Latest posts for the topic "Anyone ever experienced ski theft on the mountain."

Anyone ever experienced ski theft on the mountain.

Sun, 6 Dec 2009 10:34:28 GMT

Has anyone had skis or equipment stole when on the mountain, for example when taking a lunch break. How do you combat the potential threat from thieves? lets face it if thieves are stealing to order they will probably know all the tricks. Is there anything you can do or do you leave it down to chance.

Finn

Re:Anyone ever experienced ski theft on the mountain.

Sun, 6 Dec 2009 11:16:26 GMT

Buy a decent coil or cable lock, and use it. I've had one of the little cable lock bodies' broken while I went in for a coffee (France). I assumed that it was a casual attempt and the person forgot their multi tool :mrgreen:

Some ski insurance sellers are now stipulating that skis are only covered whilst attended, which is a tad unrealistic. I did notice that a few folks in Zermatt were using chains and padlocks on their kit, not the coil locks.

Re:Anyone ever experienced ski theft on the mountain.

Sun, 6 Dec 2009 11:42:02 GMT

2nd last day of a weeks sking and I was with a mate when we came out of a hut and found his hire skis were gone. We eventually figured out that somebody must have accidently mistaken their kick-arse, waxed carvers for my mates skis. We took the good ones and explained what had happened to the hire shop. We used them for the two days and returned them. The owner eventually showed up and got his skis back.

Re:Anyone ever experienced ski theft on the mountain.

Sun, 6 Dec 2009 11:48:07 GMT

Some mountain huts offer secure ski areas, but as usual it's costs. Perhaps personalizing skis with your name or something else would discouage thieves. Bandit, take your point about buying & using a ski wire but its more stuff to carry around with you on the mountain.

Finn

Re:Anyone ever experienced ski theft on the mountain.

Sun, 6 Dec 2009 12:13:55 GMT

i was always told to split the skis and mix them up, makes it harder for the thieving gypsies to get a pair :evil:

Re:Anyone ever experienced ski theft on the mountain.

Sun, 6 Dec 2009 12:18:57 GMT

freezywater wrote:i was always told to split the skis and mix them up, makes it harder for the thieving gypsies to get a pair :evil:

They will watch you stash them apart, and get 2 pairs for no extra work!

Re:Anyone ever experienced ski theft on the mountain.

Sun, 6 Dec 2009 12:23:09 GMT

My take is that a little sturdy lock is cheaper than a new pair of skis. The pocket/pack weight is a small price to pay for not having to walk off the hill when my skis are gone.

Of the insurers that offer theft cover, lots now have a % sliding scale, so that if your kit is more than 2 years old, it might as well not be insured for all the recompense you'd get.

Re:Anyone ever experienced ski theft on the mountain.

Sun, 6 Dec 2009 12:32:28 GMT

Not usually with ski's but our boards. We have rucksacks that the board clips into. So as we usually eat outside at mountain cafe's they sit by the side of us. I am so suspicious I dont leave any-thing to chance. Silly really but I suppose it comes from living in an area where they would nick any-thing.

Re:Anyone ever experienced ski theft on the mountain.

Sun, 6 Dec 2009 12:39:07 GMT

I've never considered this to be honest, and often leave my skis outside a mountain restaurant or a bar in the town unattended.

Re:Anyone ever experienced ski theft on the mountain.

Sun, 6 Dec 2009 12:58:18 GMT

No one is going to pinch my skis. They are my likely to leave a 10 Euro note tucked into the heel binding.

Re:Anyone ever experienced ski theft on the mountain.

Sun, 6 Dec 2009 13:09:54 GMT

Tony_H wrote:I've never considered this to be honest, and often leave my skis outside a mountain restaurant or a bar in the town unattended.

Tony, in the bigger resorts it is said that the thieves aren't opportunists but orgainised criminals. I won't be leaving it to chance anymore. New skis like the ones you sleep with would be on the thieves shopping list. One of those security wires Bandit recommends should be provided with every pair of new skis purchased.

Finn

Finn

Re:Anyone ever experienced ski theft on the mountain.

Sun, 6 Dec 2009 13:38:43 GMT

I'm surely being a bit dense here, but... how exactly does one lock skis? Do you put a (very) short cable in between the toe and heel of the binding, or..?

Re:Anyone ever experienced ski theft on the mountain.

Sun, 6 Dec 2009 13:44:57 GMT

Gooseh wrote:I'm surely being a bit dense here, but... how exactly does one lock skis? Do you put a (very) short cable in between the toe and heel of the binding, or..?

Typically I pass a cable through each binding heel lever, and then attach to racking/fence etc.

