 Poster: A snowHead
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| Legendarry wrote: |
Had my touring skis stolen from Stanton last year. Had my ski lock cut  . Rather annoying. |
from the back of his taxi?
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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It might not be common in CH but it's rife in the 3Vs and has been for as long as I've skied there. I don't know any seasonaire that doesn't know someone who's had their skis nicked. I think last season there were at least four posts on the local Facebook group of equipment going from outside my local pub during apres, not to mention umpteen jackets/gloves/goggles etc.
I've been on holiday with a mate whose brand new Race SL skis went from under the Folie Douce in VT (before it was the FD), a fellow seasonaire had her brand new Line Francis Bacons taken from outside her own chalet while she went in for a quick cup of tea and I've personally had my poles stolen from outside a lift in Meribel. They nicked my Lekis and left behind their cheap rentals.
You often hear of an entire apartment block boot room getting turned over too. It's well known that there are vans going down the hill loaded up with stolen skis but the gendarmes couldn't care less.
And don't presume that being inside a chalet is safe either - my first season in Meribel, three of our chalets were burgled by people climbing in through unlocked patio doors/bedroom windows and taking all electronics and valuables.
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Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
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@Je suis un Skieur, Interesting. It's starting to look like the big French resorts are the main culprits. It's where I do most of my skiing and where I have experienced theft of both skis and very new gloves. In the case of the latter, it was in a Boot Room in Mottaret, where I left them unattended for literally 30 seconds, as I realised I hadn't taken them with me - so turned on my heel and went straight back. They were gone (and not handed in as lost property).
I have nice Graphite Poles, which never get left unattended hooked over the ski tips.
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I have gear which I look after rather than insure. If everyone else leaves their stuff insecure, that reduces my risk further, so I'm all in favour of that.
I'm not sure how big a problem it is in practice. I've never had anything stolen at a ski resort, but I look after everything. I have to carry just one small cable lock to avoid my own concern when I leave my board unattended.
Has anyone here ever bought 2nd hand skis/ snowboard from someone dubious? I'm just wondering if there's a cash market for stolen stuff, or if it's stolen to be used? How about "steal to order"? I've not come across such a thing, but I suspect less common/ high value gear may be more at risk. In snowboarding there are often "premium construction" boards which are a couple of times the price of the standard stuff.
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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| phil_w wrote: |
| Has anyone here ever bought 2nd hand skis/ snowboard from someone dubious? |
Only from people on here 
But there are some big resellers on ebay, you wonder where they get their stock. I mean where do those industrial robberies in the big resorts go? But you wouldn’t know, would you?
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@Je suis un Skieur, pretty common around anywhere I know. Anyone leaving skis unlocked in resort is asking for it. Safer up the hill but still risky, especially near downlifts.
And of course, stupidity. Scene outsode a resto a couple of years back, wife can't find her skis (probably nicked), then shouts "got them", husband replies "no you haven't those are green yours are pink" 
Theft by mistaken ski identity quite common too.
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I've often wondered about the logistics of actually stealing skis since I've never actually seen anyone skiing down with extra skis over their shoulders (apart from racers that is). Do they walk up in boots and go looking for expensive skis with exactly the same binding settings or go with a cheep pair they picked up from the skip and swap or what? Any thoughts anyone?
How do you do it? (not that I plan stealing any skis that is)
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@johnE, back in the day (1988) there was a somewhat organised gang in Morzine (possibly elsewhere) who'd wait till the bars were full of folk paying little attention and rock up in a white van and literally take everything they could see.
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You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
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| johnE wrote: |
| I've never actually seen anyone skiing down with extra skis over their shoulders (apart from racers that is). |
I have! In La Plagne. Remember thinking how odd it was at the time but I was young and naive. I think the most common is to simply take them from near a lift with a download capacity, or near a resort centre and a bus stop.
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Ah! I see they are not ctually stolen from the restaurants/bars on the hill but from outside bars in the village. I imagine even getting a white van into most ski resorts these days would be a challenge. The main street in Arc1600 is a long way from any vehicle access points for example
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
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| johnE wrote: |
| I've often wondered about the logistics of actually stealing skis since I've never actually seen anyone skiing down with extra skis over their shoulders |
It's not at all uncommon. Yes, racers more often, but I've done this myself on several occasions when someone's been stretchered off the mountain, for example. I certainly wouldn't assume that someone doing so was stealing them.
Thinking a bit more about this, I realise that I tend to take a lot more care about splitting skis or ensuring they're in plain sight when I'm in restaurants that can be accessed directly on foot. There are loads of these around Chatel and Avoriaz, so it would be very simple for someone to come up the lift wearing ski boots and just pick up a pair to ski down on.
