# Heads up cyclist



## Diztrbd1 (Apr 21, 2010)

Well it's that time of year when alot of people do alot of biking and the thefts get worse. I bought a bike about a month ago. Not new, but still a nice bike with disc brakes and all. Well went to work for a few hours and parked it a Lougheed skytrain station as I do most days. Came back a few hours later to this:


















Bolt cutters made a 5/8" cable look no stronger than a shoestring. Luckily the cable lock is mainly for the wheels as I have a u-lock on the frame that would take a grinder to cut through. My guess is they didn't notice the ulock till they cut halfway thru the cable one. I can't afford $20 locks everytime this happens and was pretty mad as the lock was only 3 weeks old. Unfortunately transit police are more worried about nailing someone with a $200 fine for not paying their measly $2.75 to ride the train as opposed to the complete security they should be providing for translink users. So since the there really is no security for your bike locked up one of the busier stations. ..... if you want to keep your bike, I highly recommend using 2 locks....a u-bolt lock for the frame & a cable lock thru the wheels and frame. 
The thing that really gets me is how does someone not see a person with a large set of bolt cutters trying to cut a cable during the busiest part of the morning? Since you can only depend on yourself then it's worth the money to invest into the 2 locks I recommended. I tried to get a bike locker at the station a few weeks ago and it is a total PITA! Translink does not deal with them, some advertising company is in charge and the guy who is in charge was totally worthless. Offered to meet me at the station to get the payment (otherwise you have to mail in a check as thats the only payment they take) and give me a key, and I never even heard back from him. No return calls or nothing. So heed my warning and properly secure it if you want to keep it or you may return to your bike or whatever.... gone.


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## effox (Apr 21, 2010)

Yeah, it's pretty sad that more people don't stand up against property theft, and that the transit police aren't more engaged with that priority.

It's one thing if you could pick the lock with a Bic like you could on some of those u-locks, but to carry around bolt cutters and not have anyone address you is complete BS.


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## teija (Sep 30, 2010)

Sorry to hear this happened to you, but glad at least that it was just the lock that needs replacing, not the whole bike.

Bike theft is getting ridiculous in the lower mainland, and yes, sadly that now means there are no locks that will save your bike, but multiple locks will certainly deter... I use two on mine, unless I am with the bike (outside at coffee shop). I live somewhere that people are over-trusting and often leave bikes unlocked when unattended - sadly, this is just going to draw all of the opportunists around, and has already started as I see more and more ads for missing bikes in our area.


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## Vman (Jan 20, 2011)

Well John I'd like to tell you what happened to my cousin and his wife. Last weekend they were on Granville island and locked up their bikes,with U locks,outside the gallery.When they came back both bikes were gone. This is insane. There must have been hundreds of people there.I had someone use our ladder to get on our balcony and steel my full suspension bike a few years ago. And my mom just had her bike stollen from her storage locker. I guess it's the price of gas.Even thieves are looking to go green. Lol.


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## Clownloachlover (Apr 21, 2010)

No, it is because they can fence the bikes quickly so they can score their latest drug fix...some of these new bikes with dual suspension and disc brakes fetch a pretty penny...Check out the police auctions every year...thousands of unclaimed bikes because people get their new bikes through insurance and don't bother to claim their old ones...why bother, they get a new one and they are happy for it. If I saw someone at a skytrain station with a pair of bolt cutters working on a bike lock, the first thing I would do is call the cops...not the transit police. Ask Skytrain to check their security cameras, they may have an idea as to what was going on! If you ever have your bike stolen check a website called pinkbike.com, you may find it listed there! and if you find yours, call the cops on the seller!


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## josephl (Apr 21, 2010)

Just so everyone is aware, for those of you that insure your house insurance through BCAA, BCAA has a great bike rider policy. Essentially you pay a certain amount per $100 that your bike is worth and should you for some reason get into an accident on your bike(they will treat it like a car and access the damage and chose to either fix or replace it) or if your bike is stolen, they will replace it at replacement value. All you have to do is to go online and file the police report.

I had an expensive (>$3k) road bike stolen once and I got a replacement bike as advertised with no hassles.

