 Poster: A snowHead
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I must have too much time on my hands.....
We hear all the time of ski thefts from outside restaurants, balconies and even ski lockers. The press and lock manufacturers report > 80,000 skis and boards stolen each year.
Looking back through the forums then there's doesn't appear to be a week go by without a  or someone they know loosing their skis
Surely with present day technology there must be a way of 'tagging' skis and having scanning points in resorts. hese could be placed in lift queues, even resort entrances and then policed.
Modern ski passes have technology embedded why not skis? Remember, not so many years ago we used paper\card lift passes that had to be manually checked. These evolved through punch cards, bar codes and magnetic strips (still used in some resorts) to the modern multi resort passes. You can even encode some models of watches with your ski pass details.
It may not deal with organised gangs but the casual theft could be stopped as the skis would not be able to be used on lifts or taken out of the gated area.
Our company looked at using RFID on products being supplied to store and it was pence per item. Even bulk movements of stock are logged, 1000's of items at a time. This technology is already used in distribution for items worth just a few £'s.
There will be lots of reasons why it won’t work; it may not even be practical. It wouldn’t happen overnight either, but if the issues could be resolved then it may be possible to have reduced insurance premiums.
I suspect it may not even be it the ski manufacturers interest as, if skis continue to be stolen, they have a ready market for new purchases. Until this targeted we should all take more care and either, lock, split or never let them out of your sight.
As I said, I’ve too much time on my hands......
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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Having been a victim of this this at xmas and lost a touring setup worth £500 I can relate too the topic.
However I think you just have to laugh about it,Put it down too experiance and learn from it.
Was it my own fault I lost the set up ,Yes now thinking about it,I dropped my gaurd and left them where in hind sight I should have known better not too.
I think the tagging system will never work I mean what are you going to tag ? The ski's ? The bindings ? ,What If I sold them,Bought them second hand etc etc.I think it would be a nightmare too get running and a legal nightmare to enforce.The lift opo's and local police will never want to get involved ( They dont want too know even when you report the theft)
A tracking GPS system I suspect would cost too much.
Ski locks are im afraid useless to the organised thief or anyone with a pair is snips and seperating the ski's a restaurants etc I mean christ whats that going to do delay them finding the other one 5 minutes at most.
Bottom line is expensive ski's will go walkies if you dont look after them what ever system you have in place.
Just my 2 pence worth bieng the first too work as usual ! 
Regards Mark
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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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Does a lock act as a deterrant or suggest the locked skis are worth nicking?
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
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is there a case for companies to start selling fugly skis to act as a deterrant? i.e. they may look fugly, but they're really good. (some would say that having a set of skis is deterrant enough to someone who has taste!  )
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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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Just seen this following a seach:-
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Near Field Communication is here to help Surprisingly, NFC is the technology that proves to be incredibly useful to prevent ski theft, while still offering all the comfort you might want to have. The project Theft Deterrent System for Skis (TDS-S) is essentially about pairing the boot with the ski and doesnt let the thief step into the binding if the secure code doesnt match.
This is done by putting an MIFARE-tag into the boot. A small RFID-module is inserted into the ski and connected to one of the new bindings that electronically control the operation of the binding like the Atomic Neox EBM. A Near Field Communication-enabled mobile phone or a PC is able to pair the boot with the ski. If anything else than the trusted boot steps into the binding, it refuses fastening and doesnt let the thief drive away with your skis.
The project is currently still in development - you can read more about it at symbianresources.com or the project homepage. The first prototype has already been published and managed to be among the winners of several global competitions the 1st Austrian NFC Developer Competition as well as the NFC Forum Global Competition. Who knows how much longer itll take until skis, which started out as simple wooden planks (The word ski meant a stick of wood in Old Norse) will finally turn into a product full of high tech. |
This is dated Sept 08. It wouldn't stop them being carried away though, but maybe the security is such that it would make the criminal look some where else for an easier target. Thats primarily the advice given to me by the police following a break in at my house. Make them (criminals) look for an easier target.
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You'll need to Register first of course.
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| Butterfly wrote: |
| Does a lock act as a deterrant or suggest the locked skis are worth nicking? |
It might make the casual \ opportuntist thief look somewhere else.
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| sherlock235 wrote: |
| is there a case for companies to start selling fugly skis to act as a deterrant? i.e. they may look fugly, but they're really good. (some would say that having a set of skis is deterrant enough to someone who has taste! ) |
I remember a guy from North Staffs ski club had a pair of Rossignol 7S and he covered the top with a mixture of duct tape and primer to cover up the fact they were decent skis and put people off stealing them. We all thought he was nuts but judging by how many years he skied on them it must've been successful.
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Moving slightly off-topic, a remote binding release system could be quite amusing, recreationally 
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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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| BMF_Skier wrote: |
| Butterfly wrote: |
| Does a lock act as a deterrant or suggest the locked skis are worth nicking? |
It might make the casual \ opportuntist thief look somewhere else. |
What it will certainly do is to stop mistakes. How many thefts are in fact people picking up the wrong set of skis? When there are hundreds of identical hired sets, and you've had a couple too many at lunch, then the fact that the skis aren't yours, and are 400mm longer than yours might go un-noticed...
