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Motorcycle security on a trip?

SCBuckeye

New member
My son and I are planning a trip in May (each on our own separate motorcycle - I have an R100/7 and son has a K100RS).

My question is this. How do all of you make sure that your motorcycles are not stolen - like at motels or when you have to leave them in a public parking lot while you go do or see something?

I was thinking of a cable-type strap (like what bicyclists use, but much heavier duty) and run through one or both of the wheels and around center stand so that it can not be folded back up - making the bikes hard to drag or roll.

What do all of you use?

Thanks in advance!
 
My cousin carries this big Kryptonite cable lock...like a bike, but much thicker...we locked our bikes together through the front wheels and forks when on a road trip last year. It was probably overkill, but a potential thief would definitely have to put forth some effort to steal the bikes.
 
My son and I are planning a trip in May (each on our own separate motorcycle - I have an R100/7 and son has a K100RS).

My question is this. How do all of you make sure that your motorcycles are not stolen - like at motels or when you have to leave them in a public parking lot while you go do or see something?

I was thinking of a cable-type strap (like what bicyclists use, but much heavier duty) and run through one or both of the wheels and around center stand so that it can not be folded back up - making the bikes hard to drag or roll.

What do all of you use?

Thanks in advance!

I think a professional thief would have little difficulty quickly cutting a heavy duty cable. They'd come prepared if they were shopping for your bike.

In a parking lot while shopping or in a restaurant, I take the keys with me; sometimes lock the riding suit on the bike but usually put it on a chair while eating.

Motel? Depends where I am. Sometimes I'll put my full cover (tire to tire, ground to ground) over it, but not always. Sometimes I'll ask to park it under the covered lighted area in front of the sign-in desk; usually OK'd, sometimes refused and again, the keys with me. Like to park in front of my motel door if possible if it's a walk out. Lock the handlebars.

I have even left everything on the bike minus GPS and riding suit overnight with the cover over it in order to make a quick morning departure.

My philosophy is that a locked bike will keep an honest person honest but there is not much that can be done to keep a professional thief from stealing it. Possibly high mileage on both bikes make mine undesirable. Try to chose a well lite place for the bike at night. Although it is not unheard of, I've read that beemers apparently do not get stolen as frequently as other brands. Don't know if that's true or not, but keep your insurance up to date and enjoy your trip and just be careful where you park. Your "gut" will often tell you where not to park.
 
My question is this. How do all of you make sure that your motorcycles are not stolen - like at motels or when you have to leave them in a public parking lot while you go do or see something?

!

My wife and I have been touring since the late 70s and we have never cabled the bikes. If we get an uneasy feeling about the town, we just move on.
When we are away from the bikes for very long during the day, like sightseeing in a park, we cable our riding gear to the bikes and put a cover on the bikes.
 
When my bride and I go on any trip, we usually have our Bushtec trailer in tow. Parking the bike with an attached trailer with looks to be a bullet proof hitch lock would IMO deter most theives. We have left our rig parked like this at motels and casinos without incident. BTW when motel/hotel parking......we try to have the bike by the rooms door whenever possible, and almost always cover up the bike at night.......unless I forget the cover at home....:banghead
 
What do all of you use?

I sometimes remember to remove the key from the ignition. Usually I have my helmet sitting on my GPS which covers the key. :)

I do have a cable lock wrapped around the luggage rack but it is only used when I feel the need to lock my helmet/riding gear to the bike. I rarely feel the need. When the bike spends the night in a motel parking lot I'll throw the cover over it. The key may or may not be removed from the ignition when I do this.

This cavalier attitude toward keys comes from my other bike, an R69S. If someone should swipe my key (more likely than them taking the bike) any twig on the ground will work after about 20 seconds of whittling it to shape. I'm aware that bikes get stolen all the time. I'm also aware that the most common method involves picking the bike up and putting it in the back of a pickup truck next to the cable cutters used to cut any lock. I think the best defense is to park close to a bike that looks better/is more valuable on the aftermarket than mine.
 
Same bike here:)

I ride a GSA1200 today most of the time, BUT have a R100/7 with 388000m sitting alongside it in my garage:). Many happy smiles and miles. The GSA is so ugly most say, who would steal it? Its tall too, so nobody can even sit it without falling off. My key even stays in my ignition half the time or more when I am nearby eating, etc.. All my travels, I have carried the Python Cable Lock and used it to lock my helmet/riding gear to bike when absent. Never have locked my bike to a post or other bike and always take good notice where I leave the bike and the general safe feeling of the locale. You feel a need, use a lock, never hurts and they are easy to pack along. The bigger cable locks are much harder to cut through than a chain, so go cables:). Even my giant size lock/chain buster won't cut through the bigger cables without a hassle. Takes a lot of effort to cut the cables. Randy
 
Wife and I have been touring for over 20 years and all we do is use a bike cover, never had an issue yet
 
My cousin carries this big Kryptonite cable lock...like a bike, but much thicker...we locked our bikes together through the front wheels and forks when on a road trip last year. It was probably overkill, but a potential thief would definitely have to put forth some effort to steal the bikes.

