Why Me?

KETARITA

Why do people take things? Don't they know that I am just a working girl with a limited income and can't afford to have things stolen from me? I just had a TREK bike stolen from me over the weekend and I am so sad. The worst part is that it had the most comfortable wide seat ever (that someone else bought for me) and now I am going to have to buy a new one (myself).

Well, thank god that I save a little money for emergencies, because I went and bought a Schwinn today. (Actually could of used that money for a bill), but a bike is my only means of transportaion right now. Is a Schwinn Ranger 2.6 a good bike to have? Just curious. I noticed that it rides a lot smoother than the TREK, and it is a lot lighter, therefore making it easier for me and the load of stuff I always have in my backpack to get up hills easier.

Just thought I would vent today. I am so sad, I almost started crying the moment my friend dropped me off and I walked over just to see that my bike wasn't there. I feel stranded without it.

MountainPro

i remember years ago i went to a bike shop to buy a new bike. My bro came with me in Glasgow city centre and btought his mtb. It was a Raleigh M-Trax Titanuim full XTR worth a tidy sum.

On the way to the bike shop we stopped off at a shop to buy a snack and left the bike outside unlocked. I stood just inside the shop with my eye on it. I glanced at a magazine briefly and looked back up and to my horror the bike was gone. I sprinted out the shop and spotted some we idiot pedalling like crazy. He was still close and i caught him as he was struggling with the gears. I literally grabbed him by the back and threw him to the ground and in a busy city centre street. I got a good few punches in on the little basta*ds face before he wriggled out and ran off. A drug addict i think, he would have sold it for £20. Cost my bro £2,300.

I hate it when people take my stuff (or my freinds-families). We work hard and play hard in my family, no one gets away easily.

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HARD
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KETARITA

Oh man, I bet it felt really good to get in a few punches on him. Isn't it amazing how fast you can run when adrenaline is pumping through your system? It's awesome. I know what you mean about working hard, especially when someone else gets something for you. I wish I could have gotten my hands on the person that took mine. The worst part of all was the fact that I ASKED THE SECURITY GUARD in the parking lot if it was ok, and he was like "oh yea, someone is always in the booth of the parking lot watching". The police said that there was a beer party going on around that area, and that might have been when it happened. Someone must have cut the lock.

JM01

that sucks...

...But a lot of people are beginning to notice the same as you...The Treks today are a lot different than the Treks of old...somehow, they just don't feel right and seem a lot harder to push

I'm now on a Schwinn as well...much nicer ride than my old Trek...replaced my wife's 7300 with a new Opus as well

Both have new U-locks as well

KETARITA

Yea, I can honestly say that the Trek that I had was putting a lot of muscle on my legs. Which I kind of like now that I think about it. But everyone else would be passing me by on their bikes, and there I am trying to slow down to relieve the lactic acid buildup in my legs every 200 feet! LOL

That bike did not like hills at all. I am in pretty good shape and that bike still continued to keep me out of breath. I am much happier with the Schwinn I just bought. (Although I really wasn't expecting to buy a new bike). Question, how do you use the U-locks for bikes? I mean, usually I lock my bike up around a post or a tree or something. Altanta is still behind the times when it comes to a bicycle-friendly-city. Usually it is hard for me to find bike racks to lock my bike up (I am assuming that is the the only place that you can use a U-lock). Not being able to find a bike rack was the main contribution to me getting my bike stolen in the first place.

I had a lot of problems with that Trek. I think that is why they are on sale all the time now. The one I had was fine for about 6 months, but it started getting kooky. I ride that thing everywhere (including to work), and it started clicking every revolution I pushed the petals, the brakes were squeaking really bad, The brake in the front kept dragging-even after I took it to the bike shop. I just ended up unscrewing the brake all together with a screwdriver and just using the back breaks. The guy at the bike shop told me that I needed a "tune-up" for the bike. Basically it was whole bunch of jibber that dont remember. I told him "Dude I am not going to spend $70 for a tune up on my bike, when it only cost me about $107 (on sale)."

Does your wife like her new Opus? I have a hard time finding bikes that are comfortable, because is seems like my legs comprise about 60% of my body.

JM01

Yep...the Trek geometry has changed since they moved to China...my daughter had a 7600zx and her SO rides a Liquid, both U.S. made....very different from my 7.5fx that has that "dead" feel...

Wife loves the Opus (pic below), essentially its a road bike with a granny so it climbs like a goat, unlike her Trek 7300 which didn't even roll down the hills, and was a slog on the climbs (pic of her on a recent ride below). A similar bike available in the U.S. is the Specialized Sirrus.

She now rides both road and XC, so I built a MTB for her this year (another pic below)

We're fortunate in Toronto as the city encourages bikes...we have 20,000 bike posts downtown, and most cyclists use 2 U-locks to secure their bikes. Always lock a wheel and frame to something, that way a thief will damage one or both, making it not worth trying to steal (pic below, again)

Cheers

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KETARITA

Now I wish I lived in Canada! I have never seen posts like that. Those are so cool. Atlanta has such a HUGE traffic problem, it is becoming like New York. I think this city should encourage bike riding too. Thanks for the pics. That is a good idea to use two locks! I never even thought about that. I am going to do that this weekend!

JM01

Thanks for confirming my suspicion...that there are two kinds of people on earth...

...those that live in Canada and those that wish they did

Seriousy, though...even with our bike posts (and there are lockers that commuters can rent to store their bikes for $30/month) it's estimated that there are 17,000 bikes stolen annually in Toronto....whats sadder are the bikes that are locked up tight and are stripped for parts at night...I see a lot of frames locked to our posts on my daily commute.

Ride safe