Via SF Weekly’s The Snitch, BART Diaries has learned of at least one iPhone owner who refused becoming another theft-victim:

“He hit me as hard as he could four times, and I just stood there, like dazed. I was like, you just got four free shots and you didn’t take me down. And then in a split second I decided I’m going to kill him. He unleashed the beast. I am basically 98-percent muscle, I’m a professional athlete, and all my muscle was on him. I pounced on him like a tiger.”

Read the whole story here.

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BART rider Anya has this diary to share:

So BART had some serious rush-hour delays this morning. So when I got to Civic Center there was a mass of people waiting, already looking frustrated. The Pittsburg/Bay Point train pulls up LOADED with people. Naturally, when the door opens, it’s a typical battle to wrestle yourself into the train. Everyone is even more agitated and pissed.

Once we get to Powell, before the doors open, the train conductor says something to the extent of “sorry to have to start your day this way folks but look on the bright side — it’s a beautiful day outside. Forget about us and have a good rest of your day.” Everyone immediately lit up in smiles (as jam-packed as we were) and a few people chuckled.

Moral of the story: even the smallest gesture goes a long way on days like that. Thank you to that train conductor for being so positive! And to the other drivers — please try to stay positive and cheerful on the crappy days…. your words go a long way to make everyone else snap out of their angry commuter modes.

Got a BART story to share? Do it here at BART Diaries.

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My partner and I were walking through Civic Center Station Friday night when we heard the most ungodly combination of noises.

On our right was a gentleman attempting to play a soprano saxophone. Actually, he was playing it quite well — especially considering that on the left was some long-haired dude wildly strumming a guitar, whooping and hollering and generally trying to throw the saxophonist off his game.

The saxophonist was playing his song without missing any notes (I think; it was hard to tell in all the cacophony), being generally very Zen about the whole situation. The guitarist, on the other hand, was just playing random combinations of notes on the guitar and screeching as loud as he could, evidently just to make it impossible for anyone to enjoy his fellow musician’s performance.

The oddest part was, the guitarist had several dollars in his open case. I suppose it’s possible he put them there himself, but it seems just as likely that some folks actually gave him money. Why?

My partner said he was tempted to take money from the one and give it to the other. I wish I’d thought of that when we were walking by. I wonder what would have happened if we’d done it.

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I overheard an interesting interaction this morning on BART, between a guy bringing his bike on a Richmond train at Civic Center and a disapproving woman.

Bikes are only allowed on BART trains during commute hours at the Embarcadero station, headed to the East Bay in the morning and from the East Bay in the evening. It’s sort of an annoying rule for those with bikes, but I suppose it makes sense. The trains headed in the East Bay direction are often relatively crowded during commute hours (and therefore would be tough to accommodate more than a few people with bikes), and then empty out significantly at the Embarcadero station (and sometimes Montgomery), since so many people work in the Financial District.

This morning (Thursday 9/3) around 8:00 a.m., a guy got on a Richmond train at Civic Center with his bike. The car wasn’t very crowded, and there was enough room for him and his bike. Here’s the conversation that came up between him and woman standing nearby:

Disapproving woman: “Do they allow full bikes on BART at this station during commute hours?” [as opposed to small folding bikes]

Guy with bike: “Hmm, I guess so.”

Disapproving woman: “Actually, no, I don’t think full bikes are allowed at this station.”

Guy with bike: “Well, I’ve never had anyone stop me or tell me that it’s not allowed, so . . . ”

Disapproving woman: “Well, I think you need to do some reading about this.”

Guy with bike (politely): “Okay, thank you for the tip.”

Then, upon exit at Embarcadero, the disapproving woman said: “For future reference, you can bring your bike on here at Embarcadero. I know this because I’m a bike rider myself.” The guy smiled politely but didn’t say anything.

The interaction wasn’t angry, but was somewhat strained and uncomfortable. I wasn’t quite sure what to think. On the one hand, the woman had a point: bikes are not allowed during commute hours at any station before Embarcadero, and the rule isn’t entirely unfounded. But on the other hand, no BART employees stopped the guy from bringing his bike on the train (and seemingly hadn’t done so during previous trips). The rules for bikes on BART also aren’t prominently displayed in the stations – they’re only listed in the brochures and on the web site (right?). So is this guy at fault for bringing his bike against the rules, since they haven’t been enforced for him and he only has the word from a somewhat passive-aggressive fellow BART rider?

The “commute hours” bike rule perhaps only makes sense for the San Francisco –> East Bay morning commute and East Bay –> San Francisco evening commute. I used to ride my bike to work when I lived in the East Bay, and it was pretty irritating that I wasn’t allowed to bring my bike on the half-empty Richmond trains at the Oakland 19th St. station during commute hours. Does anyone else agree?

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