Crank and Dagger: How one cyclist got his stolen bike back

[txgoonie]

How many of us know someone who recovered their stolen bike? Probably not many. Well, I know at least one! This all went down yesterday in Arlington. A friend/teammate had 3 bikes stolen from his condo garage, and when one popped up Craigslist, this is what happened. –> http://grippedracing.com/?p=2300

There are many photos, and a video will be posted soon. I was getting text messages while this was happening with very few details and was a nervous wreck all afternoon. It’s a crazy story with a happy ending, but I honestly hope few people have to do it this way.

[KLizotte]

I can’t believe the cops were checking the serial numbers when his name is spelled out in full on the top tube.

[83b]

Did I read correctly that the serial number was in fact his name, since it’s a custom?

Way to go, in any case!

[btj]

A coworker of mine had his bike stolen in Rosslyn and a week or two later a friend spotted it near Dupont Circle and texted him a photo. It happened to be two blocks from our office so we walked down there and put another U-lock on it. He called the police and eventually a fire truck even showed up so they could cut through the original U-lock. His bike had no serial number so the police confirmed it was his bike by zooming in photos on my buddy’s phone to match up scratches and dings.

The police officer left his business card with the broken U-lock in case the thief (or more likely the person who bought the bike from the thief) wanted to give him a call.

[btj]

Love this part of the Craigslist ad: “This bike has clip-less pedals. They will make you very fast when you use cycling shoes with them.”

[Terpfan]

Awesome note to end the week on and hopefully it helps stop some of the thefts. There should be some kind of place of photos of stolen bikes because I bet folks may start recognizing them. I don’t want to sound prejudicial, but I did see some young kids riding a real nice road bike. Of course they were attempting to ride it from a bizarre position and that’s what made me wonder if they were in fact the owners, but no way to know. Anyway kudos to your teammate/friend.

[mstone]

@Terpfan 57736 wrote:

Awesome note to end the week on and hopefully it helps stop some of the thefts. There should be some kind of place of photos of stolen bikes because I bet folks may start recognizing them. I don’t want to sound prejudicial, but I did see some young kids riding a real nice road bike. Of course they were attempting to ride it from a bizarre position and that’s what made me wonder if they were in fact the owners, but no way to know. Anyway kudos to your teammate/friend.

I saw a teen/tween with a father type (so not looking like “I just stole this”) on the W&OD the other day who was riding a small bike with the seat slammed all the way down. His knees were above his hips if he actually sat, and he was mostly standing on the pedals. I suspect that odd riding positions are some kind of groovy thing I’m too old to understand, like helmets at jaunty angles.

[Bilsko]

I think they were just referring to the name sticker on the top tube. Those stickers are pretty common and can be sourced from plenty of shops online.
Dirt has great one that he adorns his bikes with. (zoom in and you’ll see what I’m referring to)

[jopamora]

If you want to get a name sticker for your bike, then this is the only place to buy from.

[ShawnoftheDread]

MeARD TeLap @jopamora 57741 wrote:

If you want to get a name sticker for your bike, then this is the only place to buy from.

I won’t get this for the same reason I won’t get a license plate frame from my school’s alumni association: I’m only one person, yet they insist on using the plural form (alumni, velominati).

[Dickie]

@txgoonie 57715 wrote:

How many of us know someone who recovered their stolen bike? Probably not many. Well, I know at least one! This all went down yesterday in Arlington. A friend/teammate had 3 bikes stolen from his condo garage, and when one popped up Craigslist, this is what happened. –> http://grippedracing.com/?p=2300

There are many photos, and a video will be posted soon. I was getting text messages while this was happening with very few details and was a nervous wreck all afternoon. It’s a crazy story with a happy ending, but I honestly hope few people have to do it this way.

What an amazing story, well done to everyone involved, and kudo’s to the officers that assisted! Thanks for posting!

[MRH5028]

Awesome story! Great that the police were able to assist, which hopefully leads to the recovery of the other bikes.

[Tim Kelley]

DCist picked this up:

http://dcist.com/2013/07/video_arlington_man_sets_up_sting_t.php

[txgoonie]

If you watch local ABC or Fox news this afternoon, you should see a story

[Author]

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