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Snow Thieves Winning "Battle of the Boards" - For Now
By J.D. O'Connor
May 01, 2006
Cunning bands of snow thieves are currently winning "the battle of the boards," as ski and snowboard theft skyrocketed in the U.S. and Europe this season - but their days appear to be numbered as technology and new enforcement techniques are used against them.
A spokesman for the Placer County Sheriff's office in North Lake Tahoe said there were between 100 and 150 reports of board and ski thefts this season, a significant number even if you discount those victims who chose not to bother filing a police report - estimated at three times as many as those who did.
"That was me," said Seattle native Mark Pilcher, who found himself uttering the often repeated "I only left 'em for a minute" after he returned from lunch during an otherwise pleasant day at a Northern California mountain he will not name. "We looked around and the patrol was sympathetic but the upshot was they were gone and there wasn't a whole lot anyone could do about it."
Pilcher said he found out after the fact that thieves favored the area, and that while the resort had lockers and his partner could easily have mixed skis with him as a preventative measure, he chose not to.
"Beautiful day... I was relaxed and we we having fun. I didn't think and I paid the price," he said.
He wasn't alone this season as skiers and boarders reported brazen thefts in the most unlikely of places, all over the world. Members of a team of British skiers skiing the Alps this season had lost so much equipment to thieves at various resorts they decided to set up a "sting" operation of their own.
"We planted some gear in a drift next to the lockers and sat watching from a cafe across the way," said Londoner Eric Lacey. "We were there about twenty minutes when two guys drove up in a van and started helping themselves to our stuff. We were gobsmacked. They surrendered everything after a moment's discussion, but it was apparent they were well organized and had done it before."
With snowboards costing upwards of $500 each and some skis well beyond that, there's little wonder thieves find them attractive targets.
Mountain managers at Big Bear Mountain Resorts in Southern California noticed an upswing in thefts and were on alert when tipped to a ring of thieves working the backside of the resort in January. Surveillance teams trailed a man they believed was responsible for some of the thefts and found a cache of four pilfered boards valued from $400 to $600 each. Three local men were eventually arrested on felony theft charges as a result.
"We want people to enjoy the beautiful mountains and their day of snowboarding or skiing," said Linda Schutte, security supervisor at Bear. "But leaving your snowboard or skis unattended is like leaving cash on the ground. It might not be there when you come back."
Some resorts are fighting back. Security personnel at Heavenly Mountain Resort and Sierra-at-Tahoe routinely "bait" their mountains with seemingly unattended equipment to catch thieves at work. Others, like Mt. Shasta Board & Ski Park, work closely with local law enforcement and vigorously prosecute offenders caught in the act.
Mt. Shasta, in cooperation with the Trinity County Sheriffs Department, identified a suspect in the theft of a $600 snowboard taken from the park during the Martin Luther King holiday weekend. The suspect, a juvenile, was subsequently charged with felony grand theft. Surveillance cameras were also installed at Mt. Shasta to help track thieves.
Security experts advise skiers to buy locking ski racks for their cars; to mix equipment between a pair of skiers or group of friends and secure it with personal locks, and to use the lockable racks in use by many mountains today when between runs.
But anyone who has experienced ski theft says a determined thief will get what they're after if they want it badly enough. "They cut through locks like they were butter," Pilcher said.
Industry insiders are placing their hopes on a technological approach to curtailing ski thievery. Radio Frequency Identification Devices (RFID), small receivers which can be embedded inside equipment during its manufacture, coded, and tracked by special transponder units if the equipment is stolen - are the most promising.
"It would be nice to have," said Bryan Eisner, who lost luggage, clothes and gear during a trip to Utah last year. "A sort of Lo-Jack for your skis. I'd use it if they had it available and the price wasn't prohibitive."
Makers of the devices say they won't be - and that they are coming soon.
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Comments
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I want one of those Radio thingees! In two years I've lost an expensive jacket, skis, gloves and poles. Don't know if they were stolen or I just lost them but it would be nice to put a tracker on them and find out where they all went!! |
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Posted by: Robin Wright | May 1, 2006 11:44 AM
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We lost our luggage and all of our gear two years ago. Ruined the trip. We use those ski locks now but I'm told they don't always do the trick and thieves know how to get around them. Sign us up for the RF thing. Have they caught anyone using RF?? |
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Posted by: Jim Moss Solar Solutions | May 3, 2006 08:52 AM
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It's not a Lo-jack. RFID's are read or write transpnders. They do not emit a signal...Please don't be confused.
Bill P. |
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Posted by: Bill Smith Bill's replacement business | September 17, 2006 11:40 PM
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