Stolen Snowboard

[jerseyrob]

WTF! Never thought it would happen to me. It was always a friend of a friend of a friend's who's stuff got stolen but, sure enough, I walked out of the lodge today after a 1/2 hour at the bar eating fries and my board was gone. After moving from New Jersey to Maine I think I just let my guard down. Didn't think it happened up here. Didn't have it locked and didn't even think to check on it half way through my beer. Hell, it was sitting right in front of the lodge in plain view of hundreds of people. Pretty Ballsy thief! I'm f$^%$## pissed thinking about some doody head holding my board right now. Well, for what it's worth, if anyone see's a '05 Burton Canyon 163 with gray Mission Bindings for sale anywhere, give me a shout or better yet hold him until I can get there. Thanks -Rob-

09 Jan 2006 25:06 - Edited for language

 

[John84]

Karma's a bitch, maybe he'll try and ride it and end up getting what he deserves.

 

[LVNLARG]

That does suck. :angry: Wher'd you lose it from ? I've had 2 things stolen at the hill in my life time....both poles...one was a brand new pair of leki racing poles that I literally had for 1/2 a day and the others were custom shaped for me Scott DH poles. Sucked hard in both cases. I don't think they ever stole my skis because they were simply too long to hawk. I got a ski key shortly there after.

 

[thetrailboss]

There was a story on VPR last week warning skiers and riders to lock their gear because there had been a spree of thefts across Northern VT and NH resorts. Beware.

 

[Marc]

That sucks. Everyone should just do what I do, use such sh*tty equipment that no one would want to steal it in the first place.


Or if it does get stolen, you're actually happy because you have an excuse to upgrade and don't have to worry about disposal of your old gear.

:beer:


When I leave my Volkl's somewhere though, I will split them up. I guess there are only a very few snow boards you can really do that with.

 

[Phildozer]

I almost always check my skis. I figure if they're good enough to care about losing, it's worth the minute to check 'em.

Sorry to hear about your board.

 

[hammer]

I feel a small amount of your pain...someone grabbed my ski poles yesterday afternoon at Sunapee.

Unless you go through the trouble of locking your equipment (which can be a PITA to do with the basic ski locks) or checking it, I guess it's just one of the "hazards" of the sport... :x

 

[kbroderick]

jerseyrob: that skcus. If you have a s/n, make sure to file a report with the mountain, who will most likely be able to pass it onto the cops. The chances of recovery are slim, but if they happen to find someone with a garage full of boards and a burgeoning eBay business, I'd hope they'd have enough theft reports to bust 'em. I've been told by people working ski area security that the bindings tend to get pulled almost immediately when the board disappears, as the board/binding combination is a lot more recognizable than a flat board.

Personally, I'm a fan of creating attractive targets for thieves and then leaving a 120V line attached, but that doesn't work so well with current liability laws. The other half of the equation, of course, is to only buy your gear from reputable sources--if people weren't willing to buy stolen boards, the number of thefts would presumably plummet.

 

[billski]

out loud

Sorry to hear that. You might be able to put a homeowners/renters insurance claim in less the deductible.

I shouldn't say this out loud, but ski thieves now have a great fence for equipment: Ebay.

I used to think that people who stole gear used it elsewhere or sold it somewhere near where they lived. Now here is a new(er) angle. Hock it to someone clear across the country.

Keep your eyes peeled on Ebay.

That reminds me, while I use a lock (damn cable is never long enough) I should note my serial number. One idea, engrave something unique onto it. It used to be vogue to have your name engraved on the topsides. Most Police Depts. have an engraver they will loan you (I guess they don't worry about someone NOT returning the engraver 8) !

 

[Catul]

Damn, that really sucks! I can imagine the sinking feeling when you walk out, can't find your equipment, and realize it's stolen :angry:

I virtually always lock my skis now, it's a pain (and that cable is often barely long enough) but worthwhile for the peace of mind. Sometimes I feel pretty silly/anal doing it, but it's always nice to come back out and see the skis still there.

 

[hammer]

Re: out loud

Sorry to hear that. You might be able to put a homeowners/renters insurance claim in less the deductible.

Unless the snowboard was worth several thousand dollars, I'd advise against doing this or even contacting the insurance company...

About 12 years ago, I had two mountain bikes stolen out of my garage. I filed a claim under my renters insurance for approx. $300.

A few years later, when I was buying a house, I went to some insurance companies to get homeowner's insurance quotes. One of the companies refused me because I had a claim in the last 3 years. I ended up going with a different company, but I'm sure I took a premium hit.

 

[LVNLARG]

This just reminded me of a semi funny and sad story. The year I worked as a full time coach/instructor at a hill the RCMP showed up one night. They had pulled over a car 1 mile up the road from the hill for speeding. Upon close inspection they noted 17 snowboards in the back which seemed a little out of wack when there were only 3 occupants in the car. The occupants tried to make out they were pro riders and had multiple boards each. The officers asked them to open up the back of the car and immediately saw that half the boards had RENTAL numbers on them...lol. Needless to say they were all charged after we identified a rental board they brought back as ours. :beer:

 

[Treeliner]

I've got a related story-

This is the first season I decided to purchase a ski lock. I've been using it all the days I've gone, and lock up my board whenever I go into the lodge. So this one day, I'm coming out to get my board and head off for the day- and it's stuck! I can see it clicking for the correct combination but it absolutely would not open. I tried bringing a cup of hot water over and everything, but it would not budge. At that point it had been about a half hour and I really had to get on the road. I ended up going into the repair services shop and asking the guy working there for a small saw. No one had anything to say about it when they saw me chopping away at my ski lock, and luckily- because that would have been a rather awkward situation if they didn't believe my story.

