parked bikes as advertising plaform.

I recently noticed these around town and I was wondering if they are "real" bikes or just a form of advertising.
I admire the ingenuity of this guerrilla advertising but I hate to loose the good spots to tie my bike. I can only imagine how frustrating it
can be to loose a parking spot to a red bull car.



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Permalink Reply by Joe TV on September 16, 2010 at 8:44pm
From this point forward never visiting this apartment rental site. Visit trulia.com instead. I hate being disadvantaged as a target market.
Permalink Reply by Carl on September 17, 2010 at 1:59am
I'm very annoyed by these things. I found out it's a marketing campaign. They send crews out with a truck, and lock them up, and move them occasionally.

Also, note that the crew they've sent out are clearly NOT bike people, as they have been locking them very badly - to the forks!

Where, in high-traffic zones, would the city let them park a billboard truck, without paying for parking? Nowhere, methinks!

Hope the bike thieves take a fancy to them.....
Permalink Reply by Far'arned Retrogrumpalunkus #63 on September 17, 2010 at 2:03am
Something must be done about these jerks. Where did I put my bike keys?

Carl said:
I'm very annoyed by these things. I found out it's a marketing campaign. They send crews out with a truck, and lock them up, and move them occasionally.

Also, note that the crew they've sent out are clearly NOT bike people, as they have been locking them very badly - to the forks!

Where, in high-traffic zones, would the city let them park a billboard truck, without paying for parking? Nowhere, methinks!

Hope the bike thieves take a fancy to them.....
Permalink Reply by Joel on September 17, 2010 at 2:12am
You could always report them as abandoned:
http://www.chicagobikes.org/public/abandonedbikes.php

You could also let the company know that you won't use their services because of the advertising campaign.
http://www.domu.com/contact
Permalink Reply by Michael Perz on September 17, 2010 at 2:36am
Ha ha! The second bike already had one of its grips stolen.
Permalink Reply by Amber K on September 17, 2010 at 2:39am
Maybe everyone should flood their email with a polite email asking them to reconcider their strategy. They could pay people to ride their bikes around.

Joel said:
You could always report them as abandoned:
http://www.chicagobikes.org/public/abandonedbikes.php

You could also let the company know that you won't use their services because of the advertising campaign.
http://www.domu.com/contact
Permalink Reply by Joel on September 17, 2010 at 2:44am
I didn't encourage anyone to berate them, and my own email was polite. I simply told them that while their advertising method is creative, it inconveniences cyclists in some of the busiest areas and therefore I will not use their service (and encourage friends to do the same) while the campaign is in progress.

Amber K said:
Maybe everyone should flood their email with a polite email asking them to reconcider their strategy. They could pay people to ride their bikes around.

Joel said:
You could always report them as abandoned:
http://www.chicagobikes.org/public/abandonedbikes.php

You could also let the company know that you won't use their services because of the advertising campaign.
http://www.domu.com/contact
Permalink Reply by Amber K on September 17, 2010 at 2:51am
Oh, I didn't take it that way. That's pretty much what I said too. I just know some people need it spelled out for them.

Joel said:
I didn't encourage anyone to berate them, and my own email was polite. I simply told them that while their advertising method is creative, it inconveniences cyclists in some of the busiest areas and therefore I will not use their service (and encourage friends to do the same) while the campaign is in progress.

Amber K said:
Maybe everyone should flood their email with a polite email asking them to reconcider their strategy. They could pay people to ride their bikes around.

Joel said:
You could always report them as abandoned:
http://www.chicagobikes.org/public/abandonedbikes.php

You could also let the company know that you won't use their services because of the advertising campaign.
http://www.domu.com/contact
Permalink Reply by Amber K on September 17, 2010 at 2:52am
Yeah, I noticed that too.

Michael Perz said:
Ha ha! The second bike already had one of its grips stolen.
Permalink Reply by Far'arned Retrogrumpalunkus #63 on September 17, 2010 at 3:51am
Did you notice how poorly they were locked? It's a U-lock but not through the frame -only the front wheel. Cut a few spokes and you wouldn't even need a set of heavy-duty bike keys. Or just leave the wheel behind.

In the second picture it looks like a fender stay would need to be removed too.

The crews that placed these bikes obviously don't know how to use a U-lock. Those look like fairly nice commuter bikes and I fear the IG rear wheels might be missing from many of them when they finally get around to picking them up, if nothing else.

Why would someone steal a single grip??? Maybe just for the annoyance factor -or is there a way to make a crack pipe out of one?

Amber K said:
Yeah, I noticed that too.
Michael Perz said:
Ha ha! The second bike already had one of its grips stolen.
Permalink Reply by Far'arned Retrogrumpalunkus #63 on September 17, 2010 at 4:22am
I'd hesitate to call any bike "garbage" out of hand -with the exception of a One-Piece-Crank department store bike. This looks like a fairly nice (albeit heavy steel-frame) step-thru with alloy rims and internally-geared hub and full-encased chaingaurd. Looks like the perfect winter commuter if you ask me, with only a few mods (I hate those wheelbarrow bars, but that is easily fixed -and that abortion of a seat that looks like it came from a nazi-era Volkswagen "thing" jeep has GOT to go).

Sure, it's not a super-lightweight hipster fashion-statement fixie, but it doesn't look like junk to me.



Cameron Puetz said:
Since the bikes haven’t been stolen yet, they’re probably pretty much garbage.


Permalink Reply by Chucko on September 17, 2010 at 4:30am
Too bad too. I kind of like the platform (I mean the bike). Has a dutch bike vibe. Looks like they're made by this company- Republic Cycles http://www.republicbike.com/ . Strangely, I think they sell them through Urban Outfitters as well. Nothing flashy, but they look like good city commuters if you aren't riding too far.

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