the little bit that the people used to have.
Here’s a pic of my bike WAAY back when I first got it and put some brand new white walls on it. http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_qZCkiemvOeg/S7Lop5ZHKTI/AAAAAAAAA94/NdioCBziVWM/s1600/photo-767765.jpg
But yes, because my tires were worn down, it was crappy looking and dirty, I figured no one would want it. WRONG. But yes, proper locking would have cost me more than the bike did, which was about $100 bucks give or take getting new tires, the bike and maintenance. Still, I’m not really that bummed out about it because of my bike karma. It just made it an inconvenience because it’s my primary mode of transportation. I’ll be getting another soon enough and I’m gonna invest in some good locks this time around.
I’ve heard the hipsters are now riding these time type of hardcore urban bikes, I will keep on the watch for hipsters riding bikes !!!
Something about a Post-Modern Bicyle era.
Your bike was probably stolen to be converted into a “fixie” by some stupid kid that will spray paint it black, take all the gears and brake parts off, and ride a brakeless freewheel. It’s either that or the local drunk or scrap metal guy wanted a ride to the nearest liquor store.
If you can find an old mountain bike frame (non suspension, lugged steel, forged dropouts) you can easily find some old 27″ wheels (yes, 27″ road wheels) at one of L.A.’s bike repair collectives and in short order have a ride that will last you many years. To make it look extra ugly, slice open an inner tube and wrap the bike with it – it looks horrible and it protects the frame from scratches and oxidation.
Going with this level of bicycle will allow you to keep things affordable, durable, and cheap. When you do decide to drop coin on your bike, this type of bike will push you towards the practical (super tough tires, good fenders, lights, a rear rack and panniers) and away from flashy shit (colored wheel sets, decorative handlebar stuff, cabron … uh mean carbon … fiber seat posts).
that’s the second person to tell me that haha that hipsters are starting to buy up all the older bicycles and riding around with them. The one I had was an 87-89 model. Thank for the tips ubray. I’ll be sure to make my next bike as fugly as possible.
So Deebo stole ur bike, huh?? Isn’t there a hommie always standing in front of Corazon, because he doesn’t do the poetry cosa? Maybe it was a set up–u ARE a creature of habit. Ur blog went down-down for me when you had to call the thief “puto”—wtf? Think about it Random—so un-PC, it made me cringe.