 

[GadgetRick]

I also take one of those paint pens you can buy and I put my name on my skis and poles. This way, if someone takes something, I may be able to ID it if I catch them around somewhere.

 

[LVNLARG]

I've got a related story-

This is the first season I decided to purchase a ski lock. I've been using it all the days I've gone, and lock up my board whenever I go into the lodge. So this one day, I'm coming out to get my board and head off for the day- and it's stuck! I can see it clicking for the correct combination but it absolutely would not open. I tried bringing a cup of hot water over and everything, but it would not budge. At that point it had been about a half hour and I really had to get on the road. I ended up going into the repair services shop and asking the guy working there for a small saw. No one had anything to say about it when they saw me chopping away at my ski lock, and luckily- because that would have been a rather awkward situation if they didn't believe my story.

I wouldn't have asked...it would have been fairly obvious what had happend. From what I've seen there are 2 types of ski/board theives. The first type is a sole person who sees something they want and takes 1 item at the end of their day and skeddadles....the second type are pros who work in groups and take numorous items in a 10 minute or less period and skedaddle. Almost always they are not local. 9/10 the theft occurs in the last couple hours the area is open as the theives are also almost always actual skiers/boarders who have skied there that day. No theif would ever stick around sawing at a lock. Snow equipment theft is a crime of opportunity.

Have any of you guys ever seen actual live security guards for ski racks ? On my Christmas vacation I was at Stoneham resort a couple days in Quebec and they actually had 3...yes...count em...3 marked security guards on at all times watching the equipment racks in addition to almost all there racks being ski key racks. They had another one wandering the lodge looking for bag theft. I thought that was terrific...I bet they have a very low crime problem there as I'm sure the theives would work other resorts nearby with no security.

 

[FRITOLAYGUY]

I feel your pain man, i was just up at copper mtn yesterday in Colorado and a friend of mine got his poles stolen, they person who stole them even left his beaten up crappy poles in its place.

 

[LVNLARG]

I forgot to ask another question. Has anyone seen new ski key racks anywhere that you can fit 2 skis in with riser plates ?!?!?? None of my skis will fit in the ski key racks..... I'm gonna be a bit peeved if someone steals my 1 unlocked ski some day. :blink:

 

[LineSki15]

that sucks man, very sorry to hear that.
I always try to put my skis next to skis that I know are much more expensive than mine, that way, if a theif comes along, he'll probably go for the fancier looking pair. Of course, a lock is probably best.

 

[LineSki15]

I've got a related story-

This is the first season I decided to purchase a ski lock. I've been using it all the days I've gone, and lock up my board whenever I go into the lodge. So this one day, I'm coming out to get my board and head off for the day- and it's stuck! I can see it clicking for the correct combination but it absolutely would not open. I tried bringing a cup of hot water over and everything, but it would not budge. At that point it had been about a half hour and I really had to get on the road. I ended up going into the repair services shop and asking the guy working there for a small saw. No one had anything to say about it when they saw me chopping away at my ski lock, and luckily- because that would have been a rather awkward situation if they didn't believe my story.

I wouldn't have asked...it would have been fairly obvious what had happend. From what I've seen there are 2 types of ski/board theives. The first type is a sole person who sees something they want and takes 1 item at the end of their day and skeddadles....the second type are pros who work in groups and take numorous items in a 10 minute or less period and skedaddle. Almost always they are not local. 9/10 the theft occurs in the last couple hours the area is open as the theives are also almost always actual skiers/boarders who have skied there that day. No theif would ever stick around sawing at a lock. Snow equipment theft is a crime of opportunity.

Have any of you guys ever seen actual live security guards for ski racks ? On my Christmas vacation I was at Stoneham resort a couple days in Quebec and they actually had 3...yes...count em...3 marked security guards on at all times watching the equipment racks in addition to almost all there racks being ski key racks. They had another one wandering the lodge looking for bag theft. I thought that was terrific...I bet they have a very low crime problem there as I'm sure the theives would work other resorts nearby with no security.

you think so? How do they know who is a theif and who is not? I doubt they remember who put their gear where. It's such an easy crime it is riduculous. It actually speaks well for the american public that more snow equipment is not stolen.

 

[billski]

I've got a related story-

This is the first season I decided to purchase a ski lock. I've been using it all the days I've gone, and lock up my board whenever I go into the lodge. So this one day, I'm coming out to get my board and head off for the day- and it's stuck! I can see it clicking for the correct combination but it absolutely would not open. I tried bringing a cup of hot water over and everything, but it would not budge. At that point it had been about a half hour and I really had to get on the road. I ended up going into the repair services shop and asking the guy working there for a small saw. No one had anything to say about it when they saw me chopping away at my ski lock, and luckily- because that would have been a rather awkward situation if they didn't believe my story.

I wouldn't have asked...it would have been fairly obvious what had happend. From what I've seen there are 2 types of ski/board theives. The first type is a sole person who sees something they want and takes 1 item at the end of their day and skeddadles....the second type are pros who work in groups and take numorous items in a 10 minute or less period and skedaddle. Almost always they are not local. 9/10 the theft occurs in the last couple hours the area is open as the theives are also almost always actual skiers/boarders who have skied there that day. No theif would ever stick around sawing at a lock. Snow equipment theft is a crime of opportunity.

Have any of you guys ever seen actual live security guards for ski racks ? On my Christmas vacation I was at Stoneham resort a couple days in Quebec and they actually had 3...yes...count em...3 marked security guards on at all times watching the equipment racks in addition to almost all there racks being ski key racks. They had another one wandering the lodge looking for bag theft. I thought that was terrific...I bet they have a very low crime problem there as I'm sure the theives would work other resorts nearby with no security.

Good idea. Firearms permits are in order, too :blink: