Legislation Forum

LEGISLATION FORUM

"A PERMIT"

Enclosed are a couple of items which might be of interest to you. One is a permit which was issued to me when I was working on Nantucket Island, Mass. I did not know of this regulation until the boat got to the island at about nine p.m., and I had to leave my machine in the dock warehouse until 8 a.m. the following day, in spite of the fact that I would only have had to go through about 100 yd. of this historical district

I would like to describe another incident that happened which is particularly revealing of the attitude some people take of motorcycles. I have a BMW and had a flat right across from a filling station and garage that also dealt in foreign cars. I needed a 15-mm wrench to remove the rear wheel and couldn’t find mine, so I went across the street to request the loan of one from the garage. This was refused, although I was directly across the street.

I finally got the wheel off by using a crescent wrench, and started to go the service area of this same garage, hoping to get some help in removing the innertube, since it could have been done much easier by using their equipment than the small tire irons furnished by BMW.

When I started in the door someone said, “The closest motorcycle shop is in New Bedford.”

I said, “Thanks,” and started out.

Then the guy said, “I was only kidding.”

Giving him the benefit of the doubt, I waited around for awhile, hoping to get some service for which I was only too willing to pay. Then the same guy said, “We charge $8 for changing a motorcycle tube.” I was pretty fed up by his entire attitude by this time, and left and fixed the tire and tube myself.

This garage also deals in a well known brand of automobile products which I have been using for some time. I also have a car, but after this sort of treatment, I have switched brands. I would also be somewhat disinclined to offer any assistance to automobiles bearing license numbers from this particular part of the country.

Mr. Raymond Soule Harbor View Way Nantucket, Mass.

You are herewith granted a permit to operate a motorcycle within the Old and Historic Nant. District between the hours of 8 p.m. and 8 a.m. over the following streets:

Harbor View Way, Beach St., Broad St., S. Water, across Main, Washington, Francis Union, Orange and Old South Rd., to the Airport and return.

This permit is granted for the purpose of allowing you to get from home to work and return and must be carried on your person while so operating.

Board of Selectmen Secy.

RAYMOND H. SOULE Albany, N. Y.

"ON THE SIDEWALK"

I am fairly new to your very interesting magazine, but have noticed with much interest your articles on bike legislation and thought perhaps your readers might be interested to know my situation.

I was stationed in Paris at SHAPE (Supreme Headquarters Allied Powers Europe). I had a neat little Honda 50. SHAPE moved to its new location here in Belgium, approximately 35 miles south of Brussels. Small motorcycles are used here mainly for transportation. It is a rare occasion, indeed, to see a Belgian on a big bike. Traffic enforcement here is something else. The only big bikes to be seen in this area are the Belgian gendarmes riding H-Ds.

As I was riding home one day, I was stopped by one of these troops. His first question was “What is the cc rating of your machine?”

I promptly replied, “It’s a Honda 50.” Bikes of 50 cc or less are not permitted on public roads.

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He then told me that I would not be permitted to ride in the street, but must run my machine, as he called it, on the sidewalk. How about that?

I wasn’t about to start driving the car, so immediately purchased a new 90S. I soon learned that I could ride anywhere in complete freedom, so three months later I traded the 90 in for a new CB 450.

Of course, all drivers in this area are completely undisciplined. Traffic violations are seldom issued. So, as you can guess, I really have to be on my toes while riding.

My 450 is a real sensation here. Crowds gather everywhere I go. There are no speed limits in most of Europe, so I am permitted to trust to my own judgment (good or bad). As a result of not being continually hampered by the police, I am really enjoying the wonderful sport of motorcycling. I seldom go anywhere without taking either my wife or one of our five children. It makes me a little unhappy, though, to think about returning to the States and my home in southern California when our tour is completed. I think I’ll head for the hills.

S/Sgt. EDMOND L. ROBERTSON, USAF

APO, N.Y.

"VERY PLEASED"

I was very pleased to hear about the recent Detroit, Mich., court decision regarding the use of safety helmets. The decision by Judge Kaufman on an appeal to the Wayne County Circuit Court by William Duncan might, I hope, set a precedent for further court action.

At this time I wish to make it clear that I am in favor of the wearing of all protective riding gear and adherence to all laws regarding the use of motor vehicles. However, I am not in favor of being required by law to wear protective gear. I feel, as I am sure many others do, that it (and I quote Judge Kaufman) is “an invasion of personal freedom.”

