Smithereens...

...which are little bits and pieces, and that's what I have here, little bits and pieces of news.


First, more bike light giveaways, this one from the fine folks at FABB: they'll be doing a bicycle light giveaway at St Anthony's in Falls Church/Baileys Crossroads on Nov. 22 at 5:30pm and they need volunteers.

Second; still working on the 'aftermath' of bike theft and vandalism. One of my neighbors who was also hit by the thieves (they got bike parts, his frame was still in place thanks to a serious U-lock) kindly called me to tell me he would be meeting with police to check the four bikes they recovered and invited me to come along. Police thought some of the missing parts would show up on the bikes, and they were right. He will recover his seat, seatpost, seat cover and bike lights. (This stuff adds up.)

I went along and for a second, thought that maybe that was my missing wheel on one of the bikes, but upon closer inspection, I'm not so sure. My Gazelle is still in the shop (I'm waiting for the estimate on it) so I'll have to see if I have any photos that can help me out on that score. So far no sign of the Dahon.

So, nearly a week after finding my bike stolen, and a second vandalized, I'm still working on recovering any parts, completing the process of reporting to the insurance company. They want the receipt from the Dahon, and darn it, I have all the info on my other bikes, but can't find that particular file and paperwork. Kills me because I can picture both the brochure and the receipt. I'll be contacting the bike shop to see if they kept records from 2008.

Note to all you bike owners: after purchase, KEEP the receipts, PHOTOGRAPH your bike, especially the serial number (flip your bike upside down, there on the sprocket, you'll find it) and register it with the National Bike Registry.

After this, I can only imagine the grief that victims of more serious crimes go through; for me this is limited to the paperwork, the time lost to following up, the frustration of the loss, and the dent it can put in your sense of security. In the big scheme of things: small potatoes. Still, grinds my gears.

...and not bikey, but pedestrian-y: I'm walking 500 miles for MS. Ok, not all at once. I've set a goal for myself: I will walk 500 miles by the April 16th and shoot for another 500 by June.

Can You See Me Now?








Check in at WTOP. 103.5fm and our website. We've got a piece on the value of bike lights and the strategies that groups like BikeArlington and WABA are using to make sure that cyclists are seen.

More on what I find works for me later. Right now, news could be breaking, and WTOP needs to be there with the patch kit when it does.

Did You Catch This Cyclist on WTOP Monday Morning?

Meet John Farrell of Chevy Chase.

I did. Ran into him at his polling place election night. He was on his bike. I asked him about that, and he explained he's one of the thousands of folks who opt to make every day Bike To Work Day. He makes it sound like non-stop fun.

Dear Bike Thief,

First things first.


Stolen bikes November 2010 from kate ryan on Vimeo.

I know, I live in the city. Crime is part of the landscape. A stolen bike doesn't compare to a violent crime. I'm in a position to replace the object that was stolen. I get that. I get all that. But that's not the point. Let me help you understand.