If you’re living the dream and pulling your boat on long trips to go fishing, chances are that you have some pretty valuable items with you. That may include a boat that you scrimped and saved for, costly electronics, rods, reels, and baits to rip lips, and not to mention the price of that fuel in your tank. Non-anglers just won’t understand, either, just how much it all means to us. Thankfully, pros like Greg Hackney get it and that’s why this post focuses on his six best tips to prevent stolen gear.
Boat Locks, Alarms, and More: Greg Hackney’s 6 Best Tips to Prevent Stolen Gear
1. Stay at a Secure Place (a Private Residence When Possible)
Options may be limited sometimes when planning a fishing trip and towing your boat, especially for tournaments, but your overnight stay should be one of the first things you consider. You’ll not only want somewhere that’s comfortable enough to get you rested, you’ll want somewhere safe for your boat.
One of the best ways you can do this is to see if you can stay at a private residence. Besides, when they’re available, AirBnB, Vrbo, and other house-booking tools can be quite competitive compared to hotels and motels. Wherever you stay, get a good look at the surrounding area and how much you can trust it when you’re not around.
2. Put Away Everything You Can
Graphs, rods and reels, baits… you don’t want anyone to walk away with any of it, so establish a routine for putting it away, keeping it unavailable for would-be thieves.
3. Secure All Boat Locks and Boxes
Once you’ve put your gear away, it pays to lock every lock you have on your boat and trailer. This means closing and locking up all your boxes and spots where someone could grab your gear and run off with it. Additionally, consider adding a trailer coupler lock and other special-use locks.
4. Put Your Loc-R-Bar in Place
Even if you have locking latches, you’re sure to have even more peace of mind when you’ve installed a Loc-R-Bar Storage Locker System from T-H Marine.
As the name suggests, the system includes a security bar, a padlock with a built-in alarm, and a pair of mounting brackets. With the mounting brackets installed on your port and starboard gunwales, simply put the bar and lock in place when leaving your boat unattended. You’ll then have a sturdy barrier preventing access to your center compartments along with an alarm that will sound if anyone tries to mess with it.
5. Cover your boat
Out of sight, out of mind — this applies to thieves, too. Although they might have some idea of what they could swipe from you, it may not be worth the trouble for them to get through each barrier and try to find it. For nights when it's sitting park in particular, it pays to cover your boat .
6. Switch On your Two-Way Alarm System
After you parked your boat somewhere secure, put away what you can, locked it up, put a Loc-R-Bar in place, and covered it, it’s a good time to engage your boat alarm system. With a press of a button on the fob, your boat will be screeching quick if anyone shuffles through it looking for something to steal.
Safeguard Your Stuff
If you need help securing your stuff, T-H Marine is here to help. We have boat locks, alarms, and more so you don’t have to deal with the heartache of having it stolen — especially right before a tournament!
