Some asshole stole my fucking bike.
Now, in Toronto, this is not such an uncommon thing; most people have a few bikes stolen in their cycling careers. The thing that makes this different? They stole it from INSIDE MY GARAGE, in a suburban neighbourhood with quite a quiet street.
The garage is a double, but with two separate doors, of which only one was open. In front of the garage are two minivans, parked a bit close to together (can’t ride down between them). The bike was at the back of the garage wedged in behind a stack of chairs with additional stuff piled on. There is lots of other stuff in the garage which was not touched.
Just my bike.
I accidentally left the garage open after coming home from gardening today; I opened it to put stuff in, then had to take some stuff around to the front door and went inside the house that way, forgetting to close the garage – I’m usually very very good about closing it (as in, I can’t remember ever forgetting). I remembered and closed the garage door a few hours later without noticing anything. As I was tidying up to get ready for bed, I opened the door to the garage (from inside the house) to check it, and looked down the stairs to think…huh. Something’s wrong here. Went down and looked around….my bike was gone. Nothing else.
It wasn’t a very expensive or fancy bike, but I really liked it. And it was barely used, really – I got it last summer.
At least I got a good 30k ride out of it on Friday.
Fuck. I don’t get people.
That totally sucks! The same thing happened to me when I lived in San Francisco, except that I didn’t even forget to close the door. They broke in. It feels like such a violation, doesn’t it? :P
Dude. I am so sorry. That just completely sucks. I hope you get it back somehow…
Sorry to hear about your bike. Almost the same thing happened to me. The jerks opened the garage door though and stole a shope vac of all things. The same night they also broke into my farm truck which is a rust bucket and had nothing of value in it.
How awful. Scary that they were IN your actual garage… how far people will go to be assholes :(
I am so sorry about your bike, I totally sympathize. I once had a bike stolen out of my 8-foot high fenced in patio–someone climbed over the fence with my bike, while I was inside sleeping, in clear view of a security camera (who knows where the guard supposed to be watching it was). I’ve also had several bike parts stolen off my bike while locked up out of the street. I hope there is a special ring of hell reserved for bike thieves.
That just stinks. It’s mean and it stinks.
There’s been a rash of theft in my surburan quiet neighborhood. Our issue is kids stealing liquor from people’s garages. Makes me nervous leaving the garage door open while inside now. I leave my car keys inside my car.
yikes! Good luck finding a new one! My bike has been in the shop for the past week and a bit, I feel so hopeless without it…
Oh, that just pisses me off! I’ve had three bikes stolen out of three different garages–two when the garage doors were shut. Around here, there are a whole lot of migrant workers living in canyons and riding really expensive mountain bikes. You do the math. My husband now locks his bike to the steel shelves in our garage with a lock and chain worthy of Fort Knox, and we got a new garage door and an opener that requires a password, and we lock the garage every night. We live in a quiet, suburban neighborhood, too, so it really, really annoys me that we have to do this.
People suck ass sometimes. That’s such a violation. I had a beloved bike stolen here in LA several years ago. My husband made the mistake of chaining only the front wheel to a pole in our building’s back yard and when I went to take out the trash the next day, the wheel was all that was left. I kept it for a long time because I dearly loved that bike. They don’t even make them any more. When you lose a bike this way, you never stop missing it. I’m so sorry this has happened to you.
sooo sorry:( that is SOOO unblievably lame.
argh, that bites!! When you get to feeling really angry… take a deep breath and remember karma rules!
That sucks! How can these people live with themselves?
SUCK. That really, really fucking sucks. I’m so sorry!
I’m so sorry to hear that! Coincidently, someone stole my car on Sunday. (!!!) I live in a suburban neighborhood and the car was parked right in front of our house. It was stolen around 7 am…somebody or some people, dumped another car they stole and took off with mine. Unbelievable! It was my first car, one that I’ve owned for about 9 years now and was in the process of being put up for sale. It’s really weird and it hasn’t quite sunk in yet. Bah.
That fuckin’ sucks!
That really sucks! I’m sorry :-(
Just be glad they only came in and took your bike, though…wouldn’t the open garage door mean they would’ve had access to the rest of your house, too? That can be a scary thought.
sorry to hear that, my husband’s bike was stolen at 6pm on a sunday night a few years back. we were eating dinner and he forgot to put it in the garage. it was just sitting there in front of the cars.
these people have
So sorry, Laura – I’m with you – sometimes I just don’t get people at all, and to think that they went right into your garage to get it is downright scary! Did you talk to the police?
i am a lurker on your blog but this made me want to comment. that SUCKS about your bike. i fully believe that killing the person who steals your bike should be an offense you automatically get acquitted for. i just got a bike–my first as an adult–and i would be so upset if it got stolen. i live in toronto too and i know how bad the bike theft situation is.
Oh, I am so sorry to hear about your bike. I’d give you mine that I never ride, but it’s a long way from Chicago to Toronto. Poo. My car was stolen last summer (and recovered–a mixed blessing) and it took up months of mental energy. Go get a free hand treatment at Lush or kick back with a glass of wine and a face mask. You didn’t do anything to deserve this, and yes, people suck.
That happened to me this past September. Only whoever stole my bike decided to OPEN my garage, dig my bike out of the back, and take it with them. Who the hell do some people think they are? I haven’t replaced it yet, but I’m still mad about it. Sorry that happened to you.
To quote the famous philosopher Justin Timberlake; “What goes around, goes around, goes around, Comes all the way back around”. This is why I have to believe in kharma! Someone stole a (locked) bike from me a few years ago. The worst thing? I was borrowing from a friend! Gaaah!
I am so sorry! This is so lame! I’ve had a bike stolen before and I’m still mad about it (and it’s been a few years!) For some reason, this type of thing just really pisses me off!
http://individual.utoronto.ca/vig/bikememories.jpg
That bites. What is with some people?
I was compelled to comment..I’m really sorry about your bike. What a jerk. :(
Sorry about the bike. I would be heart sick if one of mine disappeared. There are so many bike thefts in Chicago that we keep our little fleet indoors.
Did you see the Toronto police busted a bicycle theft ring a couple of days ago and recovered 1500 stolen bikes? They are asking people to find a photo of their bike or a receipt; you can go in person to the warehouse where the bikes are on display and see if you can spot yours. It’s worth a try!
Manon