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bike theft warning (from sheffield but important for the whole of uk)
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nickhartFree Member
I heard from my old man last night through his contacts in neighbourhood watch. Someone had their bikes stolen after the scum bags took the slates off the roof of the storage area! Information has also come through that they are reading strava/garmin routes and linking it up with photos of rides on social media and then targeting people.
xyetiFree MemberI had weld mesh put in my walls when the garage was built and anticipated the roof thing and had it put in the roof space of the garage,
Starva logging has been around for years, at least 4 or 5, my mate had his bike nicked in October after I told him about this he thought I was making it up. He still uses it but starts it about half a mile from home.
Fresh Goods Friday 696: The Middling Edition
Latest Singletrack VideosFresh Goods Friday 696: The Middlin...robdobFree MemberOr you can just use the easily set up privacy option in Strava.
wwaswasFull MemberI use privacy zones – I have a series of overlapping ones around the area my house is in so it’s not centered on where I live.
JefWachowchowFree MemberA friend of mine had is garage roof tiles removed and bikes stolen.
He beefed up security including passive sensors in the garage etc. They came back, got spooked by the alarms but not before the roof was trashed again.
The garage ceiling has now been lined with thick ply fixed with possibly more than the minimum required amount of 10″ nails. It should be easier to follow the trail of Vimto if they come again.stumpy01Full Memberwwaswas – Member
I use privacy zones – I have a series of overlapping ones around the area my house is in so it’s not centered on where I live.
This is definitely worth doing. Takes a few mins, but gives you a nice dead zone around your house that reduces the risk of anyone working out which house is yours.
I have done it for friend’s houses to where we also sometimes start riding from.
wwaswasFull MemberAgree with the privacy zone around friends houses thing.
Titling a ride ‘Starting from Dave’s’ with no privacy on his address isn’t doing Dave any favours.
binnersFull MemberIf you haven’t set your privacy zones in Strava I’d go and do it now.
Like wwaswas, I set up about 5 overlapping zones at random points around the area I live, in order to muddy the waters a bit further.
I do marvel at people calling their Strava rides ‘first spin on my new Santa Cruz’ and having all their settings to public
kcalFull Memberor which bike they’re riding…
Mine have nicknames (sad, but I know what bike is which, defy anyone outwit close circle to identify them).xyetiFree MemberI’ve got Privacy Zones set up, BUT The cynical side of me thinks there is software to overcome this, There probably isn’t but i’m not convinced. So i set iup Privacy Zones years ago and always start it up away from home.
Pawsy_BearFree Memberif your set up correctly only those that follow you can see your rides
•Your name will be anonymized to all logged out athletes.
•Only Strava athletes that you approve can follow you.
•Only Strava athletes that you approve can see your photos.
•Only approved followers can see and download your activities on your Strava Profile.also set privacy zone
globaltiFree MemberWent out for a ride on Tuesday but the house opposite is having a new roof and three blokes were up there where they would have had a very nice view of us loading two valuable roadies into the back of the Passat. It would only take one of them to mention the bikes to a pal down at the pub, so I reversed the car into my neighbour’s drive, which goes way back behind my house and we passed the bikes over the fence and loaded them out of sight of the roofers then covered them with a blanket as we drove out.
Call me paranoid if you want.
devashFree MemberWent out for a ride on Tuesday but the house opposite is having a new roof and three blokes were up there where they would have had a very nice view of us loading two valuable roadies into the back of the Passat. It would only take one of them to mention the bikes to a pal down at the pub, so I reversed the car into my neighbour’s drive, which goes way back behind my house and we passed the bikes over the fence and loaded them out of sight of the roofers then covered them with a blanket as we drove out.
Call me paranoid if you want.
Its not paranoia mate, its a sensible precaution in this day and age.
I’m now adverse to washing our bikes in our back yard because the alley is a shortcut for people walking from town to the local scally estate.
All it takes is for one wrongun to see that you have nice bikes and then tell his ‘Uncle Dave’ and then heartbreak strikes.
benp1Full MemberThanks folks. I always had privacy set on my house, but I’ve just added a few more zones that overlap with my house
Haven’t bothered with my work as it’s in a secure, inside-the-building storage room
plyphonFree MemberOver my years of riding BMX before I got into MTB, I used to change frames quite a bit as they’re considerably cheaper and more universal in terms of component fitting.
