Touring bass pros take many thousands of dollars worth of gear over many thousands of miles, and stay in dozens of motels and campsites over the tour season. Most never experience any significant loss, but some have had their boats or trucks looted, or even their whole rig stolen. FLW pro Aaron Hastings had that horrible experience in 2003.

Insurance companies seem to make it difficult or very expensive to cover all the equipment that's not bolted down to the boat and truck, so much of what the pros cart around with them is underinsured. They know they're taking a risk, so what do they do to minimize the chances of incurring a loss?

Be Inconspicuous

"The funny part about when (my rig) got stolen was that I've stayed at a lot worse places," Hastings said. "I was staying at a friend's house that time. The police said they think the stickers on the truck gave it away that it was a (pro) fisherman's vehicle. They think somebody was familiar with my route and planned it. It wasn't just somebody passing by."

Familiar advice to avoid being a target for thieves is to not call attention to yourself. "Sponsors don't like it, but now I don't put any stickers on my truck," he said.

That's not an option for many pros, due to their sponsorship contracts, but for weekenders it's sound advice.

Another old saying goes "out of sight, out of mind," and Hastings puts that into practice as well. "My truck at the time didn't have tinted glass, so you could see all my gear inside," he noted. "Now I black out all my windows with 5% tint. You can't see in through anything but the windshield."

Make It Difficult

Thieves are generally a lazy bunch and go after easy targets. They don't want to spend a lot of time and effort just to hit and run. Both Hastings and Bassmaster pro John Crews advise covering your boat whenever possible.

"I'm amazed at how many guys don't put a cover on their boat every night," Hastings said. "If there are 15 boats in the parking lot, and all but two are covered, which ones do you think the thieves will target?

"Sure, it's a little bit of a hassle to put the cover on at the end of the day when you're tired and all, but it's only 5 minutes of effort and well worth it."

Crews agreed, saying: "It's one more layer they have to go through. It just makes it a little more difficult."

Crews also advised parking out near the street or other high-traffic areas – not behind a building with inadequate lighting. "I've actually left a motel where I had reservations because I didn't like the parking situation," he said. "I like a place with one entrance. I try to avoid somewhere with a back entrance, and places with rundown or unsafe looking environs nearby."

And just in case the boat or truck does get robbed during the night, Crews and Hastings both do the same thing to try to salvage the next day's fishing. "I take all the rods and baits I plan to use the next day into the motel room with me the night before," noted Crews. "That way, I have what I need to get by and don't lose a day of fishing."

Hardware

Hastings and Crews also agree that if a thief wants to get to your stuff, you can't really stop him. But you can slow him down, and maybe persuade him to move to an easier target.

There are a number of locking devices available to secure parts of trailers and boats. "You're going to laugh at me that I don't have one, but I keep meaning to buy a Lok-R-Bar for my boat," said Hastings. "I don't have a good reason why I haven't done it yet."

You can also use prop locks, lug-nut locks, various types of trailer-wheel locks, hitch and tow-bar locks, and alarm systems.

Both Crews and FLW pro Matt Herren are impressed with the factory-installed alarm systems on their boats. Crews runs a BassCat with a "really loud alarm," while Herren runs a Skeeter iClass. "The iClass has a self-locking feature," Herren said. "I just key in my four-digit code and it locks all the lids and sets the burglar alarm."

Notable

> North Carolina pro Marty Stone previously told BassFan that Potomac River events seem to be the worst for break-ins and stuff getting stolen.

> McGard is one company that makes security devices for boats and tow vehicles.

> Other good theft-prevention tips are listed at the Missouri State Water Patrol Marine Theft Prevention website.

> One other note on boat covers: "I see guys all the time just leaving their boat cover on the ground to try to hold their parking space when they drive off in the morning," Hastings said. "Those get stolen all the time," leaving the former owner without one key layer of theft protection for his boat. A better idea is to carry a couple of traffic safety cones with your name written on them and leave those in your spot instead.