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Manchester bike thieves are targeting top riders, says Paralympic tandem pilotLauryn Therin (image © Opus Energy community)

Manchester bike thieves are targeting top riders, says Paralympic tandem pilot

“We are being watched," says Lauryn Therin...
by John Stevenson
Thu, May 01, 2014 17:46
13

Bike thieves in Manchester are targeting Britain’s top cyclists, claims a ParalympicsGB hopeful who recently had two bikes stolen.

Lauryn Therin, who rides as a tandem pilot for Paralympian Rhiannon Henry, had bikes and other equipment worth over £4,000 stolen from a garage last month.

In February, thieves took two bikes worth £5,000 from the home of Olympic track cyclist Owain Doull after breaking through the roof of his garage.

Therin, who is aiming for a spot at the Rio 2016 Paralympics, says elite cyclists in Manchester are being “watched and targeted” by thieves.

She was away competing when thieves broke into the garage between April 18 and 22 and took a £2,500 black track bike worth £2,500, a red BMX worth £1,000 and £1,000-worth of wheels and tyres.

Therin told the Manchester Evening News: “We are being watched and targeted. They see us riding around the area in our Team GB kits and know we are on expensive bikes.

“These are good quality bespoke bikes, made to our exact dimensions and they are irreplaceable which makes it all the more frustrating.

“These bikes mean a lot, they have sentimental value and are part of our journey as an athlete as we compete on them.

“We train hard and represent our country and communities, we are just trying to do our job and people come and take away what we need to get the job done. It takes a certain type of mentality to steal and it is unacceptable.”

Detective constable Samuel Findlay said: “These bikes belong to a professional cyclist and we are keen to find them as soon as possible.

“We are urging anyone who was in the area and saw anyone acting suspiciously to get in touch with police. The bicycles are very distinctive, so if you have been offered either of them please call us.”

Anyone with information should call police on 061 856 5902 or Crimestoppers, anonymously, on 0800 555 111.

Lauryn Therin
Manchester
Bike theft
John Stevenson

John has been writing about bikes and cycling for over 30 years since discovering that people were mug enough to pay him for it rather than expecting him to do an honest day's work.

He was heavily involved in the mountain bike boom of the late 1980s as a racer, team manager and race promoter, and that led to writing for Mountain Biking UK magazine shortly after its inception. He got the gig by phoning up the editor and telling him the magazine was rubbish and he could do better. Rather than telling him to get lost, MBUK editor Tym Manley called John’s bluff and the rest is history.

Since then he has worked on MTB Pro magazine and was editor of Maximum Mountain Bike and Australian Mountain Bike magazines, before switching to the web in 2000 to work for CyclingNews.com. Along with road.cc founder Tony Farrelly, John was on the launch team for BikeRadar.com and subsequently became editor in chief of Future Publishing’s group of cycling magazines and websites, including Cycling Plus, MBUK, What Mountain Bike and Procycling.

John has also written for Cyclist magazine, edited the BikeMagic website and was founding editor of TotalWomensCycling.com before handing over to someone far more representative of the site's main audience.

He joined road.cc in 2013. He lives in Cambridge where the lack of hills is more than made up for by the headwinds.

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13 comments

Avatar
Timsen | 10 years ago
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I think you will find that Pro riders are obliged to wear certain kit & ride specific bikes as part of their contract. It's not necessarily their choice !

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Dr. Ko | 10 years ago
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When defunct called out for a digger, I thought of this:
http://youtu.be/YJDT04DOalI?t=19s 13

I guess there is a reason, why we all end up with a low mileage Sunday bike and (at least) one daily rider bike, e.g. my C40 was once somebodies Sunday best. While my Sundays best is safely secured:

http://innercitymobility.blogspot.de/2012/11/editorial-break-days-of-dar... 3

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vorsprung | 10 years ago
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People will steal anything. It's not difficult to work out where the sports person lives. It's not difficult to work out when they are out of the country. They have expensive equipment in the garage.