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@Je suis un Skieur reminds me of an incident I once had, also in La Plagne. After an extended lunch with a skiing mate, we came out to find only a few pairs of skis left outside the restaurant, none of which were my ancient battered Salomons, but there was a brand new pair of rental skis in the rack, identical to mine. I wondered if it was my lucky day, until a few moments later I heard a guy skiing down the hill towards me, shouting "desolé, desloé!" and then proceeding to hand me back my skis before grabbing his rental pair.
A few years later, leaving a café in Courmayeur I saw a fellow trying to clip into his Head skis, but struggling. I thought I might give him a hand and noticed that the skis were the same model as mine. Looked closer, and saw that there was a tiny red dot on one - exactly like the one I put on my own skis to distinguish one from the other in the pair. I looked up at the ski rack next to where we were standing and sure enough, there was another pair of identical Head skis - but in super condition compared to mine. I resisted helping him adjust the bindings so he could clip in, and instead tapped him on the shoulder and pointed to the ones in the rack, then the ones he was trying to clip onto his feet...
Last year I bent one of my Atomic skis so it had a rocker but the other didn't. I used them from time to time, mostly in the bumps. I'd always make sure to leave them next to another pair of red Atomics when I went to a café. Sadly, nobody ever took them by mistake...
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You know it makes sense.
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| johnE wrote: |
I've often wondered about the logistics of actually stealing skis since I've never actually seen anyone skiing down with extra skis over their shoulders (apart from racers that is). Do they walk up in boots and go looking for expensive skis with exactly the same binding settings or go with a cheep pair they picked up from the skip and swap or what? Any thoughts anyone?
How do you do it? (not that I plan stealing any skis that is) |
That’s an interesting question.
So far the answer has been to take 1 (or at most 2) pair of skiings and skiing down with it. But given there’re easily a hundred pair of skis outside of a mountain restaurants, that’s still a 1% chance of a particular ski got nicked.
In that case, I would think the thief would be targeting more specifically high value brand/model than a pedestrian models. Even less so rentals. The latter much more likely taken by mistake.
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Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
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Poster: A snowHead
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| johnE wrote: |
I've often wondered about the logistics of actually stealing skis since I've never actually seen anyone skiing down with extra skis over their shoulders (apart from racers that is). Do they walk up in boots and go looking for expensive skis with exactly the same binding settings or go with a cheep pair they picked up from the skip and swap or what? Any thoughts anyone?
How do you do it? (not that I plan stealing any skis that is) |
If I was going to set out to steal a pair of skis from up the mountain, I would go up in a battered pair of Rock Hoppers, then quietly swop them for something new and expensive, that either fitted my boot or on an adjustable rail system. If I wanted more skis, I would nick someone's Rental skis and swop them up the mountain for something very nice.
As said above, it's much easier to take them from resort level or beside a downloading lift (which is how mine were taken).
Last edited by Poster: A snowHead on Mon 16-10-23 15:54; edited 1 time in total
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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@24cole.b, OK first question wahat do you mean by "How often do you ski annually? *" Is the the number of hours, days, weeks, months or individual trips. I suggest you use days
Second question ask how often per day are your skis left unattended outside a bar or restaurant.
Then ask - is this up the mountain or in the resorts
Last edited by Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person on Mon 16-10-23 14:50; edited 1 time in total
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Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
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You could also define what you mean by scale of resort. To many, for example, Les Sept Laux is a local hill, but it is larger than most resorts in North America.
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
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Done
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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Why is $20-40 the minimum price I should be willing to pay? Loads of combi cable locks are $10-15. Surely if you want to clean up you should offer a superior product at a similar price, not loads more?
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You'll need to Register first of course.
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When I was looking into Ski Locks, I came across it....but the only thing that put me off was that a retractable cable design can secure 2 sets of skis, whereas you would need 2 of these, which are already twice the price.
I quite liked the idea of an alarmed retractable cable, but was worried about it going off when you didn't want it to.
In the end, I went with a Safeman Lock, which uses keys (better than combination), can have 2 loops and has a sturdy 4mm cable.
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Yeah, fair comment about needing two. I use a fairly standard combi cable lock and it always amuses that any time I ski with someone else, the moment I get my lock out, it's "Ooh, can you lock mine too...?" I assume these are the same people that say locks are pointless or too time consuming!  I know it won't stop anyone with a cable cutter but it does stop an incompetent numpty picking up the wrong pair. I ski a lot on my own so I'm pretty paranoid about trying to always leave them in a rack that I can still see from the restaurant table, even though they're locked to the rack.
The safeman certainly looks like a better cable but I'm the other way round on keys vs combi - I know I won't forget the combination whereas I might lose a key.
