Media Credit: Jarod Opperman Three bikes and a bike rack were stolen near the Millrace ceramics studio Tuesday evening. Lauren Miller, Hollie Putnam, and Lauren Prince are bringing attention to the incident because the bike rack their bikes were locked to was not bolted to the ground. The bike rack has since been replaced.

University students Lauren Miller, Hollie Putnam and Lauren Prince were preparing to leave the Millrace ceramics studio early Tuesday morning when Prince stepped outside around 2 a.m. to discover an unpleasant surprise.

The women's bicycles, all of which had been locked up with u-bolt locks through the front tire and around the frame, were gone - as was the bike rack they had been attached to.

Prince wondered if the stress of working late at night had caused her to forget where she'd parked her bike. The idea that the entire bike rack was gone took some time to sink in.

"It was mind-boggling. It didn't fit together at all. In no way did that compute," she said. "That's so ridiculous and out of place. ... I was searching for some kind of reasonable explanation for the whole thing and none really came beyond that somebody did just that."

The other women had just as much trouble making sense of the situation when Prince told them what had happened.

"We thought, 'You must be pulling a fast one on us'," Miller said.

Unfortunately, it was not a joke. At some point between 9 p.m. Tuesday, when the women arrived at the studio, and 2 a.m., a thief made off with the entire bike rack, which Putnam said they then realized had never been bolted to the ground. Another frame near the studio was also unsecured.

The girls immediately called the Department of Public Safety. The officer who arrived took a report and got permission to give all three women rides home. Miller said it was a "big deal" that DPS allowed an officer to take the time to provide rides at a time when DPS is "understaffed."

"I really commend them for doing that for us even though it was a risk they had to take," she said.

While the women were thankful for the ride home, both Prince and Putnam pointed to the lack of DPS presence at the Millrace as a possible explanation for how someone was able to walk away with an entire bike rack without anyone noticing.

"The Millrace is such a high crime area, and that a crime of this nature could take place there is a huge problem," Prince said.

Prince, who said this is the second bike she has had stolen in Eugene, said DPS and the University administration need to put more resources into protecting students from theft.

"They've been doing a better job lately, but the administration isn't protecting students' interests."

Thursday morning, the three met with Roger Kerrigan, the exterior team supervisor for facilities services, to discuss the situation.

"It was sort of unclear as to what happened," Putnam said. "He made it sound like they weren't officially installed."

Kerrigan told the Emerald that the rack that was stolen, along with the other unsecured rack by the building, were extras that were probably put there by former maintenance employees for the building. He said they have been there for quite some time and that no one who currently works in the building was responsible.

Prince said she felt like Kerrigan "passed the buck" on facility services' responsibility for the incident.

Any bike racks installed by facilities services are secured, Kerrigan told the Emerald.

"Anytime we put something out like that we take them out and bolt them down," he said.

Miller said the women were shocked that something as large as a bike rack could be stolen without anyone noticing.

"I was in disbelief," Miller said. "There were people in and out for the majority of time we were there. When it was just us three, we would think that if something were happening we would hear it."

Putnam and Miller said that ensuring the safety of other students' bikes is the reason they want to get the word out about the incident.

"Really the most important thing at this point for us is that we raise awareness of bike safety in general and get the facilities department - remind them of the importance of this issue," Putnam said.

Kerrigan said that students in general will "find that most of the racks on campus are secure."

The rack that was stolen has been replaced, and both it and the other rack by the ceramics studio are now bolted down, Kerrigan said.

The women have posted flyers around campus, posted on Craigslist and have contacted local bike stores about the theft. Prince said that she has spoken with several people who already knew about the incident. Despite all the attention to the issue, she is not optimistic.

"I honestly don't have any expectations of seeing my bike again," she said. "It pains me to say that. I think it's probably far away from here. I would think that somebody who's brazen enough to do that type of theft has probably stolen a lot of bikes."

Miller said the women have scheduled an appointment with ASUO legal services and may meet with Risk Management in Oregon Hall to discuss whether they can be compensated for their loss.

"It was pretty traumatic for all of us because we have not only financial investment but also energy and effort put into our bikes. It's more than a financial loss - it's impacted us far more than that," she said. "Our position on it is that if you provide implements for security they should be security. There shouldn't be a false sense of security that you attach your investment to."

jhedelman@dailyemerald.com

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