(Pictured: My pal Eldon’s bike, stripped and miserable, being saved by the cops)

We are all reading the stories. We are all waiting for the final numbers. We are all shocked and disappointed. Not in the theives (shame on them) but on the city for letting it come to this. Taking action at this point, and trying to reunite 5,000 bicycles with their owners (after mashing them into trucks and loading bays, after taking them from crushed heaps in dilapidated garages) is absolutely ludicrous. Most likely the cops hope this makes them *look good*, finally taking down the bad guy, and making *all efforts* to get people their bikes back, but all in all it is too little too late. But their Bike Registry gets lots of press and they stand to make millions from the sales of abandoned bicycles on their ebay auction, so the cops will win in the end. Surprise surprise.

Dear friends and community members,

We are looking for a new home for the shop. After two fantastic
years in our space on Bathurst Street with an encouraging
landlord and supportive neighbourhood, we now find ourselves
in search of space to accommodate the work that we
do – DIY bike repair, workshops, parts storage, bike sales,
and a little bit of cooking. We need to find an adequate space
in an accessible neighbourhood which will also fit into the
budget of a volunteer-run non-profit group.

Potentially we are hoping to find two separate spaces – one
small storefront for selling recycled bikes and an infoshop,
and another workshop space where we can house our tools,
stands and collection of used parts, and where most of our
work would be done.

Our impending move has the potential to help us reach more
people in the community by expanding our hours of operation
(from two days a week to five) and by situating ourselves
within a new neighbourhood who may not have previously
made it into the shop.

We are asking for your helping in seeking out a new space!
Please let us know if you have information on a location that
might suit our needs!
Feel free to contact us at info@bikepirates.com or lunch@bikepirates.com

Steady as she goes,
Bike Pirates.

July 5th
457 Bathurst

7pm Bike Pirates
8pm Dufferin Grove Park

Group Ride to Dufferin Grove and bonfire

Free Treats and Eats plus prizes.

We are celebrating you so get in the spirit stocked and sparked!

….or Pirate Sundays! Throughout the summer Bike Pirates will be participating in the Pedestrian Sundays festivals in downtown Toronto. Two weeks ago was the start of the season, in Kensington, and yesterday was p.s. Mirvish Village, where we spent the day baking in the sun, handing out flyers, tuning some bikes and generally getting into the spirit of summer.

If you’ve ever wondered what it takes to soften the hard exterior of a pirate – the secret is ice cream.

Join us at p.s. kensington on June 29th.

Critical Mass took the Gardiner…

http://www.thestar.com/News/GTA/article/434482

A 57-year-old Toronto cyclist died Thursday after he fell in front of a cube van.

Toronto police said the chain of events started just after 1 p.m.

The cyclist was eastbound on Eglinton Avenue West, just west of Avenue Road, when the occupant of a parked car opened the driver’s side door.

The cyclist hit the door, lost control of his bike and fell on the road, where he was hit by the van.

The cyclist died four hours later in hospital.

I will be setting up a bike, the bike i used for my York thingy…please any help will be welcomed.

Should you treat your bike well? Yes.
Should you take every precaution when it comes to theft? Absolutely.
Should you treat it like a human child and invest in it a part of your soul?
Only if you’re the kind of person who falls in love with strippers.

Once the sun comes out and the ground thaws there are a few things we can count on happening:
– the city removes the rusty, abandoned bikes from posts and makes some cash or trash from them
– bike shops get overwhelmed with repairs
– the cops attempt to crack down on wild, erratic cyclist behaviour
– bikes get ripped off like sweaty t-shirts on a night of pool hopping

We tend to let our guard down over the winter when the city is in hibernation, including the bike theives, but we must have our wits about us if we are to keep our sweet rides safe and sound. Keep in mind that one good lock is better than 2 shitty locks, and two good locks are even better. Also keep in mind that *anything* will get stolen. If someone can get 5 bucks for it and get the score they need, it will get taken. So what can we recommend?

Learn to lock your bicycle securely.
Lock down any removable parts or take them with you (wheels, saddle, lights).
always lock next to a bike with a shittier lock!
lock up somewhere with a lot of traffic and that is well lit.
but most of all DON’T leave your bike outside unless absolutely necessary. Have a safe place for it to sleep in your house.

Over at the Bike Snob NYC blog they have some more, hard-hitting recommendations. Scroll part-way down past the bike-theft story.

While I understand his point regarding having a pretty bike (I often feel the heart-stopping stress of wondering if my bike is still safely where I left it), there is nothing like having a beautiful, well-crafted, and sexy bicycle. It makes the ride more enjoyable, it can be an expression of your personality, and it can make YOU feel sexy. But yes, it comes at a cost. Like anything beautiful, there is always the threat of someone else wanting it to be theirs.

To sum up: Trust no one. Happy Riding.