Road Bike Stolen In Chiang Mai

[masher]

Hi folks!

I've been traveling around the world for over two years with my bicycle. Sadly, it had to happen in this nice city of Chiang Mai, in the wat Umong- my bicycle got stolen from a person who pretended to come to the wat for meditation. The management of the wat takes no care of proper registration of the people coming to stay in the meditation center, which allowed the thief to come and leave undisturbed. Too bad, cyclists know- the bike is not just a mean of transportation, its a part of you, its the pen with which you write your story. I maintain a hope to find my bike, and I hope good people could help me. It is a relatively big road bike by most standards (frame 60 cm, wheels 26"), I made the racks myself, I changed the derailleur and the chain few days before the bike got stolen. It looks like an old bicycle, but gosh it is priceless for me! If you see it, it might not look exactly like on the picture below, already when taking it, the thief took off the red tape around the handlebar and threw away the pomp. But well...have I other choice but to try...

If you come across a bike which looks like this, or someone tries to sell it to you, or you have any idea where I could look for it, please write back to me or better- call me at 08 1681 4125.

I am willing to give a good reward, as well!

Thank you!

Nathan

Edited June 1, 2011 by masher

[supaprik]

hope you get you bike back....cheers

[WinnieTheKhwai]

To clarify, it was stolen by another foreigner right?

Suggest everyone keeps a look out.. Would love to see such scum thrown in Chiang Mai Jail, Thai and foreign alike,

Another thing: there are only a few high-end bicycle shops in town. That's another angle to follow up on.

Edited June 1, 2011 by WinnieTheKhwai

[james24]

If you think the suspect is Irish I know exactly who it is. He used to drive monks around in their van but I cannot remember what wat he did it for, it could be this one but like I say not sure.

[LJW]

Why didn't you have a lock on it?

[CobraSnakeNecktie]

Keep an eye on classifieds sites also as it may come up for sale.

I frequently see bikes on this site.

CM classifieds

Yeah be really careful with your bicycles in CM. It's not like a motorcycle with a lot of serial numbers. A bicycle is a lot trickier to even prove its stolen. I have run into a number of people who have had bikes stolen.

Edited June 1, 2011 by CobraSnakeNecktie

[cm das]

Why didn't you have a lock on it?

I didn't see where the op said it wasn't locked. And anyway, I've had a locked bicycle stolen here in Chiang Mai - at the CMU running track while I was there running.

[kjdk]

Oh - I know how you feel. I do a lot riding around in the city and on the roads around CM. Your bike is easily recognizable and I will keep my eyes open. Whether it was locked or unlocked is really not the question right now.

[Dante99]

"The management of the wat takes no care of proper registration of the people coming to stay in the meditation center, which allowed the thief to come and leave undisturbed."

Prehaps the "management" of the wat takes comfort in knowing that the thief will get his bad Karma in return for his bad act. Perhaps they might even think that you have just received some bad Karma which you had coming. Just perhaps.

Sorry you lost your bike. I lost one once, only once.

Edited June 1, 2011 by Dante99

[CNXBKKMAN]

its got a massive frame. i cant see many thai's being comfortable on it. awesome rack. i will keep my eyes out for it. bad luck. thats not the kind of bike you can just buy in a shop. i hope you recover it.

[kennalder]

Why didn't you have a lock on it?

I didn't see where the op said it wasn't locked. And anyway, I've had a locked bicycle stolen here in Chiang Mai - at the CMU running track while I was there running.

You are right, he didn't say it wasn't locked. He was too busy blaming the management of the Wat for not knowing if there were thieves in the area.

[xandreu]

As a fellow cyclist myself, and especially reading that you'd ridden it round the world for the last couple of years, I'm so sorry that you've had it stolen. You must be gutted.

I'm sorry that I can't help as I'm not in Chiang Mai at the moment, but I'll keep my fingers doubly crossed for you that you get it back.

If you do, please let us know.

[orang37]

Sawasdee Khrup, Khun Masher,

That's very sad news about your bike. Looking at the bike's picture, can well imagine how it's as much part of your life, and your memories, as a pet would be.

That it was stolen while at a sacred site, is a double-whammy.

Hope you will not let the usual pathetic attacks by the sub-human mosquitoes that infest this forum, drawn by the scent of what they feel is exposed vulnerability, doing their usual "blame the victim" ritual-dance of schadenfreude, disturb your "upekkhā."

best, ~o:37;

[jko]

Nathan Mate

We all know how bad you must feel – but don’t despair. The fact that you have photos is a huge help, plus it’s a distinctive bike, and since the thief isn’t likely to ride it around himself, chances are he’ll try to sell it on. Unlike stolen motorcycles it’s unlikely to be sent to Cambodia, so there’s a good chance it’s still in CNX.

-I’m sending copies of your photos to friends who are not on this forum, maybe other TV folks could do the same – every little helps.

You don’t mention whether you reported the theft to the police, presume you did, and gave them photos, but if not please do – I’ve had stuff returned to me. You might offer them a reward just to give them a little incentive.

It could also be worth contacting the local newspaper “Chiangmai News” to report your misfortune – they might in fact be interested in featuring a story about your travels. If they publish photos of the bike, that will get out to a lot of local people. The email is [email protected] and the phone on their home page http://www.chiangmainews.co.th/ is 086-563-7359. They’ll have someone who speaks English if you’re not a Thai speaker.

Also maybe deliver copies of your photos to local bike shops where it might end up. There’s a list on http://www.chiangmaicycling.org/bicycleshops.html

Whatever, the more people who know about your loss, the better the chance of getting it back. So don’t lose hope, and let us know how it goes.

Good luck Nathan, may the Bike Gods be with you!

[slapout]

Set on the east side of the moat on Sunday morning about 0730. You might catch a glimpse of it in amongst the bicyclers who are going on their weekend ride.

[AjarnP]

I'll keep an eye out for it in Chiang Rai also, just in case.

I suspect it's somewhere far away by now though that speak a similar language that's not the same.

Try puting word on the Thailand Cycling Forum too and thai-em-tee-bee-dot-com

Where can we read about your travels?