You get vastly more attention from undesirables with a bike/frame that has colour than a black bike. Sounds obvious, but it’s a relevant lesson.
All the “Oi mate how much is that worth?” questions came when I had purple/blue/metallic/any colour than black frames. Once I put a black frame on again you wouldn’t get a second look.
Most MTB’s are gopping colourways splashed with logos all over. My matt black with black components on-one rarely gets a second look and quite honestly one of my criteria when buying bikes these days is “does this scream “steal me”?
In the photography world, many professionals/serious shooters remove the logos from their cameras, scratch off model names, and change the strap to unbranded alternatives all to avoid attention when shooting out and about.
I wish more MTB’s came with their decals ontop of the clearcoat so you can remove them.
NobeerinthefridgeFree MemberSome impressive levels of paranoia/looking down the nose at tradesman types!
BillOddieFull MemberIt’s only paranoia if everyone isn’t out to get you. And with bikes thats not a bad mindset to have.
Pretty sure my bikes were clocked either starting/finishing a ride or being washed.
Bike rack on roof of the car probably doesn’t help either.
xyetiFree MemberThey were probably lifting his tiles to add a secure layer of steel mesh so that he couldnt be un done by scrotes, You should tell your Neighbour about Uncle Dave.
😉Err, Yeah Bill, Bike Rack on top of car is a dead give away, Most Folk where i live who drive Volvo’s with Racks aloft have been burgled for Bikes, One Bloke’s been done 3 Times.
adshFree MemberConcrete reinforcing mesh is a better option than weldmesh.
Standards options are 200mm squares with wires ranging from 1cm thick down. I’ve got 7mm thickness in my current shed but will be moving to 1cm in my new place as it’s more isolated and large bolt croppers are pretty powerful.
jodyFree MemberThere have been lots of high end bikes taken from round here (South Sheffield) recently. Who knows wether its Facebook groups, Strava, group rides or just plain old scoping/snooping that’s doing it. Don’t put pictures of your bikes/rides on FB or social groups, lock Strava down, change your name to a nickname and make sure you are not followed home.
One I don’t think people pay much attention to is Strava flyby. You are still included in flyby even when the security settings and privacy zones are set. You have to opt out of it separately.
HellsFull MemberKnew there was a reason I don’t use Strava and I don’t share my Garmin Connect profile or activities.
I had all my bikes taken by theiving B……s in October last year. I’ve only just managed to replace them all, it’s taken over 4 months. I think I was targeted when they spotted the bike rack on my landlord’s car.
NobeerinthefridgeFree MemberIn all seriousness though, Bike thievery does seem a hell of a lot worse in certain area, Sheffield and Bristol being the two I’ve noticed most.
I certainly don’t think we have it anywhere near as bad in the wet desert above Hadrians.
LoCoFree MemberOne I don’t think people pay much attention to is Strava flyby. You are still included in flyby even when the security settings and privacy zones are set. You have to opt out of it separately.
This and multiple privacy zones.
globaltiFree MemberI knew there was a reason why we always hide the bikes inside the car rather than display them like trophies on the roof. With the wheels off and the blind pulled they are completely hidden in the boot.
Couple of yars ago I found myself sitting next to a Serb lad on a flight to Belgrade. He saw my bike mag and started boasting about his pal in Novi Sad who flogs bikes stolen in Britain and shipped over in containers. Then he saw my expression and stopped boasting.
STATOFree MemberPawsy_Bear – Member
if your set up correctly only those that follow you can see your rides
Nope. Any ride that you do a segment on I can see, by going to the segment and clicking on the time you set.
If I want to be a theif ill make a few segments around where your rides start and finish to pick up a few more of your rides, and it’ll give a good idea where you live (privacy zone withstanding of course).
One I don’t think people pay much attention to is Strava flyby. You are still included in flyby even when the security settings and privacy zones are set. You have to opt out of it separately.
Red Herring.
