Honestly I can't believe someone would do this to someone's livelihood. Just awful.

 

This serves as a reminder to always lock your stuff up and keep your boat/truck in a highly visible location.

 

https://www.facebook.com/share/v/198u3abWfg/

I would certainly expect him to have insurance on it.  File a claim.  Pay your deductible.

 

Still a tough pill to swallow.

9 minutes ago, gim said:

I would certainly expect him to have insurance on it.  File a claim.  Pay your deductible.

 

Still a tough pill to swallow.

I am sure it's more than the money - a lot of sentimental things and a lot of time rigging and organizing baits for certain bodies of water. Hard to put a monetary value on that stuff. 

I lost almost all of my rods and reels in a fire 5 years back. Having the agent walk through the garage made getting a check so much easier. Take a video of all of your stuff just in case, insurance adjusters probably won't understand why you have 5 different crankbait rods!

Did he have his stuff stolen again or is this the same story from 2020?

3 minutes ago, JHoss said:

Did he have his stuff stolen again or is this the same story from 2020?

I was about to say, this has happened to him before 

That’s from September 2020

Generally on the issue of security, I’m not a touring pro and I don’t carry 100k worth of gear with me on the road, but I have traveled overnight a lot with my boat or my fishing partners boat in tow.  Week long stays on different lakes in Florida, annual trips to Michigan and Wisconsin with Wisconsin being a 2 day pull up and back.  Although we get to Florida in 1 day, we always stay the first night in a hotel and fish the next day before checking into our week long location.  Our last trip to Headwaters was by all accounts, the most safe we’ve felt.  Even though we had to pull the boat out every day, where we stayed was 1/2 mile down an isolated road at the very end of a dead end and a coded gate 1/2 way there.  The road is lined with farms where there is 1 way in and 1 way out.  On Kissimmee we stayed at Camp Mac and on Okeechobee we stay at Roland’s, both are pretty secure but we still took gear in, electronics off and covered the boats.  At Headwaters we just leave everything.  It’s that secure.  In Michigan we are on an island and then down a long road to a house that has no neighbors close by.  Boats stay in the water and docked outside the house.  In Wisconsin, the boat stays docked outside the cottage and I don’t pull any gear.  The dock is down a steep hill surrounded by woods.  If someone wanted to get my gear, it would have to be at night and from the water.  On the St Lawrence the motel had docks.  It was a little sketchy because the public ramp was right next door.  As for all of the hotels, I have a list of ones I have used in the past and try to use them.  I am a Hampton Inn level stayer and the ones I use have good parking and are usually not right on the highway.  I have found them through trial and error and the error part can be painful like when you pull in after a long day on the road and the parking doesn’t allow a trailer.  I have had to park at a shopping center and walk to the hotel and I had to cross a field because there was a high curbed roundabout to get into one hotel.  If going to a new area, I always use either google earth or google maps on the satellite setting to look at the hotel as to how/where it’s positioned.  I have stayed at some little mom and pop motels where I could park right outside my room.  So far (knock on wood) I have never been pilfered.  

I'm paranoid about my stuff.  It's very rare that I have to leave my boat somewhere other than my own garage when it's not in use.  Simply put, I don't trust people when there's access to expensive stuff available.

 

I realize that not everyone has that option.  If you travel to fish, you are going to encounter this risk.  Its unavoidable.

Always have cheaper stuff than the next guy, problem solved 😂 

 

wait a minute, didn’t work for Robertson haha

@TnRiver46 I think you’re getting your life hacks mixed up. You want to be faster than the guy next to you in the event of a bear attack. 😂

2 hours ago, PourMyOwn said:

I lost almost all of my rods and reels in a fire 5 years back. Having the agent walk through the garage made getting a check so much easier. Take a video of all of your stuff just in case, insurance adjusters probably won't understand why you have 5 different crankbait rods!

I agree with you 100%! I have a fairly detailed list and pictures of all of my tools, rods, reels and tackle both on my phone and at my mother in law’s house (in case of fire, tornado, etc). Our insurance agent suggested it. 

6 minutes ago, 12poundbass said:

You want to be faster than the guy next to you in the event of a bear attack. 😂

 

That's right.  I've likened this example to the ones at the parking lot access that don't lock up their trailers or hitches.  Mine are not bullet proof; but I only have to be better than the next guy.  In other words, I only have to outrun one person when being chased by bear.

 

4 minutes ago, gim said:

 

That's right.  I've likened this example to the ones at the parking lot access that don't lock up their trailers or hitches.  Mine are not bullet proof; but I only have to be better than the next guy.  In other words, I only have to outrun one person when being chased by bear.

 

Or out swim one person when being chased by sharks…

Thieves don't care if it's your equipment to make a living, if it's your family heirloom, rent money, anything but themselves. 

Maybe some people who know can explain to me how this doesn't happen more often. 

 

 

2 hours ago, Pumpkin Lizard said:

Maybe some people who know can explain to me how this doesn't happen more often. 

 

 

There are lots of good people out there, but it only takes one A/H to get all the headlines!

I once had a favorite crankbait.  I did everything I could to keep it safe.  I didn't show it to anyone, I only took it out of it's special box when I absolutely had to.  I only used it on lakes with no wood, and very few other snags.  Then one day a giant bass ran off with my crankbait as if it was some cheap Walmart knock off.  I called the police and they didn't even come to investigate.   I called my life insurance company and they said someone had to die in order to file a claim.  My favorite crankbait just got eaten by a bass and they some how thought it would survive?  I called workmen's comp. and they said having a mental breakdown over a lost fishing lure was not grounds to file a claim.  My health insurance would only cover my hospital visit, but wouldn't pay the thousands of dollars the crankbait was worth.  I would have called my home owners insurance agent, but I didn't own a home, because I spent all of my money on tackle.  The worst part was my wife showed zero sympathy.  She simply said to fish with some of my other junk, and wipe my feet before I enter the house.

 

If anyone sees this thieving bass please contact me.  The bass will be easy to identify, because it is a largemouth the is between 25 and 30 pounds, and jumps 3 or more times the instant it is hooked.  Keep the bass but please return my crankbait.   

How I sleep when I have to stay at a hotel with my boat in the parking lot during a tournament.

 

This topic is why I made this video....

 

 

I had a person break into my storage unit last summer, but they didn't steal anything.  They were interested in the receipt to my new trolling motor though.  I think it was someone walking through with a backpack and couldn't fit too many big items in their backpack.

 

I filed a police report anyway in case so if I did find stolen items or damage, I could reference it to insurance.  

On 3/11/2025 at 10:24 PM, Glenn said:

This topic is why I made this video....

 

 

As always a great video Glen.  You certainly have a wide range of vids out there.  Thanks for sharing your tips, some simple solutions to a nasty problem.

I bought a couple motion detectors from Harbor Freight for about $15 each.  I set them up under my cover when staying at a hotel.  If anyone goes under my cover the loud noise will hopefully scare them off and/or wake me up.  My rod box has a Basscat latch and lock that would require a crowbar to crack.  I have gotten better at not worrying about theft.  

I recently fished Shasta.  I got a hotel. 
 

I chose the room and parked outside my window and I left the shades up.  With the room dark, I’m unseen ( I hope).  But I could hear and listen for trouble.  
 

I didn’t sleep much.   My kayak was cable locked. 
 

I hate thieves. Scumbags.