Ups & Downs
Ups & Downs
ROUNDUP
UP: To Urban Ecology, for giving bikes a fair shake. The magazine’s Summer, 2001, cover story lauded the ecological advantages of two-wheeled travel. Wrote author John Anner, “None of this country’s leading environmental organizations or magazines suggests that commuters buy motorcycles as an alternative to cars. Why not? From an environmental point of view, motorcycles can be a far more preferable alternative.”
DOWN: To Natalie Neff, for making a mockery of motorcyclists. At Germany’s Nurburgring for the introduction of the new Cadillac CTS, Autoweek’s Road Test Editor noted the presence of hundreds of riders “just waiting for us to leave so they can dance their two-wheeled waltzes with death.” She added, “On most afternoons, the Nordschleife is open to the public for about $10 per lap, and these guys happily pay over and over to take on the famed track at speeds no sane person would dare. Sometimes a motorcyclist, pumped up on too much testosterone or beer or ego, misses a turn. A local woman tells us it sometimes takes a couple of days to find the body. Today, however, we have the track to ourselves. Perhaps we’ve saved some of these madmen by keeping them off the track.” What a saint...
UP: To Honda, for upping awareness of the Pediatric Brain Tumor Foundation and Ride for Kids. Timed to coincide with National Childhood Cancer month this past September, the company’s “Real Heroes” advertising campaign extols the virtues of RfK and how riders across the nation have banded together to bring hope and a cure to the thousands of children who are battling brain tumors.
