That is a really good idea.
2013-12-07 08:25:18
11
"Door Hanger" Love Your Bike, Lock it Right tags
So as I was walking out of Kraynicks a dude tried to sell him a bike, which he wouldn't take, but I ended up buying for $10 so I could reunite it with the owner (Trek store is suppose to call owners or already has, I'm not sure)
The bike had a mount for a cable lock, but surprise, no cable lock. Then after I got out of improv I came across a bike that had a cable locked to a u-lock to a pole, but no u-lock through the bike. (Might actually be a guy on here, but I'm not positive.) Then I passed two more bikes that were locked with cable locks and they were pretty thin ones too. Like low gauge wire.
I put notes on all of them recommending they lookup the "love your bike lock it right" thread on here and to also use a U-Lock. But it would be easier if there was just some kind of "door hanger" type thing I could stick on bikes that had the locking basics on it.
Seems like a no brainier to me. BikePGH could get somebody to design and print them and include like five or something with BikePGH memberships and have a bunch at the office. We put them on cable lock bikes, BikePGH gets free advertising, people get U-Locks or use the ones they have correctly, thieves have to steal something else, everybody wins right?
I think I floated this idea before, but can't remember
2013-12-07 02:32:54
Why not go into all bike stores and hang them on the cable locks there, too?
2013-12-07 11:02:15
It's a good idea and I think this was talked about before. One issue is that the hang tag lets the thieves know which bikes are easy to steal too.
And bike shops selling cable locks is ok, as long as long as the cable is going to be used as a secondary lock. They are probably ok out in the burbs too, but I still use a u-lock.
2013-12-07 11:16:44
I was thinking that too about the thieves too, but I figure thieves are going to look over bikes one way or another. We could also make them smaller so they don't attract as much attention from afar
2013-12-07 11:31:04
I don't think attracting thief attention is a big deal. I do think actual interaction is better than a tag. I think a tag is better than nothing. It's all about getting the word out and educating.
Perhaps the best compromise is to have an easy guide that can be handed out (passed from one of our hands to one of theirs).
2013-12-07 15:18:37
People don't usually stand around their locked bikes though, kind of defeats the purpose of having a lock
2013-12-07 16:59:51
You might get better results if you appeal to people's sense of thrift...if you could get a local shop(or shops) to get on board, print the hang tags with a "10% off any U-lock" coupon, as well as the basic info about locking and Bike-PGH.
Thick is fairly anti-cable-lock; might be worth floating the idea there.
2013-12-07 17:27:09
The whole setup is pretty stupid with cable locks... The stolen bike I recovered was around $600 msrp. Why doesn't the Trek corporation just buy U-Locks in bulk and ship them with bikes? I can't imagine they'd cost more than $5 or $6 dollars a lock for an entry level U-Lock when bought at that scale
2013-12-07 17:49:03
@Pierce,
I love the hang tag / coupon idea. Maybe Trek wants you to buy a new bike after yours is stolen? I feel like the sale of cable locks should be banned, but that won't happen. A silver lining to the rash of bike thefts might be that the "fair" market will eliminate cable locks.
2013-12-08 07:33:43
I use my cable lock when I am within eyesight of my bike (i.e. inside OTB), to slow down a would-be thief long enough for me to get to them. I wear road shoes so I'm not going to catch anyone if they get on the bike but hope to slow them down long enough...
I don't carry the u-lock in those situations because it is bulky.
2013-12-09 12:50:26