Bauer Transit, a local corporate shuttle service, has commuters attach their bikes to racks on the rear of their busses.

This always alarmed me because it increased the danger factor of attaching and detaching your bicycle. The straps were always precariously worn down. This Wednesday the 18th, however, the straps were just fine. I ride the shuttle a few miles from downtown Mountain View to the Mission College Yahoo! Campus. Unfortunately this Wednesday my bike was not there when we arrived.

The driver had missed an exit and we must have clover-leafed quite a bit. I kept looking out the window and not recognizing the familiar things that dot Highway 101. Amidst this maneuvering and correcting turns, the securely fastened straps must have loosened.

The bike racks are similar to ones that you would install on a trailer hitch. Normally they are fine, and you can strap them down, and of course you are keeping an eye on them. On a corporate shuttle there is no way to see the bike unless you use a video camera - whose screen was not turned on.

When we arrived to Mission College, I no longer had a bike. I did the math, about $1100 went into that bike, and that’s not a high end bike by any means - it’s just my ride to work.

The driver graciously offered to look for the bike, and an hour later he brought it to me, after it had been run over. It suffered very little damage that I could tell, but upon further inspection by a local bike shop, the frame was as the shop owner said, “totalled.”

I hate spending money as it is - and I hate it when my trust gets violated. I’ve told Bauer and Yahoo! that our shuttle racks are unsafe and should be replaced with front-racks as you would find on busses. I always received “no” as an answer.

I put together a list of all the non salvageable items and will see if I can get Bauer to cover my costs (even the brand new 8-speed hub I added, was not worth salvaging :( ). Then there’s the bike-attachment issues. I really like my bike - the way people really like their cars. I’ve had this for two and a half years, and I’ve liked it since.

In the mean time, I’m looking for a new bike. Looking at Dahon’s folding bikes. They seem to match my commuting needs. I think I can get a Vitesse D7HG for a fraction of what I put into my Breezer. The cost still hurts - bankrupt economy or not.

Update: Bauer gave me a check on April 28th, after I made a request a month back and following up with the workplace team at Yahoo! I used this money to help purchase a Bike Friday Season Tikit.