Poacher
Gravitationally challenged member
- Location
- Nottingham
How are you going to D-lock a numpty if you've left it on a rack? 
Leaving a lock attached to a bike rack or similar
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.I have a mate works for streetpride, so I emailed him. As they were outside the council offices I thought they might have been for council workers only. No, they're for public use.
Orange
Active Member
- Location
- Northamptonshire
Work sends emails and puts up notices about locks being left overnight being removed - they never do seem to get removed though and plenty of people flout the rule. I still park my bike where I like if I'm in first though; leaving your lock can't be seen as reserving the space, especially when the spaces are limited.
Old Plodder
Living at the top of a steep 2 mile climb
- Location
- Surrey/Hants border
Tends to happen around towns quite a lot; never take it to mean 'reserved', just that someone parks there regularly.
fossyant
Ride It Like You Stole It!
- Location
- South Manchester
If you have spare locks then it's worth leaving them on a rack. I used to leave a 10lb chain (yes that heavy) at work. It was that heavy, I dropped it off in the car. Way too heavy to carry. Now use a Fagh and a Abus Bordo, and they weigh loads, but tend to leave in the office until I need to take them with me to other sites. I bring the bike into the office most days though.
BentMikey
Rider of Seolferwulf
- Location
- South London
You should get a proper bike, Fossy, one that can carry even a little bit of weight. 10lbs isn't exactly a big load. :P
Leaving a lock is perfectly acceptable, it's simply a convenience in not having to carry it. I agree with others who say it doesn't in any way represent a reservation. I can't imagine the authorities would be in any way interested in the practice.
What's unacceptable is people leaving a bike locked in a stand for long periods, just because it may have a puncture or similar problem. This happened at the secure bike shed at my office where one plonker left his bike for over a year! By that time it was rusted solid (I tried turning the pedals) and some other cyclists were simply standing their bikes on top of his. Eventually bits of it began disappearing and he shifted it.
What's unacceptable is people leaving a bike locked in a stand for long periods, just because it may have a puncture or similar problem. This happened at the secure bike shed at my office where one plonker left his bike for over a year! By that time it was rusted solid (I tried turning the pedals) and some other cyclists were simply standing their bikes on top of his. Eventually bits of it began disappearing and he shifted it.
fossyant
Ride It Like You Stole It!
- Location
- South Manchester
Hah, I carry more than that in the panniers (I think I triple the bike weight at least), but that lock was being used before I had panniers - no good in a rucksack.
Slightly off topic here I know but I carry one of these in my back pocket just for those odd occasions when I have to step away from my bike during a ride. Now I'm not pretending for 1 minute that it would stand up to a determined thief and I don't let my bike out of my sight even when using it but for popping into Costa for a coffee or stopping for water/pee breaks on my ride it's great. It looks plastic and fragile but the actual lock mechanism inside the case is quite reasonable certainly good enough to slow someone down long enough for me to get back to the bike.
You can pick them up for about £3 on eBay if you don't mind waiting for it to arrive from Hong Kong or about £10 if you prefer a UK seller.
You can pick them up for about £3 on eBay if you don't mind waiting for it to arrive from Hong Kong or about £10 if you prefer a UK seller.
TwickenhamCyclist
Guest
How are you going to D-lock a numpty if you've left it on a rack?
Agreed – but you could still leave one at work and just carry a spare cosh, I mean lock, just in case...
