Must Read: Who pinched my ride?

Outside — Infuriated by bicycle theft and empowered by Garmin tracking devices, Patrick Symmes set out on a quest to uncover the mangy underbelly of bicycle theft. By strategically leaving trackable bikes poorly secured around the city, Symmes tantalized bike vultures and lured them in to pick at his two-wheeled carcasses.

He found that “the futility of locking is shocking,” and every security product can be manipulated by a desperate junky. According to Symmes, “in America’s rough streets, there are four forms of currency—cash, sex, drugs, and bicycles. Of those, only one is routinely left outside unattended.”

“This is a war of attrition. Like the police, we can and must resist, even when it’s futile. I’m still pimping around Portland on Bike Six, my little black IRO, with 11 pounds of chain wrapped around my waist and hex nuts on my wheels. All the partial solutions—a national bike registry, better serial numbering, more secure parking, GPS trackers disguised like bells and reflectors—are getting better. We aren’t going away.”

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