The parking garage bike rack that taught me about leverage

Went to pick up a parts order at the shop near 5th and Main in Portland last Tuesday. Their basement rack had a bike locked up using a cable looped around the frame only, not the wheel. I pointed it out to the owner, he said someone lost a front wheel that way two weeks ago. It got me thinking about how we explain lock strategy to customers, a lot of them just don't see the weak points. Anyone else run into this and have a simple way to show people why the wheel has to be in the loop?

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amy_murphy8511d ago

...so they lost a front wheel, but was it locked to a pole or just sitting there? I mean, the cable being frame only is a classic rookie mistake, sure, but it also depends on where you park. Downtown Portland at 5th and Main, that's not exactly a low traffic spot, so yeah, someone's gonna walk off with parts if you make it easy. But is this really some big lesson about leverage, or just one guy who didn't think it through? I feel like most people who lock up regularly know the wheel rule, they just get lazy when they're in a hurry. And honestly, if the shop owner sees this all the time, maybe he should just put up a sign with a picture, that'd be simpler than trying to teach every customer.