As above I can already find your ride by looking at segments. Hiding it from flyby does nothing other than giving you a nice warm false sense of security, mmm snuggly.
LoCoFree MemberAs above I can already find your ride by looking at segments. Hiding it from flyby does nothing other than giving you a nice warm false sense of security, mmm snuggly.
Oh FFS, various other measures in place though, and the fact my bike is rubbish and worth about 50p.
globaltiFree MemberI was watching something on TV about the Police and a detective said, of somebody they wanted to interview: “He doesn’t use social media so he’s proving hard to find.” Is it the same for cyclists?
LoCoFree MemberI was watching something on TV about the Police and a detective said, of somebody they wanted to interview: “He doesn’t use social media so he’s proving hard to find.” Is it the same for cyclists?
So as ‘the perp’ isn’t ‘checking in’ on FB at the dog and duck the police can’t find him? 😉
STATOFree MemberLoCo – Member
As above I can already find your ride by looking at segments. Hiding it from flyby does nothing other than giving you a nice warm false sense of security, mmm snuggly.
Oh FFS, various other measures in place though, and the fact my bike is rubbish and worth about 50p.
[/quote]Sorry, I wasn’t trying to put anyone down, just want people to realise what they have out in public. I see a lot of people saying ‘just make profile private or opt out of this and all your rides will be hidden’ when its not true and you could potentially be putting other people at risk of these thieves.
Privacy zones or making all your RIDES private is the only way to actually keep your home location hidden. Hiding profiles and turning off flyby could possibly help stop lazy thieves, but that wont stop the ones who are the sort to go through your roof.
horaFree MemberAgain I amazed that people would keep thousands of pounds worth of bicycles in a shed or garage. I keep a kids bike, a old bike of mine, lawnmmower, tents, boxes and old tyres. I see it as akin to leaving expensive stereo and hi-fi equipment in my two sheds and garage.
Yes theres insurance but someone still profits/gets cigs/drink and drugs out of you.
sharkattackFull MemberSome impressive levels of paranoia/looking down the nose at tradesman types!
My garage was burgled and bike stolen by a close mate of my window cleaner.
A mate of mine had his garage broken into but nothing went missing. He had the broken door replaced and a week later it was kicked in and a stack of alloy wheels disappeared. They were found by police in the garage of the person who fitted the new door.
My old next door neighbour had her wall knocked down by a car. Then she had her purse emptied by the brick layer who was rebuilding it.
This kind of thing happens every single day. You don’t have to be paranoid but it makes sense to keep your stuff out of sight given how many greedy, opportunistic shit heads are roaming around in some areas.
horaFree MemberAh yes 5yrs ago when some tradesmen were doing up my new (shell of a) house they asked if I’d be interested in some high end Orange bikes or carbon etc. I said no ta but I asked how did they know I was into cycling? The sticker in the rear of my car and the shorts I sometimes came to the house to see the work in.
😯
NobeerinthefridgeFree MemberHora – Maybe they’d seen the vid of you walking down the surrey hill trails, and figured you needed a more capable bike? 😆
jodyFree MemberStato, all this info helps people who are not aware of it. To say it puts people at risk is just not right, they signed up to Strava and should know the risks involved. It is down to each person to look after their online security and personal data.
STATOFree Memberjody – Member
Stato, all this info helps people who are not aware of it. To say it puts people at risk is just not right, they signed up to Strava and should know the risks involved. It is down to each person to look after their online security and personal data.
True, but when someone with only half a clue gives advice to someone with no clue, then they are both to blame.
Pawsy_BearFree MemberIf I want to be a theif ill make a few segments around where your rides start and finish to pick up a few more of your rides, and it’ll give a good idea where you live (privacy zone withstanding of course).
I’ll make sure I look out for nefarious hoods in the neighbourhood. Apart from opportunist bike thieves I’d say that most compromise their own security.
xyetiFree MemberI agree, A bloke riding round my area who’s quick, I think he’s a Pro Roadie or on a Motorbike has his STRAVA Locked down, You cant see any of his info BUT if i ride down the same bit of road to him it shows me he’s X fastest on the day against me, I then know hes been out and can look back at segments and can see him on Fly-Bys.
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