Compiled & Edited by Bill Bish,
National Coalition of Motorcyclists
THE AIM/NCOM MOTORCYCLE E-NEWS SERVICE is brought to you by Aid to InjuredMotorcyclists (A.I.M.) and the National Coalition of Motorcyclists (NCOM), andis sponsored by the Law Offices of Richard M. Lester. For more information, callus at 1-(800) ON-A-BIKE or visit us on our website at <
KILLERS AMONG US– New motorcycle registrations have continuously increased since1990, which means more riders on the road, but at the same time motorcyclecrashes are down. This good news is compounded by a 47% drop in injuryinvolvement from 1990 through 1998 when it began to rise, though even in 2001the rate was still 30% lower than in 1990. However, now for the bad news;motorcycle fatalities are way up, and have doubled in the past five years to nowequal the 1990 fatality rate.
The reason for this dramatic increase goes far beyond the simple formula: moremotorcycles = more fatalities. In a recent Special Report written by Wendy Moonfor Motorcycle Consumer News, the author looks deep into the numbers andexplains that this epidemic is more than just a function of the numbers. In1990 there was 1 fatality in 37 crashes, but now it’s 1 fatality in 22 crashes ?a rise in crash-to-fatality rate of 40.5%.
While safetycrats insist that this is a result of more states easing helmetrequirements, NHTSA’s “Recent Trends in Motorcycle Fatalities” states thathelmet use in all motorcycle fatalities has increased from 43% to 53% from1998-2001, even though more states did not require adult helmet usage.
Speed and engine size are also not to blame for the increased motorcyclistfatality rate. Speed-related motorcycle fatalities have dropped from 41% in1998 to 38% in 2002, and states with higher posted limits have the lowestpercentage of motorcycle fatalities.
Booze-blaming also doesn’t hold water, because alcohol-involved rider fatalitieshave fallen from 40% in 1990 to 28% in 1999.
All in all, considering the decline in crashes despite the increase in ridershipdemonstrates that today’s motorcyclists are more educated, better trained andsafer than ever before!
So, what’s the answer? What has changed since 1990 to account for such adramatic increase in motorcyclist fatalities?
According to MCN, the one thing that explains why more die while less areinjured is the radical change in the traffic mix. Specifically, since 1990, thelight truck vehicle (LTV) market, which includes Sport Utility Vehicles (SUVs),has increased 200 times and now represents approximately 50% of new passengervehicle sales!
In 2002, car vs. motorcycle accidents claimed the lives of 662 motorcyclists,but that same year LTV vs. motorcycle accidents killed 645 bikers. Now, to putthis in perspective, passenger cars outnumber SUVs by a margin of 3-1!Therefore, LTVs are enormously over-represented in fatal motorcycle accidents.
These LTV-related accidents are referred to as “mismatch crashes” and explainswhy more of those collisions are fatal. This mismatch has been well documentedin terms of the danger to passenger car occupants involved in collisions withLTVs, as size, bumper height, frontal geometry, frame stiffness and masscontribute to a lethal combination. So it’s not just that there are more LTVson the road today, but that it’s their design that creates the ultimate mismatchwith motorcycles.
So, the next time legislators call for a mandatory helmet law, ask ’em what theydrive!
HELMET REPEAL PASSES MICHIGAN HOUSE– A bill to amend Michigan’s 38-year oldmandatory helmet law was passed by the House, but the leader of the Senate hasstated that the bill will not be taken up before the end of session.HB-4325, sponsored by Representative Leon Drolet, was approved by the MichiganHouse of Representatives by a vote of 69-37 on November 10th, and the bill nowgoes over to the Senate where it has a companion bill, S-321, sponsored bySenator Alan Cropsey.Bikers over 21 who’ve been licensed to ride a motorcycle for at least two yearsand finished a safety course wouldn’t have to wear a helmet under the bill,which must pass the Senate and be signed by the governor before becoming law.
CHICAGO DROPS HELMET PROPOSAL, BUT MAY CONFISCATE NOISY BIKES– Motorcyclistspacked the Chicago City Council transportation committee meeting as cityofficials were preparing to consider Alderman Burke’s proposal for a city-widehelmet requirement, but were informed that the proposed ordinance had been pulled.
Alderman Allen, chairman of the committee, gave no explanation as to why theordinance was pulled, but before the committee adjourned, he did commit toinforming ABATE of Illinois in advance should the proposal be placed back on theagenda at a later date.
However, Alderman Natarus, who reportedly “will never like ABATE”, has agreed toconsider an equally bad ordinance that would allow the city to confiscatemotorcycles for noise violations. ABATE is scheduled to meet with AldermanNatarus about this ordinance after the veto session.