Re:Anyone ever experienced ski theft on the mountain.

Sun, 6 Dec 2009 13:48:40 GMT

It's rather similar to putting a steering wheel lock on your motor car; it jut might deter a casual thief and make him look elsewhere for easier pickings. I try to remember by wrapping this chain device around the skis and padlocking them to a ski rack.

Re:Anyone ever experienced ski theft on the mountain.

Sun, 6 Dec 2009 14:17:57 GMT

My eldest has his pinched from a ski rack one lunchtime. We went back at the end of the day to see if someone had taken them by mistake and left theirs but no luck. They didn't get handed in to the hire shop.

Who on earth would want a battered pair of kids hire skis :evil:

Re:Anyone ever experienced ski theft on the mountain.

Sun, 6 Dec 2009 15:18:20 GMT

Hmmm, with brand new skis for us both, I might have to look into this, thanks for the heads up.

Re:Anyone ever experienced ski theft on the mountain.

Sun, 6 Dec 2009 16:00:56 GMT

bandit wrote:

freezywater wrote:i was always told to split the skis and mix them up, makes it harder for the thieving gypsies to get a pair :evil:

They will watch you stash them apart, and get 2 pairs for no extra work!

In which case they're pros and there's nothing you or I can do to stop them being pinched, cables, chains, locks it won't matter :x

That being said I've never had it happen to me or any of my party in the 20+ years we've been skiing so we've either been incrredibly lucky or we don't ski in dodgy resorts :oops:

Re:Anyone ever experienced ski theft on the mountain.

Sun, 6 Dec 2009 16:05:27 GMT

freezywater wrote:

bandit wrote:

freezywater wrote:i was always told to split the skis and mix them up, makes it harder for the thieving gypsies to get a pair :evil:

They will watch you stash them apart, and get 2 pairs for no extra work!

In which case they're pros and there's nothing you or I can do to stop them being pinched, cables, chains, locks it won't matter :x

That being said I've never had it happen to me or any of my party in the 20+ years we've been skiing so we've either been incrredibly lucky or we don't ski in dodgy resorts :oops:

I have skied in busy places, mega resorts if you like to call them that where if this sort of thing went on as much as it seems to, I would have perhaps to come across it. Eg mayrhofen, St Anton, Verbier.....where people leave skis all over the place and no one would bat an eyelid at someone picking up a pair of skis from anywhere.

However, its been suggested to me that the new skis I now have are more desirable to thefts, so its possible you have skis less desirable, like the ones I had until recently. Although Caron mentioned her sons rental skis going missing so I guess anything is a potential target.

Re:Anyone ever experienced ski theft on the mountain.

Sun, 6 Dec 2009 16:27:53 GMT

We've always split skis and put them in different areas, and if more than 2 in the group then spliting further. So far this has worked, and ski theft is certainly not new - I've had 2 pairs stolen in resort rather than up the mountain.

It's a shame that very few bindings have a hole to pass a lock through.

Re:Anyone ever experienced ski theft on the mountain.

Sun, 6 Dec 2009 16:31:28 GMT

We were advised last year in Arc 2000 that this was a partuclar problem and were advised to take extra care, however the majority of thefts were from the boot rooms.

Re:Anyone ever experienced ski theft on the mountain.

Sun, 6 Dec 2009 16:33:48 GMT

I was under the impression most bindings had suitable holes, I only have 3 different pairs here but they all have a place to pass a cable lock through (Marker 12, Vist 614 and PX15).

Re:Anyone ever experienced ski theft on the mountain.

Sun, 6 Dec 2009 18:22:23 GMT

We always split skis usually 3 or 4 ways. If they want to nick 4 sets of skis, I reckon I'll be able to catch them.

Admin once stole my patch of snow. I've never really forgiven him for it, I was on the most perfect line ever.

Re:Anyone ever experienced ski theft on the mountain.

Sun, 6 Dec 2009 19:04:56 GMT

In all my life I have never had any thing stolen in a ski resort .......but I am very fussy as to where I ski, the answer must be don't go to the scummy resorts :lol:

Re:Anyone ever experienced ski theft on the mountain.

Sun, 6 Dec 2009 19:24:40 GMT

Stewart Dowling wrote:We were advised last year in Arc 2000 that this was a partuclar problem and were advised to take extra care, however the majority of thefts were from the boot rooms.

My son's were stolen in 1800. Since then we've split the skis but now I'm doubting after Bandit's comment :shock:
We always take the extra insurance out.

Re:Anyone ever experienced ski theft on the mountain.

Sun, 6 Dec 2009 19:25:26 GMT

Dave Mac wrote:Admin once stole my patch of snow. I've never really forgiven him for it, I was on the most perfect line ever.

