I lost a rug that was worth more than the kit I played one night. It was a DW Collector's kit, btw.
I will preface this by saying I have only used $20 rubber-backed entrance mats from Home Depot after this incident, and leave the fancy stuff at home.
Story time. I'll set the scene. We played an outdoor patio gig late in the evening, which had a wall behind me, and on the other side was my gig van, the Mazda5. Not only did I carry all of our gear, but I also carried the guitarist, singer, and their gear as well. Load in and load out were epic games of Tetris, but everything, and I mean everything, had a specific space where it belonged. The rug was always first to go into the car.
At the end of the night, the guitarist decided he was going to help carry things to the car and pack things away. By the time I had begun to pack my kit, which went in last, so it would be the first thing out, he already had the speakers, stands, and mixer loaded. By this point you wouldn't be able to see the rug with the gear on top, so I thought nothing of it.
Unfortunately, while we were loading out he chucked the rug over the wall and forgot to pick it up on the other side, as it had landed in a grassy area behind a curb and he was unable to see it. Damn. We went to grab a bite to eat, and I noticed the rug was not butted up against my arm rest when we went back to the car. Damn again. We traveled back to the club, and the rug was nowhere to be found. Another damn as well as several other colorful words, some of which I am proud of and are new sayings between us.