Hell on Two Wheels: Making It Harder To Get Your Bike Stolen

All good points, although I've managed to keep my current ride for several years by giving it the appearance of an already-been-stolen, totally-unmarketable, crappy-looking-beater-bike with no insignias. Internally, however, it's a decent ride with better than mid-grade components, like those messenger bikes.

I can't imagine how fixsters can ride around with expensive, smooth-looking machines, not just subjecting themselves to theft, but also to robbery, perhaps with lethal results. I find that in San Francisco it's better to publicly appear "substandard" in regards to anything so nobody will phuck with ya.

The most informative part of the LA Times story:

"Ironically, Box said, some of the worst positioned racks can be found at the new LAPD headquarters. Some of the upside-down U-shaped racks the city uses have even been cut and the gap covered with stickers, he said. Bike thieves simply slip out the locked bicycles."

Looks like the upside-down U-rack pic used for this story is a candidate for one of these jacked racks. LOOK OUT!

Just wanted to point out that the National Bike Registry is kind of a longshot, because it's an opt-in system that not every department used. It's also kind of insulting that they're charging people who just had their bikes stolen $10 to list in their database.

www.stolenbicycleregistry.com, however, is 100% open to the public and cops alike - and it is free.