Is storing your bike in your tent safer than locking it nearby when camping..?

[SA_SA_SA]

I wondered whether, when camping, is locking your bike nearby to something with D lock etc * safer than taking bike inside ones tent whilst sleeping where it will mainly be locked to itself but perhaps loop alarmed? Are modern tea leaves bold enough to enter an occupied tent? What would one do if they did?




*stuff on campsites to lock too is often not up to Sheffield stand standards ..

[simonineaston]

A lot depends on where you are, I think. But having said that, I'm also thinking 'out of sight, out of mind' is a good place to start. One thing I find really annoying is lugging round a super-heavy lock that weighs more than my sleeping bag...

[Nearholmer]

How big is your tent?

Just that, to me, it seems overly considerate to let your bike sleep in comfort while you lie on damp grass outside the tent for want of space.

[richardfm]

Not a problem I have to worry about. There is no room in my tent for my bike

[Cowsham]

Lock it to something solid then put a rain cover on it -- less to see -- locked -- dry

[Tangled Metal]

Snip, snip! I've got a new bike cover and bike to go with it. I think I've a multi tool with wire cutters strong enough for that wire fence. A van big enough to fit the bike inside so I can cut the lock at my leisure. Heck is anyone going to question it on a bike rack on the back with a lock on it?

Put simply if someone wants it they'll get it.

[pedalsheep]

Put simply if someone wants it they'll get it.

Sadly true but making your bike less obvious and slightly less easily nicked than someone else's will always help.

[tatanab]

I have a small but tall 2 person (tight fit) tent. In extremis I could drop the inner and bring my cycle in with me. It would be tight and very uncomfortable, but possible. I set it up to try that when I got it about 15 years ago, but have never needed to. My camping is generally limited to small municipal sites in France.

[tenbikes]

Lock tight up against the tent with at least part of the front wheel under the flysheet.
Then tie a string/bungie or whatever from the rim to yourself.

Only works if you want to fight the thieves..........which is ok if you have a Section 5 )

[Vorpal]

Where would I put me, if my bike was in my tent? There isn't room for both of us

[SA_SA_SA]

Big tipis such as minipeak xl coukd swallow a bike and sleeper easily

[Tangled Metal]

We have an extended porch that could take bikes in. It's a 3.1kg 3 man tent that's really good for cycle touring.

[Carlton green]

I wondered whether, when camping, is locking your bike nearby to something with D lock etc * safer than taking bike inside ones tent whilst sleeping where it will mainly be locked to itself but perhaps loop alarmed? Are modern tea leaves bold enough to enter an occupied tent? What would one do if they did?

*stuff on campsites to lock too is often not up to Sheffield stand standards ..

If a determined thief is going to take something then a lock won’t stop them and if they are physical then it’s unlikely that an owner will either. The best route is for something to be not worth nicking and not being readily visible is good too. So tatty bike (looks rough but actually works well when ridden), chained to stop the back wheel rotating (impedes casual joy riders and thieves), under some neutral looking cover and ideally inside the tent would be best. What’s not seen doesn’t attract theft. Having said all of that if you’re somewhere where theft seems likely the best advice is to move to somewhere else.

Someone trying to take my bike off of me is likely to get injured, but on the other hand that could go badly for me too so be careful what you do. Logically it’s better to let a bike go than risk serious personal injury, but are we always logical?

[foxyrider]

I have on occasion put the bike in the tent when i've left it on the campsite while i go out on foot for the day and on a couple of sites i have thought of dragging it inside with me overnight but never actually have. On the whole i take the view that taking sensible precautions, ie removing lights etc and even if the object you lock to isn't that sound, make sure it looks like you have lots of lock in use - most bike theft is opportunistic, there is usually a lot more portable and easy to take stuff on a campsite than a locked up scruffy bike - like the nice expensive town bikes i ofteb see protected by no more than a wheel lock! Something as simple as removing the seatpost would be a big and easy to do deterrent if you are worried.

Many campsites will have a locked yard, ask if you can put the bike in there, the worst is they say no.

[Cowsham]

Snip, snip! I've got a new bike cover and bike to go with it. I think I've a multi tool with wire cutters strong enough for that wire fence. A van big enough to fit the bike inside so I can cut the lock at my leisure. Heck is anyone going to question it on a bike rack on the back with a lock on it?

Put simply if someone wants it they'll get it.

In view of a whole campsite ? -- ( we a lot of friends there ) -- I know it's not ideal and if somewhere else I didn't know the situation so well it would be chained to a tree or telegraph pole or something equally solid. On the IOM it's not going anywhere.

This was just the only photo I had with the cover but you get the idea. There's two bikes below that cover. Chained through each other and around that post so wouldn't be an easy snatch.

A tree is a good place to chain to cos I think it would be easier breaking the chain / lock than trying to cut through the tree trunk.

The wire fence made a great washing line.