I highly recommend that people bring a bike with them to college since some of the dorms are far from campus. With having a bike you don’t have to spend as much time going to class which means more time to sleep in the morning. You need to think carefully about what type of bike you bring though.
There are several reasons you may not want to bring your favorite and probably expensive bike to college. No matter how good the bike, it will most likely be a pile of junk soon. At home most people do not leave there bikes outside, but in college most people leave there bikes locked to the bike rack year round, outside. The weather is not very kind to bike, it will cause rust all over.
Other bad things that happen are caused by other people. Some people find it fun to go around and jump on peoples tires and bend them, making the bike unrideable. Another thing that happens is people steal them if they are worth anything or just for fun. If you look at the bike racks around campus you will see just parts of bikes locked to the racks. Sometimes you will see just a front tire on the bike rack or sometimes just the frame. This is because the lock on the bike was a good lock that could not be cut easily, or it was not locked up properly. If just the frame was left, it was locked up pretty good, but you must have had an expensive bike and the parts were worth a lot. If only the front tire is there, it means the person did not run the lock through the frame.
When you lock up your bike, make sure it goes through your frame and front wheel. This way they can’t just disconnect your front wheel and take the rest of the bike. On my bike I actually have to lock both wheels and the frame because both wheels have quick releases meaning they can be taken off in a few seconds.
I suggest the if you do not have a bike that you do not mind throwing out at the end of the school year due to rust and damage, go to Wal-Mart. You can get a bike there cheap; I believe they are $50-$60. This way you do not have to worry about it getting destroyed, if it does, you just get another. Also look at your bike and see if the wheels are quick releases, if they are, you must get a lock go through the frame and the wheels that are quick release. The lock should always go through the frame.
Now you got to choose a type of lock: u-lock or cable lock and combination or key. A cable lock is all you need if your bike is a cheap bike. If it is more expensive you might want to get a u-lock. A cable lock can be cut in about a seconds with a bolt cutters. With a u-lock, people have to use a saw to cut it, a lot more time consuming. A key lock is more secure than a combination because a person can not just try the combination till they get it. It takes an hour or two to get into a combination lock without cutting it since there are 10,000 possible combinations.
There are several reasons you may not want to bring your favorite and probably expensive bike to college. No matter how good the bike, it will most likely be a pile of junk soon. At home most people do not leave there bikes outside, but in college most people leave there bikes locked to the bike rack year round, outside. The weather is not very kind to bike, it will cause rust all over.
Other bad things that happen are caused by other people. Some people find it fun to go around and jump on peoples tires and bend them, making the bike unrideable. Another thing that happens is people steal them if they are worth anything or just for fun. If you look at the bike racks around campus you will see just parts of bikes locked to the racks. Sometimes you will see just a front tire on the bike rack or sometimes just the frame. This is because the lock on the bike was a good lock that could not be cut easily, or it was not locked up properly. If just the frame was left, it was locked up pretty good, but you must have had an expensive bike and the parts were worth a lot. If only the front tire is there, it means the person did not run the lock through the frame.
When you lock up your bike, make sure it goes through your frame and front wheel. This way they can’t just disconnect your front wheel and take the rest of the bike. On my bike I actually have to lock both wheels and the frame because both wheels have quick releases meaning they can be taken off in a few seconds.
I suggest the if you do not have a bike that you do not mind throwing out at the end of the school year due to rust and damage, go to Wal-Mart. You can get a bike there cheap; I believe they are $50-$60. This way you do not have to worry about it getting destroyed, if it does, you just get another. Also look at your bike and see if the wheels are quick releases, if they are, you must get a lock go through the frame and the wheels that are quick release. The lock should always go through the frame.
Now you got to choose a type of lock: u-lock or cable lock and combination or key. A cable lock is all you need if your bike is a cheap bike. If it is more expensive you might want to get a u-lock. A cable lock can be cut in about a seconds with a bolt cutters. With a u-lock, people have to use a saw to cut it, a lot more time consuming. A key lock is more secure than a combination because a person can not just try the combination till they get it. It takes an hour or two to get into a combination lock without cutting it since there are 10,000 possible combinations.
2 comments:
On behalf of all the students who use their own two feet around campus, please don't ride a bike around. They are hazardous to other students especially when bikers feel they need to sprint to class. Ask my roommate and her bruised ribs she suffered earlier this year in a hit and run. Walking to class is healthier and easier.
In response to purduewaterpolo, I don't think the bikes are the problem but rather the people riding them. Bikers should really ride in the street so as to avoid collisions like that. In some states police will actually stop you for riding on the sidewalk and ask you to move into the street. Even if you have to get around within the campus, such as around the fountain and surrounding sidewalks, it would still be courteous to stay on the grass on either side. I've seem several bikers do that: not only is it safer for everyone, but the bikers won't have to slow down as much for the heavy traffic.
The real dangers are those dang skate boarders. I had one run over my toe, and he just kept going.
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