And those kryptonite cables - those are not strong. The thief of my first stolen bike was nice enough to leave the cut cable laying around. I took a pair of fresh pliers to it and made a new cut in about 5 minutes. And that was a thicker cable than Hal uses in the video, and I'm no professional. It did pretty much kill the pliers thou.

Of course, the best protection of all is just to lower that resale value factor...

I was at Bicycle Habitat last week when I noticed Clarence and Hal across the street so I've been looking forward to this film ever since. Clarence, you didn't disappoint

Jeffery: Once you learn what to do, it all becomes automatic locking up, taking stuff with you, etc. I wouldn't call it "depressing" but it can be annoying. I sure wish it wasn't this way - we should all have a place to put our bike safe, NYPD should do more about theft, we need lighter and more easy to carry locking devices....

It'd be great if everytime I left my bike somewhere and daises would begin to grow around it and protect it. However, that is not gonna happen (okay maybe if we find a kudzu plant, but I digress. This is the unfortunate reality, and I don't want to get a bike stolen. It is part of the rules in NYC and we are presenting reality here. If I were a beginning cyclist, I'd much rather know the game going in, rather than lose my bike in my first week of owning it. If that happens to someone, chance are they don 't go back to cycling. So better to be informed. And in Hal's delightfully humorous manner.

Also, his method for securing a seat? Tried that once... and the seat was stolen the very next day. Again, anyone can clip right through a welded bike chain.

I don't find getting around by bicycle to be depressing. But if you were to rank everything about it from the best to the worst, this to me is the worst -- the fact that yes, it does appear extreme measures are required in NYC and I spend quite a bit of time locking and disassembling.

Not the weather in winter, or conflicts with drivers, which I've had no serious problems with. Thieves.

Nothing is without a downside, and this is really the only one for bicycle transport for me. Now should I stop locking one wheel and the frame with both a massive chain and a U lock, the other wheel with another U lock, taking the seat, and removing the lights, odometer/speedometer and radio? Not according to Hal.

Here's what I have to go through on a daily basis when I commute in NYC via subway: inexplicable delays, rerouted trains, crowded and sometimes dirty cars, people clipping their fingernails or blasting music as they sit next to me, riders leaning on poles, and dirty and hot stations during the summer.

Not that biking isn't without its hazards and annoyances, but it takes me no more than a minute or two to lock up my bike so that it won't get stolen. That's a fare trade to avoid the subways, get a little exercise, and enjoy the nice weather. In fact, it's a breeze compared with the alternatives. Granted, everyone has different tolerance levels, and the city should offer easier, more secure bike parking, but to write off biking because it takes a long time to lock up a bike is to ignore all of the things that can make alternatives just as, if not more, frustrating.

I haven't had a bike stolen, triple lock it and take the seat and all accessories, and yes it is depressing.

The worst part of bike commuting on a cold winter day? Taking off my gloves to hold all that cold steel in my burning hands while locking the heavy Kryptonite chain and two U-locks, and removing the seat.

While locking up your bike is more of a hassle than not doing it, you work out your "system" and you go with it. You find what lock works for you, and what you need to secure the wheels. The seat chain will be done at the shop (usually for less than $10), and the "pinheads" for the wheels are a great idea (and those you only need done once). I hammered my system down over a number of days and now it's ready to go in a moment's notice. Sure, this takes forethought, but so be it. All good things in life take some thinking.

All my friends know that when I get somewhere I'm going to need 30 seconds to lock up and remove my lights (both of which clip on and off in about 1/2 a second). No one seems to complain. I don't ride with a water bottle when I commute/get around town as it's not needed. True story: my friend left his water bottle on his bike overnight and when he came back it was filled with urine. Not joking. Also, cycling computers I leave on my road bike.

"I think the level of zeal depicted in this video series just makes bicycling look like a hassle. Who would want to ride a bike if you have to..." Apparently more and more people everyday.

While I carry a U lock in my luggage, I think the level of zeal depicted in this video series just makes bicycling look like a hassle. Who would want to ride a bike if you have to chain the rear wheel to the front wheel to the U-lock to a signpost and remove your seat, your lights, your bottle, and your computer at every stop?

And yes, I've had plenty of bikes stolen. Each of them was stolen from the interior of a building.