EricV
Riding, farkling, riding...
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Glad you got some love from the insurance company. We also have a gear rider on our policy, ($3k each), mostly for accidents, since ATGATT adds up quickly in replacement costs. It was pretty cheap to add that and bump it to what we felt was reasonable for our gear.Great points Eric ( I see your profile pic all through the different threads ) I do have insurance and they did cover 750$ my deductible was 250$ I now know I'm under insured ha ha I will rectify this as I started to add up all the costs to replace jacket, pants, helmet ,etc and I need more coverage. As you stated it was a comprehensive claim .
Risk VS Reward , you know I probably still would have pursued the guy because dammit stealing peoples stuff is wrong mine or others ! I actually have a history of doing this for other's but when I was a tad younger , Nabbed a car thief after causing a horrific accident he bolted I got out of my truck ran him down ( he fell a few times ) A purse snatcher in a grocery store parking lot .. guy stole an old ladies purse he fell a couple times too.... until security arrived. I also caught a guy breaking into my truck , that poor fella met up with my 8 iron until the police arrived for all intents and purposes he few too ..several times .
Locking stuff to your bike this to can be debatable , Yes it is a deterrent , Yes it makes your locked stuff harder to steal than someone else's . Here is another way to see it , if a low life wants to steal it he will regardless and in the process maybe rips off your throttle cable or your mirror.. maybe destroys some electronics now this starts to get very costly not to mention immobilizing your bike .
I guess the best is to pack it really
Getting involved - yep, I've had some of that too. It's been a while and circumstances always dictate how I respond. Instant threats tend to bring out a trained reaction in me. (USMC) I don't think, I react to the threat to eliminate it. It's just ingrained from all the training. That's had only one negative instance when someone was "only joking" and pulled a knife.
Beyond that I think we all assess the situation individually. Stopping someone from fleeing the scene of an accident, you bet. Mostly little threat to personal harm, high level of ire that someone is trying to run from personal responsibility. Petty theft, well that more depends on timing and circumstances, I suppose. Kid stealing an apple... kid looks pretty hungry, I'd probably do nothing. Kid looks well kept/dressed, I'd probably say something or take some action depending on proximity.
I've had some fun with people trying to steal my stuff on rare occasions. To the guy sitting on my bike, trying to start it as I came back from the gas station rest room; "There's a hidden kill switch, you're not going to get it started..." Dude just about crapped his pants trying to get off the bike and run away. ('40 HD with no key, kick start, manual timing and it really did have a hidden kill switch)
To the scum bag reaching for my helmet in a rest area parking lot at 2 am; "It's a $100 Chinese knock off, and it stinks, nobody is going to give you shit for that." He stopped reaching and tried to beg for money. I was on day 6 of a 10 day rally, riding 20 hours a day. I looked pretty rough and have a good 'don't F*#& with me' look. He just wandered off mumbling. That guy looked homeless, not like someone really looking just to steal stuff. (the helmet cost a tad more, it was a Shoei multitech. But it did stink! )
I've not been in the situation you were in, where I saw it happening and wasn't right there, but was in sight. I'd probably yell and chase, but not chase as far as you did. You never know until it happens.
Locking stuff - I do believe in avoiding opportunity theft by locking stuff up. Still, plenty of times I don't lock stuff and just let how the area feels dictate my actions. Keep the honest people honest by not giving them the opportunity to steal. The thieves will take stuff, regardless. I've seen locking Touratech GPS mounts, with the GPS, literally torn off a bike. If someone wants it bad enough or is prepared well enough, they are going to be able to steal it, no matter what we do. I cover my bike when parking at hotels. No one has ever stolen anything off the bike. Out of sight, out of mind. Most thieves are looking for easy stuff to take.
Most people will quickly give up an attempt to steal something in public if it's obvious that it's going to take more time than just lifting it off the mirror and walking away. I loop the cable lock around the bars inside the triple tree. A good pair of diagonal cutters would probably cut that cable, but the thieves of opportunity won't be carrying those. The pros that would, are looking for bigger game, so to speak. You can't fix stupid though. I've heard of people's Spot satellite trackers being stolen off the bikes while they were on. And the Police just following the spot ping right to the criminal. Dumbass didn't even know what he was stealing.
Most of my stuff is not new and shiny. When I get new gear, I take more precautions. After it gets a patina, I'm more likely to leave it un-secured if I assess the situation to be generally ok. I know there is always the possibility in a parking lot, especially when you're out of sight. I'm pretty resourceful and have good insurance. Worst case, I'll deal with it and move on. But if I'm in a situation where dealing with it might kill a trip, I'm also going to take more precautions!