bike chop shop supossedly raided.....

[jodemeister]

coming late to the thread - sounds like this could be the guy that stole Jimmy D's bikes out of his house at Comfort.

[Wumpus]

i believe it was posted here that he was out on bail. is that true?

I doubt he is out on bail considering he has outstanding warrants from Arizona.

[Chardog]

My GF went out with him in July '07 a couple of times, before we met.

Before I got to those three words, I was thinking "It's not just bikes he's steeling."

[matu155]

I doubt he is out on bail considering he has outstanding warrants from Arizona.

good point.

[Chardog]

Good Question!
Several years ago the Austin Ridge Riders enclosed trailer (filled with bides for the kid's rides program) was stolen.

Sounds like this guys storage unit was near ARR's as well. But we did not keep our trailer there.

Also, keg tap and some racer prizes were stolen from Camp Eagle race I think 1.5 years ago.

[damicoaustin]

Hi, it's Rob D'Amico, League of Bicycling Voters (http://www.lobv) guy and writer (http://www.damicoaustin.com). I'm also working on a story on James Clayton. So if you have any interesting information on the case or knew or interacted with him in any way, give me a shout: damico@damicoaustin.org or 627-1343.

[NSAID]

Moojo = Viscous Cow
Cujo = Viscous Dog

...in case ya'll were wondering....

Honey = Viscous Bee Vomit

Or is that vicious?

[Austin Bike]

why are you such a dork?

According to your logic, one should not:
-Sell OR buy on craigslist
-Host a race on one's ranch
-make friends with people on group rides

These were *all* part of his MO.

Craigslist is great for cheap stuff that you want instant cash for or would like to see the condition of before buying. As with everything, use common sense. Besides, since when were paypal dollars more like cash than cash itself?

Don't worry about hello kitty, I'm sure she doesn't make any friends on rides.

[Mellow Ronnie]

I wondered what Jack was talking about too. There are too many bike shops down the street to narrow it down though. BSS? Austin Tricyclist? Performance Bike? Cycle Progression? South Side Cycles? Mellow Johnnies? I think there are probably more within a mile or two of J&A.

he never worked at mellow johnnys

[GTFOOMW]

Hi Bike Mojo Community-

I'm Isadora Vail, a reporter for the Statesman who is following this story. hope it's okay that I post here.
I was wanting to speak with someone who knew James, or had direct contact with him? Feel free to call me at the office at 445-3763 or email me at ivail@statesman.com.
Also, Austin Police Department said if you had a bike stolen from James to call them at 974-5978.

Thanks for your help,
Isadora Vail, reporter
Austin American-Statesman
(512) 445-3763
ivail@statesman.com

He spilled beer on me at the Horse, so I punched him in the dick and headbutted him. To say I "knew" him would be inaccurate though, even in the biblical sense. Sorry.

[GTFOOMW]

he never worked at mellow johnnys

That name makes me think of piss.

[MargaritaClarita]

It's so crazy to imagine feigning friendship to case someone's home. That is so far beyond an impulsive theft which is already bad enough. That level of greed is just off the charts. If someone is capable of that then I imagine nothing is off-limits.

Yeah, no kidding! But friendship isn't all he feigned. This guy's a complete douche. And as the police have noted, he definitely didn't find all of his allegedly stolen bikes through Craigslist.

I'm one of the alleged folks who allegedly had their bike stolen by the alleged James Clayton.

My boyfriend, LuckySkunk, posted earlier today on this thread; needless to say, he's a little pissed and would like to string this guy up along with the rest of y'all. I probably shouldn't say what I would do to him if I were at the front of the line; we Texas girls can be rather tough when we want.

I'm a local, amateur triathlete (at best), and I don't frequent bike forums or ATXBS(?), so I didn't find out about the arrest until last night when a friend emailed me about the KEYE newscast. My apologies if I'm long-winded.....reading this thread has been some good therapy after the last 24 hours.

As to the un-alleged part....

James Clayton befriended me online over several months in spring 2007. I eventually met him in person in July 2007 at BSS to watch the TDF with him. He was charming and funny and self-deprecating and asked me out on a date. We went on some dates over about a 2 or 3 week period; I met one or two of his friends, and he met some of my friends. I remember his online name for a time was "Fools Gold".

Eventually, he came over to my home when we took my dog walking around Town Lake, which he coincidentally had suggested we do. He seemed quite keen to meet my dog and take her out walking, which I attributed to being a fellow dog-lover....

