[isleblue65]

I've been warned about Santa Cruz as far as tweakers and bike thefts gone ramped, but got to experience it first hand today.

It wasn't really a close call because I was prepared, but could have been.

We camped at Henry Cowell last night, and came into town this morning.

I was sitting in the trailer waiting for the family to finish shopping and this guy rode around the parking lot and around the trailer a few times while scoping out the bikes. He pulls up, looks around for a minute and whips out his cable cutters.

When I walked out of the trailer, he packed up and rode off, and as he pedaled away, he said "nice bikes".

Not that his cutters were much of a threat to my hardened security chain and lock that's around the Ibis, but he would have been able to make off with the other bikes.

The bikes have been cased at least 3 times (that I know of) since we've been in town.

Santa Cruz is ground zero for bike theft.

Keep your eyes open and be smart folks.

Scums are all around.

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[chazpat]

And then he had the audacity to moon you as he left.

Glad your bikes are okay.

 

[Radium]

Another lost opportunity for a great shot with a pepper ball. Oh well....

 

[KingOfOrd]

Hope you called the cops, so they could recover that other stolen bike he's riding off on.

 

[2melow]

Pretty sure this is the same guy who cased my truck with 6 bikes on the back of our Recon Rack post-sea otter while in town visiting and in the Trader Joe's parking lot.

Luckily I had hardened steel chains and was waiting in the truck (tinted windows) while the family shopped. My wife said there were two security guards walking around and a police officer in front of CVS doing laps too. Apparently a super sketchy area.

We were camping at New Brighton State Beach Park and the Park Ranger upon check-in said don't even leave high end coolers out/unlocked (Yeti, Otter, Rtic, etc) as tweekers are stealing those too.

And the homeless camp near the Santa Cruz Costco? Wow. Never seen anything like it.

 

[cohenfive]

Nice butt crack.

 

[bailout]

He should take care of that butt sunburn first.

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[5k bike 50cent legs]

He was just checking the plumbing.

 

[DH40]

Human civilization is failing.

 

[Finch Platte]

Gah. I had to erase what I had previously posted, but that guy needs to die.

Dammit, I said it again.

 

[Callender]

And the homeless camp near the Santa Cruz Costco? Wow. Never seen anything like it.

The camp is gone now.

Not sure where the people went, though.

 

[TheMachinist]

The camp is gone now.

Not sure where the people went, though.

The one on Coral St? Temporarily dispersed, some of them on the other side of the street.

One of Santa Cruz's most notorious bike thieves has left the building.
The Weekly Dump 2.1.19 â€" Santa Mierda!

And speaking of health issues, I also heard a name I haven't heard in a while died this week. He was a well known local bike thief. I'm not gonna say his name. That's not important. He probably stole and chopped up literally hundreds of bikes in the city, mostly around the downtown area. I heard he died somewhere near or along Coral street. That seems appropriate. It's interesting the reaction I've heard from friends about his death. A couple people gloated or snarked about it (I expected nothing less in his case) but many were just kind of sad, over how much failure was involved here. Personally, I didn't know the guy, but I certainly knew who he was and saw him often around downtown, usually with a couple bikes in tow. He was basically a product of our failed system here, our failed status quo. I feel nothing over his death. I'm not happy or sad. I just don't care. He sacrificed any empathy I had here a long time ago. What made me sad was seeing that little puppy out in the rain and mud on that local news story on Camp Bernal.

The weird thing is that I had a few interactions with Dana in the months before he died. He was always in the neighborhood around my shop. I actually think he had mostly stopped stealing bikes and was dealing drugs at the end. The constant rotation of new bikes stopped when he got a Giant hardtail with a Fox 40. He rode that for most of the last year.

 

[isleblue65]

This guy is a career thief, riding around with his tools, and eye for opportunity. My sister who lives there said that behind the Ross that was in the strip mall I was parked in is a homeless encampment that the city allows because they don’t have enough affordable housing to provide alternatives to the meth heads. It’s some city ordinance. Yeah, like more than 5% of those people are interested in getting off the streets. Stealing for drugs is much easier.

I had bear spray in the trailer, but forgot all about it when my Adrenalin kicked in seeing that the guy was about to cut my cable locks. I’m kicking myself now for not seizing that opportunity. Of course I probably would have ended up arrested for assault.




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[isleblue65]

Pretty sure this is the same guy who cased my truck with 6 bikes on the back of our Recon Rack post-sea otter while in town visiting and in the Trader Joe's parking lot.

Luckily I had hardened steel chains and was waiting in the truck (tinted windows) while the family shopped. My wife said there were two security guards walking around and a police officer in front of CVS doing laps too. Apparently a super sketchy area.

We were camping at New Brighton State Beach Park and the Park Ranger upon check-in said don't even leave high end coolers out/unlocked (Yeti, Otter, Rtic, etc) as tweekers are stealing those too.

And the homeless camp near the Santa Cruz Costco? Wow. Never seen anything like it.

This was right down the street from Trader Joe's (in the mall with Pier 1 Imports, Ross, Petco, etc.) likely the same guy if he looks familiar. Homeless encampment behind the Ross is Santa Cruz City leaderships idea of compassionate safe space for people, most of whom are lifelong drains on society.

We planned on staying another night to do some more riding tomorrow, spend some more money at local restaurants and businesses and support a State Park campground, but I couldn't wait to get out of there after today. Back in Santa Rosa tonight.

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[121GW]

I hear the story of cutting a trip short to Santa Cruz all the time when I am visiting other coastal cities. You really do experience the worst of it when you are staying from out of town. Those who can easily day trip don't experience the nastiness much as we get in and out quick and stay on the fringes out of the city proper.

I can't figure out how so many people don't know what a dump it is. The traffic is incredible every weekend and what are most of those schmucks doing, probably staying in the city area. Just bonkers.

 

[Leopold Porkstacker]

I had bear spray in the trailer, but forgot all about it when my Adrenalin kicked in seeing that the guy was about to cut my cable locks. I'm kicking myself now for not seizing that opportunity. Of course I probably would have ended up arrested for assault.

Without witnesses, you're clear on all charges.

 

[NRP]

I had bear spray in the trailer, but forgot all about it when my Adrenalin kicked in seeing that the guy was about to cut my cable locks. I'm kicking myself now for not seizing that opportunity. Of course I probably would have ended up arrested.

You could just say that the bear spray canister accidentally failed due to over-pressurization from the heat, discharging its contents all over the individual's butt crack and eyes.

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[isleblue65]

You could just say that the bear spray canister accidentally failed due to over-pressurization from the heat, discharging its contents all over the individual's butt crack and eyes.

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HIND sight is 20/20

It would have been fun watching him squirm until the cops got there.

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[274898]

Bike thefts and thefts in general have grown rapidly since Prop 47. There is no real deterrent because getting caught is a misdemeanor basically like a speeding ticket. Also, police don't have the resources to investigate the thousands of thefts. So, they just let insurance deal with it. It is a career now.

It is such a bummer that having your bike on a external transport rack makes it quite vulnerable to burglars. It is one of the reasons why I haven't bought a hitch or roof rack to transport my bike. I put my bike inside my car and it is locked up with axle lock so it is quite difficult to steal without sawing the bike in half.

BikeIndex.org made a searchable database for stolen bikes which is useful. So, you can register your stolen bike or look up a serial number of bike you are interested in buying to see if it is stolen.

 

[IAmHolland]

Sometimes I feel a co2 pellet gun would be worth the time to unload on a perp