Locking Your Skis

[SnowHot]

I AM probably the exception in that regard. Partly due to history but partly also due to my personality. I'm a rather rational person, having been brought up by two engineers parents.

:ROTF:

 

[alaski]

hmmm. It's irrational to care if your stuff gets stolen? I am having a hard time interpreting this comment. I think it's more rational to be upset about it. I think it's bloody weird for someone to have something they like stolen and not be upset about it. If I'm misinterpreting then please tell me...

 

[abc]

It's even more irrational to care what other people care or not care...

 

[SnowHot]

Alaski, I think you are being quite literal about this.
Having met and skied with abc, I can tell you that she does not want her stuff to be stolen. But her mantra(for lack of a better term) is that she "rationalizes" these things into the things that are really important.

I'll give you an example.
I lost a 400.00 cell phone at Copper Mt a month ago.
I laughed it off, not because I felt good about losing a 400.00 cell phone, but because the rational side of me said........
"my vacation is not done because I lost my cell phone. My vacation would be done, and likely my ski season would be done, if I had broken my leg."

So.........if you get your 'stuff' stolen, its awful, but in the end, its 'stuff'.

I'll lock my stuff up, and I'll take care of it, but not at the risk of being paranoid if I find myself without a lock handy.

If my 'stuff' gets stolen, I'll be ticked off, and I'll report it, maybe even try to do some personal investigating, but the rational side of me will know that its still just 'stuff'.

 

[Jilly]

I sell security items for a living. Locks keep the honest people out. Whether its your car, house or skis. If people really want to break in or steal they will try to. Our laws are such that people who steal something from you are punished. The law may not get to them. But they will get they're comeuppance sometime. If I lose something because it's my fault - like my poles last week, shame on me.

 

[alaski]

Of course I'm being literal. I have little choice, it's a written forum.

I don't think it's "irrational" or a sign of "attachment" to not want your stuff stolen. I'm not going to get into this whole thing again but I think some of the comments made on this thread have been just plain insulting. It's not up to anyone else to decide what should or should not be important to me - I don't think anyone would like it if something bad happened to them and they were told "oh, just think about the things that are REALLY important." That's a terrible attitude IMO.

If you don't care if your stuff is stolen, then great, don't lock your stuff and don't worry about it. But don't tell me that I shouldn't care either. It's not about skis or "stuff" it's about having respect for other people's values.

I would be devastated if my skis were stolen, yes it would ruin my vacation and my day, and yes I am totally OK with that and it doesn't mean I should be disdainfully dismissed as "too attached" to my skiis.

jilly - yeah maybe, but it's a lot easier to pick up unlocked skis than unobtrusively bust a ski lock, that's for sure.

ETA: I am not one to flounce off of a thread, but I think I have had my say here and I don't care to get into an argument so...*flounce*

 

[SueNJ]

You know, I was just having this conversation with someone the other day. We were at dog training at an isolated trailhead, and I put my dog in the car and locked the doors, then we walked away to work with the other person's dog. He said "whoa, you lock your doors? Jeez, if I'm worried, I might take the keys out of the ignition." All I said was "hey, it's your stuff...." but I was thinking of all cars I've heard of stolen because they had the keys in the ignition, and all the vandalism and theft that happens at trailheads. One friend's van was stolen out of his driveway as it warmed up in the winter, and it had his hunting goshawk in it. Luckily the van was recovered a day later with the hawk in it (barely alive, but it survived).

I just don't get why you wouldn't want to make things at least somewhat difficult to steal. Here there is a law that if you leave your keys in your car and it's stolen and is involved in an accident, you can be liable. I don't agree with the law, but I do agree that it's just stupid to leave your keys in your car, your car unlocked, your home unlocked, etc. Of course someone can happen by, see your car running and unlocked, and that's that.

I agree--for the tiny bit of effort it takes to lock up, why make it easy for thieves? Like my SO said, someone looking to steal skis, snowboard, or ski poles will look for the ones not locked down. It's a crime of opportunity, and fussing with a lock, or whipping out a pair of wire or bolt cutters is way too obvious when other people are around, so they grab the ones they can take without being obvious.

You know, having a vehicle stolen when there's a living creature inside--whether it's a pet, a child, etc--is a whole 'nother level of badness. I'm dumbfounded by people around where I live who run into a local convenience store and (1) leave their car running (bad enough by itself), plus (2) leave their baby in the car buckled in their car seat. There is just no way I'd ever take that kind of chance, even for the minute or two that it takes to run into the store, and even if I was able to lock the car door. It's been shown that a skilled car thief can break into many (locked) cars in less than 15 seconds! That's about the time it takes to walk into a convenience store and to the milk cooler! By the time you turn back around, your car (and baby, dog, etc) is on its way out of the parking lot.

I have to believe that insurance companies would have a difficult time justifying a payout on a stolen car where the keys were left in the ignition.

 

[SueNJ]

I'll lock my stuff up, and I'll take care of it, but not at the risk of being paranoid if I find myself without a lock handy.

