This Bike Locks Itself

It's no secret thatwe lovebikes. It's also no secret that we're terribly nervous about them getting stolen, which is why we spend time writing about how bike companies test their locks against smashing and prying. But as ABUS judiciously told us, given enough time, every lock is breakable. But what if the lock is the bike?

A new bike called the Yerka Project figured it out.

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Eschewing that beefy chain, the rider simply dismantles the bike's downtube and swivels the two ends so they are parallel, wrapped around a secured post. Then, the seatpost comes right out and joins the two sections of downtube, locking in the process. It's apparently very easy to use, and any thief who breaks the lock will probably be breaking the bike.

Although this concept might not work at all on any bike with downtube-mounted gear cables—except for SRAM's new wireless group, whenever that comes out—this could be the city bike we've all been waiting for.

Maybe the next step will be to make locking s-and-s couplers for the hardcore roadies.

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All we can think of now is this.


Ethan Wolff-Mann is an editor at Supercompressor. Follow him on Twitter @ewolffmann.