[Pef]

I am thinking about taking my bike to work on the bus and riding home after, but it is a fairly nice road bike, and those racks look like they could stress the rims at the least from the bouncing around I see with other peoples bikes. Anybody here use them? Thanks Pat

[Randito]

I can't speak to the metro-bus bike rack's propensity to wreck wheels -- but personally unless I can bring my bike into my office where I can keep an eye on it or a similarly secure facility-- I would only take a bike I didn't really care about. I've had more than one nice bike vandalized when secured with burly lock, but not guarded.

[RichP]

I've used the racks and have never heard of anybody having issues with their wheels. If you are worried, maybe best to get a clunker like Randy says. Even better, just ride both ways.

[iron]

rack is fine. most of the energy is absorbed by the rubber tires. there's no weight on the bike like when you're riding, so any side to side is nada. i agree with randy's comments. seattle is a cesspool of bike theft.

[Mike Collins]

The rack has never been a problem for me for any damage or even risk of damage. How nice (read expensive) is the bike? A thought I have which others might not think about is with the cost of some bikes being thousands of dollars someone could easily steal the bike off the front of the bus and be gone before you could get up out from your seat. A quick-to-open lock is worth the price to prevent this. If you don't want to use a lock then before you dismount put the gears in the highest ratio possible. If someone steals the bike and tries to pedal they are going to either fall down or go at a snails pace before changing gears again. A smart thief might steal a bike at the top of a hill so all they have to do is push with their feet to gain momentum. The link takes you to a thread where this is discussed. http://www.bikeforums.net/general-cycling-discussion/384727-bike-being-stolen-off-front-bus.html

[Pef]

Thanks guys, so my takeaway is not to worry about putting my bike in the bus rack, as those thieving Seattleite natives will steal it before I can see the damage, now I have two things to be paranoid about I am probably been overly protective of my new toy, it cost around a grand which is a lot to spend on bike to me, though a friend described it as a nice"entry level" machine... Anyway, I will give the bus a try next week. Once the 520 bridge bike lane opens and/or I get in better shape, riding into work may happen too!

[boot up]

yup, a thousand bucks is what most people would consider to be a "commuter" that this thread has been referring to. Won't even turn heads. But of course anything not nailed down can and will be stolen in town. You could do something as simple as wrap some Velcro around the wheels and/or bus rack, anything to cause a commotion and slow somebody down if they try to grab the bike while you move from inside the bus to the rack. Most thieves are lazy, and they are looking for easy opportunity. Any resistance will give you an advantage and hopefully they will move along. I would not leave it parked in front of your local coffee shop or store with this simple approach though. My road bike is a $1k special. All I can afford now that I am retired and no more income. Keep the tires at full pressure, the chain lubed and you probably have all the bike you really need.

[blendergasket]

I used the racks almost daily for many years with my Lemond Poprad cross bike. It worked fine. The only problem is the fenders can get a little out of place. I try to sit up front on the opposite side from the driver so I can keep an eye on it, but I've never had any issues.

[cartman]

Been using bike racks on buses for years, you'll be fine. The rack arms are a crap design but they do work. Theft is your #1 problem. Thieves will steal anything even if it's a lousy bike, and they'll steal anything that's easily removable from the bike, including wheels, saddle, lights, panniers etc. Lock any wheel that has a quick release. Replace the quick release on the saddle with a standard bolt. There are some good locks out there, but a pro can defeat any lock in minutes, if not seconds. Locks are mostly to deter casual thieves--most thefts are "crimes of opportunity". Locks are useful only for leaving the bike unattended short term, like shopping for an hour or so. Never leave your bike unattended at night.

[RichP]

I use these in place of a quick release on my wheels which are worth more than my bike. https://pinheadlocks.com/store/en/

[Randito]

[cartman]