UNSUSPECTING mountain bikers are being followed home by gangs of thieves targeting their expensive bikes.
Rumours of the practice have circulated for some time among mountain bikers using the tracks at Ashton Court and Leigh Woods in North Somerset.
Avon & Somerset police have confirmed there is a significant problem and they are now taking a series of steps to try and deal with the issue.
An e-mail dated March 27 seen by the Evening Post from Elaine Collingwood, the constabulary's Neighbourhood Watch co-ordinator for South Bristol, read: "There has been an increase in the number of burglaries and shed breaks where high-value bicycles are being stolen. It is thought that a group of individuals are targeting victims whilst owners are out and about on their bikes at places like Leigh Woods and Ashton Court, before following them home.
"Offenders are then targeting houses and sheds, breaking padlocks and also in some cases entry has been gained by ripping out the shed roof." The e-mail gives details of a burglary in Southville on March 27, when five bikes, together worth £16,000, were stolen. They had been used at Ashton Court the previous weekend.
Two people who believe they are also victims of the trend are Ross Terry, 38, and Anthea Hawke, 33, of St Andrews. They used the track on Sunday afternoon and were later burgled, with Mr Terry's £5,000 Ibis Mojo HD and Miss Hawke's £850 Trek 6300 taken from their home as they slept.
The thieves also took the couple's dark grey BMW 1 Series car but they believe they only took this as an afterthought, because the keys for the vehicle were by the front door.
They say they have heard of plenty of stories of people saying they think they had been followed home and burgled, and thinks signs could be put up warning mountain bikers.
Mr Terry, who works for a software company, said: "I go mountain biking with the Bristol Mountain Biking Club reasonably regularly and it has been mentioned that people follow people home a few times. A lot of people have had stuff nicked from garages from all over the city.
"They have done quite a lot of work to the tracks at Ashton Court and Leigh Woods. The changes have made it really popular but it seems it may have also made it popular with thieves who can hang around and target certain cyclists.
"There seems to be a lot of anecdotal evidence of people being followed for their bikes but there are no signs warning people that it is happening. I have even heard stories of people almost being mugged for their bikes up there."
Describing the burglary he added: "The people who came into our house did not ransack the place, they knew exactly what they wanted.
"I think there must have been two or three of them and the car was just an added bonus because they saw the keys.
"Although I didn't see anyone follow us back from Ashton Court, my gut feeling is that is exactly what happened. Now we will be keeping an eye out on sites like eBay and Gumtree to make it difficult for the bikes to be sold."
Miss Hawke, a teacher, said: "They were determined to get in because they broke the frame of the window and knew exactly what they wanted to take.
"There were other items in the house they could easily have taken as well but they were not touched.
"The thought of people paying attention to you and potentially following you home is horrible.
"If I was on my own someone could take my bike if they wanted to. It's not what you want to be thinking about when you go off for a bike ride."
A spokesman for Avon & Somerset said the force are investigating a number of bicycle thefts that have taken place recent months.
PC Greig Difford said: "There were 28 such incidents in March 2012, where bicycles have been taken from homes in Bristol.
"The owners of these bikes had been cycling in the Leigh Woods or Ashton Court area in the weeks leading up to the theft. Leigh Woods and Ashton Court now attracts many cyclists as it was voted the 'best inner city mountain bike trail in the country' and we are keen to put a stop to these thefts and bring the offenders to justice.
"Some of the bikes stolen have been worth up to £5,000 and we have increased patrols in the area."
PC Difford urged anyone who notices suspicious behaviour to call the police on the force's non-emergency number, 101.
Avon and Somerset Police have also been part of a joint project to support their work in tackling bike theft with a crime reduction viral video campaign, featuring a bike expert from New York who grades the locking techniques of cyclists in Avon and Somerset.
For more information visit www.halgradesyourlocks.com
A spokeswoman for Bristol City Council, which has responsibility for the mountain bike tracks at Ashton Court and Leigh Woods, said: "We have no recorded incidents of this nature but will be happy to work with police to see what steps can be taken."
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