I've ridden a Clem on a university campus in Michigan every day for several years. I've been working at colleges for 20 years, and this is my first non-beater that I lock up around campus. The risk has been worth the reward of making thousands of useful trips on such a dignified ride.
That said, I lock it inside whenever I can during the day, and I almost never leave it out overnight. Like most universities, mine does have paid locking cages inside their parking garages. Those are totally safe, but they defeat the purpose of being able to zip around from one building to another (if you're on a big campus). Another thing to keep in mind: some campus bike racks are way safer than others. Most campuses have cameras everywhere. Maybe lock up in contained quads, with high visibility, where the traffic is only by foot or bike. It's good to avoid racks close to roads where someone can quickly hop out of a truck with an angle grinder or bolt cutters. --KA On Sunday, August 6, 2023 at 12:48:32 PM UTC-4 Ryan wrote: > What others have said.... > > BUT a Clem could go to college if...in an ideal world > > If he's living on-campus they're not going to fuss if he brings it inside > his room at night to avoid leaving it locked up outside and creating ample > opportrunity for theft...and maybe don't take the Clem bar-hopping > > If the college is car-free maybe they have some sort of infrastructure set > up for secure bike locking on campus...maybe there's some student-driven > bike valet system...or your son could find like-minded folks on-campus to > initiate something like that for secure lockup at the library or class > buildings. Where I live in Winnipeg, the University of Winnipeg even has > indoor locking facilities for a fee...but it's a downtown campus with a > small footprint; you can easily hoof it from class to class. A large state > campus, I imagine, not so much > > In the absence of things like this , I'm afraid , a stealth beater that's > actually fun to ride is the way to go > > On Sunday, August 6, 2023 at 11:27:14 AM UTC-5 Eric Daume wrote: > >> I'm going to join the majority and say don't send the Clem to college. >> IF* your boy needs a bike at school, buy a cheap hybrid, new or used. Bike >> shops are desperate to sell anything right now, and the used market is also >> oversaturated. >> >> *It's been a long time since I was at college, but even as a bike loving >> kid, I didn't ride my bike to classes. Too much hassle, too much risk. It >> was easier to navigate crowded campus paths by walking, even though I had >> one or two bikes tucked into my tiny dorm room. >> >> Eric >> Plain City, OH >> >> On Sat, Aug 5, 2023 at 10:56 PM Bicycle Belle Ding Ding! < >> jonasa...@gmail.com> wrote: >> >>> It nearly kills me to say it, but my older son will be heading to >>> college in a year. Freshman aren’t to bring cars to campus, so that leaves >>> buses, bikes, and your own two feet for transportation. My boys have grown >>> up riding Clem Hs; this son rides a 52 cm cast-off from my husband (who >>> doesn’t ride, sigh). >>> >>> My 6’3” Dad had a blue 59 cm Clem on order when he died suddenly in >>> 2020, and his blue Clem has sat, boxed, waiting for my boy to grow into it. >>> I lugged the gargantuan box up from the basement last week to see how if >>> the bike would fit. “Now that I’ve obtained optimal height,” my son is fond >>> of saying… >>> >>> Anyway, he’s 6’1” now (likely still growing) and I need him to decide if >>> he wants to stick with his old Clem H (that he was fond of) or settle into >>> this Clem L. Because whichever bike he chooses is getting new wheels, dyno >>> and fenders and going to college with him. At first he was opposed to the >>> idea of a new Clem; he liked his old Clem, thought it looked cool. But >>> after the - as he calls it - Big Bike was assembled, he really began to >>> like it. “It looks elegant,” he said. It really does, all long and lithe, >>> in blue and silver. He put his saddle and bags on the bike and we test rode >>> it tonight. He said, “I am really liking the Big Bike. I like that my knees >>> don’t have anything to hit (geez, were his knees hitting his bars?!) and it >>> looks elegant. It feels more at home now that I have my old saddle on it.” >>> >>> I have mixed feelings about sending him to college with this bike, >>> because it’s so nice. I also doubt he’ll be able to get it on a bus bike >>> rack - and I have no idea how often he will want to do that. His bike life >>> is totally unknown at this point. All I know is that I’m getting him dyno >>> because the kid has never remembered to charge a light in his LIFE and I >>> will not sleep at night without it.The 52 takes 650b wheels and the 59 >>> takes 700c, so I don’t want to buy the wheels until I know which bike he >>> really wants. But as of now, he wants his new bike. >>> >>> I know people will say we should just get a beater. I know why that >>> would be advisable, but I also hate to think of a Clem languishing when it >>> could be serving a noble purpose. I’d love for him and his Clem to journey >>> through undergrad together. >>> >>> I am wondering…has anyone gone to college or sent their kid to college >>> with a Clem? What do you have to say about it? Photos in the next post… >>> Leah >>> >>> -- >>> >> You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups >>> "RBW Owners Bunch" group. >>> To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send >>> an email to rbw-owners-bun...@googlegroups.com. >>> To view this discussion on the web visit >>> https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/rbw-owners-bunch/0d23bcf0-daea-486b-8c3c-86de9391c5cbn%40googlegroups.com >>> >>> <https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/rbw-owners-bunch/0d23bcf0-daea-486b-8c3c-86de9391c5cbn%40googlegroups.com?utm_medium=email&utm_source=footer> >>> . >>> >> -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "RBW Owners Bunch" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to rbw-owners-bunch+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. To view this discussion on the web visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/rbw-owners-bunch/86b3333c-58f6-40e0-b61d-27bec881c7fan%40googlegroups.com.