Well, I guess I'm "paranoid" enough (if that's how you see it) to be willing to buy a ski lock on the spot, which I have done, rather than leaving my skis unlocked. I've been burned once, and I don't care to go through that again. I'm not the kind of person to just shrug it off. If that makes me paranoid, I can live with that--but at the end of the day, I'll still have my skis and my day won't be ruined by an opportunistic thief who walks off with my skis because I left them unlocked.

In my mind, there's no comparison between a crime of opportunity like someone stealing skis during the day at a resort and a professional thief breaking into a house or a car. For people who have skis stolen out of a seasonal locker, that's a little more planned and calculated, and it probably doesn't happen during the day when there are other people around who would take notice of someone trying to pick or break a lock, unless the thief is that good at picking locks. But when someone walks off with skis that are leaning on a rack in the middle of the day, it's not going to be skis that are secured with a lock.

 

[altagirl]

I sell security items for a living. Locks keep the honest people out. Whether its your car, house or skis. If people really want to break in or steal they will try to. Our laws are such that people who steal something from you are punished. The law may not get to them. But they will get they're comeuppance sometime. If I lose something because it's my fault - like my poles last week, shame on me.

Heh - I'm not very worried about keeping "honest" people from stealing my stuff.... ;)

 

[ski now work later]

I guess I'll invest in a SkiKey so I can lock up everything.

Jilly, I am very fond of my poles, and not only were they pricey, but they're not made anymore, so I've been thinking about how to lock them up (I lock up my skis with a cable lock through the heel of the binding). I looked at the SkiKey system but am baffled as to how it would be used at my local mountain where the racks are old and wooden and I often have to turn my skis upside down to get the heel binding near the place where I wrap the cable around (especially on my center-mounted skis). How does the SkiKey work in those situations, or doesn't it?

Sorry to hear about your poles. That stinks! :Cry:

 

[Jilly]

SkiKey needs the SkiKey rack. So if they are not at the hill, don't spend the money on one. With the cable lock, wrap the cable around the poles too and pull real tight!! Or place the cable through the loops of your poles. But thieves can undo the buckle on those too. I just didn't pull tight enough. I didn't think anyone would want 3 year old short carbon poles and look beat up!!

 

[retromaven]

I have to believe that insurance companies would have a difficult time justifying a payout on a stolen car where the keys were left in the ignition.

As the former owner of an insurance brokerage business, who has handled many claims...

You're absolutely right, SueNJ, an insurance company won't pay a claim if A) they find out you left your car with the keys in it and it was stolen, which happens a lot as many thefts, per insurance actuaries are crimes of opportunity. Once said stolen car is found and the insurance company sees it wasn't hot wired, or keys weren't taken under duress, or you make the mistake of telling them you left the keys in there, you will be S.O.L and paying off the loan on your old car and buying yourself a new set of wheels.

Same with a home owner's claim if they find you B) routinely leave your home unlocked, as you think you live in a "safe" area and have your house robbed or any other situation that arises out of that.

Unfortunately there is enough acrimony in this thread and I don't want to add to it, save to verify what an insurance claims adjuster will/won't do if they find that you fit scenario A or B that I've outlined above regarding locks and keys...

 

[abc]

I do recall that clause about the car key. Though my recollection is it only apply if the car is sitting on a driveway. My memory, of course, isn't what it used to be, of course.

Same with a home owner's claim if they find you B) routinely leave your home unlocked, as you think you live in a "safe" area and have your house robbed or any other situation that arises out of that.

How will they determine you "routinely leave your home unlockecd"? Or even you left it un-locked just once? Or you left your window open and the thief came in through that?

This is unlike a car that's recovered with the key in the ignition, which is pretty black and white.

 

[retromaven]

I do recall that clause about the car key. Though my recollection is it only apply if the car is sitting on a driveway. My memory, of course, isn't what it used to be, of course.



How will they determine you "routinely leave your home unlockecd"? Or even you left it un-locked just once? Or you left your window open and the thief came in through that?

This is unlike a car that's recovered with the key in the ignition, which is pretty black and white.

Many people innocently enough tell the insurance company claims adjuster/investigator they live in a neighborhood where they never have to lock their door(s) and they are surprised they come home and found they were burglarized. Sometimes the police or a neighbor might volunteer that information if questioned for the claim. If there is no sign of forced entry, and it seems that a person doesn't take adequate precaution (anyone can forget to lock a door one and a while, and that's what a good insurance claims investigator tries to determine), you will find in the day and age of insurance companies looking to keep claims loss figures down, if you or neighbors, police, etc. give them enough info, wittingly or unwittingly the may find something to get them off the hook for payment. That goes for determining fault inaccidents too, of course, as many people offer too much information and sink their own ship.

The car key clause is not just applicable for a car in the driveway. Leave your car keys in your car anywhere and have your car taken and see what happens. At the very least you'll have a good fight on your hands to have that claim paid, if it gets paid at all. I've seen it many times, it was my business.

