Hi,
I’m going to be staying Glasgow for a long weekend after our camping holiday. This means we’ll have our bikes with us. They’ll be mounted on a bike rack on the back of the van. Kryptonite lock through the bikes, with a Kryptonite cable attached to the integrated roof rack.

I’ll throw the seatpost in the van.

How safe do you think this will be overnight and is there anything else I should be doing.

Thanks

Don’t do it. Way too risky.

Bikes on the car in Glasgow[b]Anywhere[/b]. Safe?

Every good story starts with I just left them there for a minute…

I wouldn’t do that in the middle of the countryside, never mind Glasgow. Minimum inside the car locked up and in a bike bag for me. Your insurance might not be valid with them on top of the car too.

I wouldn’t do that in the middle of the countryside, never mind Glasgow. Minimum inside the car locked up and in a bike bag for me. Your insurance might not be valid with them on top of the car too.

This for me.

I can probably remove the wheels an squeeze them in the van. They would be out of site.

I’m usually in very wild north of Scotland so am probably a little naïve about bike safety.

I live in Glasgow. Don’t leave your bikes outside overnight. Even with a good lock you may have parts nicked. I speak from bitter experience.

I’m usually in very wild north of Scotland so am probably a little naïve about bike safety.

No sh*t 🙂

Get them away out of sight and locked + double locked. Then sleep in the van with them.

Are you staying in a b and b or hotel? Put in a bike bag and take into room, thats what I did when I went to Wales recently.

Ah well if I can’t fit them in the van while in Glasgow I’ll have to leave them at home.
I really don’t want to be two weeks through the Highlands though without our bikes.

are you sleeping in the van in Glasgow?

No the van will be in a hotel car park.

No frickin way. It’s no worse than any other big city but there’s a good chance they’d be nicked. you might be OK if you parked up down a very quiet residential street but anywhere busy and they’ll be “clocked” and gone sharpish.

No the van will be in a hotel car park.

Have you checked with the hotel if there’s anywhere inside you can lock them?

Or take them into your room?

In the room!!!!

I’ll check with the hotel but I think there just going to be broken down and stowed away in the van out of site. I’ll take a tarp to keep them separate from are everyday gear and keep them out of view when the van doors are opened.

I wouldn’t leave a bike on the car alone whilst at a motorway services* whilst I went in for a coffee and a pee nevermind anywhere overnight.

I also wouldn’t leave a bike on a car:

In a campsite
Outside a pub

ANYWHERE.

One of these can help pry the feet of any car rail etc thus no need to bother with the locks just yet:

I used to ride my single speed Fuji track bike to the gym and lock it right outside the huge gym windows, then RUN in, do my weights and RUN back out.

On one occassion someone had tried to bolt-crop the Kryptonite lock in the c30seconds that I’d taken to get to the bike. This is in a area where there are regular security car patrols and no where to hide

*It has been known for people in Transit vans etc to hang around motorway services and attempt to break into parked restbreak lorries, steel caravans of people who have popped in for a coffee/pee etc etc etc.

I think its one of those things that you assume everyone is travelling/the same as you. Same with campsites, races etc. People assume everyone is in the same boat/position. This means its open-season for those mobile thieves in the know.

The fact that it’s in Glasgow is irrelevant. I wouldn’t leave the bikes on the back of my car overnight in any inhabited area. They might be fine, they might not, I wouldn’t take the risk.

Once you stride through reception with the first one your sorted.

TBH, I’d be wary of leaving my car out overnight 😉

Seriously, though, Take them inside with you. Premier Inn let you do this.

Leave the wheels in the car. Take the F&F’s in.

And the posher the hotel the more they have to bite their lip…

I’ve taken my bike into a few hotels. Leave the wheels in the car and carry the frame in wrapped in a sheet.
I don’t even ask and give them the opportunity to say no, just stride past reception and into the lift with my head held high!

im not long back from a trip round fairly rural england visiting several friends with the bike ‘in’ the car. the bike came in the house every stop regardless how ‘fine’ it would be.

I know this can be an emotive subject and I don’t mean to offend anyone but one thing I hate as much as crims is feeding crims/feeding crime. If everyone stop relying on insurance as a magic ‘catch all’ it’d put less illgotten gains on thieves plates.

I’ve taken my bikes in to loads of hotels, in my experience the big chains won’t bat an eyelid. I just ride it up to the door and wheel it through the lobby. Helps if it’s not caked in mud mind. Stairs if the lifts are small and/or busy. The only comments I get are the occasional ‘ooh nice bike!’

TBH I’m amazed that you are even asking if it’s safe to leave bikes outside in ANY city, let alone a British one.

I’ve kept bikes in hotel rooms several times, just walk in and head for the lift. In the room I lock the bike to a radiator if I can, as an extra precaution.

Thanks for all the advise. Definitely won’t be on the car.
I’m glad I started this thread. I was worried but likely would have gone ahead and thought it’ll never happen to me.
Then probably gone home three bikes lighter.

Thanks

Where will you be staying when in Glasgow? I have a room in a secure storage place just off the M74 near the city centre.

You’re more than welcome to store them in my unit provided I’m around to let you in/out.

Thanks very kind offer but our plans need to be flexible.

I am considering leaving the bike further north with a friend.

No one done this yet?

Och
Eye
T’
Nooooo!

I too wheel my bike into Hotels. Some swanky ones I’ve stayed in have offered secure storage and some just offer yo the service lift round the back. Even touring/overnight stops covered in grime and no ones ever refused me.

HTH

Bonus of bike in the room is you can use the pedals as bottle openers.

Bonus of bike in the room is you can use the pedals as bottle openers.

And just sit there and look at it from different angles.

There is an art to the look of this is more normal than the most normal thing you have seen while wheeling bikes or carrying ice axes into hotels. Next time I will push my luck and ride out of the lift…

Some swanky ones I’ve stayed in have offered secure storage

Me too, but for my benefit rather than theirs, they don’t want me to be too cramped in my room. Of course I’m often fixing it in the room or *ahem* cleaning it in the bath…

Oh yeah….. *cough* washing off winter salt….

😆

Yeah, I have used the shower too once or twice, but hey… smells nice the day after.. better than I do TBH.. 😆

Think it was the crown plaza at Geneva airport where one of the staff commented how awkward my luggage looked (32kg easyjet bike bag days in a cheap bike bag) at which point I agreed and asked them to send my bags up 😉 walking away from the desk without your bags is a bold choice but does work 🙂

You mean some people have to carry their own bags up to their rooms? Ugh.