Just a thought as it seems to me, locks etc are always one step behind bike thieves


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## jobber (May 14, 2010)

Very good info joseph.
John smart to have two locks.

A good reminder for us all.

Sent from my mobile phone


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## tony1928 (Apr 22, 2010)

Great advice on the insurance and the double locks. Bikes are one of those things where oddly some people feel comfortable spending only $20 to secure something worth many hundreds if not thousands. 

Sent from my gigantic Samsung Note 2


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## Momobobo (Sep 28, 2010)

CBC did a short documentary about bike theft in B.C. They put out a bike of their own and within a few minutes they already caught somebody coming in with bolt cutters.

Pretty ridiculous...


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## Diztrbd1 (Apr 21, 2010)

Pretty ridiculous is right! So turns out U-bolt locks aren't invincible to bolt cutters either. I walked out of the station to my bike gone and seen the lock laying on the ground. Can't even explain the emotions that came over me  Im so tired of seeing this daily at the skytrain stations and still no added security to help prevent it! Not to mention how does somebody not see this going on at one of the busiest stations/bus loops in the system? It took a big set of cutters to get thru that lock. Cut the 3/4" cable one too but apparently took it with them. Glad I had the seat with me, couldn't have been much fun riding it without that.










In the event anyone see's the bike below, please contact me intermediately. It's a brown Iron Horse Maverick with brand new white lettered City Slicker( replaced the knobby tires on it in the pic) tires on it,. I have only ever seen 1 other like it around. It may or mar not have the seat since I had my seat with me. Was stolen from Lougheed Station, probably within 30 minutes of me leaving it there. Pretty sure these losers are waiting for someone to park a nice bike there and making sure they get on a train as that would be the safest time for them to do it.


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## Vancitycam (Oct 23, 2012)

Need to design some kind of unit that's GPS tracked and a phone app to locate it. Make it small and attach under the seat or frame, show up to a missing bike pull out your phone and take a look see. Maybe charge a battery like they used to power bike lights? It's a shame in today's society people don't have any respect for people belongings or public property for that matter IMO.

Sorry to hear 

Edit - on the how could nobody have seen it? Cause its so busy. I bet more than one person saw something it's just today's generation watches the world instead of doing their part and living in it. I'd bet a passer by would be more likely to film it happening on their phone and post it on youtube than stop it or atleast call the cops with simple info.


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## Phillyb (Jan 18, 2011)

I Shall Drop kick this person off the bike if I catch them. I've already had two shoo away bike thieves snooping around my crapppy bike. It's been two years I ride my bike every day, the only tip I can give anyone is ride a crappy looking bike and get friendly with security (whatever you want to call "security") in the area!

Sorry to hear about your losses. Hopefully there's a cop auction going on soon!


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## SeaHorse_Fanatic (Apr 22, 2010)

Sorry to hear John. This totally sucks.


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## The Guy (Nov 26, 2010)

*Our Justice system really needs work.*

I wonder how fast one of these losers could run with a bolt cutter jammed up their bum!!! Years back when I was a lot younger and saw someone trying to steal somebodies bike I would be all over them like crap on a blanket and then I would probably get charged. Nobody wants to get involved these days trying to do the right thing, it's a very sad and dangerous world we live in now. Even if these creeps are caught there back on the street the next day. Our justice system really sucks.


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## Vancitycam (Oct 23, 2012)

Icbc sucks too! ( Hides under a chair )


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## SeaHorse_Fanatic (Apr 22, 2010)

My friends and I once caught some guy trying to break into his car. We held him for the police and the officer told us the thief would get a slap on the wrist and be out in no time. He was right. Bumped into him at the local library just a week or so after he pleaded guilty in court (three witnesses = open & shut case) and I almost just hauled back and smoked him. I knew though that I would get into a lot more trouble than he ever did.


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## jhj0112 (Jul 30, 2013)

I'm so sorry to hear this John..


