Gangs of Thieves Targeting Big MTB Events in UK

Now this is a troubling development: officials in South Wales, UK are warning spectators at this weekend’s Kona Mash-Up at Glyncorrwg Mountain Bike Centre to keep a tight eye on their rigs because organized criminals may be lurking behind the scenes. Apparently at an MTB event at nearby Margam Park last month thieves made off …

Broken bike

Now this is a troubling development: officials in South Wales, UK are warning spectators at this weekend’s Kona Mash-Up at Glyncorrwg Mountain Bike Centre to keep a tight eye on their rigs because organized criminals may be lurking behind the scenes. Apparently at an MTB event at nearby Margam Park last month thieves made off with roughly $45,000 worth of bikes!

Clearly these crooks are organized and they’ve done their homework to know downhill bikes are expensive and easy to swipe in a big crowd. Just imagine, you lean your bike against the outside wall of the restroom – sixty seconds later the bike is gone.

We’ve heard too many stories lately about mountain bikes being stolen – and not just campus cruisers, nice, custom rigs. In fact today I lost my Yakima roof rack and two bike trays in the Home Depot parking lot near my house. Working in broad daylight in a busy parking lot means these guys are pretty brazen! Of course in this case, like many others, I bear most of the blame myself (left the car door unlocked which made it easy to remove the rack clips).

Bottom line: keep your bike stuff locked up tight wherever you find yourself this summer – the bad guys are everywhere!