LexRides

[brokebike]

Lots of people use this forum to report stolen bikes throughout Lexington, and fortunately this has led to a good percentage of these bikes being recovered. However, there are some things you should know and use in order to help your chances for getting your bike back. Not only will this help you from a legal standpoint, but it will also help the readers of the forum keep an eye out for your bike.

Tip 1: Know the specifics of your bike. Familiarize yourself with the make and model. Instead of knowing that you ride a "old, red cruiser", it's better to know that for example, your bike is a "red and white Schwinn Typhoon". Often, if you have the serial number, it is easy to research the exact production year of your bike with a quick Google search. The more details you can recall about your bike the better.

Tip 2: Take photos. It's always good to have recent photos of your bike to share with others so they will know what to look for.

Tip 3: Find your bike frame's serial number and write it down. Save it on your phone. Memorize it. Tattoo it on your forearm. Put it somewhere handy so that you can easily access it if you need to, because if your bike is stolen, you WILL need it to file a police report (see next tip).

Tip 4: FILE A POLICE REPORT! This is the most important thing to do first if your bike has been stolen. Don't worry if your bike wasn't particularly valuable, or if you did something incredibly dumb that caused it to get stolen. If you care at all that it was stolen, and want to get it back, then you should want to file a report. Without a police report, and without that serial number in the record, the police can't do much at all if your bike has been found.

Tip 5: When posting about your stolen bike here on Lexrides, it is helpful to give as many details as possible - both about your bike AND details regarding the circumstances of your bike's disappearance. Instead of posting that your bike was stolen last week, let us know where it was last seen; what neighborhood, or area of town. Trust us, these details matter. Many of us read through these posts and try to keep an eye out as we ride around town every day. It's much harder if we don't have many details to go on.
_________________
------------[] O