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## Diztrbd1 (Apr 21, 2010)

Thanks guys/gals! If you find that your post was edited, it was due to unacceptable language that I got a pm about to make me aware of, including my own. My apologies to anyone who might have been offended by that or felt my choice of slang words was out of line. I truly can relate to those post, especially Lauries lol I was a bit depressed this morning but that surely made me laugh. But I had to edit some things to keep it family friendly. Apparently a subject that many can relate to and very easy to get upset about. Bikes are the most stolen item in this city to my understanding and I sure hope something is done to bring the numbers down instead of us watching them rise as they are. Funny that the reason I ever started this was to advise bikers to use multiple locks of different types, because of the first attempt to steal it a few weeks after I bought it. And then they just made that advice worthless lol 
I rarely leave my bike at any skytrain stations, especially lougheed station, due to having 3 bikes now stolen from there. . One was probably the worlds ugliest bike lol I personally believe they have to be one of the top locations for bike thefts. I will be calling them today to see it there is any surveillance at all on those racks. That was like the 3rd time in a few months that I had to leave it there while I went to work. It was not a $1000 bike and I have less than $300 into it, but anyone who knows me knows I used it everyday and it went everywhere with me and it ticks me off to no end that I now have to spend hard earned money on another when I shouldn't have to 
I came across this document form 2010 and it saddens me to see the problem was well recognized yet no efforts to do anything about it. See page 6 section 3 regarding bicycle theft and enforcement: http://www.translink.ca/~/media/Doc...y/Cycle Support Services Strategic Plan.ashx

They do have bike lockers which is the best thing to guarantee the safety of your bike. But unfortunately Translink does not manage them, some advertising company takes care of them. What make it a pain in the butt is that they are located in a very crappy location in N. Van that is not easy to get to unless you have a car. You have to fill out a contract online for 3 month rental ($30) with a $50 key deposit. Unfortunately you have to have a CC or bank account to do this, which unfortunately I do not. I called the place for an alternative way to do this by cash....poor communication to the end. The guy actually made arrangements to meet me at Lougheed station on a day he was going to be in the area. When I called back to confirm it would be perfect, I got voice-mail ( as I did every time) and never heard from the jerk again. Therefor I could never get a locker and the sad thing is that they are over 60% empty and available!

And Cam, they do have lil gadgets but cost more than the bike to acquire lol I looked into products as such but they cost so much that if the bike got stolen and the device was discovered, you'd just be out that much more money lol

I have actually deterred a couple bikes from being stolen myself at stations. It isn't hard to even just yell at somebody from a safe distance to raise awareness of whats happening, you'd be surprised how many people would help prevent things as such. There is strength in numbers so one unlucky loser found out one day when I did it. Though he got to walk away, he had to be on the nervous side if he attempted it again elsewhere. But I guess this day and age either fear or not caring is why most wouldn't do anything.

Anyway, not much I can do cept buy another. I was gonna list it on CL as stolen as sometimes ya get lucky, but figured I'd wait a few days to see if it pops up on CL after they get a new seat and seat post for it. I pray it does show up, would love to go see it and take it for a test ride and as Im riding away throw the cut u-lock the thieves way and hope it don't hit him in the head  I am listing it on stolen bike sites but unfortunately I have misplaced the serial number so wouldn't do much good to report it stolen, but I will make an effort. There are some things that only I would know about it, so ya just never know what could happen.


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## Vancitycam (Oct 23, 2012)

Well if it pops up on Craigslist, as you said safety in numbers , I could get a buddy to come and the few of us could go and pick it up in the jeep if you like i dont mind driving us. Just send a pm if you find it lol.


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## Robin F (Apr 30, 2013)

If you are ever in Steveston, stop by Steveston Marine. I have some titanium chain in stock that bolt cutters won't make a dent in. Will sell it to you at my cost. I think its about 3-4 something a foot but you cannot cut it with bolt cutter. It actually makes a little scratch on the chain. Put that with an abus discus lock and your bike is safe. I actually made the mistake of trying to cut it one day and ruined my $200 bolt cutters. Good thing its a family business so I still have a job.  Just thought I made make the offer for a fellow member.

Sent from my SGH-I747M using Tapatalk


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## SeaHorse_Fanatic (Apr 22, 2010)

Robin,

Very generous offer.

