Cleaner cruisers coming. Indian going, going... Rider training effects debated. Automatic organ donation? Paper cruisers available. Indian Motorcycle Company sets final sale date. Janklow seeks acquittal. Leave the pet snake at home.
Tighter Motorcycle Emissions Standards Coming
Starting in 2006, motorcycle makers will face the first tightened nationwide streetbike emissions standards in over 25 years. However, they are already in effect in California, where they were applied to 2004 models. The changes are forecast to add about $75 to the cost of a new bike and cut 54,000 tons of emissions per year from the air. New evaporative emissions standards slated for 2010 are also predicted to save 12 million gallons of fuel by preventing evaporation. Smaller makers -- those producing less than 3000 units a year with less than 500 employees, will have until 2008 to meet the initial standards.
AMA DirectLink
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, WI
Waste News, OH
Indianapolis Star, IN
EPA's Streetbike Web Page
U.S. Newswire
Guardian, UK
And Tennessee may begin emissions-testing motorcycles.
Knoxville News Sentinel, TN
Mandatory Organ Dontation Added to California Helmet Law Repeal
California legislators added language to a helmet-law-repeal bill that says unhelmeted motorcyclists killed in an accident would be presumed willing to donate their organs. Helmeted riders who get killed by head injuries are terrible sources of organs because they average about two or three other fatal injuries (which tend to be blown-up organs) because they had to hit so hard to get through the helmet's protection. Unhelmeted riders, on the other hand, can die from head injuries after a fairly mild impact and can be a great resource for organ harvesters. Of course, there are religious and other issues that arise when they are presumed to be ready to make "an anatomical gift." The AMA is upset.
AMA DirectLink
Janklow Seeks Acquittal
After being found guilty of manslaughter for running a stop sign and killing motorcyclist Randy Scott, South Dakota's Congressman and former governor has filed a routine motion for acquittal. This week he also lost his law license. The motion is required to keep his appeal options open, but if the case is appealed it would go to the South Dakota Supreme Court, where Janklow appointed four out of five judges, creating new issues. Janklow could also ask for a sentencing and probation arrangement that would keep hiom out of jail and have the felony removed from his record. His sentencing has also been postponed two days until January 22.
Rapid City, Journal, SD
Aberdeen News, SD
AMA DirectLink
Is Rider Training the Best Method of Improving Motorcycle Safety?
The state motorcycle rights organizations (SMROs) think so, and they and the like-minded Motorcycle Riders Foundation (MRF) were surprised when, at a Senate-committee hearing called to gather info on federal legislation dubbed the "MOtorcycle Safety Initiative," the head of the Motorcycle Safety Foundation (MSF) pointed out that the positive effects of rider training have been limited. This may seem doubly surprising since many states training prpgrams are based on MSF models or information, and the MSF even runs a few states' training programs. MSF head Tim Buche cited the single significant study on rider training when he pointed out that the effect of initial training apparently only lasts six months. Obviously, the MSF believes in and supports rider training, but it apparently does not feel it should be the only avenue to rider safety.The rights groups tend to see rider training as a marketable alternative to safety measures, such as helmet laws, that they regard as odious. They have also been lukewarm to calls for research into the causes of accidents and injuries, perhaps because such studies are virtually certain to confirm the effectiveness of helmets and laws requiring ther use.Although the MRF released linked to below saysd that the MSF spokesman cited only one study, that study actually reached a more positive conclusion about U.S. rider training than some other studies have. One potentially positive aspect of rider training programs that hasn't been studied and would be difficult to assess is its function as a filtering mechanism. It gives people who really aren't suited to motorcycling a safe venue and some expert evaluation to discover the fact rather than in traffic.Although the only release online on this topic is from the MRF and is a bit one-sided and provides little background on the issue, it gives the reader a sense of the rift on this subject. We we plan to follow this up in the near future.
Motorcycle Rights Foundation
Massachusetts Motorcyclists Sue over Insurance Rates
They claim they are denied discounts offered to other classes of vehicles in the state.
Boston Globe, MA
New Site Lists Motorsports Jobs
If you are looking for a job in the motorcycle business, MotorsportEmployment.com, which allows job seekers free access to listings, is worth checking out.
MotorsportEmployment.com
Present from Yamaha: Your Own V-Star 1100
Yamaha's papercraft site gives complete instructions for making a paper V-Star (a.k.a. Dragstar in Europe) V-Max or other motorcycles or animal figures.
Yamaha Papercraft Site
Motorcycle Polo Remembered
Modern riders aren't the only ones to do dumb stuff on motorcycles. Motorcycle polo, also known as motoball, was once a popular sport.
Sebastian Sun, FL