I get this question once and a while:

“Hey Prolly, we have a small apartment and there’s no room to store our bikes so I’m forced to lock up outside. Do you do that? What’s the best way to do so?”

I’m lucky and have the luxury of indoor bike storage but I can give some perspective…

I know my neighborhood bikes. Well enough to notice something that’s out of place. A few weeks ago, I noticed this track bike locked up outside. It’s on my walk back from the deli. There it was, brand new, sitting there glistening in the streetlights. The next morning, on my way out for a road ride, I noticed the bike in the above condition. Bars, stem, cranks and pedals were stripped bare. A few days later I snapped this photo with my film camera. Still, to this day, the bike sits there in this condition. I wonder if the initial stripping made the owner lose hope in cycling? I hope not. It goes to show that no matter what, if someone wants your bike or your components, they’ll do anything to get them. Luckily for them, it wasn’t an expensive bike.

Don’t leave your bikes outside bro. But if you do, go with a beater. I know, I know, it sucks, but you don’t want to leave a nice bike outside overnight.