I-Like-To-Bike

Double underlined bottom line -the percentage of the shoppers at the OP's food store who rely exclusively on a bicycle for transporting their groceries is probably only a small fraction of the customers who may stop by now and then on a bicycle to pick up a few items. Most of those bicycling customers would probably just use their motorized transportation if they had any intention of buying a serious amount of groceries.

indyfabz

So it must work for everyone. Got it. Except that it does not. Last September I was tracked down in a market because I had left my bike in a large vestibule, out of the way of shoppers, and was told to take it outside.

Daniel4

Nyah posted a suggestion that works for him. He didn't claim it was the universal solution. I believe there is another thread about cargo bikes. But that doesn't solve the problem of where to lock it either.

But I hope you're not suggesting that if it doesn't work for you, then nobody else should try it. The car-solution does not work for people who take the bus.

indyfabz

"Bring the bicycle in with you and don't leave it out of your control." Great instructions, if it works.

And no. I have brought a bike inside of stores, although not wheeled one around. But it doesn't always work in every case. In fact, it worked for him in that case. Try travelling by bike and having to shop in unfamiliar grocery stores every day. It's a mixed bag. (No pun intended.) And often times there are no options.

BTW...My cars turns 5 in about a month. I think I went over the 12,200 mile mark on Saturday.

Daniel4

Once I had complained to my doctor that the bike racks were lousy and bicycles can still be easily stolen because they only locked one wheel at the bottom so it was impossible to lock the bike frame.

He told me the next time to bring the bike into the office. I never did. I'd feel out of place bringing all the road dirt into a doctor's office.


On another occasion, I found the bike racks way at the other end of the grocery store. However, it wasn't bolted down so anybody could have driven by and taken the entire rack plus any bikes locked to it. I took my chances.

Milton Keynes

It's called voting with your dollar. If you don't like what a business is doing, you don't have to support them with your business and instead can support a more bike-friendly business by spending your money there.

njkayaker

I wonder if anybody ever has done that.

genec

I too wonder about that... it would be quite a feat to load a bike rack, with bicycles, into a truck... unless that truck had some sort of hoist or arm to assist with the lift and awkwardness all that stuff. And you'd think someone would notice and ask WTF?

njkayaker

It's a vaguely possible risk overwhelmed by many more much likelier risks, That is, it's weird to be concerned about this one.

genec

Quite true... but it seems to come up from time to time when discussing bike racks.

More likely is that if the rack is isolated, out of sight, some thief comes by with a grinder or cable cutter and makes off with the bikes, leaving the worthless rack behind.

N2deep

I live in Corpus Christi and would not leave my bike outside unless an armed guard swore an oath to protect it with his life. If I can't take it in I don't stop. I need my bike more thanI need a little food.

StarBiker

I am sure Nyah meant well, but like I said northern Virginia might as well be a different universe than most places. Affluent, and pricey.

And being affluent, and pricey still might net get you admission in a grocery store with your bike.

I have seen a few places in New England where Grocery Stores cater to cyclists and almost all shoppers are cyclists.

But yeah, certainly not common.

J Palmer Cass

Cyclists shouldn't expect businesses and people in general to cater to them. Cyclists are due toleration and safety, no more. If using your bike for shopping is a hassle take your car. Or a taxi. Or walk.

washuai

Your attitude and ignoring bike crime, is why there are not more cyclists. They proved in Toronto, CA - Just 1 single dedicated police officer (& a bike registry), in a major city to make a serious improvement on bicycle crime. FFS, we're not talking about someone complaining they can't cycle to buy luxuries. We're talking about food, which is a basic need.
Providing adequate bike parking is no different than providing car \ moto parking. Cyclist isn't asking for special treatment, just equal treatment.
People are being priced out of the car market. There isn't parking for every residence, so even if one could afford a car, there is no where for it to be. Once an hour public transportation is not adequate for defrosting groceries. Driving a car is a privilege, not a right - not everyone has a license, or is licensable. Taxi's etc is more expensive, than car ownership. Walking severely limits where you can shop (or if you can shop at all) and you can buy even less, than by bike. The lowest wage a person would need to be earning right now, to afford the cheapest $15k car - would be $42k a year. I said afford - people making bad financial decisions or financially dependent on other people are besides the point and not sustainable. I think it is a lot easier to have an adequate bike solution, than to raise minimum wage so everyone can own a car, just so they don't starve.
Some stores like Sprouts, where I currently am, is the nearest (and not that near) that carries things I can't get anywhere else and supports some of my dietary restrictions.
OP Talked to the manager. Maybe ask the manager what the guy's shift is, so you can shop, when he isn't working? OP needs to make a log. As other's said, they can report it up to the chain, how this is bad for Sprout's image. Saying well probably nothing will happen, doesn't matter. It is still worth making the complaint. They can contact local media See if there's a local bike coalition and mobilize them. OP can look into getting more support in the city for bicycles, through the city government. As other's said - have a cam on the bike ( or someone watching\filming, while OP goes in the store). OP needs to document everything, including what this is costing them. If the police have to deal with OP regularly making reports, they might . This whole trash thing - maybe OP can get a restraining warrant, against the attendant, given the trash on the bike, passive aggressive carts, if the attendant gets threatening, etc. If the attendant has to leave the premises, when the OP shops - the manager might do something then. Or if the attendant violates the order, OP can call the cops. If the OP can afford a lawyer, can probably afford some kind of car. None-the-less, the OP can look into this regard
The fence in those pictures, though - looks like the OP could figure out places to lock the frame to the fence and not just where the cars park. That said, in an affluent neighborhood, a driver isn't going to want to ram the bike with their car (though they might park too close, so you'd have a hard time unlocking it.
Taking the bike in and making the point the tires aren't any dirtier than anyone's shoes, cart wheels or stroller wheels. The bike is skinner than a cart. If they want to ***** about the length of the bike - well with social distancing, no one is supposed to be getting that close. Just use the bike as your cart.
All of that could have just been avoided, if they had left the bike rack, as it used to be and didn't put carts and trash on them. They're the ones backing OP into a corner. OP just has to decide how worth it, it is for the OP to pursue.

shelbyfv

FWIW, OP posted his rant nearly a month ago, has posted only in this thread and hasn't been back since the third day.

Cpn_Dunsel

Grocery stores that allow people to use carts and buggies would have hard time making case that a bike is not allowed.


They do tend to frown on riding it in the store so you are best to walk it.

Daniel4

If the backlash is worse than the store's offence, then there's no point in hanging around - just as some commenters had suggested in regards to shopping elsewhere.

JoeyBike

Interesting thread. Clash of two stubborn people IMO. Cyclist and Employee.

I do not have one strand of activist DNA in me. Mine is 100% dedicated to adapting to my environment. That said, if there isn't a REASONABLY safe place to lock up my bike somewhere, I go somewhere else. I might roll my bike into the bank, but I am not rolling it through the store banging my shins on the pedals with every step as some have suggested.

I have ridden my tiny folding "clown bike" to WallyWorld and stowed it on the rack under the basket while I shopped. Wal-Mart is in a terrible neighborhood so forget even the best bike rack. I am limited to what I can carry in a big backpack though. I purchased that clown bike specifically for difficult circumstances of all kinds. I can't change the world around me very easily, but I can easily change MYSELF. So that is my approach.