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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| BMF_Skier wrote: |
| Can technology help protect skis from theft? |
Yes. It most certainly can.
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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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I'm not sure anything can stop thieves if they really want them.
Not sure if I'm stating the obvious which everybody else already does; but to reduce the chance of thefts we always swap one ski with someone else and store them in different parts of the ski racks, at least it then makes it more obvious if someone if going to try to steal them.
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| Sideshow_Bob wrote: |
| I remember a guy from North Staffs ski club had a pair of Rossignol 7S and he covered the top with a mixture of duct tape and primer to cover up the fact they were decent skis and put people off stealing them. We all thought he was nuts but judging by how many years he skied on them it must've been successful. |
Some people used to use that technique as far back as the mid-1970s, when I was instructing on Cairngorm. Skis are definitely stolen for their newness and quality of top surface looks. Some cyclists also use that approach, spraying the frame some horrendous colour!
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You know it makes sense.
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Special squads should be set up. Valuable skis are left outside. As soon as they are seized a vigilante squad bursts out and seize the scum. A quick impromptu hanging and.... problem solved.
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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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I've just got new skis so am intending to use a fairly substantial cable lock on them whilst they still look pristine. I still remember a biker getting a harsh sentence because he had beat the crap out of some vandal idiot he'd caught cutting though the brake lines on his bike. I would have taken that as severe provocation.
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Poster: A snowHead
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Ski passes are barcoded by and large so they can be used through the automatic lift gates. Lift pass could include two barcode stickers, like the swiss motorway vignette, which you stick on your skis. Barcode scanner could also be projected on the ground at the ski lift and a signal could match the barcodes from the skis and the pass. No match, no lift and lifty pulls you out for explanation or to hand you over to the fuzz.
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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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 need to Login to know who's really who.
You need to Login to know who's really who.
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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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halfhand, got me my A* tho so whos complaining! as long as i get 2 weeks a year in your chalet in les arcs you will buy with profit!
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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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If you could make sure you had your skis propped up well enough that they wouldn't fall or be moved to make space for another set I wonder if they could be fitted with a mercury level switch that would emit a loud noise when triggered by movement thus warning the owners - the trouble might be maintaining the batteries in the cold environment.
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Megamum, that is exactly what it had, plus a vibration sensor, but as long as the skis wernt tipped by more than 40 degrees or moved suddenly the alarm didnt go off!!! it was something to evaluate at least!
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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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Bones, araldite and the chips are TINY and could be anywhere out of view.
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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| BMF_Skier wrote: |
| Our company looked at using RFID on products being supplied to store and it was pence per item. Even bulk movements of stock are logged, 1000's of items at a time. This technology is already used in distribution for items worth just a few £'s. |
The tags cost next to nothing but then you have to put a network in place that completly covers the whole resort. The TAG has to 'break' a network to be found. Way to much money. Easy in a shop where there are defined entrances and exits but not so easy on a ski slope....... 
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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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If in a "dodgy location" I swap a ski with whoever I'm skiing with and then we put both odd sets at other ends of the ski area..... someone's really going to have to search for a matching pair.............. not technology I know but I've never lost a set (runs off to touch wood)
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You know it makes sense.
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Just bought my first pair of ski's after many years of renting...won't be letting them out of my sight...Better read my insurance to see where they are covered. It they were stolen from a ski rack while inside lunching would they be covered? 
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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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Trumpton, probably not. Insurance is designed to compensate you for the unforseen. Having unattended skis nicked is a very forseeable event.
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Poster: A snowHead
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When I am in charge I will introduce a scheme whereby anyone caught in possession of stolen skis will be castrated using the edges of said skis.
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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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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lizzard...Wow..That is one way of doing it. Bit extreme, but I am sure alot of people would agree. To be honest I hate people that do that. Should at least stick them in the stocks. I have only owned my skis a few hours and will not be letting mine out of my sight and will be buying a lock before heading off to Ischgl next weekend. Going to stick them in a locker every night at a shop I think.. 
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
You need to Login to know who's really who.
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Scarpa PS... they take longer to die when the weather is warmer.
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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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only if shotguns count
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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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edsilva, A barrel behind each kneecap... at the top of a black mogul field
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So what insurance company offers the best cover. In between watching Match of the Day and reading my insurance policy, very sad I know (and I mean reading the policy), I find I do not have as much cover on my skis as I assumed... Some parts are down to Interpretation...as in "taking resonable care" etc... A nice get out clause for insurance companies.. Better sleepwith them in my bed and skip having lunch!!! hahah.. 
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Trumpton, Get an old ski lock and cut in half - carry with you at all times when skiing 
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FAQ
how does it help you getting them back 
but I know someone who does 
