I had a funny feeling about locking my bicycle outside my church for the Friday night youth club where I volunteer. I locked it to a post away from the door thinking it would be out of the way of people entering and leaving, but it was out of sight of watchful friends.
After the meeting, I went out to bicycle home and it was gone. I looked all over for it. I walked around the building hoping it was in the bushes. I went down the path to the high school next door because I assumed the theft was done by kids and they would drift back to familiar territory. I kept looking and walked over to the shopping center to look, but no bike.
The walk home is between seven and eight miles. I have done it before and it takes about two hours. I was angry and depressed, as I walked I kept asking God why he let this happen, and why do people do such things.
After about two miles my cell phone rang. My wife had received a call that my bicycle was found at the top of some hill by friends who recognized it. They brought the bike back to church and put it inside.
I turned and started back to the church. The bike was there, the lock was still on it. It looked like someone had tossed it off a truck. The rear tire was twisted, and the front fork was completely turned around.
After about fifteen minutes of repairing and untangling the lock and forcing things back in place, I was able to get on and ride home- sort of. The back wheel was so badly bent I took twice as long as normal. At home, I made more repairs and got it good enough for another ride or two but the bent wheel was very unsafe and the breaks were bent and useless on that wheel.
I slowly rode it to work the next morning. On the way home I began to think about options. I could buy a new bike but I had no money. I could take the bike to the bike shop and have it fixed but I had no money. I knew the rim had to be replaced, but I had no money. I remembered a bicycle that was set out with the trash last summer which I salvaged thinking it would be a good bike for my daughter. It had nice rims and new tires which we bought to make it ready for her. She rode it once and refused to try again, it was not cool enough for a kid with a learner's permit.
My bike is a mountain bike and the salvaged bike was a street commuter type. I took the knobby mountain bike tires and wheels off of the front and back and put on the tires from the salvaged bike. They were bigger, so of course, the brakes did not fit. The salvaged bike was a drop frame for a girl and the cables to the rear break were threaded from the bottom up where the break on my bike threaded the cable from the top down. There was no way to could use the back break from the salvaged bike. I took the front break off and tried it on the back of my mountain bike, but the hardware didn't match since the mounting shaft was the wrong length. I had to disassemble both breaks and use the parts I could to make a working break. It worked; in fact, it was a better break than what I had to begin with.
When finished I took a look at all the parts left over. It occurred to me that there were extra reflectors. Good, I wanted to add some to the cargo crate mounted to the rear rack so they were attached.
It was a big pain, but the retrofit and cannibalizing of bicycles gave me a sort of upgrade. I have ridden it to work and I feel it is a quicker ride.
There was one other thing I took off of the salvaged bike- the lock. I use both locks to secure my bike now. If someone takes it they will have to work for it.
After the meeting, I went out to bicycle home and it was gone. I looked all over for it. I walked around the building hoping it was in the bushes. I went down the path to the high school next door because I assumed the theft was done by kids and they would drift back to familiar territory. I kept looking and walked over to the shopping center to look, but no bike.
The walk home is between seven and eight miles. I have done it before and it takes about two hours. I was angry and depressed, as I walked I kept asking God why he let this happen, and why do people do such things.
After about two miles my cell phone rang. My wife had received a call that my bicycle was found at the top of some hill by friends who recognized it. They brought the bike back to church and put it inside.
I turned and started back to the church. The bike was there, the lock was still on it. It looked like someone had tossed it off a truck. The rear tire was twisted, and the front fork was completely turned around.
After about fifteen minutes of repairing and untangling the lock and forcing things back in place, I was able to get on and ride home- sort of. The back wheel was so badly bent I took twice as long as normal. At home, I made more repairs and got it good enough for another ride or two but the bent wheel was very unsafe and the breaks were bent and useless on that wheel.
I slowly rode it to work the next morning. On the way home I began to think about options. I could buy a new bike but I had no money. I could take the bike to the bike shop and have it fixed but I had no money. I knew the rim had to be replaced, but I had no money. I remembered a bicycle that was set out with the trash last summer which I salvaged thinking it would be a good bike for my daughter. It had nice rims and new tires which we bought to make it ready for her. She rode it once and refused to try again, it was not cool enough for a kid with a learner's permit.
My bike is a mountain bike and the salvaged bike was a street commuter type. I took the knobby mountain bike tires and wheels off of the front and back and put on the tires from the salvaged bike. They were bigger, so of course, the brakes did not fit. The salvaged bike was a drop frame for a girl and the cables to the rear break were threaded from the bottom up where the break on my bike threaded the cable from the top down. There was no way to could use the back break from the salvaged bike. I took the front break off and tried it on the back of my mountain bike, but the hardware didn't match since the mounting shaft was the wrong length. I had to disassemble both breaks and use the parts I could to make a working break. It worked; in fact, it was a better break than what I had to begin with.
When finished I took a look at all the parts left over. It occurred to me that there were extra reflectors. Good, I wanted to add some to the cargo crate mounted to the rear rack so they were attached.
It was a big pain, but the retrofit and cannibalizing of bicycles gave me a sort of upgrade. I have ridden it to work and I feel it is a quicker ride.
There was one other thing I took off of the salvaged bike- the lock. I use both locks to secure my bike now. If someone takes it they will have to work for it.
