How to not get bike stolen when sleeping in tent?

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If you're bike touring and planning on sleeping in a tent, how do you make sure your bike does not get stolen from the camp ground when you're asleep? I doubt you would be able to fit the bike inside the tent with you. :shy: This might be a silly question, but it's a thought that came to my mind..
Just use a cable lock and lock it to the nearest tree, fence, lamp post, or whatever.
Most campsites are pretty safe.
In 30 years of cycle touring, involving hundreds of nights camping in various countries, nothing untoward has happened to my bike on a campsite.

ditto
 

Cycling_Samurai

Well-Known Member
Ok bike lock, tent bike and alarm. Got it covered!

Now for jokes. Leave the bike at home! Problem solved.
 
574946
 
Very rarely used it but I used to take a small spool of bowden cable (1mm IIRC) with a swaged loop on either end. I would thread it onto a part of the frame were it was not easily spotted (axle end of rear triangle) and route it into my tent and lock the other end to a piece of baggage. Parking the rear triangle near to the door.
Made me feel secure, thing is if you get a "bite" during the night you have to deal with the fish. Opportunistic thief might run off or he might decide he needs to defend himself even though he does not because you are on the ground and at a disadvantage for that reason.
 
Location
London
Very rarely used it but I used to take a small spool of bowden cable (1mm IIRC) with a swaged loop on either end. I would thread it onto a part of the frame were it was not easily spotted (axle end of rear triangle) and route it into my tent and lock the other end to a piece of baggage. Parking the rear triangle near to the door.
Made me feel secure, thing is if you get a "bite" during the night you have to deal with the fish. Opportunistic thief might run off or he might decide he needs to defend himself even though he does not because you are on the ground and at a disadvantage for that reason.
I bought some fishing line for this very purpose but have never used it.
 

FrothNinja

Veteran
Tie a piece of string from your frame to your big toe.
Did that (ankle though) when I was riding around England on Walter (a Raleigh 3 speed sit up & beg) soon after I arrived in the UK. I worked. At least 2 times my foot was almost torn off by light footed ungulates.
 

Gillstay

Über Member
For my motorbike I used a ground anchor, as used for supporting trees which comes with a cable attached and loop the lock through that.

I think it was called a duckbill ground anchor.
 

mudsticks

Obviously an Aubergine
Very rarely used it but I used to take a small spool of bowden cable (1mm IIRC) with a swaged loop on either end. I would thread it onto a part of the frame were it was not easily spotted (axle end of rear triangle) and route it into my tent and lock the other end to a piece of baggage. Parking the rear triangle near to the door.
Made me feel secure, thing is if you get a "bite" during the night you have to deal with the fish. Opportunistic thief might run off or he might decide he needs to defend himself even though he does not because you are on the ground and at a disadvantage for that reason.


Did that (ankle though) when I was riding around England on Walter (a Raleigh 3 speed sit up & beg) soon after I arrived in the UK. I worked. At least 2 times my foot was almost torn off by light footed ungulates.

Ive never really worried that anyone would try to steal my bike while I'm camping.

But as above, the idea of tying it to myself seems like asking for trouble.

If anyone is nasty enough to be nicking bikes, then I'm not likely to want a stand up fight with it them in the middle of the night, nor to risk being injured by them trying to drag my bike away..

I think preemptively choosing 'sensible' places to camp is a better idea..
 
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