To those who take their bike to work

[davidB]

anyone leave it on your car?

I'm about to put a hitch on my car and pick up a rack as well as putting my bike in the back of my scion tc is getting old. However, I work very close to turnbull canyon a few days a week and after work rides are nice.

Can't store it at work. I work in a big 6 story office building that wouldn't take too kindly to someone putting a mt bike in their elevators, plus there's no spot in the office to store it. No room in cubicle, server room too small, kitchen/break room being converted into just that.

I guess my question is, is that a safe option assuming locks are in place? The parking lot is average size and I'll have no problem seeing my car from our many windows. Plus we have a couple "security people" roaming the parking lot so in theory for now I'm optimistic

[foofighter]

There's absolutely no where in the building/office that you can use? Personally i would keep it inside the car, putting it outside is convenient but also makes it easy for the sorry ass thieving bastid to get at your ride as well. Swear, if i worked near a trail my bike would be at work everyday...take the freight elevator up and put it with me in my cube.

[RacinJason]

Depending on where you are located. I leave my bike on back of my truck sometimes with a cable trough the frame. Its in a gated area its a little safer than a open parking lot. If you feel nervous you can lock it in your car and cover it.
Thats what Willie does.

[dutch]

my beach cruiser is sitting on my bike rack on my car in the parking lot of my apartment complex right now. Seems to work reasonably as I hardly ever drive my car (except to and from mtb. rides). It just has a cable around the frame and the rack. Don't think I'd leave my mountain bike outside at night though, that gets to sleep indoors.

[davidB]

well leaving it in the car has worked fine for the last couple months, no coworkers have said anything and I doubt they've noticed.

the parking lot doesn't have much traffic coming in and out except for lunch hours. The people coming in are all business people, very few shady people in the area. I don't think I'd make a practice of doing it that often

[dutch]

i say go for it, as long as its locked and in a parking lot not frequented by thugs I'd say you're safe.

[FoShizzle]

woudl probably keep it in the car myself....yes, more of a pain, but really not a big deal to take few extra minutes to assemble/disassemble it. I am fortunate i keep a bike 24/7 in my office and i know it.....i am sure i will get fired one day and lose the option but until then....

[foofighter]

Originally Posted by dutch

my beach cruiser is sitting on my bike rack on my car in the parking lot of my apartment complex right now. Seems to work reasonably as I hardly ever drive my car (except to and from mtb. rides). It just has a cable around the frame and the rack. Don't think I'd leave my mountain bike outside at night though, that gets to sleep indoors.

dutch look where where you live one of the "safest cities" in the country.

[Pain Freak]

That's the same as painting a challenge on your car. Don't leave it out like that. It might be okay for a while, but sooner or later some lowlife junky is going to come along and steal it. I had mine with a Kryptonite cable running thru it and some idiot went next door to the hardware store, stole some bolt cutters, then came back in the front of our office and tried to cut the cable (if he'd tried the lock he would of made it), the cable did it's job, and my secretary noticed what was going on and yelled, "Mike somebody's stealing your bike", I jumped up and ran outside with a co-worker and this guy was high tailing it down the street. We chased him for a while and cornered him in someones yard, but when he started to climb the wall we pulled him down a few times and my co-worker said" let him go and let the police take care of it. So I yanked him off the wall one more time and he fell on his face. He got back up and climbed up to different walls gaining height on each, than he fell all the way back down by himself. Funny, but this poor guy was about to have a heart attack by how hard he was breathing. Anyways he left the bolt cutters which the cops took and I lost a cable, but kept my bike. So like I said, I'd leave it in the car!

[spookydave]

I wouldn't even leave it in the car. I've had to many cars/trucks broken into.
Every time it was because they were after something they saw through the window. Now I keep my truck cab pretty clean so hopefully they will see something in the car next to mine that they want more.

trusting I'm not.

[madrider]

I have a very similar situation, I would second that you should cover your bike in addition to the lock- I believe in out of sight out of mid- don't tempt anyone with your ride. Buy an inexpensive bike cover for $25 and cover it when it's parked. They aren't good for traveling so take it off when you get going.

Also, find out if there are any security cameras for your parking lot and make sure you park in only those visible areas.

[mtnbikerfred]

I carried my bike everywhere on a rack for a year. I had the braided Kryptonite cables and a very strong lock. Nothing short of a die-grinder or torch was going to move it quickly. The [SIZE=-1]coup de grâce to a would be bike thief was thin "seat cable" attached to a "snap switch" on the soft top of my truck. If you so much as bumped the bike walking passed it, the alarm on the truck went off thus summoning me and several 9mm friends to the scene.

I've also conceived a system using an RFID transponder, but that would require the bike to be removed before the alarm went off. If you had a similarly equipped two-way remote alarm (where the clicker is like a pagertoo), and always parked close to the main entrance to a building or in a secured lot, and your bike is insured, go ahead and leave it out. Make it painfully conspicuous that the bike is locked and I doubt anyone will ever mess with it.
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[Waldo]

I like to leave mine in my car, then post about it on the internet so everyone knows where to look for it

J/K - I've left mine in the car at work, but I lock and cover the bike, and my windows are tinted, so it's really hard to tell anything is even in there. Plus the lot where I park gets tons of foot traffic plus an occasional security patrol, and there are some surveillance cams around. It'd be pretty gutsy to try to snag it.

[Padre]

Sounds like you need a Honda Element.