John,

If you can't get down to Steveston, I'll swing by there next time I go down (probably next week or when the weather is nice) and pick it up for you.

Anthony


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## keitarosan (Apr 21, 2010)

Ha!! Here's one for you.... A friend of mine went to a coffee shop with his bike, locked the bike with a cheap bike lock from Cdn Tire. Went out bike is still there. Hang out at the coffee shop enjoying his drink just about 15-20 meters from where the bike is locked to a post. Low life guy came out with a bolt cutter and started working on the lock. He saw the guy but since my buddy is a fairly fit and confident enough that he can deal with the low life. He sat there took out his phone and recorded the whole thing. Lot of people saw the guy cutting the lock. No one reacted. 1 person even saw my buddy taking the video and said that's a good idea. That's it!

When my buddy felt he took enough evidence he ran over and told the guy it's his bike. The guy took his bolt cutter and left casually. My buddy said he's not getting away with it because he's got a video of everything. The guy just smiled and said "Good luck bud". You know what???? When my buddy went to the police and showed the video. The police took all his info and said "we'll work on it". That's it! No harm done because he still have his bike anyway. That was last summer and up to now my buddy hasn't heard anything from the police. Sometimes you wonder eh..... From where I originally came from, there's street justice where anybody can just jump you and beat you up if you're caught stealing or anything like that. The police will even thank you for it. Lol.


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## nigerian prince (Mar 8, 2013)

transit security guards are a huge waste of money, all they do is stand in a group and chat, absolutely a waste of taxpayer money


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## Phillyb (Jan 18, 2011)

"My apologies to anyone who might have been offended by that or felt my choice of slang words was out of line." 

Agreed, I saw I must have slipped up somewhere too, so I apologies as well.

Phil


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## Nicole (Nov 21, 2011)

I'm actually going to Richmond tomorrow so if you want, I can head down to Steveston Marine for those chains. Just shoot me a PM.


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## nigerian prince (Mar 8, 2013)

one thing i don't understand is that there are usually homeless people outside of train/bus stations with signs asking for money

if i were one of them i would camp out beside the bike rack and make a sign along the lines of "bike security, donations welcome" , and watch over the bikes and make sure nobody steals them, that way one could provide a service to the public in exchange for their charity, as bike theft i would guess is generally a crime of opportunity and a simple deterrence would cut down massively.


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## Vman (Jan 20, 2011)

That titanium chain sounds like a great way to go.Too bad Robin doesn't have adimentium though.Lol.


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## Robin F (Apr 30, 2013)

Just as fyi to the chain. I am only at my Richmond store on Tuesday/Wednesday and maybe some Mondays. My staff cannot override the price so I need to be there. Sorry if throws a wrench into it.

Sent from my SGH-I747M using Tapatalk


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## Nicole (Nov 21, 2011)

Robin F said:


> Just as fyi to the chain. I am only at my Richmond store on Tuesday/Wednesday and maybe some Mondays. My staff cannot override the price so I need to be there. Sorry if throws a wrench into it.
> 
> Sent from my SGH-I747M using Tapatalk


Whoops, thanks for the heads up.


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## Luke78 (Apr 24, 2010)

I spend some of my time working with the Richmond RCMP,an area we cover is the Canada Line and downtown core(Richmond).I know the location is quite a ways from where your bike was taken, but you would be amazed how many of these idiots use the line.Ill keep this photo and description on me, let you know if i come across it.Lots of these low life's cruise these parts of the city too.Hopefully something comes up



Diztrbd1 said:


> Pretty ridiculous is right! So turns out U-bolt locks aren't invincible to bolt cutters either. I walked out of the station to my bike gone and seen the lock laying on the ground. Can't even explain the emotions that came over me  Im so tired of seeing this daily at the skytrain stations and still no added security to help prevent it! Not to mention how does somebody not see this going on at one of the busiest stations/bus loops in the system? It took a big set of cutters to get thru that lock. Cut the 3/4" cable one too but apparently took it with them. Glad I had the seat with me, couldn't have been much fun riding it without that.
> 
> 
> 
> ...


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