A quick non-stolen bikes related post: help a downed cyclist in San Diego for the holidays

Just a quick non-bike-theft related post before the year closes out:

I've been keeping an eye on bikesd.org since they touched base a week ago and noted this (unfortunately) all-too-common story:

Semi Collides With Bicycle - Cyclist in critical condition

Last Friday, a semi-trailer collided with a bicyclist riding in the City Heights
neighborhood and dragged the bicyclist more than 20 feet before stopping.

The rider is currently in critical condition at Scripps Hospital in Hillcrest
and is undergoing basic stabilizing surgeries before surgeons start the
process of reconstructing his femur and pelvis.

The rider is Matt Kelly of North Park. His family and friends have set up a
website (FriendsofMattKelly.com) to distribute information and collect donations
for Matt Kelly. Please help if you are able to do so.

The rider's sister has also started a daily blog to track his recovery and it's a rough (but good) read: http://www.matthewscottkelly.blogspot.com/

End the year on a good note - send a quick donation this guy's way if you can.

Two Christmas recoveries

Hooray for Christmas bike recoveries - on Christmas Eve, this poor guy in Austin TX posted two bikes stolen:

Two bikes were stolen from my house yesterday morning ... they are my livelihood, and mean a lot to me. .. My1979 Bianchi has a large white frame ... and a black racing saddle. The second bike is a powder blue fixed gear bike with a black saddle and ..the frame is a Bob Jackson. My roommate restored it and had it custom painted.

Two days later, I get this in my inbox:

Hi - my friend, who has a second hand store bought your bikes today- he will return the bike to you if you'd like, call me for more details. He is a long time friend, a great guy, and heard this might have been a hot bike and he asked me to check it out, which I did, and of course it is hot so now we have found you.

... and that's a wrap. Total bikes saved: 2, total turnaround time: 3 days, and hopefully the police can do something with the info that the buyer passed on.

Bicycle as projectile weapon

Found via my 'stolen bike' news alerts:

Two thieves on a motor-scooter flew by and snatched a womans purse on a street in Wenzhou, China. Surveillance video shows a man riding a bicycle. As he was passing by the front of a hotel near where the thievery happened, he stopped, calmly got off his bicycle, picked it up, and then threw it at the thieves. The bicycle hit them, they lost control, and crashed to the ground.

Bike:1, Thieves:0

SF Bike Coalition members ID, chase, photograph bike thief in progress. Internet then stalks him.

So made of win:

Yesterday, while on the Westfield Mall area stretch of their Ice Cream Sunday Ride, members of the SF Bike Coalition "noticed this asshat chopping a cable lock." The SFBC's Operations Director, Frank Chan started taking the photos you see above, as another SFBC employee, Program Manager Marc Caswell gave chase while calling 911.

Not only did they chase this guy away, but they got some great photos of this clueless, smoking, ugly bike-stealing asshat running away from his pursuers. These were promptly plastered all over SF Appeal's "Face of an (alleged) Bicycle Theft" article and hilarity ensues.

The Internets then pick up on this and find the guy hanging out and plaster even more photos of him all over here. Methinks there is an arrest headed this guy's way, at which point I'll gladly post the mugshot.

Big thanks to bikesd.org

Big thanks to Bikesd.org for a shout-out and gratuitous link to the Stolen Bicycle Registry's San Diego Twitter feed.

They dropped an excellent SBR mention into their recent blog post and it is much appreciated.

Bikesd.org is: "a resource by and for San Diego bicyclists. We seek to strike a balance between street-level activism, the advocacy efforts of groups like the San Diego County Bicycle Coalition, and the participatory nature of online discussion forums."

Thanks guys!

Drug dealing Canadian bike superthief Igor Kenk: Guilty

Remember Igor Kenk? The nutter Canadian caught with almost 3000 stolen bikes and a bunch of drugs back in July?

This drug dealing, bike stealing sh*tbag finally plead guilty to stolen property and drug charges. According to the NYT, Kenk "declined an invitation by the judge to make a statement.".

Sadly Kenk will only be spending 4 more months in jail (he's already been in jail for 17 months since his arrest) and won't face deportation proceedings. Due to the overwhelming amount of evidence and paperwork the case involved it looks like prosecutors cut something of a deal to avoid dealing with Kenk any longer.

Personally I consider this kind of a letdown, but there is some good news:

(Kenk) agreed earlier this month to forfeit 2,200 bicycles and two pickup trucks to the Crown, sell his ramshackle Queen Street West bicycle shop and pay $50,000 to the province.

...

... Mr. Kenk has been in jail since last December, when his bail on the bikes-and-drugs counts was revoked due to a minor assault charge laid after he went to retrieve items from one of his rented garages. That case is due in court this Friday.

And there you have it.

SECOND time I've seen my code on TV.

So this is the second time I've seen my code on TV - and in the same week, no less.

This time from KPTV, and unfortunately I can't embed their video here, but check out: http://www.kptv.com/video/21791456/index.html

Really glad this is all gaining some traction here.

First time I've ever seen my code on TV

Watch this snippet from KOIN, right after they talk to local bike blog guru Jonathan Maus from bikeportland.org. They're showing the stolen bikes Wordpress plugin I wrote that is deployed on bikeportland.org!

Jonathan's stolen bike listings have become so successful that the local Portland police want to tie into their own systems to help get bikes back. In other words, the Portland SBR listings are getting plugged straight into Portland police cruisers and they'll be able to hit the data while out in the field.

This is awesome and I'll write more about it later as the details get worked out, but it's the first time I've ever seen my code on TV, that's for sure.