Hello All, I’m on the train home from Tweedlove and very very lucky to still have my bike. We stayed the weekend in the Glentress Forrest camping pods. went to bed last night and woke at 1am to footsteps outsider the pod, I looked out through the door window a few times and nothing! Just had a feeling something was not right, opened the door to see the locked up bikes gone, I shot out into the night in only my pants and ran after the gang, luckily they dropped the bikes and made off in a stolen car (I assume). Local police were great and there in 20mins. They said the area is being targeted by gangs from Edinburgh and Glasgow, they also said it gets worse when events were on. I’m very happy to still have my bike, please take care in this beautiful area. The gangs have been taking bikes off of roof racks and trailers too, getting very brazen.

Glad to hear you’ve still got your bike mate. Close call by the sound of it. Unfortunately that sort of thing seems rife at the moment

Thanks Fella. I think they had been prowling around the site for a while and we’re very brazen, one was waiting in a car as the getaway. The site was busy and well illuminated. sadly they must have seen the festival as an opportunity.

Not a great surprise I am sorry to say and pleased your bikes are intact. Been going on for ages and getting worse not better. Further up the line in Edinburgh is the same and also they are taking vans. We had an attempted break in last week and they were def targeting my camper which ironically is never stored at the house I’d just picked it up and was too late to put it into storage. Bastards. I have a lovely movie montage of the. Checking everything out before trying to snap the locks on my doors.

Yep it’s a thing when they know there will be lots of bikes around.
Stolen car or two usually. Police well aware it’ll happen but patrol numbers are budget restrained and there are so many bikes.

Were your bikes outside? If you’re at any event and not able to be with your bike, it has to be in a van or in a car, or in your pod.

It’s so much easier to steal a bunch of £8k bikes than it is to bother stealing a car.

Even if you’ve got a lock, they’re not safe in the back of a car or van, or on the roof.

The best thing to do is imagine your bike is a briefcase full of cash to the value of your bike.

Now, where would you leave it overnight?

Left outside instead of in the bike storage?

Unfortunately thefts in the Tweed Valley have been happening for a long time

Special mention for Peebles Hydro and its bike room.

Not cheap – but peace of mind. And a nice place to stay at.

Target rich environment for thieves this weekend- quite surprised they bothered to target you with a lock when there’s bikes just on racks etc, or just picked one up that’d been left lying around the green (roofracks have NO security whatsoever, there’s a key but it’s worthless. Any thief will break it with a screwdriver or just pull the bike free. But people seem to think that because there’s a key it’s safe)

But as ever, a reminder that most chains are shit, that sold secure is only for insurance purposes, etc etc.

Glad you got them back!

The two bikes were locked together, they’re two hardtails which are not worth much (very beaten-up Orange and a Ragley Big Al), but I built the Ragley and love it. I think they must have been a team of three, two lifting the bikes and a get-away driver. All good and so happy, but 20/30 seconds later and 🙁

Reminds me of the 92 Grundig (Dingwall?), Some Ringle skewers were nicked of our bikes as we slept in tents…

I’m at GT campsite right now and as I look out my window I can see many bikes (still) on roofs and racks… We all thank you for you pants only pursuit!

Well done for preventing them getting away with the bikes.

Police came round to where we were camped to warn us of thefts late Saturday night.