I can't seem to get past Josiah's reply, referring to Missoula and the U of M as having a notorious bike theft problem. If that's true, then things have really changed since I went to college in Montana (MSU) in the 1980s, and is very sad. I can't help but think/hope though, that bike theft there is mostly a crime of convenience? College kids taking someone else's bike home from the bar, perhaps? I can't even fathom it being as bad as Denver, where my daughter now attends college, and where bike theft is a full-fledged industry, and where the police turn a blind eye even when someone locates their stolen bike. Thieves there use cordless angle grinders to cut locks in broad daylight, with no fear of repercussion.
What matters is crime conditions in Indianapolis though, and Josh's tollerance for risk. I'm going to take the contrarian view, and say don't ride anything that you're not WILLING to lose. If theft occurs locally on any kind of regular basis, just concede that it's inevitable. Economics would matter more than brand to a thief - so they should to you, too. If you can afford to replace the bike without it being a hardship, then go for it. You can still get your current Atlantis, so there's not even the "irreplaceable" consideration that you'd have with the hunquapillar. On the other hand, if losing the bike is going to be a hardship or cause you to loose sleep and become bitter, get a "true" beater, and tune it for efficiency. The fact that you're asking this question tells me you have some concerns. But my opinion is based on my own priorities and the life choices I've made, which are probably different than most people's.. I deliberately chose to live in a place where theft is non-existent, even though that choice came with career limitations and economic implications. Partly for that reason, I tend to treasure my nice bikes and think of them as lifetime investments or heirlooms. I usually don't have to make this choice, but I think I'd be happy to make riding them a stricly "special event," while having a dedicated sacrificial bike for the mundane. -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "RBW Owners Bunch" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to rbw-owners-bunch+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. To view this discussion on the web visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/rbw-owners-bunch/c2dfe27a-ff5a-4799-9dc1-d4a53c7716e4n%40googlegroups.com.
