PSA.

I know, you didn’t think you’d get any useful information out of reading my blog but, here goes: bicycles are for riding, not locking up outside.

On occasion, customers will come into the bike shop to have a stuck u-lock removed. Every time, we’ve been successful in getting it off, either with bolt cutters or with the angle grinder.

Today, a customer came in with a Kryptonite Evolution u-lock stuck to his bike frame. The u-lock wasn’t skewered through the rear wheel, which made the request to have it cut off not suspicious.

Yann agreed to do it: he had never cut through a Kryptonite brand u-lock and wanted to try. It’s supposedly one of the more secure u-locks on the market.

“If this takes more than fifteen minutes, we’ll have to charge you.”

While this conversation took place, I had my back to the repair stands and was looking at the computer. When I swiveled in the stool, I saw three guys wearing ear protection. Yann was in the far corner of the shop where sparks were shooting two feet into the air. The co-worker standing next to Yann threw up the horns and started headbanging.

Huh.

I missed a fair amount in the 30 seconds I was staring at the computer. And, in that time, the angle grinder glided right through the u-lock. Not only that, but Yann says cheaper u-locks were more difficult to cut through.

Naturally, the next question I had for Yann was: “Are there ANY locks that will withstand an angle grinder?”

The Altor SAF U-Lock: a 13.7 pound u-lock that looks like the Kryptonite with a severe allergic reaction. This lock contains an alloy sheath that has the purpose of clogging the angle grinder. It’s also $300.

So… the only way to guarantee your bike will never get stolen is to not own a bicycle.