Out in the Cold

Been a while since I last posted, as usual.  The cold weather is setting in, but as long as the pavement is dry I’m still cycling and putting in the miles.  Bib tights are an essential piece of gear.  Looking forward to the booties coming in the mail and hoping they’ll alleviate the icicle-toes I’ve been getting lately.

I’ve been having good luck training weighted pull-ups for ice climbing season.  A couple of my friends have gear now, so it looks like I’ll be going out a lot more.  Soloing ice isn’t really my deal, so I find good partners essential.

On the 14th of October my road bike got stolen out of a bike rack in front of BSU’s Rec Center.  I forgot my lock at home that day and decided to leave it unattended for a few hours.  Being that it was a high-traffic area and that I see unlocked bikes there pretty regularly, I thought it would be safe.  Boy was I wrong.

Standing in the sleet, wearing my shoes and helmet, looking at the empty racks I had probably the worst feeling I’ve had in a long time.  I was crushed.  I love my bike just like girlfriend.  She is there for me, no matter what.  As I waited for my roommate to pick me up, getting wetter and colder, “Drive” by the cars got stuck in my head, specifically the line, “Who’s gonna drive you home/ tonight?”  Very funny in retrospect.

About two weeks later I got my bike back.  I did a few things right that helped.  I immediately called the police and filed a report.  I also had my serial number on hand.  So few people have this that the officer I spoke to didn’t even bother to ask for it.  I had to ask him if he wanted it, which he did, of course.

I also posted photos of my bike on facebook and alerted all my friends to the fact that it’d been stolen.  How helpful this was is hard to determine since the person who found it, my friend Davy, would have recognized it anyway, but I feel that having more eyes out there couldn’t have hurt.
Living in a small community and having a very uncommon bike helped.  If it was being ridden around (and it was) it was going to be seen by someone.  Davy found it in another bike rack on campus that I pass almost daily.  The thief must have been riding it that night.  Davy took the bike back and locked it away for me.

In the end it was a little luck, a little internet savvy, and a lot of help from a good friend that got my bike back.  Lock your bike up, all the time and everywhere.  It’s sad that we have to do this, even in a small city like Bemidji.