Other than that, I refuse to make any further commentary one way or another about ski gear and locks in this thread, which ironically probably should be "locked" (IMHO), speaking of locks, so it can't spiral any further downward to an all out flame war the way things are going... LOL :ROTF:

 

[abc]

Many people tell the insurance company they live in a neighborhood where they never have to lock their doors and they are all surprised when they come home and were burglarized.

I guess I never thought of that part.

My parents home had been broken into, doubled locked. Though there's no much the thief took since there's nothing worth stealing, 'cause we knew we were in danger of being broken into there. (though we didn't know till later it's just our luck a thief ring was operating there, otherwise the neighborhood was safe enough to walk home at night). Valueables were in the safe which they didn't attack.

I do occasionally forget to lock my door WHEN I'M HOME. So I'm only worry about my own personal safety in that case. Strangely enough, I never forget to lock the door when I'm AWAY! There's no much in my home that's movable and still valueable (computer don't worth much these days and my expensive "toys" tend to be with my when I'm not home ). Fortunately, I've not had any of such issue since I moved away from from parents.

All of these are mostly a matter of habit. I lock my door and take the car key with me because that's what I have a habit to do. But I don't have a habit to lock the skis. Nor do I have a problem with others habitually locking theirs. What I do find amusing is the 4 page discussion about locks for skis, because I've never heard anyone discussing locks for homes, which is vastly more valueable!!!

 

[Jilly]

Retromaven your insight is valuable. The question asked many posts ago was: Do you lock your skis? So let's answer that question. After all it is a ski forum!!

 

[retromaven]

Retromaven your insight is valuable. The question asked many posts ago was: Do you lock your skis? So let's answer that question. After all it is a ski forum!!

Well, this thread has gotten so impossibly long, it's hard to wade through the whole thing, but I answered that one way back in post #37 on page 2.

I guess I will "break my promise" and give an update on that post, since I have been skiing at least twice a week and have a routine now:

I have been skiing mid week at a local place when there is virtually no one around save the instructors and a few regulars that I have gotten familiar with and therefore I have NOT locked my skis, and neither have the few other skiers and instructors, as the rack where I place them directly in front of the window right near where I take off my boots in the lodge just a few foot steps away (I don't eat or anything or hang out, it's just boots on, ski, boots off, leave) there is literally no one around and I have 100 percent visibility at all times, so if someone snags them, I could just do the old NYer throw down with them! Or my best karate move! None of the ladies, including myself or the instructors even get lockers for our ski bags and shoes, as we are the only ones there early in the morning through lunch time and there has never been an issue. The other day I wore my new Chameleons to the slope and did lock my stuff up, no one around or not, as I didn't want to have to replace them, just in case...

On any weekend at my home hill or any day week or weekend at any other mountain I would without a doubt lock my stuff. Not because I'm attached (but if someone is, that is fine by me), but I don't have the money to replace things if they get stolen, and like in my insurance career, locks don't prevent someone who really want your stuff from taking it, but an insurance company wants to see you are taking enough precaution that you usually lock/protect your personal belongings because locks and precautions do deter the casual thief. Insurance companies don't want to pay claims that are needless and avoidable, as they would be broke and so would I.

That being said, if a natural disaster or thief (God forbid, but for sake of the point) ravaged my home today, the only thing I'd care about is my family and my pictures (which many I have backed up off site on DVD's, but not all) and that's it. The rest can burn baby burn, as I can surely start over and sometimes it's kind of fun. Seeing I'm the person for whom what can go wrong does, if I got my shorts in a twist over every negative thing that happened to me, including theft of my stuff, I'd be in the loony bin! (Maybe I should be anyway, but that's another thread...ROFLOL)

I used to be somewhat of a pack rat, more for the sake of reusing and recycling. I tend to move a lot. As I get older, I have morphed into a minimalist. I truly like nice things and do own some, but could (if I didn't have kids) live out of a backpack touring the world too. I don't believe in being encumbered by "things", but I take precautions with things I have. If I caught someone taking my things or I saw them being fenced somewhere, I be pretty steamed and might consider sending out Tony Soprano :ROTF:, not because I'm too attached, but just because it's justice for being violated . Guess that's just part and parcel of being raised in the Metro NY/NJ/CT tri-state area.

My motto is live and let live. I make no judgments about other people's choices or lives as everyone is free to do as they choose and follow what makes them happy. That being said, an insurance company or law enforcement agency might not be so open minded when it comes to paying a claim. LOL

Cheers ladies!

 

[cosmogirl]

I seperate my skis instead of locking. Also, there is a ski check with an attendant at the place my kids go. IThey use this when they take a break.

 

[SueNJ]

I seperate my skis instead of locking. Also, there is a ski check with an attendant at the place my kids go. IThey use this when they take a break.

Love the ski checks--a couple bucks for the day is well worth it to be able to hand my skis and poles off to someone for safekeeping.