Car Break-In at T-Wall

I returned to my car at the Tennessee Wall Parking lot today, Sunday Sept.2, 2007, to find my drivers side window and my friend's drivers side window broken out. We each had left our wallets in the center console and they were gone. The thief had quicky racked up a couple hundred dollars worth of charges at stores and gas stations before we could cancel our cards. I had always thought that if valuables were out of view you'd be left alone and were safe. Not the case. Even if we would have had our wallets on us our windows still would have been broken.

We reported the theft to the Marion County Sheriff. He said a few years ago the T-Wall parking lot had numerous car break-ins until he caught the culprit. The sheriff had to hide in the woods for a couple days to catch a guy that was hitting climbing area parking lots in Tennessee and Georgia. Ours was the first case since then.

The alternatives I've thought of:
1) Leave someone behind to watch the vehicles
2) Drive a beater down and leave the doors and windows open
3) Park nearby and get shuttled

The End of the Innocence

I'm sorry to hear that this is happening again, and sorry you lost so much. I have a friend who left his rack in the trunk (his partner had brought his rack and they didn't need both); it was gone when he got back at the end of the day.

I guess the only safe option if you're going to park there is to use your option 2 and not leave anything at all in your car.

JL

My car was actually broken into TWICE at T-Wall, two different occasions. The first time nothing got stolen, but the second time they got a lot of stuff. We got some of it back when the sheriff caught the guy, but lost a lot of the nicer stuff. My solution was just to never climb there again, but we lived in the Gunks at that point so it wasn't a big deal.

MF oughta be hung off the waterfall for a week or so, is what. Once word of this gets around things should get better.

my car was broken in to once upon a time, there is hope i ended up testifying against the guy. if u arent that patient just wait in the woods with a posse a la michael crowder....

My car was broken into at T-wall on Sat, Sept 29. They broke the driver's side window. They did not take anything but it was a real pain to get the window replaced. That was $200 out of my climbing funds.

That area is such a hot bed for tweeker, white trash, mullet and tank top wearing, inbred, uneducated, drug addicted, sister and animal screwing, littering, butt rock listening, toothless, turds of human beings. Basically welcome to the South.

At the red we would just leave the windows open and doors unlocked. This isn't helpful if you have a nice stereo or are traveling for months, but it will guarantee no window breakage. My car has a trunk inaccessible from the car which helps too.

bbrock wrote:That area is such a hot bed for tweeker, white trash, mullet and tank top wearing, inbred, uneducated, drug addicted, sister and animal screwing, littering, butt rock listening, toothless, turds of human beings. Basically welcome to the South.

you forgot Meth addict

Just an update on the ongoing break in situation...Yesterday, Saturday, 11/3, there were a couple more cars broken in to. One car, with windows rolled down, had the glove box pried open. Another had a window busted out but most things of value were not taken...the car alarm may have scared the thieves off. There were probably 15ish cars up there..

Dang tweekers... We were up there the other weekend but just camped there at night and everything was fine. So much for leaving the windows down. That was my plan.

Two awesome methods you can deal with this and their both affective. A friend of mine hooked up an inverter and wired the jeep so whoever touches the metal get the shit shocked right out of them. However don't forget the warning stickers, litigation and all: you know the court system that advocates for the thieves who get hurt doing their dirty deeds. CYA cover your ass: it protects you in case someone does get shocked to the point of going to the hospital. They've been warned. Another option, a mean pitbull, or rottweiler, something that will eat hands and faces off when they stick their hands and faces in the open windows of your car. I guess another option, pay off some friends to hide in the brush capture the person. I'm sure a person can be pretty creative with heights and ropes, hehe. Good luck.

Jeff Mekolites wrote:One car, with windows rolled down, had the glove box pried open.

I wonder how much meth you can get for a box of tampons (supposedly what was taken from the glovebox)?

When I heard that car alarm blaring as we came down the trail, I was really worried; I'm glad the losses were minimal this time.

JL

Yes they may have gotten a few tampons from our car. The dumbasses left an cooler full of beer in the back though. She forgot that she had the glove box locked unfortunatley. They broke it all to shit. I still think having the windows down is a good option.

bbrock wrote:That area is such a hot bed for tweeker, white trash, mullet and tank top wearing, inbred, uneducated, drug addicted, sister and animal screwing, littering, butt rock listening, toothless, turds of human beings. Basically welcome to the South.

Just wanted to reiterate how dead spot on you are with this comment. I've often wondered what would happen if the property values along that road were to increase. Would people come in and clean the place up and would that just attract more trollers.

Was that guy who got caught a few years back an opportunistic redneck or was he a full on meth head lookin for dope money?

this time of year I just long for the T-Wall. Hope the drought is at least leaving ya'll with plenty of dry weather for climbing.

"Was that guy who got caught a few years back an opportunistic redneck or was he a full on meth head lookin for dope money?"

Actually, he was an opportunistic drifter from Ohio, (or some midwestern state.)

Made my first visit to Tenn, at Black Mt., last summer. Was solo,late afternoon, mid week, and was followed by tinted window pickup truck to the parking lot. They sat inside and watched as I loaded pack and walked off. I was VERY suspicious, right from the start. So I was 'packin' when I walked off. Watched from vantage point as he got out to scope my car out. When they backed up their truck to my car, I came out of the woods with a .45 cocked and locked. Truck hit the road and was out of there in seconds. Mullet head, wife-beater shirt, all of above fits the description of this PWT example. Won't be back there soon.

tenesmus wrote: Just wanted to reiterate how dead spot on you are with this comment. I've often wondered what would happen if the property values along that road were to increase. Would people come in and clean the place up and would that just attract more trollers.

I think one of the big factors in the break-ins is that climbers don't constitute a positive economic impact to that area. I mean, there's just nothing to buy in that town, apart from the odd pickled egg. So to the locals and drifters, we're just crazy rich folks from out of town. Also it sucks to be poor, sucks to have limited options. I don't feel a lot of venom towards the thieves anymore (although I maintain it's a dick move to take someone's portaledge).

Woodchuck ATC wrote:Made my first visit to Tenn, at Black Mt., last summer. Was solo,late afternoon, mid week, and was followed by tinted window pickup truck to the parking lot. They sat inside and watched as I loaded pack and walked off. I was VERY suspicious, right from the start. So I was 'packin' when I walked off. Watched from vantage point as he got out to scope my car out. When they backed up their truck to my car, I came out of the woods with a .45 cocked and locked. Truck hit the road and was out of there in seconds. Mullet head, wife-beater shirt, all of above fits the description of this PWT example. Won't be back there soon.

Super cool story. The only thing that could top it off, is if you had have filled their asses full of lead. Realistically things will never change around that area, or areas like that in other places. If you want amazing climbing without the hassle of these indigenous folks, you have to move to a different place, preferably out west. I lived there for 10 years and these kind of things just didn't happen that often. I'm speaking from the experiences of myself and climbing partners only. I'm sure it happens, but it's just not that common.

I'm not picking on Tennessee here just for the record. I live in Alabama, which in my opinion is the smelliest of the turd states.

Love it or leave it Brian, love it or leave it...how's that for down home, cracker-ass rhetoric...at least we have Sandrock, right? Well, nevermind...

lol...Ben the sandrock jab was dirty man. strictly from a climbing standpoint, I think the dirtiest would have to be a tie between Miss and Florida...because the only climbing they have their is your beloved indoor gyms ;)