Today’s reader question:
I got a new snowboard, but I’m worried that it might get stolen. Any tips to prevent someone taking my gear?
Snowboard theft is actually a really common event in big resorts. Every local here in Whistler has either had their board stolen or knows a friend who got their snowboard stolen.
To prevent this, I recommend 2 things:
1) Lock your snowboard
I’ve said before that a snowboard lock is one of the most important pieces of gear that’s often forgotten.
Whenever you go into the lodge for lunch, or leave your board outside a store/bar in town, make sure you lock it. This is easily the most important step to avoid your board getting jacked.
A lock costs $10-20 and you’re protecting a piece of gear worth $300+. This is why I’ve always said that if you have a fancy new snowboard setup then you’d basically be crazy not to have a cheap snowboard lock in your jacket pocket.
2) Sticker up your snowboard
People are less likely to steal a snowboard that has stickers plastered over the topsheet. While it’s not going to stop them like a lock will, thieves tend to stick to snowboard that are hard to identify.
This means your average thief will aim for a generic snowboard with no stickers on it and no lock.
The main thing to remember:
Unfortunately, you can’t really stop someone if he has it out to steal your snowboard. After all, a thief can easily cut your lock or remove stickers after stealing your snowboard.
Heck, even if you got a titanium heavy duty lock for your board, a thief could just use a tool to take the bindings off and run away with your snowboard.
At the end of the day, everything we’re doing is just to make your snowboard less desirable to potential thieves. A thief wants a quick easy theft.
Thieves don’t want to deal with cutting a snowboard lock or removing stickers. They just want to grab a snowboard and walk off.
When a thief walks up to a board rack and sees 5 snowboards sitting there, which snowboard will he go for? One snowboard is locked and covered with stickers, while the other four are unlocked and have clean topsheets.
Obviously in this case he’s not going to go for the locked and stickered snowboard. He’ll grab one of the 4 other snowboards.
Oh and one more thing, don’t leave your snowboard in front of your house. Dry it in the garage or in the backyard if you have to leave it outside.
Hope that answers your question.
- Jed
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