I seem to recall you whooping :lol:

Re:Anyone ever experienced ski theft on the mountain.

Sun, 6 Dec 2009 19:38:01 GMT

caron-a wrote:

Stewart Dowling wrote:We were advised last year in Arc 2000 that this was a partuclar problem and were advised to take extra care, however the majority of thefts were from the boot rooms.

My son's were stolen in 1800. Since then we've split the skis but now I'm doubting after Bandit's comment :shock:
We always take the extra insurance out.

If you have house contents insurance that will cover you for theft so long as you get a crime number, any holiday insurance company will ask if you have contents insurance when you make a claim and if you do they tell you that you have to claim off that policy :twisted:

Re:Anyone ever experienced ski theft on the mountain.

Sun, 6 Dec 2009 19:44:22 GMT

daleroberts wrote:

caron-a wrote:

Stewart Dowling wrote:We were advised last year in Arc 2000 that this was a partuclar problem and were advised to take extra care, however the majority of thefts were from the boot rooms.

My son's were stolen in 1800. Since then we've split the skis but now I'm doubting after Bandit's comment :shock:
We always take the extra insurance out.

If you have house contents insurance that will cover you for theft so long as you get a crime number, any holiday insurance company will ask if you have contents insurance when you make a claim and if you do they tell you that you have to claim off that policy :twisted:

extremely kind of you. The way it worked for us was that the excess was only a tad less than what skiset wanted for the skis so it was easier to pay the lot. We also had a claim for me of about GBP1100 that was paid back so it seemed like a drop in the ocean :roll:

Re:Anyone ever experienced ski theft on the mountain.

Sun, 6 Dec 2009 20:11:43 GMT

caron-a wrote:

Stewart Dowling wrote:We were advised last year in Arc 2000 that this was a partuclar problem and were advised to take extra care, however the majority of thefts were from the boot rooms.

My son's were stolen in 1800. Since then we've split the skis but now I'm doubting after Bandit's comment :shock:
We always take the extra insurance out.

The very 1st time I skied Les Arcs probably 1992, our instructor took us for a break at Arc 1600. He pointed to a convenient wall and said "Leave your skis there if you don't like them, and they will be gone by the time you get back". He'd been a resident of the area for a number of years.

Re:Anyone ever experienced ski theft on the mountain.

Mon, 7 Dec 2009 10:10:49 GMT

I dont have any advice i'm afraid, i had my board nicked a few years ago :(

Re:Anyone ever experienced ski theft on the mountain.

Mon, 7 Dec 2009 10:38:30 GMT

When I was in Bulgaria my skis shone like diamonds compared to the hundreds of battered old hire skis that were around. I did not let them out of my sight!

In other resorts I have not not felt the need to be so cautious but I do usually try to put them where I can see them, and if that's not possible we split them.

Re:Anyone ever experienced ski theft on the mountain.

Tue, 8 Dec 2009 16:28:59 GMT

Do what we do !
If you are skiing with others and stop on the mountain for a refreshment break. DO NOT PARK YOUR SKIS AS PAIR AT ANYTIME. Instead exchange one of your skis with someone in your group or your partner and park them away from each other. One large ski parked with a smaller ski are unlikely to be selected by theives. Having exchange one ski do not then leave yours next to your partners skis, move them some distance apart.

Re:Anyone ever experienced ski theft on the mountain.

Tue, 8 Dec 2009 16:42:22 GMT

What I do is hire our skis, and pay the extra insurance on them to the hire shop, so that I don't have to worry if anyone nicks them (I already have general ski insurance but I reckon this would save a load of hassle if they did get nicked).

The only worry I have is that I won't know which ones are mine, so I generally get the hire shop to put my name on them. So if anyone comes across a pair of skis with Ally G written on them during their ski holiday, it will mean that I'm somewhere in the vicinity - probably the nearest cafe.

Ally

Re:Anyone ever experienced ski theft on the mountain.

Tue, 8 Dec 2009 17:21:42 GMT

Tony_H wrote:Hmmm, with brand new skis for us both, I might have to look into this, thanks for the heads up.

Just ordered a lock for my skis. Ive a funy feeling i wont be to far from them if honest

Re:Anyone ever experienced ski theft on the mountain.

Tue, 8 Dec 2009 17:41:00 GMT

Seems like the only time the thieves get caught is when trying flog the skis/boards on ebay. I've heard of a few cases where this has happened. One guy locally, purchased his stolen board back from the thief, and arranged to pick it up. Of course he was accompanied by the police. Having the serial number of the board made the case easier. The lesson I guess is to make a note of serial numbers.

Trencher