+1 Wife and I spend days and weeks on the road with our bikes. We do the same thing, big Kryptonite cable locks. They are heavy, but we think worth it. We try to find something to lock them to, but failing that we just lock the bikes to each other. We also make sure the cables/locks are visible below the bike covers, so would-be thieves don't go stripping off the covers.

Also, if you do the usual hotels, most are willing to let you park underneath the overhang in front of the main doors, or somewhere nearby in the light. Don't assume you can, but instead always politely ask permission. Generally it works.
 
I have lived mostly in larger cities and did a lot of running about with the bikes. Generally I used a brake caliper lock and sometimes a Kryptonite U lock at times. I figure it makes other bikes more attractive. :p
 
They don't steal BMWs, just Harleys & sport bikes.
Most of the Harley guys like to park right by the front door of the motel, where the night clerk would be (sleeping, or not actually there?).
I like to have mine right outside my window or door or both. So if anything goes on, hopefully I will hear it and deal with it.
A few times I have heard noises or talking and get up to look. It has never been anyone going anywhere near my bike.
General parking is probably more important. Park where they can't knock your bike over, or where they are less likely to knock it over.
I think a cover or chain on the road is a waste of time. If the place looks that bad, move on.
dc
 
I have travelled quite a bit over the last few decades, staying everywhere from big cities to remote primitive campgrounds, and have never used lock, cables, etc. and have never had any problems. I think if I were to buy and use a security measure it would be a Xena alarm disc lock.

It would certainly scare the pants off the casual or opportunist thief (and rouse you from bed so you can leap to the door and scream you're calling the cops ;)) but as has been said, it is near impossible to stop a determined pro. Fortunately as has been mentioned, BMWs usually aren't on their "get" list.

I do think a touring cover is a good idea, out of sight, out of mind.
 
My son and I are planning a trip in May (each on our own separate motorcycle - I have an R100/7 and son has a K100RS).

My question is this. How do all of you make sure that your motorcycles are not stolen - like at motels or when you have to leave them in a public parking lot while you go do or see something?

I was thinking of a cable-type strap (like what bicyclists use, but much heavier duty) and run through one or both of the wheels and around center stand so that it can not be folded back up - making the bikes hard to drag or roll.

What do all of you use?

Thanks in advance!

Well,
How do you manage this in your home area ?

I also agree that BMW's are less likely to be messed with.

I I've never experienced any problems anywhere in the Southeast, southwest or Mexico.
 
lock

I put a little screaming lock on the front brake and keep my 9mm handy. I try to stay at hotels where I can park the bike in front of the room. Funny story, I stayed at a Motel 6 in Reno, NV last year in not the best looking neighborhood. As I was putting the lock on, a shady looking guy asked me if that was loud when it went off, I told him not as loud as the gunshots that would follow soon after the alarm.
 
There is nothing wrong with being paranoid about your ride; you've put a lot of dollars and love into its care and you want that to continue without undue grief.
When I lived back east, many of my friends had their bikes ripped, but yeah, they were mostly Harleys and customs or hot-rods... the thieves actually broke into the garages to get them. A couple were smaller bikes (at campuses), because they were easy targets of opportunity.
Living where I do now, I often hear of DIRT bikes being stolen - either right out of the campsite (even at rallies!), or even right off the trailer. Sometimes it's easier to take the entire trailer.
I've also heard of a thief in a nearby ritzy neighborhood to my south who stole a couple of cars out of a "highly secured" garage, where the cars' frames were chained to a loop sunk into the floor - the owner came home to find not only two cars gone, but another less valuable one was TURNED AROUND and re-chained! As if to say, "If we wanted it, we would've taken it."
Occasionally, the AMA publishes theft data in their magazine (I haven't checked to see if it's on-line too), and there's quite the variety of brands, types, and locations involved.
Don't put the cable through just the wheels - if they want it, wheels are easy to unbolt, or multiple gorillas can lift the pair. Put it through the frame somewhere PLUS a wheel, so it's not so easy to roll. Keep it high off the ground, so they have less leverage for their bolt cutters. If a post or another bike is not available, yes front wheel + frame will make it more difficult for them.
Cables are more difficult to cut than chains, but the experienced thief will ignore the cable and use liquid nitrogen to freeze the lock. Then a blow from a hammer will shatter it.
Still, the best defense is always Situational Awareness.
 
I recall reading a report that the objective of most late night motorcycle thieves is to ride the bike away (not truck it) and that the greatest theft deterrent is a disc or Kryptonite-style wheel lock on the rear wheel.
 
Ride-offs may be more common; but I'd have to disagree with the rear wheel - you want any deterrent to be easily visible, so the thief will consider a different target. But disk locks up front are known to cause damage if the real owner forgets and tries to ride off with it in place.

Two more cases I know of, one in San Jose and another in El Segundo - each time, a friend's new HD was chained to a support pillar in an underground garage, inside the corporate complex (allegedly with private security) ... a van drove up, they jumped out, froze the lock, lifted the bike, and split. In the El Segundo case, it was actually caught on camera - it took about one minute. They also took the cable, but left the shattered lock, both cases.
 
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