Bike Theft

[Anerron]

So I'm curious; if you buy a second hand bike how sure can you be it wasn't stolen?

Because if there's a 99.9 per cent chance it was stolen, why do people still buy second hand? Don't they know they're encouraging the whole cycle to repeat itself and hence, are putting their own newly acquired bike at risk?

The whole process of finding a safe-ish spot to leave my bike, struggling with my two intestine shaped jumbo locks and then *still* worrying about it is so tiresome sometimes...

[got_no_jaffas]

i'm in beijing now & seriously thinking of getting a bike but there are some issues...

i'm 6 foot tall & most of the bikes i've seen are too small. is anyone else having problems with cycling in beijing or china as well? i could pay for a more expensive non chinese made bike but then i run a serious risk of it getting stolen. even if i buy a heavy lock, i wouldn't be surprised if they stole the bike in parts.

[adrianlondon]

I'm 180cm tall and had no problems in the week I was there. Admittedly I didn't buy a bik, I hired one. Seemed big enough for me. I ride a lot in the UK and have my own bike - obviously - and the one I hired in Beijing was a similar size. Having a fixed speed bike was quite an experience, but works well in such a flat city.

(However I should have bought one considering the small cost difference, but I was on my own, my first ever visit to China, and don't speak Mandarin well enough to do anything much.)

[nephridium]

You have to look around a bit to find the bigger bikes. I couldn't find one at Carrefour, so I went to Walmart and found one I could raise the saddle up to an adequate height. It was rather expensive, though, and my main hope is that the thieves won't like to drive a away with a bike they can't sit on comfortably (assuming they have shorter legs than i do).

[got_no_jaffas]

i saw the bikes in walmart & i thought they were probably a good deal. i've been cycling in beijing for a week now & this midget bike just hacks me off. i can't get leverage on the pedals because my knees are up by my chest!!

if i plan to cycle 50 to 100 miles on weekends to see beijing then i'd better get a proper bike which won't kill my posture & give me back problems until my old age!!

then again i may still not get to see beijing by bike if some cheeky beijinger steals it!! but you got to try anyway & not live in fear of theft.

[adrianlondon]

It's important that your legs are virtually straight when the relevant peddle is at the bottom of its revolution. Cycling on an incorrectly set up bike is an easy way to mess up your knees.

[geraldc]

Extending your leg fully, just makes cycling a bit more efficient. It's a trade off between efficiency and safety. You can ride with a high saddle, but then you can't put your feet on the ground etc. I'd go for safety over efficiency when cycling in China, it's not as if you ever need to cycle quickly.