Now, the purpose of this letter: Being a layman in regard to court procedures, I wish to know the steps one may go through to make an appeal to a higher court. I am sure it would be of interest to many of your readers if you could print this information. This, I would hope, might lead to the abolishment of an unfair law in areas other than Detroit.

WAYNE B. ZIMMERMAN Silver City, N.M.

One way to test a law is to get arrested on a charge of violation of that law. If the violator is convicted of lawbreaking by a lower court, he may appeal this decision to a higher court. If this appeal is denied, he can take his case to state appeals and supreme courts, in that order. The final test is in the Supreme Court of the United States. Anyone bent on testing a law by breaking a law should first consult an attorney. Appeals procedures are both lengthy and costly. And, any lawbreaker stands to have his pleas denied, and thus may find himself sitting out a sentence behind bars. Some laws do hold as written. Even U.S. Supreme Court review is no guarantee that a local law will be overturned.—Ed.

"THIS WORLD"

In Oklahoma, you can get a license to operate a motorcycle of less than 5 bhp at the age of 14. (Some bikes are approved for 14-year-olds with over 5 bhp—Yamaha 80, Honda Street 90, etc.) One provision of this is that a 14-yearold cannot be on the roads from 9 p.m. to 4:30 a.m. On my license is a list of restrictions. One reads, “5 bhp motorscooter or motorbike, 4:30 a.m. to 9 p.m., motorcycle only, age 16 or over.”

Also in Oklahoma, riders have to wear helmets, with either a faceshield, goggles or a windshield. Each machine must have two mirrors! Those with restricted licenses cannot ride double.

I happen to know a person who got a ticket from a highway patrolman for having an all-chrome gas tank! The Patrolman said the glare was a safety hazard.

I race a Yamaha 100 Single and realize the importance of a helmet and goggles, but when I go to the corner store for mother and have to wear one, what’s this world coming to.

ÖLEN SERNER Sand Springs, Okla.

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"SLAVES AND SHEEP"

I moved here from Red Bluff, Calif., only to find that a helmet law such as we had been fighting in California had been passed.

From what I have been able to find out, the helmet law was tacked onto some other motor vehicle and licensing laws, and hammered on through. A preliminary hearing was supposedly held here on Maui, but the dealer and others here didn’t seem to know of any such meeting. The second hearing I attended was concerned only with what type of helmet and eye protection was to be required.

At this meeting, E. Alvey Wright, acting highway safety coordinator for the state of Hawaii, presided over this hearing with the air of a lord surveying his slaves and sheep. He repeated throughout the meeting that “...this law has already been passed; please restrict your statements to the requirements for helmets.”

Most of the testimonials given—mine included—were against the passing of such a law. A few good recommendations for requirements were brought up, though. (E. Alvey Wright sat and listened throughout with a painfully overburdened expression.) Several local attorneys and businessmen, most of whom were past motorcyclists, testified that evening against the law, along with the active riders, most of whom brought their wives to the meeting with them. No one testified in favor of the law, although all were in favor of wearing helmets. We all left feeling that it was a waste of time.

The only way to lick this law is to take a trial case through court, which the Hawaii Motorcycle Association, recently formed in Honolulu, with President Roy Henry, intends to do. Wish us luck.

BILL PYLE Puunene, Maui, Hawaii

"CARBON PAPER"

For some time now I have been reading the legislation columns in CYCLE WORLD and have arrived at one major conclusion. We’re not getting anywhere. We write letters that only motorcyclists read, expressing views and ideas, providing information about each other’s state laws—which is all very interesting—but I doubt that many legislators subscribe to CYCLE WORLD, and therefore miss all these good opinions.

One thing that I dislike doing, and believe most people suffer from the same thing, is having to write two letters to different people telling the same news. It’s just damned boring. What I’m getting at is this—how many of us have taken time to write to CYCLE WORLD explaining our legislative troubles, and then not also written to our state and federal legislators expressing the same views? Because we dislike repetitive letters, I believe very few do.

I suggest that next time you plan to write to CYCLE WORLD, write to your

governing authorities instead, and slip in a piece of carbon paper for CW’s copy. Although it may lack that personal touch, I’m sure Joe Parkhurst won’t mind, knowing that the original is out to attempt to change some influential thinking in order to better the sport we all enjoy and take pride in.

