Hi Michelle,

I see you live in Arlington. It's pretty bike-friendly up there but I know I'd be concerned about my bike being stolen regardless of where I left it. I have 2 U-locks but haven't felt the need to use them both at the same time. I keep a shorter U-lock with a combo on the rack at the back of my bike. I asked people how they mounted their locks on TE and tried the ones that came with the lock but no luck. The rack I have has a spring-loaded thing that keeps the lock in place. I have a longer U-lock with a key that I use for times when my husband and I are both out together on the bikes. I also use this lock for locking the bikes to our hitch rack. I recently bought a 6' Kryptonite cable too because I was concerned but have yet to use this as well.

They say the key to U-locks is to not get one that leaves a lot of space so that people can't pry lock a 2 by 4 or something in there to break the lock so that's why I got the shorter one without the key. A few years ago the keyed ones from Kryptonite were able to be defeated by a ballpoint pen. I don't think that is the case anymore. Get yourself a good-sized U-lock or one of those steel cables and a real bike lock not something that you can buy at a hardware store and you should be good to go.