Informative Essay

    Has bicycle theft really become an issue that students across the country need to worry about?  Over the past month more than eighteen bicycles belonging to Northern Arizona University students have been reported stolen.  Videos and tutorials can be found on the internet explaining how to “steal a bike in less than a minute,” and how to “steal a bike the right way.”  Even when bikes are locked properly, people attempt to take other’s bikes, and surprisingly succeed.  Bicycle theft is quickly becoming a serious issue, one that many NAU students, accompanied by many other students at universities across the country, are being forced to deal with.

    With bicycle theft becoming such an issue, it shouldn’t be surprising to find that it has become possible to steal a locked bike in less than a minute.  One must ask his or her self, how are people doing it and where are they obtaining this knowledge?  When searching the internet, it is made quite obvious how the individuals stealing the bikes are learning the trade.  YouTube.com provides an abundance of videos explaining, step by step, how to steal a bike “the right way.”  When the subject is Googled, pages of tutorials are displayed, explaining exactly what to do, and how to do it, to make sure one succeeds when taking another’s bike.  One site, totse.com, tells the reader that there are a variety of ways to dissemble bicycle locks.  The author mentions that the first step to successfully stealing a bicycle is to check the lock, looking for what type of lock the owner has used, and if he or she has locked the bike properly.  Cylindrical locks, locks with two holes perpendicular to each other, can be left either in the locked or unlocked position when the key is removed.  When the owner of the bike removes the key, leaving it in the unlocked position, it is extremely easy for people to remove the lock, allowing them to steal the bike.  The most common way to steal a bike involves cutting off the plastic that surrounds the lock and knocking the pin that holds the lock out of place.  Liquid nitrogen, Freon, and pipe cutters, when properly utilized, can also help the process.  Even more disturbing than how easy it has become to steal a bike, is the number of people affected by the theft.

    Kevin Thomson, a freshman living in Sechrist Hall, had his bike stolen outside of his place of residence on September 11, 2008.  Thomson last saw his bike the previous night when he locked it up, with a cylindrical lock, after getting back from his English class.  He returned the next morning, already running late for Chemistry class, to find that his bike was no where to be found.  Kevin Thomson commented, “It was a huge inconvenience.  I was late to class, I am now forced to walk to class, and because I am paying for my own education, I don’t have the spending money to go buy another bike” (Kevin Thomson, personal interview, September 20, 2008).  Thomson, who did not report the crime to campus security, remarked on how unlikely it would be for campus security to find his bike among the numerous bicycle thefts that occur everyday.  When asked if any friends had had their bike stolen, Thomson commented, “Yes, my friend Dan had his seat stolen last week, and two of my classmates, Tom and Kerry, had their bikes stolen a couple weeks ago.  It’s getting ridiculous” (Kevin Thomson, personal interview, September 20, 2008).

    The number of bicycles stolen on college campuses across the country, while decreasing slightly every year, is still a serious issue.  As shown in Figure 1.1, the number of bicycles reported stolen, nationwide, has decreased by 47,456 in the past three years, leaving almost 250,000 stolen bikes in the year of 2007.  However, over the past month, over 18 bikes have been reported stolen on Northern Arizona University’s campus, not including the bikes belonging to students like Kevin Thomson who don’t see a point in mentioning the theft to campus security.           

 

(insert Figure 1.1 here)



    Due to the fact that so many individuals choose not to report bicycle theft, the facts are unable to represent the exact number of crimes committed nationwide.  However, the information provided can give the reader an idea of how serious this issue has become.  The number of bikes stolen on NAU’s campus, in one month alone, should show the reader that bicycle theft is a serious problem on campus, one that needs to be addressed. 



References

Roen, D., Glau, G., R., & Maid, B., M.  (2009).  The Concise McGraw Hill Guide  Writing for College, Writing for Life (NAU Edition).  New York : McGraw-Hill.

United States Department of Justice.  Crime in the United States [Data File].  Retrieved from http://www.fbi.gov/ucr/cius2007/data/table_07.html

Dispater.  (2008, September 16).  How To Steal A Bike.  Message posted to www.totse.com