It's surprising more of them haven't been robbed

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DefUnct | 10 years ago
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Got a garden? Love your bikes? Got access to a tractor / digger? Worried about theft? Try this!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A3EAJex1RVo

Then just add motion sensors, alarm, and biometric access controls 16

Avatar
Leviathan | 10 years ago
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I do see GB riders about going past Sainsburys in Fallowfield. A few days ago I was passed by a guy in full Sky kit on Palatine Road (I was fiddling with my computer sensor alignment.) I struggled to catch up on him a bit but he turned off in Northenden. I though later, either he is one of those uberfanboys people love to hate on, or he was fast enough and skinny enough to be an actual Sky Guy. Not inconspicuous.

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Some Fella | 10 years ago
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The way i see it (and this isnt a criticism) is that these cyclists come to Manchester from all over and perhaps have come from areas which are as bad ass as Manchester is and are a bit naive.

My bike isnt worth very much but its a nice bike and worth a lot to me soif there any of the local kids about when i come back from a ride i just ride on and go round the block until they have gone. I dont want them to see where i live.
Team GB riders are very very conspicuous in their kit and they are obviously proud to wear it but the local scallies have got the measure of them - they are scum but they know what they are doing (clearly).
Its a sad thing to say but these Team GB lot need to be a bit more 'street' - tone it down a bit kit wise, dont leave their Pinarellos unlocked outside popular coffee shops and take their bikes in the house at night!

If British Cycling want to employ me as a 'Manchester lifestyle ambassador' i offer very reasonable rates and they can send me a private message with the job offer!

Avatar
notfastenough replied to Some Fella | 10 years ago
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Some Fella wrote:

The way i see it (and this isnt a criticism) is that these cyclists come to Manchester from all over and perhaps have come from areas which are as bad ass as Manchester is and are a bit naive.

My bike isnt worth very much but its a nice bike and worth a lot to me soif there any of the local kids about when i come back from a ride i just ride on and go round the block until they have gone. I dont want them to see where i live.
Team GB riders are very very conspicuous in their kit and they are obviously proud to wear it but the local scallies have got the measure of them - they are scum but they know what they are doing (clearly).
Its a sad thing to say but these Team GB lot need to be a bit more 'street' - tone it down a bit kit wise, dont leave their Pinarellos unlocked outside popular coffee shops and take their bikes in the house at night!

If British Cycling want to employ me as a 'Manchester lifestyle ambassador' i offer very reasonable rates and they can send me a private message with the job offer!

I'm assuming you meant to type "not as bad ass as Manchester" - and I do know what you mean. A lifetime ago I joined the forces, and there was a weird clash of street kids with those that had led sheltered lives. It was a bit of an eye-opener.

To be fair, if I'd earned the right to wear Team GB kit, damn right I would. I think there's also something to be said for protection, in that I *think* (just based on how I see people driving around them when I'm out and about round Mcr) drivers give a wider berth to riders in GB colours than to the rest of us.

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Airzound | 10 years ago
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Fit a tracker and don't wear Team SKY GB kit whilst out on a training ride. Buy a pit bull or two and keep them in your garage.

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goggy | 10 years ago
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Well I have now just locked my bike, that is upstairs inside my house, to the fireplace with a Level 10 lock.

You can never be too careful, especially as it is my weekend bike.

7

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DESMODUCATI replied to goggy | 10 years ago
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I have my bike locked up to my Bowflex Revolution with a super heavy duty bike chain and lock.

One night I returned home from an evening out, and the sliding patio door of my ground floor apartment was wide open. There was evidence the door was forced open.

Nothing in my apartment was taken, nothing, not even a bunch of loose change, which was quite visible.

My apartment faces the rear of the building, and when I went for my rides I left through the fire door, as many others to. I think someone in the immediate area saw me leave through this door, to go for a ride or otherwise, and knew my habits. They saw me leave one evening, broke in, and immediately left when they saw that the only item that they knew was there and that they wanted was securely locked up, which is not what they were expecting.

Never assume that that just because your bike is at home, it is safe. You should either be riding your bike, or it should be locked up or under observation by someone you trust, and no more than arm's length away.

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bikebot | 10 years ago
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Hang on, didn't we just have a story telling us that thieves were targeting mainstream bikes that are easy to shift, and not expensive custom builds?

They can't both be right, unless the headline for both should simply be "thieves are targeting bikes".

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Simon_MacMichael replied to bikebot | 10 years ago
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The story about targeting commuter bikes was London-specific.

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SteppenHerring | 10 years ago
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How much was that black track bike worth?

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