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You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
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@Je suis un Skieur, My Ski Pants have a D Ring in the thigh pocket, where I attach a Key Ring on a retractable cable, with the key on the end. It's safe and secure and easier than fiddling about lining up 4 digits.
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| johnE wrote: |
| Ah! I see they are not ctually stolen from the restaurants/bars on the hill but from outside bars in the village. |
I did one season as a TO minibus driver in Meribel doing chalet shuttles. if you look at somewhere like the Rond Point (the Ronnie), there is a ski bus stop right outside. Before the Folie, it was the place to go. Loads of people ski there and spend 2-3 hours in apres, some come up on the bus in jeans. If a person in jeans gets on the bus carrying a pair of skis, no-one questions it. They could be a mate's, wife's, drunken friend's or just collected from Intersport opposite. I used to often do the kicking out time run at 7pm and I have seen plenty of people wondering where their skis have gone!
Same goes for the Folie Douce - it's deliberately positioned to allow pedestrian access on a gondola, same as the one in VdI. Who's to say you're not carrying your drunken mate's skis down as a "favour"?
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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@Je suis un Skieur, we use cheap cable locks. It's really to discourage casual theft, idiots and so I can not lie to the insurers if they get nicked. I managed a few years ago to use (I think) the sis-in.law's lock to lock my skis so I just went into the lift station and borrowed their pliers to cut the cable. But it still meets requirements.
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And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
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@under a new name, yes, that's my logic too.
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I take a cable combination lock, then inevitably leave it where we're staying for the first few days rather than taking it up on the slopes, and when I do remember to put it in my pocket I rarely end up using it. I find racks to leave ours on with better skis and trust those will get nicked first.
But I had some new cycling gloves taken once, I had put them down on a bike rack at work in a shared carpark while locking the bike, forgot to take them and they were gone. I spied a cctv camera overlooking the rack and asked security if I could see the footage, sods law it wasnt working. But the thief didnt know that, so put up a sign on the rack saying I am sure someone had taken the gloves for safekeeping and asking that they be returned, otherwise I would take a look at the cctv footage. Lo and behold, but weren't they shortly left back on the rack.
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You know it makes sense.
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Yall need to provide stats for France.
Show the ski-theft % rate.
A few "pub stories" from attention-seeking Brit seasonaires is not the same as a mountain crime epidemic.
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Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
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| davidof wrote: |
| Legendarry wrote: |
| Had my touring skis stolen from Stanton last year. Had my ski lock cut . Rather annoying. |
from the back of his taxi? |
Old but gold.
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Poster: A snowHead
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| Whitegold wrote: |
Yall need to provide stats for France.
Show the ski-theft % rate.
A few "pub stories" from attention-seeking Brit seasonaires is not the same as a mountain crime epidemic. |
I tend to agree with this sentiment. From the sound of this thread you could get your skis stolen every single day of your holiday in the 3V, and I'm sure that’s not the case.
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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@telford_mike, I hope you don't agree with
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attention-seeking Brit seasonaires
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It does happen, with monotonous regularity, that skis go awol (and gloves, etc.).
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Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
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Surely it’s not out with the realms of possibility for manufacturers to embed a gps chip into the body of the ski?
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
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| dode wrote: |
| Surely it’s not out with the realms of possibility for manufacturers to embed a gps chip into the body of the ski? |
So yeah, how do you think GPS works, exactly?
The usual approach people like to think about is to use the "smart tag" idea, which is a Bluetooth LE emitter, not a GPS receiver. Even if you had sufficient power it would be no good the ski "knowing where it is" if it had no means to tell you: a transmitter not a receiver. Smart tag has more mileage, because they're transmitters and you don't need the cost/expense/ sky view of a GPS receiver which is provided by passers-by. However you still need a way to put the battery in, so it's always going to be easy to disable such a thing if you know it's there or can easily find it. If you don't know it's there, it's no deterrent. Plus standard phones (without additional software) will now tell you if you're travelling with someone else's tag... so even a numpty could easily disarm such a thing.
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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@phil_w, I was thinking along the robot lawnmower lines. Where, if a robot gets taken it will text a message to your phone saying “I have been stolen and I am at this location”
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You'll need to Register first of course.
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2 easy ways to stop your skis getting nicked.
1 - Put em on at the start of the day - take em off at the end, leave connected to your feet during the day.
2 - Snowboard
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Always lock up my snowboard.
However did have one lock fail and had to find some cutters to remove it. 
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You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
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@TopGooner,
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to make them very recognisable so mistaken collection doesn't happen
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I don't think that's actually possible, always someone more stupid than your cunning plan.
Overheard (true), Who's the idiot who's put a cable lock on my skis?" (Weren't his, they were mine )
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FAQ
