conspiratemus1

A previous poster who seems to be from the Southern U.S. said that he thought your average Joe Redneck would have lock-breaking tools in his pickup truck, and would jump at the opportunity to use them to steal a bike. I'm not sure this is fair to rural southerners, nor is it a realistic appraisal of the theft threat. Bikes have value as theft targets because of the ease with which they can be converted into cash for drugs, as vehicles for the retail distribution of drugs, or possibly for the valuables like cash and credit cards, convertible into drugs, that a bike loaded with luggage might have. And then some people will steal a bike just to be vicious and mess up your travel plans I suppose. (But cars are more fun to steal.) None of these factors seem to be motivating for pickup-truck drivers in rural areas. Even when they don't seem to like cyclists -- and nearly all in my experience do move over when they pass and many wave us through all-way stops -- there is a rural culture of respect for private property not shared by urban low-life.

Canadian readers will not be surprised to learn that the only bike lost to theft on a large cross-Canada bike tour my friend did a couple of years ago was stolen in downtown Winnipeg. Indeed, the crime rate, per 100,000 people, is much higher in Canada's towns and small cities in the West and North than it is in the large cities of the East, and Winnipeg isn't even in the top 20. So vigilance is certainly appropriate especially in unfamiliar environments, which touring is, almost by definition. Bored young people hanging around sharing a bottle or doing drugs in a campground or near a downtown convenience store -- few small towns have actual grocery stores downtown nowadays, they're in malls out on the highway -- should activate your spidey sense. I just don't think the thief is likely to be a rural person in a pickup truck.