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Hiding an AirTag on Your Bike

AirTag Concealed in a Bicycle Reflector

I’m not the first person to think about concealing an AirTag on my bike to help in its recovery if it is ever stolen. As a result, As a result, there are many commercial products on the market for this purpose.  There are products to hide AirTags in the fork, under the saddle, in a bike bell, in a reflector, under the water bottle, etc.  The sky is the limit for possible hiding places.  In my case, I believe in keeping things simple so I just my found own place to hide my AirTag. 

Since using AirTags to find stolen items is becoming more common, some people suggest hiding a second AirTag on your bicycle.  Hopefully, if the thief finds one AirTag they will feel safe and stop searching, leaving the second AirTag to help in locating and recovering your bike.

Think about recovering your bike before it is stolen.  Many bikes look the same and law enforcement will want to make sure that the bike you claim was stolen from you is indeed your bike.  If your bike has a serial number, write it down now.  I keep a photo of my bicycle serial number on my phone so that I have the serial number with me at all times.  In addition, I keep a copy of the sales receipt at home just in case I need it to prove ownership.

Ken Whittaker

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How to Recover Your Bicycle if it’s Stolen!

According to the latest FBI Crime in the United States Report, 162,547 bicycles were reported stolen in 2016. While this number is shocking, I’m sure it only represents a fraction of bicycles actually stolen, since many bike thefts go unreported.  Fortunately for cyclists, devices like the Apple AirTag and the Android Tag can assist cyclists and law enforcement in recovering stolen bikes quickly.

Setting up my Apple AirTag was fast and easy.

Apple AirTag

This Photo by Unknown Author is licensed under CC BY-NC-ND

  • I pulled the tab to activate the battery. The AirTag played a sound to indicate activation.
  • My phone detected the AirTag and I simply tapped connect on the phone screen.
  • I gave my AirTag a custom name, chose an emoji and registered the AirTag with my Apple ID.
  • Just to make sure everything was working, I checked the FindMy  app to ensure the app showed the location of my AirTag. More details on setting up your AirTag can be found at this link: AirTag – Apple Support
  • The final step was to place my AirTag on my bike where a thief would not quickly locate and disable or discard my tracker. 

Now if my bicycle ever goes missing, I can track its latest location on a map in the app.  For less than $30 for an Apple AirTag or an Android Tag, it is a good investment for recovering your bike if it is stolen. Will it really work?  Checkout Catching a Bike Thief with AirTags on YouTube.

Ken Whittaker

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Don’t Forget Wind Chill

One of the many pleasures of cycling is that cool breeze we generate as we pedal along on a warm summer day. I can’t think of any other physical activity that offers such a pleasant breeze to help to keep us cool during physical exertion like cycling. However, as the weather gets cooler that same breeze can make it feel much colder than the actual outside temperature.

Staying warm is crucial l when cycling in the winter. Unfortunately, the outside thermometer alone is not a good indicator for selecting cycling clothing in colder weather. Cycling speed can also have a big impact on wind chill or perceived air temperature. Fortunately, it is easy to approximate wind chill by multiplying the wind speed by 0.7 and then subtracting that value from the air temperature. But, don’t forget to factor in your cycling speed for this calculation.

Example:

  • Formula
    • Wind Chill = Outside Temperature – (Wind Velocity x0.7)
  • Where
    • Outside Temperature: 45 degrees Fahrenheit (°F).
    • Wind Velocity: 18 mph (Wind Speed 3 mph + Cycling Speed 15 mph)
  • Wind chill
    • Wind chill = 32.4 degrees Fahrenheit (°F)
    • 45 degrees Fahrenheit – ( 18mph*0.7)

Not good with math or don’t want to be bothered by the calculations? Then just click here on the Wind Chill Calculator.

Don’t be afraid of cold weather cycling, just be prepared. Layering up is the best way to stay warm and remember that too many layers are better than not enough. You can always take a layer off  and enjoy the ride.

Ken Whittaker