Keeping My Bike in Boston

[jmer24]

I had a quick question about storing a bike in the city. I go to college in Boston, and want to bring my bike in now that the weather is getting nicer and store it behind my apartment. My apartment opens up to a fenced in patio that leads out to an alley, and I can park it on the patio. I'm planning on chaining it to a fence post, covering it, and locking the cover. What other precautions could I take to make sure that my bike is safe, or is it just a bad idea altogether to bring it in and leave it parked in the city?

[drewbrese]

Where are you going to be living?

[jmer24]

I live in the south end on mass ave. My apartment is on the back of the building, so my door opens up to an alley that leads to a neighborhood of side streets in the south end

[drewbrese]

You should be good with a lock and cover then. South End gets weird in parts. Be sure to have good insurance coverage just in case.

[KawiSmurf]

What other precautions could I take to make sure that my bike is safe

Theoretically:
Chains on both wheels hooked to a plate bolted into the ground
Disc lock
Scorpio alarm
Lo-jack

Realistically:
Not much. It can be argued that no bike is 100% safe, but the effort you put into protecting it is the same effort a thief will have to go through to steal it. Keep that in mind when you decide to go for the cheap thin gage chain instead of the expensive heavy gage one.

[KB]

No lock or alarm will stop them. If they want it they will get it.

KB

[ForcedFed]

.. the effort you put into protecting it is the same effort a thief will have to go through to steal it.

^^^ This

Like others have mentioned, no bike is 100% safe.. anything you do is a deterent moreso than anything else. Sounds like you are in good shape though being off the main road and covered up, so someone would need to know its there to see it. Again, as previously mentioned, just have a good insurance policy and make you dont get lazy with locking it up and you will be fine.

[black]

you could put in a kryptonite stronghold (google it)

little better than chaining to a fence. easy to install to a concrete patio, i've used it twice

[Kenn157]

I lived in Chester Park Mass Ave. I would never have a bike in Boston unless you could bring inside.

[drewbrese]

I've kept bikes outside with a cover in Roxbury, Somerville, and South Boston. I have never had a problem, just keep it out of sight. Got a garage for it now however.

[DuncanMoto]

I've lived in Boston for a long time.
I used to chain my bikes all the time.
Now if I'm parked in public I use XENA alarm to keep honest people honest.

I once locked a bike to a sign post with a chain in the Back Bay.
Went to get it and the sign post was cut off/broken off just above the concrete.
When the police found the bike in the back of a pickup on 128 it still had the chain on it.
I don't bother with chains anymore, just get theft insurance.

[DankDirtyBird]

Good visible lock should work. This is all assuming that your bike is something that someone would want to steal in the first place.

[Garandman]

There are motorcycles all over Boston. In general, people cover them when not in use, both for weather protection and to avoid prying eyes.

Sport bikes, being small, light, expensive and trackable without registering are obviously the highest theft risk. Pkus they fit in a minivan.

UJM's are less attractive. V-Stroms seemingly have a natural repellent.

In addition to disk alarms, Guardian makes cover alarms. Their covers have pockets for two of them. They are cheap - $20. I use them a lot - pretty darn loud!

[dingley00]

I parked in Boston for 3 years...... no theft, but one case of vandalism - the bike got pushed over by a drunk kid.... this is what you need:

-Disc lock
-Guardian cover w/ alarm and lock
-Theft/vandalism insurance

pretty successful...

[rice_rocket]

The closer you are to BMC, the worse the area is... after all, it is a trauma 1 hospital

I would at least try to push it inside if you already have a patio. Yeah it sounds crazy, but if it's out in the back, then even worse... nobody will see the people taking it! If you have good insurance for theft, then you can get a new bike.. minus deductible if that's the case. I park my bike downtown in Chinatown all day while I'm at work, and sometimes am out late from work at night. The thing is.. I park it with a lot of other bikes, which there's always at least ONE that's nicer than mine! Hehe.. but nobody uses the alarms/chains. The only people that use chains are the scooters. Once in a while there's a bike with a cover on it, but I think that's mostly rain cover etc.

["Dangerous" Dan K]

No lock or alarm will stop them. If they want it they will get it.

KB

This. You can discourage run of the mill d-bags. Nothing stops a pro, they will take it regardless. IMO, chain and zena lock. It takes balls to keep stealing a bike while an alarm goes off. That said, pro's will do it. Insurance is the best bet at that point. You really can't stop a professional thief, sadly enough.

[KingCast 650R]

I live in the south end on mass ave. My apartment is on the back of the building, so my door opens up to an alley that leads to a neighborhood of side streets in the south end

I'm near you and lived right where you are, bro.... 700 block of Harrison, just put the wheel lock on it and keep it insured is all you can do. I'm over toward Southie now a mile away with a back yard but that still wouldn't matter if some strong arse-wholes wanted to boost her at 4 a.m. I'm calling the insurance company. See you 'round, mate. If you see a blue Triumph Sprint with a loud can give a holler.