There are a lot of advice being passed arround in terms of security measures to prevent theft and robbery - drop wallets, hard lockable panniers, safe parking, bike covers, bike locks, keeping your bike dirty, and so forth.

It would be real interesting in finding out how many has had either their bikes stolen or something stolen from it. At the same time, some info about the particulars - i.e. where this happened, at what time of day, what security measures that were put in place and which ones that hadn't and that could have worked.

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Blog: www.bamakobyvespa.no
My Youtube Channel

As for myself. I have never had anything stolen on my motorcycle travels, not even when I carelessly left all my coms on top of my seat for a whole day in a busy parking lot at Victoria Falls (Zambian side). I allways take great care not to leave my bike unattended if it can be helped, and allways try my best to find safe parking. I have hard panniers, which I seldom leave on the bike over night, but rather bring inside. Valuables I try to keep out of sight. When leaving my room unattended I try to keep things locked inside my panniers, which in more shady places are locked to furniture by a thin cable and tiny pad lock. I have no alarm or tracking system, and seldom bring a heavy duty bike lock (too heavy). If I have to leave my riding gear or helmet on the bike, I allways lock it to the bike with a thin cable.

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Blog: www.bamakobyvespa.no
My Youtube Channel

I'd be interested to hear the stories of those who said they had had their bike stolen, did they get it back? What happened? What security were they using? Most other things you can live with but that's a bit of a stopper.

Never had anything stolen during my travels.



Did lose a bike to thieves in my own country on a weekend away at 150km from my home. Never saw it again
It was the first (and only, knock on wood) time something like that had happened to me and it was also the first time I considered taking a full coverage insurance in stead of the common accident/3rd party and legal assistance cover. Quickly realized that I would have to have a bike stolen from me every 2 years to make it worthwhile for the type of bikes I choose to ride.

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Belgium to Nordkapp via Iran | Discover Overland | Destination World

I think it is equally interesting hearing the stories of those that have nothing happen to them - what precautions have the or have they not done. It is also interesting to find out if hard panniers prevent theft more than soft panniers, and so on.

I've been on trips where loosing my luggage would have been equally disastrous as losing the bike. In fact, in some cases it would have been less inconvenient if the bike was stolen and not my luggage.

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Blog: www.bamakobyvespa.no
My Youtube Channel

I've had cash fstolen from a hostel in Argentina by a cleaner who found my hidden stash.

I had a Mobile phone stolen from my tank bag which I left unzipped and open when I took a photograph in Khartoum.

I had a motorcycle Stolen by Gypos in a secure carpark in Liverpool.

My friend had his cruise control rocker stolen off his bike in Barcelona City Center when it was parked overnight.


The theme here is that cities are full of opportunist thieves. As are hostels.

If you get complacent, you can be punished for it.

I've parked my bikes with softbags all over the third world and left them unattended and never had anything stolen. But then I seldom let my bike out of plain sight.

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Did some trips.
Rode some bikes.
Fix them for a living.
Can't say anymore.

I spent the best part of a year building a bike for the Elephant Rally (a winter bike meet in Germany if you don’t know it). It was stolen on my shakedown run while I was having lunch. I never did see it again.

I had the battery stolen from my bike in Venice when I was doing the sights.
I had my gloves stolen from my seat while I was putting my helmet on! (a young kid took them and ran off - I ran after him and got them backwhile wondering what his mates were taking while I was away)
I had the top box and panniers broken into and loads of stuff taken when I was in Spain. That was overnight in a hotel where the bike was in secure parking with a all-night guard. The hotel denied all responsibility (of course) and the guard “saw nothing”. We had to leave early to make a ferry.

Having said that (and there were other thefts I won’t bore you with listing) I’ve lost far far more stuff than I’ve had stolen. I’ve lost a couple of tents and loads of sleeping bags, mats, cooking gear etc. Also bike jackets (at least three I can remember), trousers, electronics, even the occasional bike part. We once (a long time ago) lost all our money (back in the days when you had to take cash). That was a tricky one to fix.

