Basket Case

Nearly two weeks ago, "Velouria" of Lovely Bicycle! wrote about parking her Gazelle commuter bike outdoors.


Well, I've been keeping Marianela (a 1979 Schwinn LeTour III turned into a "fixie" with a fixed/free "flip-flop" rear hub) outside for about a month, after keeping it indoors during one of the snowiest winters this area has ever had.  While Marianela is probably not as heavy as "Velouria"'s Dutch bike, and therefore not as difficult to maneuver in and out of my apartment, it's still more convenient to have the bike waiting outside for me, especially if I'm taking it on a short errand.


I've kept bikes outdoors before.  But, today, I was reminded of one of the consequences of doing so:

Now, I've had all sorts of things left in my front basket or on my rear rack:  beverage bottles, fast-food bags and containers, condom wrappers and things even less mentionable.  But nothing so far has been quite as interesting as this Lincoln hubcap.


One man who chanced by as I unlocked the bike stopped and looked.  We both had a good laugh.  I mean, what else could we do?  


I left the cap on a nearby fire hydrant.  When I returned tonight, it was gone.

Trash Talkin'

One of the things I've learned, in cycling as in life, is that any container you carry will fill up.  The question is:  with what?


Given that there are far fewer trash receptacles on this city's streets than there were a few years ago, it makes sense that people will make do with whatever they find.  Sometimes, though, what they find is a bike with baskets on it.  


I very stupidly deleted a photo I was going to post with this.  In it, the side-by-side rear baskets that hung off each side of a bicycle's rear rack were completely filled with trash.  And I complained about finding a couple of White Castle cartons on the front basket of my LeTour!

And now I also know that New Yorkers aren't the worst offenders when it comes to "trashing" a parked bike.  The above photo was taken in Tokyo.
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In addition to White Castle cartons, I've found empty and half-empty beer bottles, boxes from Kotex and religious tracts in my basket.  I wonder pamphleteers were targeting me.


What are some things you've found in your bike basket, or on your rack or any other part of your bike, after leaving it parked on the street?

A Fast Food Phantom Picnic In My Basket

I’m really glad to have baskets on the LeTour.  However, I never planned for them to be used this way:

I am torn.  On one hand, I am upset because, of all of the fast-food trash one could leave, the litterbug who found my bike had to leave White Castle’s.  On the other hand, the colors and graphics go very well with the bike.

The next time I park the bike on the street, I’ll leave a note that says, “No Dumping, Or I’ll Dump On You”—or something like that.