hilarious description. and yeah, I usually do it, but it's not always instantly successful. Once when I didn't do it in Northern CA, a mammoth raccoon (looked like a bear cub) used his freakishly long and incredibly dexterous fingers to reach into my closed pannier and pull out about $10 worth of beef jerkey, without unlatching the clasps!! I watched the whole thing transpire from my hammock, with my flashlight on him as I tried to get out of my bag and into some shoes to stop the rascal. Of course, I was naked and freezing as I stumbled out just in time to watch him make off with the booty. I need my beef jerky when I ride, and I was very upset. here's a picture almost to scale.