Some people think they can write an easy, personal letter to CYCLE WORLD, but feel they have to get long-haired and use big words when writing to a senator; but this isn’t always true. You would be surprised how well a “personal touch” letter is accepted upstairs—if only as a break from the official type stuff.

I feel that I have personally gotten a lot out of reading everyone’s opinions on motorcycle legislation, and am now in a much better position to enact suitable safety requirements. But, unfortunately, I’m a lowly aircraft mechanic and not a senator, so I can’t help you much. I’ve been considering purchasing a few subscriptions to CW for the local, state and federal governing authorities so they could read your opinions, and the way we’re doing now, that’s the only way I see results in sight.

JAMES H. BOWCHEY Forest Park, Ga.

"'L'SIGNS"

Just a word in regard to your rider’s licensing haggle over there: In this country it is necessary to obtain a separate license, issued by the local Department of Motor Transport after oral and practical riding examinations. In this state, Western Australia, they have the rather peculiar and dangerous habit (I think) whereby to learn to ride a cycle or scooter, the learner must carry a pillion passenger who has held a motorcycle license for at least 12 months. This, to my mind, is downright dangerous. What could a passenger do in an emergency, except abandon ship? My own state, New South Wales, does not have this. A learner can learn on his own. Other states I don’t know about.

Safety helmets are not, as yet, compulsory, but the vast majority of riders wear them anyway.

The licensing system is, to my way of thinking, the only logical way to insure a reasonable standard of riding on the roads. Learners have huge “L” signs on the tails of their bikes, thereby warning motorists to keep clear. Thus, you don’t have motorists contending with “village idiot” riding (well, sometimes you get it), and this can only breed a better image in the motorist’s mind.

PHILLIP J. AYLING

Perth, West Australia

"TO ENJOY LIFE"

It seems incredible, yet five years have passed since your first road test of the Triumph Bonneville. I have read every issue, and often receive great pleasure reading over back issues and comparing “then and now,” both in terms of motorcycle advancement and your constant improvement over what started as a rare and excellent publication.

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I am 28, and have been actively motorcycling for approximately 15 years. I have owned Lambrettas, Cushmans, Whizzers, NSUs, Triumphs, Nortons, and, for the past year and a half, have been laboring over restoration of a Vincent Black Lightning. I’ve ridden road, track and trail, and although there are many more qualified, I can say with some degree of truth that I know what I’m talking about. As a deputy probation officer for Los Angeles County, Calif., I constantly work with teen-age boys who seem to reflect the identical view of many of our younger and/or in dependent-minded motorcyclists. That is, “I want to be free to do my ‘thing,’ and I don’t want anyone to tell me I have to wear a helmet.” This is all well and good. I am as tolerant as the next chap, more than most. Yet, today, we do not live in an isolated community, such as 60 or a 100 years ago. We are a nation of 200,000,000 people, and often, one person or event will affect another, even though completely unrelated. When I see young kids, outlaw cycle types, or newcomers, buzzing down the freeways and byways at high speeds, sans goggles, helmets, gloves, boots, or any protective wear whatsoever, I can do nothing but shudder, and wonder how long he or she has to live. These people with the sandals or tennis shoes on bikes should be outlawed! Why? When some kid falls off his 250-cc bomb at anything over 10 mph, all sorts of things happen—skin burns, pavement rash, broken arms, fingers, feet, and worse, massive head injuries.

Let me cite myself as an example. This past Labor Day weekend, while traveling up to Big Sur with the Vincent Owners Club, I unloaded a borrowed Rapide around a sharp curve at about 30 mph. The car, which I sideswiped, was traveling at approximately the same. I bounced my head off the road, fell, rolled, and tumbled. The result was a swollen left foot, which now, two weeks later, is completely well. No bones were broken. My Bell Magnum took everything in stride, and no insurance rates were affected. Had I been dressed like the people who are clamoring for “freedom” from being told what to wear when riding, I would have been brought home in a box!

When someone else takes a spill without protective clothing, not only his but MY insurance rates go up. And I, for one, am tired of paying high premiums for some fool that insists on riding without a helmet, because he doesn’t want to be told what to do! TOUGH! As long as I (and here’s the rub) am being affected by so-called “freedom,” then you have no choice. If I didn’t have to pay for your carelessness, I wouldn’t give a damn! If that 17-yearold, whose heart recently was donated after sustained massive brain damage, had been wearing his skid lid, he might have been around to enjoy life a few more years!

