I leave mine at the train station locked with a u-lock almost every day. I don't worry so much because it's an obvious WSD (with that lowered top bar -- yuck, won't make that mistake again) Trek comfort bike. Not sexy at all (except to me). The bike bag is locked to the seat post and rack with a seat post cable and combo lock. I try to take the rear light off the back, but don't worry about the first aid kit or minimal tools in the bag.

I left our fifteen-year-old Nishiki road bike on a cable/key lock at another commuter train station outside Philly for about two months without moving it (I got pregnant and exhausted). When finally rescued, someone had almost cut through the cable lock, but the bike hadn't been stolen.

Peak commuter trains don't allow bikes (although Philly buses now have the cool front bike racks), plus I've nearly fallen backwards carrying my bike up the train stairs. Taking the bike with isn't really an option. There are usually two other bikes in the rack, sometimes a whole half dozen! For a few days, there was a green WSD (that lowered top bar again) locked to a small, pink bike, locked to the rack at the train station. How cool is that?

(One day my husband forgot the key to his U-lock, and managed to lock both bikes to the rack with one U-lock. It looks like my bike tried to bunny hop his bike crosswise and fell on top. He's an amazing man.)

I've also left my bike, unlocked, on my car rack for days on end. Worst that happened was some idiot driving into the bike (on the car) and bending the wheel and scraping paint. Husband had his hitch-mount bike rack stolen off his car in our driveway though.

Now, if I got the bike downtown, that's another story. I wouldn't leave the bag on the bike, and would either lock it with the dozens of other bikes outside my building, or would take the front wheel with me. A co-worker had his bike stolen from the scene of his bike accident.

--SJ