CYCLISTS WARN SOME LOCKS FOR BIKES ARE EASY PICKINGS.

Byline: Greg Bolt The Register-Guard

It turns out the pen is mightier than something other than swords.

News was spreading through the Eugene-Springfield bicycle community Thursday that the most popular bike lock on the market can be picked using only a ballpoint pen.

Jam the shell of a Bic pen into the cylinder lock on the popular U-shaped Kryptonite lock, and many of them will pop open in a matter of seconds.

What's more, the technique apparently works on many other kinds of cylinder locks, putting vending machines and many other coin-operated devices in jeopardy.

Word of the new lock-picking method spread swiftly this week as bike enthusiasts hit the Internet with warnings and even posted videos showing Kryptonite locks being forced open with the ballpoint pen technique.

The locks, typically the top-seller at local bike shops, have a curved steel loop that snaps into a round lock bar that is secured with a tubular key.

The news caught the attention of the Kryptonite company, which said Thursday that it's trying to speed delivery of a new-generation lock and will let owners of the current models upgrade to the more pick-resistant disc-style cylinder.

For Eugene bike and bike shop owners, the development was bad news. The city already has one of the highest rates of bike theft in the nation and recently faced a wave of two-wheeler heists by thieves armed with more sophisticated cylinder picks.

"This lowers the bar, because you don't even need to pay somebody to make you the picking device anymore," said Paul Nicholson, owner of Paul's Bicycle Way of Life in Eugene. "It remains to be seen how easy this actually is to do, but if it is easier, yeah, it'll exacerbate the problem."

It's not clear yet how many locks are vulnerable. Sue Kelley, owner of Blue Heron Bicycles near the University of Oregon, contacted Kryptonite on Thursday after a reporter called to ask about the news and was told that the trick doesn't work on all of the company's locks, which use a round key inserted into the cylinder lock.

Kelley said the technique works only with locks keyed a certain way. That could explain why a customer at one of Nicholson's shops, who came in Wednesday after hearing about the pick, couldn't get it to work.

"We said fine, `Here's a lock and a Bic pen,' ' Nicholson said. "He went at it for a half an hour and went away unfulfilled."

But the people at Kryptonite are taking the threat seriously. Donna Tocci, the company's public relations manager, said Kryptonite was working to give dealers new products with the disc-style technology now used in the company's top-end New York-series locks.

"In light of recent demonstrations on the Internet that explain how to criminally defeat tubular cylinder lock technology, which has performed successfully for more than three decades, Kryptonite intends to expedite the introduction of its upgraded ... lines," she said in an e-mail statement. "This cylinder provides greatly enhanced security and performance."

Tocci didn't say how soon the new locks will be on store shelves or what they will cost. The company's New York 3000 locks cost up to $70, and buyers can spend an extra $10 or $20 and get an anti-theft policy that pays up to $3,000 if a bike is stolen while properly locked.

Tocci said a full plan will be announced "in the next few days."

In the meantime, bike owners are advised to take extra precautions if they are using a cylinder-style lock. The most important thing, police and bike shop owners say, is to use two different locking systems.

That means that in addition to a lock using a cylindrical key, also use a cable secured with a regular flat key. The combination approach is the best chance for thwarting thieves, who typically carry tools to defeat only one type of lock and look for the easiest, quickest targets.

"The No. 1 thing is having two locks," said Bill Cole, owner of Wheel Works on West 11th Avenue. "If you have two locks on your bike, then he's going to bypass you and go on to someone else."