So I was playing last evening at Bintang in Sunnyvale, CA. It a nice new gym with 11 courts. It was crowded and most people left their badminton bags near some chairs towards the back. I was so paranoid about leaving my bag there, so afraid someone would walk off with it. I put my jacket and some other gear on top of my bag and stuffed it under a chair so it wouldn't be so conspicious. But I was thinking to myself, what other options do I have? It wasn't feasible to drag my gear all over the place, to the courts I would be playing on. Nor would I be able to keep a watch out for my stuff, for obvious reasons that I would be concentrating on the game, and for the practical reason that it was a little too far out of eyesight. What do fellow BFers do with your bag? Is there such a thing as a bag lock? Do you just try to keep it closed and keep an eagle eye on it? In all honesty, I know that there are cheaters and crooks out there, and I would be sad if someone stole my racquets, but I would get over it. Its just that I have my keys, phone, etc. in there too, and it would suck if I couldn't get home! So any bad experiences out there you want to share?
Anywhere but near the entrance/exit The timing of your post is impeccable. At the community center I dropped-in tonight, someone told me that once a bag was stolen on a bench near the gym exit and the culprit made off with the victim's car as well. I put my stuff underneath a bench if one is available, preferably at a corner where there's little traffic... I tend to notice a person walking to an area in the gym where s/he has little business to be in. Eg. non-player loitering around the gym. Also I trust other regulars to look out for me too, especially if we know one another.
We don't have an official place to set down our bags, but since the first time(and last time I hope) a bag was stolen a few months back at my club, we relocated our bags to ensure it is further away from the exit, so it is more difficult for potential thieves! There is usually plenty of traffic around the baggage area since there are so many members...but similarly to cappy75's comment, most people tend to keep a watchful eye on the bags in general anyway while looking out for "loiterers". As many have probably realised, I think the badminton community is very close-knit and trusting of one another.
Never had anything stolen in about 20 years. But if In doubt take a mini padlock along. Usually you'll find a way to padlock two zips together that opens the bag to your rackets.
After so many years of organizing the Sunday badminton session, you see a lot of faces come & go. Just like any new players who drop-in for the very first time, you'll notice strangers immediately when they walk in the door. If I'm not on the court, I'll keep an eye out on them or even initiate a conversation just to make sure "they know" I have noticed him/her. Usually they'll just stand in the doorway for a couple of minutes and then leave. It's when I'm on the court, and the stranger decides to sit and watch the game! You don't know if they are a friend of one of the players, a badminton fanatic who happens to walk past the gym, or a thief spotting out bags/wallets to steal! I have lost so many games just concentration on the stranger while trying to finish off the game. I have heard stories from other players who noticed a stranger sitting on the bench, leaning aginst the wall watching contently. In reality, he is reaching down into your bag (which is stuffed under the bench against the wall) and trying to feel for a wallet or keys. It is sad that such people exist and prey on opportunity. And as Cappy75 said, we hope the regular players at the facility will help minimize any potential for the thief.
In my area, there are lots of thiefs around. They don't steal the whole bag or rackets, they are aiming for the wallets or money clips. It's more like a drive through (grab and go ) I usually put everything in my bag deep, so my bag looks crowded with clothes, shoes, rackets, pants...etc and they will have no idea on where my wallet is at, and they wouldn't dare to take the whole bag since my bag is really big and heavy. In fact, if someone ever tried to steal my rackets, I am ready to bring a shotgun to the court with me next time
So if ever you drop by Collingwood, and don't know who BMS is, he's the guy walking around twirling nun-chucks in the left hand, and brandishing a police baton in the other, and a belt of ninja throwing stars (thingie). Collingwood, I feel safe leaving my bag FARRR away from the entrance and close to where other players sit out and wait for the next game. The camaraderie there ensures a trusting atmosphere. Another place, there was this group who hogged the court, swapped players in the middle of the game, and generally played like maybe to 30 points or something. My bag was quite close to theirs. After seeing their behaviour, man, I pulled my bag AWAYYY from that group. -dave
The worse thing about this issue is, you think your bag is stolen, but actually, it's not, you just forgot to bring it home and left it at the gym I have done that once......I brought the bag home but totally forgot the shuttles.....a tube of Victor Shuttles (with 11 still new)...... GONE!!
i feel the same as you prophet. that kinda prompted me to start the thread on how many rackets you bring to the gym. bintang used to be small and family environment and i cannot imagine it would be possible to have a racket stolen. but now there is a big sitting area and many many more ppl and most of them we don't know. i was initially only worried about stolen rackets but now that you guys mentioned it, wallet/keys are bigger loss. my usual defense is to stuff my old t-shirts at the top of the bag, not a bad deterrent i can imagine, but perhaps a better way is to carry the racket bag with me all the time.
just this past weekend, i played in a tournament in which a friend of mine had his rackets stolen. both were valued at around 275 CND so he was pretty devestated about it. like many others, he left his racket bag out in the open (there really was no other place to put them); however, he had left his zipper unzipped and apparently he told me that his rackets could be seen quite easily. i guess the best thing to do would be to try to find a less visible place to put your bags and always leave your rackets in your bag and zippers closed. there really isn't anything else you can do except to carry them wherever you go.
in terms of tournaments, i take my bag with me to the court i am playing on... and when i'm not playing, i leave it with the bags of all my other friends... because usually there will be at least a few people i know there (either players or parents)... in terms of club play, i am very fortunate to have a locker at my club, thus it is unnecessary for me to bring my bag at all
