For the past 15 years I have walked to work. Quite a nice walk through the park. I see the same old faces each morning walking their dogs. We have a short chat. Talk about the same things. I often see them on the way home too. It is the best way to travel to work if you can.
But maybe 10 years ago I decided to start cycling to work on my mountain bike. The only downside I could see was where to leave it through the day? As luck would have it there are some cycle stands right outside on the busy high street , so I could even see my precious bike from the workshop window. In all my years of looking through this window at the multitude of different bikes left at the stands I never saw any trouble. Until, that is, when I started to leave my own bike there!
The first time was when I glanced up from my work and saw a lad sitting on it. It was locked up but I raced outside and confronted him. He ran off calling me all the worst insults he could think of. A week later peering out of the window I watched a group of kids kicking the fu@k out of my front wheel trying to separate it from the forks. I raced outside again yelling my head off! Members of the public looked at me as if I was a madman...and I was! The kids formed a big ring around me and my bike, just out of reach, and started with the insults. The worst names they could think of. After that I was constantly checking out of the window.
Things quieted down for a time and then the saddle was stolen. Lesson learned! I started taking it's replacement into the workshop after I had parked up. On another occasion I saw someone tampering with the seat post. I raced outside (as usual) to find he had stolen the metal collar which tightens the seat post into the tube. I yelled bad words at him as he ran off. He stopped, turned around and threw the collar at me. At least I got it back!
And then one day I looked up and the bike was gone....
I started walking to work again and for the past 10 years I have never seen anyone's bike mistreated in any way when left at the stands outside.
Post edited at 05:23