Last year we were coming back up the M20 from Dover and were overtaken by a couple on a 1200GS. Just as they came past something fell from their bike. I recognised it as their sat-nav as it just missed us and slid past on the concrete. Unfortunately the truck following along didn’t miss it. Last time my sat nav mount snapped I caught it on the way down. They weren’t so lucky.

I guess being a full time career criminal in small comunities - where everyone knows you - is not such an attractive careere path. Also, having it as one's criminal masterplan - to sit curbside out in the boonies, waiting for the very rare and complacent overlander to fall into your lap - is a poor strategy to get the bills paid - it makes for a very low return on invested time and effort, and at incredible risk. Rsik wize, the other small business owners (legal), who wants this traveler's money, as well as a continued stream of new bsuiness deriving from good repute - they will tend to "regulate" the competing (illegal) business practice - out of business.

The bigger the population, the greater the risk of career criminals.

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Blog: www.bamakobyvespa.no
My Youtube Channel

Ni,
I have not been robbed yet.
But you never know.

Main reason is that I camp and like nature.

I use camping facilities. Put up my tent next to the tent.
So I have everything supervised, ass good as it gets when you sleep.
In the areas there are mainly campers in huge vans.
Very different from big cities.

When touring France i travelled Loire Vally.
I visited castles and small family owned wine yards.

That is not the main area for theifs.

I do not use expencive stuff, that creats attraction.

But OK, I had something stolen one time. I had my bag with food for dinner outside the tent. And a dog stole my bread.

Okay, yeah, I had something stolen too.

Ravens pecked open my food bag while I was out for a walk.

.................shu

Ah yeah, I found a wombat chewing my bread under my tent-flap when in OZ


The worst case happened in South Africa. Even though the campsite was fenced in and boasted a nightwatchman a thief carefully opened the zipper of my tent and grabbed everything within reach while I was snoring happily. Wallet, credit card, passport, money, binoculars, cellphone gone.... Fortunately he didn't just cut the tent open.


Probably he had watched me drawing cash at the ATM. Since then I ALWAYS stop at an ATM en route - never ever near the place I`m staying overnight.

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Only when we pause to wonder
do we go beyond the limits of our little lives.
(Rod McKuen)

There are a lot of ways of being "robbed" while traveling, and many are not covered by the poll. For example, I've never had anything stolen from my panniers, hard or soft, but I've had shoes stolen twice--once from atop my bike while I napped a few feet away. That was somewhere in Argentina. I had someone run a credit card twice in India and didn't discover the theft until I arrived home many months later; the money was substantial, in the thousands of dollars, but I got it back. I've encountered lots of pickpockets, none successful. I've been short-changed in a variety of ways, although never for significant amounts. Etc.

All of this rather pales in comparison to the sorts of things that have happened at home in America; knives pulled on city streets, cash stolen from my home, an incident of threats from a couple of hitchhikers I'd picked up (they backed down when I, somewhat foolishly, came right back in their faces), even a semi-famous boss who used to vanish on paydays and routinely skip out on bills.

I'm normally pretty cautious with my possessions, but often a little bit reckless with my personal safety. This has worked out just fine, for the most part. Limiting opportunities for opportunistic theft is probably the best protection; a philosophical attitude toward ephemeral possessions helps, too.

The only 'thefts' we suffered were stickers/decals off the panniers and handlebar screen, which we began losing them in eastern Turkey, then similar in Egypt and on into India. Our response was to get a couple of friends back in the UK to each post us a bagful to Madras, whereafter we could stick a few new ones on each day, always being careful to leave one edge un-stuck so that they didn't tear when the kids peeled them off; we handed a few out too, but the kids seemed to enjoy stealing them more.

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BobnLes

A skunk came into the annexe of my tent looking for food while I was on a USA tour in 1995.
He smelled really bad, but nothing like as bad as if I had spooked him, so I just let him get on with it.

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Hear the challenge, learn the lesson, pay the cost.

I’ve been robbed so many times! The “government” calls it tax but it’s robbery....

But in person, no