He had told me online that he had been a professional mountain bike racer who now ran his own coaching business, and he sure had the knowledge and contacts to pull off that story well. So, I naturally showed him my Serotta Concours bike (a frame order screw-up that fit me almost perfectly and which I had been VERY lucky to get from BSS since I could never actually afford a custom ti) and my cheap old mountain bike in my garage.

After those one or two visits to my house, I never saw James Clayton again. He suddenly became "crazy" busy with work and then was supposedly out of town in OKC for a family funeral and impromptu reunion (even though he had told me his family was in Arizona and that he was originally from California) and said he wasn't interested in dating any longer. I wrote him off as yet another loser and forgot about it.

Six months later, January 2008, my bike was stolen from inside my home, setting off my security alarm. I know they were in and out within a couple of minutes because the police were nearby and responded immediately. Someone asked earlier on this thread how the alleged thief got into my house. They broke down my front door frame, probably with a crowbar. Whoever stole my bike knew I stored it in the garage and knew its value, since they went straight to the garage, according to my alarm company, and took nothing else from my home.

As I thought of the few people who knew a) where I kept my road bike and b) what it was actually worth....I, of course, thought of James Clayton, but immediately discounted him because he was a fellow cyclist and coach who had a nice bike himself, more than one actually. Why would he need to steal mine? As has been noted, he also drove a very nice Land Rover and seemed to not be hurting for money. Doh.

It's one thing to have your home invaded and to feel that violation. It's quite another to now believe it was allegedly someone whom you let into your life as a friend, however briefly, and even dated.

I suspect there are many people on the fringes of the Austin bike community -- amateur athletes like myself -- whom James Clayton also befriended and/or dated and then allegedly stole their bike or bike parts.

I have a lot of words to describe this loser. But y'all have been so eloquent, I'll let yours stand. BTW, I seriously laughed out loud at the Halloween costume idea. Thanks again for the BikeMojo Therapy, from a newbie, and a mostly roadie, at that.

Oh, and the bike shop that Jack of Jack & Adam's referred to where James Clayton worked or volunteered or whatever is Austin Tri-Cyclist.

And FWIW, I've already talked to the authorities and shared my story. I implore anyone who's had any contact with James Clayton to do the same, regardless of how minor that contact was. It might just help the case against him. Thank you.

[EdM]

I have a lot of words to describe this loser. But y'all have been so eloquent, I'll let yours stand. BTW, I seriously laughed out loud at the Halloween costume idea. Thanks again for the BikeMojo Therapy, from a newbie, and a mostly roadie, at that.

I propose the State of Texas put him to death by "58 tooth chainring up the cornhole."

[aLaN]

He's lucky he was caught by the police....

I have nothing else to contribute as I wouldn't want to incriminate myself, should something bad happen to him.





On a different note, it amazes me that a thief like this would keep it up, you gotta know that at some point you will get caught..... That and keeping so much of the goods in your house...




In any event, he has changed the Texas cycling community. For years, when I attended races, bikes were everywhere.... unsecured.

I always thought to myself, "Nobody here would take my bike, they all have their own bikes. And if they wanted my bike they would most likely already have one like it..."

Now you see equipment and bikes secured... probably a good thing in the long run...... But he sure has put a black eye on our community.




He has taken more than bikes, he has taken our innocence.

Fucker.

Jail will be too good for him.

[Hello Kitty]

I think i saw James Clayton pre-registered for the Mas-o-Menos race next weekend.

[bartman]

I propose the State of Texas put him to death by "58 tooth chainring up the cornhole."

LOL! best punishment idea to date!

[djames]

I used to see his Rover at the Dirt Derby. Never talked to him though, I guess my bike wasn't expensive enough.

Hey..I'd steal your bike any day of the week, Michael!
And I ain't saying that just because your my friend either

[6250]

I doubt he is out on bail considering he has outstanding warrants from Arizona.

That would depend on whether or not Arizona was willing to extradite him. Some states will only extradite from immediately surrounding states, depending on what the warrant was for.

[Eokerholm]

I know Claire has her little "following" on MTBR Passion and I see Bear's posts frequently and Unsub's.

Y'all should cross post there in case anyone from MTBR might have been swindled by this ass.

The more information that got, the longer the sentence.....

[ceeco]

If this is James first arrest and he did not use any weapons or violence in the process, he most likely will get probation and no jail time.

Sucks, but true.