ILLINOIS BIKERS SUE OVER DISCRIMINATION– Two Chicago-area motorcyclists aresuing a Cary marina and restaurant, alleging workers there curtailed their freespeech rights by denying them service because of their biker attire.
The bikers wore jackets displaying motorcycle club insignia, and workers at theBroken Oar Marina in Cary, IL and its adjoining restaurant told them they wouldnot serve them unless they removed their colors, co-plaintiff Peter James said.
“What if I found a Bulls jacket offensive?” plaintiff James said.
James, of suburban Brookfield, and Scott Patterson, also of suburban Chicago,are seeking $20,000 in damages from the business for violations of their FirstAmendment rights to free speech and expression.
The complaint, filed in McHenry County court, says James and Patterson went tothe Broken Oar in September 2002 after a ride. James said other motorcyclistswere on the ride, too, and they all stopped at the Broken Oar. Employees parkedthe group’s bikes.
“We got inside and they said, ‘We can’t serve you. If you go back and take yourvests off we would consider serving you,'” James said. “It’s gotten to the pointthat we’re not going to stand for this anymore.”
James wore a jacket with the Outlaws Motorcycle Club emblem on it. Pattersonbelongs to Brothers Rising. Other bikers in the group, who are not a party tothe lawsuit, wore insignia from their clubs, which include religious and clean &sober clubs.
The groups are members of the Northern Illinois Confederation of Clubs, whichaims to end discrimination against motorcyclists. James is chairman of theconfederation.
James said he believes motorcyclists are discriminated against because lostpeople just don’t understand their lifestyle. He said businesses and thegeneral public should overcome stereotypes left over from decades ago aboutmotorcycle clubs.
“We are the last truly free Americans,” James said.
CRUISE CONTROL– When Tom Cruise shaped up for his next action flick, he did iton one wheel. According to Rolling Stone Magazine, Cruise checked into racinglegend Keith Code’s “On One Wheel” wheelie school at Willow SpringsInternational Raceway in Rosamond, California in June to hone his alreadyterrific wheelie skills in preparation for the filming of Mission Impossible 3.
“Tom was a good rider already. He has a great combination of bravery andcontrol, just like in his films,” says Whitney Fair, director of the school.”He’s already just about good enough to enter stunt contests. The idea was toget to the next action level on the motorcycle and, in his usual go-for-itstyle, he did!”
School founder and instructor, Keith Code, says, “Doing wheelies ranks high onthe list of the most frivolous and decadent things in the history of Mankind butI look at it from the perspective of skill and control.”
The highlight of the school is Code’s invention, the Wheelie Training Bike. Theschool’s Triumph Speed Triples are equipped with two anti flip-over devices. Anadjustable microswitch kills one of the three cylinders while the other appliesthe rear brake. Both devices are adjustable and can produce the desired heightof the wheelie.
“Your eyes will pop out of your head when it goes up–butflipping it won’t be easy,” says Code.
WORLD’S FASTEST INDIAN– Oscar winning actor Sir Anthony Hopkins will star in”The World’s Fastest Indian,” the true-life story of Burt Munro, a New Zealanderwho spent several decades constructing a 1920 Indian Motorcycle, then traveledto Utah and set a new land-speed record back in the 70’s. Roger Donaldson,director of “The Recruit” is using his own writing and is directing the project.
WEIRD NEWS: HELMETS DOWN UNDER– A recent court case may force Australian cowboysto wear helmets. Officials in New South Wales have charged a ranch owner overthe death of a rider who fell off a horse, and safety advocates insist he shouldhave had a helmet on.
The rancher’s conviction is creating controversy in the Australian Outback, andcowboy hats for the jackaroos may be heading for the history books.
A ranch manager says the only time he’s ever known the cowboys to wear helmetswas when they were riding motorbikes, and the president of a farmer’s group toldthe Associated Press (AP) that replacing the broad-brimmed hats with helmetscould increase skin cancer and heat stroke. But others dismiss that argument,saying it’s possible to come up with a hard hat that has a broad brim.
LEAKY MOTORCYCLE DESTROYS HOME — The Pasadena Fire Marshal’s Office hasdetermined that a motorcycle with a possible gasoline leak is the cause of afire which led to the destruction of a home and a garage and damaged aneighboring home.
Arson investigators discovered two motorcycles inside the garage, and thehomeowner had been working on the carburetor of one of the motorcycles. Apossible fuel leak may have caused the gasoline vapors to spread to the waterheater that was inside the garage where the fire originated, according to TheCitizen Reporter, a Texas newspaper.
So if you’re working on your bike, do so in a well-ventilated area. If you’restoring your bike over the winter, make sure your fuel petcock is turned off!
QUOTABLE QUOTE: “If you expect to be ignorant and free, you expect somethingthat never was, and never will be.”
Thomas Jefferson (1743-1826), Third President of the United States
