I’m trying to use my car less and bike to places where I can. I’ve thought about getting an e-bike to extend the range of places I can bike to, but one things that’s holding me back is what do I do with it while at the store? If it were just my crappy normal bike I wouldn’t really worry too much about someone stealing it, but if I’m gonna spend a few hundred on an e-bike I am nervous about leaving it unattended.
What are your thoughts?
Get one with an easily removable battery and take it with you. Get a good lock for the bike itself.
If you lock your bike in front of a busy door, it will be safe during the day.
But if you are concerned there’s many ways to get insurance that will cover theft. My kryptonite bike lock let me get 4 years of theft insurance coverage for $2500 and it was $35 total.
Another common thing my friend does in LA is talk to the security guard. Often they’ll watch it for you for a bit.
I’m at 1500miles on mine in LA. I ride it every day for every errand almost, I feel pretty confident in my advice.
I rode in a coastal city for over a decade as my primary vehicle. My bike looked weird for starters, so less likely to blend in on marketplaces for resale. Then I bought a weird lock and locked it on poles out front like people do dogs. Make sure the pole is not something you can just lift the bike up and off. My thought process for the weird lock is we were told most bike thieves come prepared to defeat U-locks and chains, but they won’t bother with other kinds.
You can also put a tracking device on your frame in an obscure location to give you peace of mind and help getting it back if stolen. And be sure to write your bike’s unique id down in case you need it for a police report.
What is a weird lock???
Find a place and lock it up. There are grinder resistant locks now but get insurance if you’re very worried.
Kryptonite Fahgettaboutit are the best locks and chains you can get. Lockpocking Lawyer recommends them. I use mine to park my bike in the streets of Medellin and have never had an issue.
I have a rad runner, with it I use a wheel lock, long security chain which bolts into said wheel lock, and then a folding lock I use as well with all that. My hope is all that overkill’ll just deter a thief entirely. If anything it’ll buy time for me to catch them in the act and chase them away.
What stops them from just lifting the entire bike away? (especially given that it’s so light). Of course, the obvious solution is to chain it to something, but not every location has a convenient place to chain your bike (without it getting in the way of pedestrians etc).
The rad runner is 70+ lbs, while not necessarily heavy, it is cumbersome to move around when both tires are immovable from the wheel lock (through rear wheel) and folding lock (through front wheel, bike frame, & bike post). Where I live there is always a bike post conveniently located nearby to lock it to.
I didn’t know there was such a thing. Surely by making it prohibitively heavy to just lift into a car, you also make it too heavy to ride easily
Wave goodbye.
I live in San Francisco.
I don’t know where you are located, but here in Germany you can register your bike. It is then identifiable in a database.
Other than that, commonly expensive bikes have GPS or at least can be equipped with it. And of course a good quality lock.
Also don’t think that “the more expensive a bike, the more likely it is to be stolen”. It’s actually the other way around. The more unique your bike is, the less attractive it is for thieves. A black city bike from a local discounter is sold like 10 times a day. Your fancy pants Porsche Pedelec in astral yellow with vibrant orange rims is probably unique within your country. Guess what is the lowest risk and easiest to sell? The 10,000 Dollar bike that can be easily identified or the one that everyone has for 400 bucks?
I use a frame lock for the back wheel(which has the motor) and a chain which I use to lock the frame to the bike stand.
If I’m leaving the bike for just 15 minutes I leave battery in. Longer than that I take the battery with me. Noone is going to try to steal an ebike without a battery when there’s people around. The bike looses half of its value without it, since it will be harder to sell.
I always leave my helmet on the bike (it’s like 10 bucks). If there are people that are desperate enough to steal my helmet, it’s a good indicator that I should never park there again.
I was a bit worried about leaving my bike unattended at first, but I’ve grown out of it. Also, my bike is covered by my home insurance, so the monetary risk is low.
Vote with your wallet when it comes to bike racks, choose businesses with bike racks that reach the frame and not just the front wheel.
I walk my EUC right into the store with me, just pop up the trolley handle and keep going.
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A few hundred might be underselling it a bit. In the brief time I’ve been researching this I was mostly looking at the lectric brand bikes, which start around $800 USD.
I’ve seen some for several thousands but wasn’t really considering those since this won’t be a daily driver and I’m already paranoid about getting the cheaper one stolen.
That’s not true, Shit brands are making walmart-level ebikes now for about $4-800. My bike was $2300 brand new, or you can get an e-kit for a regular bike for about $2-600, basically for a battery and a hub drive.
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I like to drive it at 30 miles an hour on the pavements and footpaths, scattering and scaring pedestrians and children. I am too much of a nancy to ride it on the road where it might be me that gets hurt, but at least I have a plastic hat so I don’t have to pay attention while I’m driving.
Soon no place outside will be safe from hurtling steel, and we will have won.
I am planning to buy an off-roader, so I can get the vermin who try to hide from the traffic in the parks and gardens.
While I story of understand you anger, as there are some fools out there that are using their illegal ebikes effectively as motorcycles on bike paths and sidewalks, they are:
- In the vast minority
- On a 60lb vehicle, instead of a 3000lb vehicle, and can do far less damage as a result.
If you’re going to get angry, get angry at cars, car-centric infrastructure, and the fact that people on ebikes don’t have the proper cycling infrastructure to stay separated from pedestrians.
Don’t get me wrong, I’ve hated and feared cars since I was a boy. But some greenwashing fuckers and their shills in the ‘bike lobby’ legalising riding motorbikes in what used to be safe places has hardly improved matters.
Now there’s nowhere safe to ride a bike or walk, or for children to play.
Fuck cars and fuck motorbikes.
Also, 60 pounds my arse. You might get the odd actual bicycle with a little electric motor attached, but most of them are the same weight and speed as mopeds. And they don’t stay “restricted to 20mph” for long.
I ride every day in a bike-heavy commuter city, and I’m confident the fastest thing on the road is a 50yo man made of 50% spandex riding a road bike that cost more than your tuition and weighs less than your wallet.
As long as he’s on the road I got no problem with that! A brave man.
Laws of man do not hinder spandex middle aged bike man.
