After theft of my hydrofoil I figured maybe there are gps devices I could have installed on my board that don't show much (little puck that can be fitted that looks like a plug etc.)

Anyone tried to fit a gps anti-theft tracker to their board?

Something small, easily embedded into board, waterproof, with reasonable battery life, and no subscription if you can help it.

Its not GPS but i use tile trackers for a lot of stuff- if it appears anywhere near someone else with the app it will update the location via bluetooth. Cheap option, battery lasts a year and has pretty solid coverage in metro areas.

Hi Swavek,

In terms of kitesurfing equipment, the efforts and expenses related to preventing theft and / or recovering stolen property are most often not worth it. It's best to have some insurance and pay a small excess in case this happens.

Speaking from experience, we were the victims of some fraudulent purchases on our website (stolen credit cards). Even though we managed to find our stolen gear advertised online it took 2.5 months to get it back and honestly well over 100 hours of work (countless emails, phone calls, police reports, etc.) do to so. This happened in winter while I had more spare time on my hands but if that happened in summertime there is no way I would have put that much effort/time/money in recovering this gear and would have just claimed it from the insurance company.

Just my 2cents

Christian

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Swavek said..
After theft of my hydrofoil I figured maybe there are gps devices I could have installed on my board that don't show much (little puck that can be fitted that looks like a plug etc.)

Anyone tried to fit a gps anti-theft tracker to their board?

Something small, easily embedded into board, waterproof, with reasonable battery life, and no subscription if you can help it.

I guess it'd be easy enough to route a small recess under deckpad, chuck a tile in it and put pad back.

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CH3MTR4IL5 said..
Its not GPS but i use tile trackers for a lot of stuff- if it appears anywhere near someone else with the app it will update the location via bluetooth. Cheap option, battery lasts a year and has pretty solid coverage in metro areas.

Are the thieves likely to be around people with the tile tracking app?

Nice hydrofoil with a nice board is worth $3.5-4k - it would be worth some effort to recover it.

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Livit said..

Swavek said..
After theft of my hydrofoil I figured maybe there are gps devices I could have installed on my board that don't show much (little puck that can be fitted that looks like a plug etc.)

Anyone tried to fit a gps anti-theft tracker to their board?

Something small, easily embedded into board, waterproof, with reasonable battery life, and no subscription if you can help it.

I guess it'd be easy enough to route a small recess under deckpad, chuck a tile in it and put pad back.

That's what I was thinking. Could be a fiberglass pocket with a lid under the deck pad.

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cbulota said..
In terms of kitesurfing equipment, the efforts and expenses related to preventing theft and / or recovering stolen property are most often not worth it. It's best to have some insurance and pay a small excess in case this happens.

Depends on your motivation - I assume if you're going to this level it is in order to wreak terrible vengeance, rather than recover the gear.

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Swavek said..

CH3MTR4IL5 said..
Its not GPS but i use tile trackers for a lot of stuff- if it appears anywhere near someone else with the app it will update the location via bluetooth. Cheap option, battery lasts a year and has pretty solid coverage in metro areas.

Are the thieves likely to be around people with the tile tracking app?

Nice hydrofoil with a nice board is worth $3.5-4k - it would be worth some effort to recover it.

Depends how much spare time you have. Most people I know that can afford a $3.5-4K hydrofoil live very busy lives and don't have 100 spare hours to *maybe* be lucky enough to recover their stolen property.

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Swavek said..

Are the thieves likely to be around people with the tile tracking app?

Nice hydrofoil with a nice board is worth $3.5-4k - it would be worth some effort to recover it.

There is 1770 people in my suburb at the moment, i reckon you would have a good chance that you get something before the battery runs out. Maybe you don't get the guy but you have a chance at the foil.

Possible scenario- guy keeps it in his garage for a month, drives to a cash converters somewhere - and you get a ping from anyone in the vicinity with the app who goes within 30ft of the store.

Even if you find it after it is flipped you can still prove its yours and its stolen, seems like a worthwhile punt for $30.

a lot of the lycra squad are doing this, pop a tile in the frame or under the seat.