2 guys tried to break into the store tonight while I was here alone about 2 hours ago. I was unarmed (that changes tomorrow) and quite alone. They tried to come through the back door. 2 late teenage guys.
I hit “911” and in less than four minutes we had three car loads of Dearborn’s finest here and the suspects were spread eagled against the back wall.
That was the excitement for the night.
harsh judgement Tom. They may have just been getting in early for the ‘s’ bends.
Congratulations on the bust Dano!!
Nothing like REALLY wanting a gun to make you a believer, huh? (Althougth to be precise, you’ll probably settle for a weapon, right?) Here’s hoping that it just remains a security blanket.
I had a pedal wrench. Nearly as lethal.
That explains my unasked question of whether you were late at the shop or very early! Didn’t I spot a baseball bat (oh, and ball and mitt, of course!) in the back during my visit, Tom?
I used to have a shortened, 12 GA. S&W combat shotgun attached to the underside of my desk. I got rid of it when we got some younger guys working here. It didn’t seem safe and really wasn’t. Besides, I don’t like living in a world where I need that.
In this case, the system worked perfectly. I heard some guys breaking in. Called 911 and the police were here in moments.
Perfect.
Sounds a good and relational argument to me Tom, after all they can hardl turn your own phone on you!
Hope that is the end of your holiday excitement and that you whether the pre-Christmas rush. I shall be travelling back to Vancouver on Christmas Day and returning in the New Year. Have a safe and enjoyable time.
Wow…4 minutes is pretty quick though, I guess - don’t really know how big Dearborn is.
Frightening. So glad you’re alright. So glad I live in a rural community.
Bravo, Tom. And props to Dearborn’s finest. Your story hearkens back to my cop days … but my stories only rarely work out with such a perfect ending.
4 minutes is a pretty good response time … but I guarantee the officers were flat out hauling to get there in a hurry. ‘Hot’ calls like this always get top priority.
You might consider a call to the officers’ shift supervisor (usually a lieautenant) and offer a complement. Maybe even a letter of thanks for their personnel file. From experience, the vast vast majority of citizen calls to a supervisor are extremely negative … I guarantee they’d love to hear from a pleased citizen.
An aside, can you imagine the look on the would-be burglars faces had you come out wielding a Park frame straightening tool like a sword while wearing an Atmos helmet and your Hed tri suit and yelling like a Scottish Highlander? That would have been priceless.
Was probably Tibbs trying to get his mitts on a P3C.
Either way, nothing a big fat, juicy can of pepper spray can’t handle. Lord how I hate that stuff!!
Glad it all worked out in your favor…
Tom, get a nice “carry weapon”, like a Sig Sauer P229, or the like. MI’s got a decent CCW law, now, and not every police department is as efficient as Dearborn’s. Man, when I was a kid, we NEVER messed around with them. Orville Hubbard’s boys were BAD ASSES!
Tony
Were they armed? How do you feel about it? I was robbed at gunpoint by a couple of 16-20 yr olds a week ago and it really pisses me off.
"An aside, can you imagine the look on the would-be burglars faces had you come out wielding a Park frame straightening tool like a sword while wearing an Atmos helmet and your Hed tri suit and yelling like a Scottish Highlander? That would have been priceless. "
LOL Nearly blew coffee all over the monitor
Tom, think long on the weapon thing. Perhaps a bank-type alarm would give more peace of mind.
" I had a pedal wrench. Nearly as lethal."
Ouch. I’d rather get shot!
Good for you Tom!
A LBS in my area, the Bike Lane in Burke, VA, (just outside the beltway) was robbed about two months ago. They stole something like 20 bikes and many were quite expensive (Madone, S-Works, ect.). I don’t think the punks were ever caught.
Dave from VA
An aside, can you imagine the look on the would-be burglars faces had you come out wielding a Park frame straightening tool like a sword while wearing an Atmos helmet and your Hed tri suit and yelling like a Scottish Highlander? That would have been priceless.
Thanks. I just coughed up my oatmeal. That’s the funniest thing I’ve heard (seen!!??) in a while! 
Wow…4 minutes is pretty quick though, I guess - don’t really know how big Dearborn is.
Dearborn is LARGE. Really big suburb of Detroit, probably 100,000 people (that’s a total guess though, it all sort of molds together into one giant Suburbia in SE Michigan).
Four minutes for the cops to arrive is superb. Bravo, Tom D, on your calm response and astute thinking in the face of adversity. Glad those fools are behind bars!
Tom,
When I had my shop, a couple of geniuses tried to break in the back door. First they tried to dissarm my alarm which triggered the whole unit to go off. Never caught the guy but at least he didn’t get in. We had about 5 bikes packed waiting for the UPS guy to pick up leaning against the door.
Not sure if you have an alarm but I had a panic button near my desk that I could hit instead of making a call. It set the sirens on and contacted the police.
Glad you are ok.
Steve H
A call to the shift supervisor and a letter will probably also insure that if you need them again that you will get the same quick response. “Put down the donut Ralphie, it’s that bike guys place, he’s cool”