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R. SCHNEIDER Los Angeles, Calif.

"A BIT OF ADVICE"

If you do not mind a bit of advice from a foreigner (Canada), I would like to help you with one of your problems concerning motorcycles. Your government is trying to pass a compulsory helmet law, and I think this should be left up to the individual person. It is true that the country needs a great many laws to keep the people from running amok, but before a law is passed it should be looked into much more thoroughly. Motorcyclists are a minority group; therefore, the motorcyclists who want to be heard should make themselves heard. After all, the car driver or the housewives will not be hurt by this law. It will be you, the motorcyclist.

What I propose is that upon the purchase of a motorcycle registration card, the purchaser would be compelled to show proof of a helmet, or he would not get his ownership until he did. But, the wearing of the helmet would be left up to the individual. This would keep most of the government and all of the motorcyclists happy. The individual would not be compelled by law to wear the helmet, but could do so if he wished. Therefore, the government would be relieved of any blame in case of accident, because government made sure he owned a helmet, but, on his own, chose not to wear it.

This compulsory helmet law will affect us up here in Canada, too. Our government will see what your’s has done and try to do likewise. So get with it, Machine Lovers! Write your Congressmen. Remember, there is no better way of transportation than a motorcycle. Just ask anyone who has ridden one.

ROD N. ROSS Toronto, Ontario, Canada.

"INTERESTING CAMPAIGN"

Charles Conway’s letter in the Legislation Forum (CW, July ’68) presents a very interesting campaign idea. I’ve been mulling over the possibilities in my mind and would like to put forth an idea for your consideration.

There are many of us who are sincerely interested in pushing mature motorcycle legislation, both on local, state and federal levels. Support is required at all echelons of government; from the governor to the state senators and assemblymen; from the federal senators and congressmen to the influential organizations whose support we earnestly desire.

Education and familiarization is the key. I would therefore like to follow Conway’s lead and enter a subscription to CYCLE WORLD in the name of my Congressman, Bob Wilson, of the 36th District of California. I believe your magazine will be the most useful to him of those available because of your

monthly feature: Legislation Forum. By the way, those entering subscriptions should be sure and advise the recipient, so he will be aware of the reason for the subscription and whom to thank.

J. BRADLEY FLIPPIN Falls Church, Va.

"NO OFFENSE"

I am a chopper fan and think a person builds his bike to fit his personality.

As we all know, the law is trying to change a few things—such as handlebars, helmets and crashbars. Do you believe that (crashbars)?

My handlebars are 15 in. high and I wouldn’t have it any other way.

The law—and this is my own opinion—isn’t really doing things for our own safety. It’s just that they’re hoping to discourage motorcycling because of the Hell’s Angels.

Now, don’t take me wrong. I’m not knocking the Hell’s Angels—you don’t see them demonstrating because they can’t see us being in Vietnam, do you? Of course not. They even at one time volunteered to go to V.N. and go to the front lines, so says this article I read. To my way of thinking, this makes them more American than these college students who, in the long run, are the real bums.

I served in the USMC and attended college, so I am in a position to judge from both sides.

As you can see, I got side-tracked somewhere along the line and now that I have everyone completely confused, I’ll try to fix things up by saying only this:

Everyone’s opinion is his own, and if that’s the way the law looks at it, and the way you and I look at it, we will all be a lot better off.

Thank you for letting me bend on your ear—and no offense meant.

MONTE BOWMAN Ashland, Ohio

"WHY WE'RE VICTIMS"

I would like to commend you on the June issue of CW. I agree with the person who said form letters to legislators are bad. If a person can’t take enough time to write a personal letter to his senator or representative, why should legislators bother to read a form letter? If one can’t take time to write a letter, he probably will not take the time to vote against the legislator in question.

I feel that helmets are necessary to the protection of a rider, but I don’t think the state should dictate what we wear. In answer to the question, “Why don’t legislators pass laws requiring auto drivers to wear seat belts and helmets?” I must say that we would have a general rebellion against such laws, and the lawmakers know this. The only reason that motorcyclists are victims of bad, ridiculous laws is the fact that we don’t stick together to uphold our rights. If I were not busy in college, I would probably form a lobby for motorcyclists.

CHARLES CONWAY [Ö1 Gladstone, Mo.